Volkswagen of America, Inc. v. GPB Capital Holdings, LLC
- Analisa Torres
- 1:20-cv-01043
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Volkswagen of America v. GPB Capital, Judge Torres ordered an amended complaint alleging every GPB member’s citizenship to establish diversity jurisdiction.
Volkswagen of America, Inc. had to amend its complaint by February 24, 2020, to provide the required citizenship allegations. GPB Capital Holdings, LLC and the case were at risk of dismissal if complete diversity was not truthfully alleged.
What happened
Volkswagen of America, Inc. sued GPB Capital Holdings, LLC, claiming federal court jurisdiction based on the parties’ citizenship. The opinion does not describe the underlying claims.
The court explained that an LLC’s citizenship includes the citizenship of each of its members. The complaint therefore had to identify the citizenship of each person or entity that made up GPB Capital Holdings, LLC.
Judge Analisa Torres ordered Volkswagen to amend its complaint by February 24, 2020. She warned that if Volkswagen did not truthfully allege complete diversity, the complaint would be dismissed for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction.
The detailed version
- Volkswagen of America, Inc. v. GPB Capital Holdings, LLC · No. 1:20-cv-01043
- Analisa Torres
- Feb. 10, 2020
Background
Volkswagen of America, Inc. brought an action against GPB Capital Holdings, LLC. The complaint invoked diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332, which allows a federal court to hear certain disputes involving citizens of different states when the jurisdictional requirements are met.
Jurisdictional issue
The court noted that GPB Capital Holdings, LLC appeared to be a limited liability company, and the complaint alleged that it was one. For diversity-jurisdiction purposes, an LLC has the citizenship of each of its members. The complaint therefore needed to identify the citizenship of every natural person who was a member and the state of incorporation and principal place of business of every corporate entity that was a member.
Ruling
The court ordered Volkswagen to amend its pleading by February 24, 2020, to allege the citizenship of each constituent person or entity of GPB Capital Holdings, LLC. Judge Analisa Torres stated that if Volkswagen failed to amend the complaint by that date to truthfully allege complete diversity, the complaint would be dismissed for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. The order did not itself dismiss the complaint or decide the underlying claims.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.