Kari Schweizer v. Rowley Living Trust

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky considered Plaintiff Kari Schweizer’s motion to amend her complaint and remand a removed premises-liability action to state court. The Court permitted joinder of Dollar General Partners but denied joinder of Elite Seal, LLC, concluding that the plaintiff lacked a reasonable basis for recovery against Elite Seal under Kentucky premises-liability law and that joinder would destroy diversity jurisdiction. The Court denied remand and ordered the plaintiff to tender an amended complaint adding Dollar General Partners within fourteen days.

Holdings

1. The court denied joinder of Elite Seal because the § 1447(e) factors weighed against amendment. The court considered the purpose of the amendment, the timing of the request, prejudice, and other equitable factors, and treated the existence of a colorable claim against the proposed defendant as relevant to that analysis.
2. Schweizer lacked a reasonable basis for recovery against Elite Seal on the allegations and facts presented because Elite Seal performed only a specific repair and did not own, occupy, control, or take entire charge of the parking lot.
3. The court held that fraudulent joinder was not technically the governing label for a joinder occurring after removal, but that the existence of a colorable claim against the proposed nondiverse defendant could inform and potentially be dispositive of the § 1447(e) analysis.
4. The court granted Schweizer leave to amend to add Dollar General Partners because Rowley did not oppose that joinder.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Plaintiff should be permitted under 28 U.S.C. § 1447(e) to join nondiverse Elite Seal, LLC after removal.
2. Whether the proposed claim against Elite Seal was colorable under Kentucky premises-liability and negligence law.
3. Whether Plaintiff should be permitted to amend the complaint to add nonopposed Dollar General Partners.
4. Whether joinder of Elite Seal required remand for lack of complete diversity.

Disposition

other