Dawkins v. Carmack

Background

Paul Dawkins began the action against Eric Carmack and EMR Transport, LLC in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of Westchester. The defendants removed the case to the Southern District of New York under the federal diversity-jurisdiction statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a). They asserted that the parties were citizens of different states and that the amount in controversy exceeded $75,000, excluding interest and costs.

Court’s Analysis

The complaint stated only that Dawkins sought damages exceeding the amount required by § 1332(a). The court held that this conclusory statement did not adequately establish that more than $75,000 was at stake. The court explained that the party invoking diversity jurisdiction bears the burden of establishing the jurisdictional amount and that the amount must be supported by non-speculative facts rather than boilerplate allegations.

Order

The court stated that it was unable to conclude that diversity jurisdiction existed based on the complaint’s allegations. It ordered the defendants to file a letter by 5:00 p.m. on March 9, 2023, explaining the basis for their assertion that the amount-in-controversy requirement was satisfied. The defendants were also directed to support factual statements with an affidavit from a person with personal knowledge and to cite authority from the federal appellate circuit. The court stated that failure to properly support jurisdiction would result in remand. It also directed the defendants to serve the order on Dawkins through his counsel.