The opinion
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
GARY ANGUS, )
)
Plaintiff, )
)
vs. ) Case No. 24-cv-536-RJD
)
DG RETAIL, LLC, d/b/a )
DOLLAR GENERAL and )
SHAWNA RICKARD, )
)
Defendants. )
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
DALY, Magistrate Judge:
This matter comes before the Court on Plaintiff’s Motion to Remand and For Costs and
Fees (Doc. 12). For the reasons set forth below, Plaintiff’s motion is DENIED.
BACKGROUND
Plaintiff filed his case in Franklin County on January 22, 2024, naming two Defendants:
(1) DG Retail, LLC, d/b/a Dollar General (“DG Retail”); and (2) Shawna Rickard. (Doc. 1-1, p.
6). Plaintiff alleged that he was injured in a slip and fall incident on February 5, 2022, while a
customer at a Dollar General store located at 905 Factory Outlet Drive in West Frankfort, Illinois
(the “Premises”). (Id. at 6-7). Plaintiff further alleged that at all relevant times, Defendant Rickard
was an agent and/or employee of DG Retail and had a duty to maintain and keep the Premises in
a safe condition. (Id. at 6, 8).
On February 26, 2024, DG Retail removed this case to this district court pursuant to 28
U.S.C. §1441, alleging diversity as the sole basis of this Court’s subject matter jurisdiction. (Doc.
1). (Id.). Based on the allegations of the Complaint, Plaintiff is an Illinois citizen. (Doc. 1-1, p.
6). Defendant DG Retail is a single-member limited liability company and is a citizen of Kentucky
and Tennessee. (Doc. 2). Plaintiff alleged in the Complaint that Defendant Rickard is an Illinois
citizen. (Doc. 1-1, p. 6). However, DG Retail argued in the notice of removal that Rickard’s
citizenship should be disregarded because she had not been served with process at the time of the
removal. (Doc. 1, p. 3). To this day, Defendant Rickard has still not been served with process.
On March 5, 2024, Plaintiff filed a motion to remand this case to state court. (Doc. 12).
Plaintiff reasoned that he and Defendant Rickard are Illinois citizens, thus destroying complete
diversity, which is the sole basis for this Court’s subject matter jurisdiction. (Id.). Plaintiff further
argued that Rickard’s citizenship should be considered in determining complete diversity even
though she has not been served with process. (Docs. 1-1, p. 6; 12, p. 3). DG Retail filed a response
raising two arguments. First, it argued that even considering Rickard’s citizenship, there is still
complete diversity because Rickard is a citizen of Kentucky, not a citizen of Illinois, as Plaintiff
alleged in the Complaint. (Doc. 14, p. 2). In support of its response, DG Retail attached Rickard’s
affidavit in which she attested: “On and before January 22, 2024, and to the present, I have been a
resident and citizen of Kentucky, living in Mayfield, Kentucky.” (Doc. 14-1, p.1). Alternatively,
DG Retail argued that Rickard’s citizenship should be disregarded because she was fraudulently
joined to defeat diversity. (Doc. 14, p. 3). Plaintiff did not file a reply or any evidence to contest
Rickard’s affidavit and support his allegation that Rickard is a citizen of Illinois. Further, none of
the parties requested limited discovery on the issue of determining Rickard’s citizenship or an
evidentiary hearing on that matter. See SDIL-LR 7.1 (c) (“Any party desiring oral argument on a
motion shall file a formal motion and state the reason why oral argument is requested”).
ANALYSIS
Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1441, “any civil action brought in a State court of which the district
courts of the United States have original jurisdiction, may be removed by the defendant or the
defendants, to the district court of the United States for the district and division embracing the
place where such action is pending.” 28 U.S.C. § 1441(a). Under 28 U.S.C. § 1332, a federal
district court has original subject matter jurisdiction over actions involving complete diversity
between the parties where the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000, exclusive of interest and
costs. See 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a)(1); LM Ins. Corp. v. Spaulding Enters. Inc., 533 F.3d 542, 547 (7th
Cir. 2008). Complete diversity means that “none of the parties on either side of the litigation may
be a citizen of the state of which a party on the other side is a citizen.” Howell v. Tribune
Entertainment Co., 106 F.3d 215, 217 (7th Cir. 1997) (citations omitted). For purposes of diversity
jurisdiction, citizenship “is equated with domicile, and an individual establishes a domicile when
they physically reside in a state while simultaneously intending to remain there indefinitely.”
