Alice, a citizen of Georgia, is injured when a truck owned by BetaCorp, a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in Florida, collides with her car. Alice files a negligence action in a federal district court seated in Georgia. She names as defendants (1) BetaCorp and (2) Charlie, the truck's driver, who is also a citizen of Georgia. Alice seeks $100,000 in compensatory damages and asserts no federal claims. BetaCorp and Charlie move to dismiss for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction.
Should the district court grant the motion?
No. Complete diversity is lacking because the plaintiff and one defendant share Georgia citizenship, so the court has no subject-matter jurisdiction.
Yes. Minimal diversity is constitutionally sufficient, and the presence of a non-diverse defendant does not matter when the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000.
Yes. The amount in controversy exceeds $75,000, and diversity exists as long as at least one defendant is a citizen of a different state from the plaintiff.
No. The court lacks jurisdiction because the amount in controversy must exceed $250,000 when multiple defendants are sued.
The motion should be granted. Although the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000, complete diversity is lacking because both the plaintiff (Alice) and one defendant (Charlie) are citizens of Georgia. Under Strawbridge v. Curtiss and 28 U.S.C. § 1332, diversity jurisdiction requires that no plaintiff share state citizenship with any defendant. The presence of a non-diverse defendant therefore defeats diversity jurisdiction, and no other basis of federal jurisdiction is pleaded. The other answer choices misstate the diversity rules or the amount-in-controversy requirement.
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