Edwards v. Thermigen LLC
- Jacquelyn Corley
- 3:21-cv-01828
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 2
In Edwards v. Thermigen, Judge Corley ordered more information about Thermigen’s members to determine whether diversity jurisdiction exists.
Dr. Sharon de Edwards must provide information about the citizenship of each Thermigen LLC member so the court can assess federal diversity jurisdiction; the underlying claims were not decided.
What happened
In Edwards v. Thermigen LLC, the complaint claimed that the federal court could hear the case because the parties were citizens of different states. The complaint identified Dr. Sharon de Edwards as a California citizen and described Thermigen as a foreign corporation registered and doing business in California.
The court explained that a limited liability company is considered a citizen of every state where its members are citizens. The complaint did not identify the citizenship of each Thermigen member, and no other clear basis for federal jurisdiction appeared from the complaint.
Judge Jacquelyn Scott Corley ordered Dr. de Edwards to file supplemental information by January 19, 2023, identifying each Thermigen member’s citizenship. The order did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- Edwards v. Thermigen LLC · No. 3:21-cv-01828
- Jacquelyn Corley
- Jan. 12, 2023
Background
The operative first amended complaint alleges claims by Dr. Sharon de Edwards against Thermigen LLC. It asserts federal subject-matter jurisdiction based on diversity of citizenship. The complaint identifies Dr. de Edwards as a citizen of California and describes Thermigen as a registered foreign corporation in California, with an Austin, Texas address, that sells medical devices and does business throughout California.
Jurisdictional issue
The court explained that an LLC is a citizen of every state in which each of its owners or members is a citizen. The complaint did not allege the citizenship of each Thermigen member, so it did not adequately establish diversity jurisdiction. The court also stated that no other clear basis for federal-question jurisdiction appeared from the complaint.
Order
The court ordered Dr. de Edwards to file supplemental information by January 19, 2023, setting out the citizenship of each Thermigen member. The court cited the rule that federal courts have limited jurisdiction and independently must determine whether subject-matter jurisdiction exists. This was an order to show cause concerning jurisdiction; it did not resolve the underlying claims.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.