Brown v. Gartner, No. 23-1780, 2023 WL 8827633, at *2 (7th Cir. 2023) (citation omitted). A
party’s intent to establish domicile may be inferred from factors including “voter and vehicle
registrations, driver’s or professional licenses, location of property, relationships, and tax filings.”
Id. (citation omitted).
The Seventh Circuit has instructed that the removal statute should be interpreted narrowly,
taking into account the presumption that the plaintiff may choose his or her forum. Doe v. Allied-
Signal, Inc., 985 F.2d 908, 911 (7th Cir. 1993). Any removal doubts “should be resolved in favor
of remand to the state court.” Id. (citation omitted). At the same time, where the Court’s
jurisdiction is challenged as a factual matter, “the party invoking the jurisdiction bears the burden
of supporting its jurisdictional allegations by ‘competent proof,” meaning “a preponderance of the
evidence or proof to a reasonable probability that jurisdiction exists.” NLFC, Inc. v. Devcom Mid-
America, Inc., 45 F.3d 231, 237 (7th Cir. 1995) (internal citation and quotation marks omitted).
The district court not only has the right but also the “duty to look beyond the allegations of the
complaint to determine” if it has subject matter jurisdiction. Hay v. Indiana State Bd. of Tax
Comm'rs, 312 F.3d 876, 879 (7th Cir. 2002). The court can consider “summary judgment-type
evidence such as affidavits and deposition testimony, provided that the court does not use this
evidence to pre-try the case[.]” Ayotte v. Boeing Co., 316 F. Supp. 3d 1066, 1072 (N.D. Ill. 2018)
(alteration in the original)(citation and internal quotation marks omitted)); see also Miller v. Fryzel,
499 F. App'x 601 (7th Cir. 2013) (an affidavit in which a defendant attested that Illinois always
had been his domicile and acknowledged paying Virginia income taxes but averred that he received
mail at his Illinois residence, held an Illinois driver's license, and was registered to vote in Illinois,
sufficed to establish defendant’s continuing domicile in Illinois, for diversity jurisdiction purposes,
despite attorney's residence in Virginia); Venezia v. Robinson, 16 F.3d 209, 211–12 (7th Cir.1994)
(district court could consider affidavits in deciding whether requirements of federal jurisdiction
were satisfied).
Turning to this case, the Court notes that the parties do not dispute that the amount in
controversy exceeds $75,000. There is further no dispute that Plaintiff is a citizen of Illinois, while
Defendant DG Retail is a citizen of Kentucky and Tennessee. The issue of removal hinges only
on the citizenship of Defendant Rickard. As set forth above, the burden of establishing complete
diversity lies with DG Retail, which is the party arguing for the removal. In support of its response
in opposition to the motion to remand, DG Retail provided Defendant Rickard’s affidavit stating
that at the time the complaint was filed, she was, and continues to be, a resident and citizen of the
State of Kentucky. (Doc. 14-1, p.1). While the record is limited, this affidavit is still competent
evidence to support a finding of Rickard’s citizenship. Further, Plaintiff has not filed a reply or
any evidence to contest Rickard’s affidavit and support his allegation that Rickard is a citizen of
Illinois. As noted above, Plaintiff did not request limited discovery on the issue of determining
Rickard’s citizenship or an evidentiary hearing on that matter. In light of Rickard’s uncontested
affidavit regarding her Kentucky citizenship, the Court FINDS that DG Retail has satisfied its
burden of proof to show complete diversity between the parties in this dispute: neither DG Retail
nor Rickard are citizens of Illinois, which is Plaintiff’s state of citizenship. Because the Court
finds that even considering Rickard’s citizenship, there is still complete diversity, there is no need
to address whether Rickard has been fraudulently joined in this case.
CONCLUSION
For these reasons, Plaintiff’s Motion to Remand to State Court (Doc. 12) is DENIED. The
Court further notes that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m) requires service upon a defendant
within 90 days after the suit is filed. Plaintiff’s Complaint was filed more than 90 days ago but
Defendant Rickard has not yet been served with process. FED. R. CIV. P. 4(m). Plaintiff is
WARNED that his claims against Defendant Rickard will be dismissed for want of prosecution
unless Defendant Rickard is served—or Plaintiff establishes good cause for the failure to serve
her—by November 15, 2024.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: October 15, 2024
s/ Reona J. Daly
Hon. Reona J. Daly
United States Magistrate Judge