Opinion
1:23-cv-01800-JPH-MJD
10-10-2023
QP CAPITAL, LLC, Plaintiff, v. INDIANA DEPARTMENT OF CHILD SERVICES, Defendant.
JURISDICTIONAL SHOW CAUSE ORDER
JAMES PATRICK HANLON UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE.
QP Capital, LLC brought this case against the Indiana Department of Child Services, alleging that this Court has diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a)(1). Dkt. 1 at 1. For the Court to have diversity jurisdiction under 1332(a)(1), the amount in controversy must exceed $75,000, exclusive of interest and costs, and the litigation must be between citizens of different states.
The Indiana Department of Child Services "is an agency of the State of Indiana," dkt. 1 at 1, and appears to be an "arm of the state," Boston v. Ind. Dep. of Child Servs., No. 1:19-cv-3279-JRS-MPB, 2021 WL 795452 at *3 (S.D. Ind. Mar. 2, 2021); see DuPage Reg. Off. of Ed. v. U.S. Dept. of Ed., 58 F.4th 326, 338-39 (7th Cir. 2023). The Court has diversity jurisdiction, however, over civil actions that are between citizens of different states." 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a)(1) (emphasis added). And "[t]here is no question that a State is not a 'citizen' for purposes of the diversity jurisdiction." Moor v. Alameda Cnty., 411 U.S. 693, 717 (1973); see Issawi v. Penn. Higher Ed. Assistance Agency, 745 Fed.Appx. 638, 639 (7th Cir. 2018) ("[A] state cannot be a citizen of itself.").
Because this case does not appear to be between citizens of different states, QP Capital, LLC SHALL SHOW CAUSE by November 3, 2023 why this case should not be dismissed without prejudice for lack of jurisdiction.
SO ORDERED.