Mendez v. Kousoulis
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:22-cv-00470
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
Mendez v. Kousoulis: Judge Schofield ordered defendants to explain why the removed case should return to state court for possible lack of jurisdiction.
The order directly affected the defendants, who had to explain the basis for federal jurisdiction and serve the order, and the plaintiffs, who could be affected if the case was returned to state court.
What happened
In Mendez v. Kousoulis, defendants moved the case from New York state court to federal court, claiming that federal diversity jurisdiction allowed the move.
The court noted that the notice did not establish the citizenship of Defendant DBA Mega Trust Transport, which was described as a business, corporation, and partnership operating in New Jersey. Without that information, the court could not determine whether federal jurisdiction existed.
Judge Schofield ordered defendants to explain in writing by January 27, 2022, why the case should not be sent back to the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Bronx County, for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. The court also ordered defendants to serve the order on plaintiffs and file proof of service.
The detailed version
- Mendez v. Kousoulis · No. 1:22-cv-00470
- Lorna Schofield
- Jan. 25, 2022
Background
Defendants filed a notice removing the action from the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Bronx County, to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. They asserted that removal was proper because of diversity jurisdiction, which generally permits a federal court to hear certain disputes involving citizens of different states or foreign countries.
Jurisdictional issue
The party asserting federal jurisdiction has the burden of proving that jurisdiction exists. For diversity jurisdiction, a corporation's citizenship includes its state of incorporation and its principal place of business. A limited liability company has the citizenship of all its members, and a partnership has the citizenship of all its partners.
The complaint described Defendant DBA Mega Trust Transport as a business, corporation, and partnership operating in New Jersey. The notice of removal repeated the allegation that it operated in New Jersey, but it did not provide enough information to determine the entity's citizenship. The court stated that it could not assume subject-matter jurisdiction when the record lacked the necessary facts.
Order
The court did not yet remand the case. Instead, it ordered defendants to show cause in writing by January 27, 2022, why the case should not be remanded to the state court for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. Judge Lorna G. Schofield also ordered defendants to serve plaintiffs with the order and file proof of service on the docket by the same date.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.