Doe v. Shader
- P. Castel
- 1:25-cv-00748
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Shemiah Ford v. Corey Shader, Judge Castel ordered both parties to file affidavits stating their domiciles to assess diversity jurisdiction.
Plaintiff Shemiah Ford and Defendant Corey Shader, because both must file affidavits stating their states of domicile.
What happened
Shemiah Ford v. Corey Shader concerns whether the parties have adequately shown where they are legally domiciled for diversity jurisdiction. Ford’s complaint says she resides in New York, while Shader’s attorney asserted that Shader is domiciled in Florida, without an affidavit supporting that assertion.
The court explained that a person’s residence alone does not establish legal domicile. Domicile means a person’s true, fixed home and principal place of establishment, with an intention to return when absent.
Judge P. Castel ordered Ford and Shader to file affidavits by December 9, 2025, stating the state in which each is domiciled. The order did not decide the underlying dispute or make a final determination about jurisdiction.
The detailed version
- Doe v. Shader · No. 1:25-cv-00748
- P. Castel
- Nov. 26, 2025
Issue
The order addresses the information needed to evaluate diversity jurisdiction, which generally depends on the parties’ citizenship and requires determining their legal domiciles.
Court’s analysis
Ford’s complaint alleges that she resides in New York. Shader’s attorney asserted that Shader is domiciled in Florida, but the opinion states that no affidavit supported that assertion.
The court explained that residence alone is insufficient to establish domicile for jurisdictional purposes. Domicile is the place where a person has a true, fixed home and principal establishment and intends to return when absent.
Order
By December 9, 2025, Ford and Shader must each file an affidavit stating the state in which that party is domiciled. The order requires additional jurisdictional information; it does not resolve the underlying dispute or state whether diversity jurisdiction exists.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.