City of New York v. Arm Or Ally, LLC
- Jesse Furman
- 1:22-cv-05525
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In City of New York v. Arm Or Ally, Judge Furman ordered the City to allege the defendant companies’ citizenship or face dismissal for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction.
The City of New York and defendants Arm or Ally LLC, Rainier Arms, LLC, Salvo Technologies, Inc., Rock Slide USA, LLC, and Indie Guns, LLC.
What happened
In City of New York v. Arm Or Ally, the City sued Arm or Ally LLC and four other defendants, relying on diversity jurisdiction, which allows certain cases between citizens of different states in federal court. The complaint identified some states for the defendant companies but did not identify the citizenship of each person or entity that makes up the limited liability companies.
The court ordered the City to amend its complaint by July 27, 2022, to provide that information. The court did not dismiss the case in this order. It warned that if the City could not truthfully allege complete diversity, the complaint would be dismissed for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction without further notice.
Judge Jesse M. Furman issued the order on July 13, 2022. The order addressed only whether the complaint adequately established federal jurisdiction and did not decide the underlying claims.
The detailed version
- City of New York v. Arm Or Ally, LLC · No. 1:22-cv-05525
- Jesse Furman
- July 13, 2022
Background
The City of New York sued Arm or Ally LLC, Rainier Arms, LLC, Salvo Technologies, Inc., Rock Slide USA, LLC, and Indie Guns, LLC. The City invoked diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332. The complaint alleged that several defendant limited liability companies were citizens of specified states, but it did not identify the citizenship of every person or entity that comprised those companies.
Jurisdictional issue
For diversity jurisdiction, a limited liability company is treated as a citizen of every state where its members are citizens. A complaint relying on diversity jurisdiction therefore must identify the citizenship of each member of an LLC. If an LLC member is another LLC, the complaint must trace that entity’s membership as well. If a member is a corporation, the complaint must identify the corporation’s state of incorporation and principal place of business.
Order
The court ordered the City, no later than July 27, 2022, to amend its complaint to allege the citizenship of each person or entity comprising the defendant LLCs. The court stated that, unless it ordered otherwise, the complaint would be dismissed for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction without further notice if the City could not truthfully allege complete diversity. This order did not itself dismiss the complaint and did not decide the underlying claims. Judge Jesse M. Furman signed the order.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.