UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA 

HAMMOND DIVISION 

ANTHONY E. ELLO and EVELYN ELLO, 

 Plaintiffs, 

v. CAUSE NO.: 2:14-CV-299-TLS 

GARY R. BRINTON and SEVEN PEAKS 

MARKETING CHICAGO, LLC, 

 Defendants. 

OPINION AND ORDER 

 This matter is before the Court sua sponte. The Court must continuously police its subject 

matter jurisdiction. Hay v. Ind. State Bd. of Tax Comm’rs, 312 F.3d 876, 879 (7th Cir. 2002). 

The Complaint alleges that the Court’s original subject matter jurisdiction is based on 

diversity of citizenship under 28 U.S.C. § 1332. (ECF No. 1, ¶ 7). Diversity jurisdiction exists 

when the parties to an action on each side are citizens of different states, with no defendant a 

citizen of the same state as any plaintiff, and the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000.00. See 

28 U.S.C. § 1332(a)(1). As the parties seeking to invoke this Court’s jurisdiction, the Plaintiffs 

bear the burden of demonstrating that the jurisdictional requirements have been met. Hertz Corp. 

v. Friend, 559 U.S. 77, 98 (2010); Smart v. Local 702 Int’l Bhd. of Elec. Workers, 562 F.3d 798, 

802 (7th Cir. 2009). A failure to meet that burden can result in a dismissal. See Mut. Assignment 

& Indem. Co. v. Lind-Waldock & Co., LLC, 364 F.3d 858, 861 (7th Cir. 2004). In this case, the 

Plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged that amount in controversy exceeds $75,000.00. 

 As for diversity of citizenship, the Plaintiffs allege that the Plaintiffs Anthony E. Ello and 

Evelyn Ello are citizens “residing in the state of Indiana” and that the individual Defendant Gary 

R. Brinton is a “citizen residing in the state of Utah.” (ECF No. 1, ¶¶ 3–5). Citizenship of a natural 
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person is determined by domicile, not by residence. Dakuras v. Edwards, 312 F.3d 256, 258 (7th 

Cir. 2002); see also Heinen v. Northrop Grumman Corp., 671 F.3d 669, 670 (7th Cir. 2012) 

(A[R]esidence may or may not demonstrate citizenship, which depends on domicile—that is to say, 

the state in which a person intends to live over the long run.@); Guar. Nat’l Title Co., Inc. v. J.E.G. 

Assocs., 101 F.3d 57, 58–59 (7th Cir. 1996) (explaining that statements concerning a party’s 

“residency” are not proper allegations of citizenship as required by 28 U.S.C. ' 1332). Thus, the 

Plaintiffs must allege the domicile of the Plaintiff Anthony E. Ello, the Plaintiff Evelyn Ello, and 

the Defendant Gary Brinton as of the date the Complaint was filed, August 25, 2014. 

 Likewise, the citizenship of the Defendant Seven Peaks Marketing Chicago, LLC, is not 

properly alleged, as the Complaint alleges that Seven Peaks Marketing Chicago, LLC is a “now 

expired limited liability company with its principal place of business located at 3214 North 

University Avenue, Suite 615, Provo, Utah 84604.” Id. at ¶ 6. This allegation of citizenship is 

deficient because a limited liability company is analogous to a partnership and takes the citizenship 

of its members. Belleville Catering Co. v. Champaign Mkt. Place, LLC, 350 F.3d 691, 692 (7th 

Cir. 2003). If the members of the limited liability company are themselves limited liability 

companies, the Plaintiffs must also plead the citizenship of those members as of the date the 

Complaint was filed. Thomas v. Guardsmark, LLC, 487 F.3d 531, 534 (7th Cir. 2007) (“[A]n 

LLC’s jurisdictional statement must identify the citizenship of each of its members as of the date 

the complaint or notice of removal was filed, and, if those members have members, the citizenship 

of those members as well.”). Thus, the Plaintiffs must allege the citizenship of each member of 

Seven Peaks Marketing Chicago, LLC. The Court notes that, in his deposition, Defendant Brinton 

appears to confirm that the sole members of Seven Peaks Marketing Chicago, LLC are his wife 
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and himself. (ECF No. 135-1, Ex. C, p. 64). However, his testimony is not entirely clear, and there 

is no information about the citizenship of his wife on August 25, 2014. 

 Accordingly, the Court ORDERS the Plaintiffs to FILE, on or before, June 21, 2019, a 

supplemental jurisdictional statement identifying (1) the domicile of Anthony E. Ello on August 

25, 2014, (2) the domicile of Evelyn Ello on August 25, 2014, (3) the domicile of Gary R. Brinton 

on August 25, 2014, and (4) the citizenship on August 25, 2014, of each of the members of Seven 

Peaks Marketing Chicago, LLC, and, if any of the members themselves have members, the 

citizenship of those members, and so on until the citizenship of all owners and members of 

members have been identified. If the Plaintiffs have already filed a supplemental jurisdictional 

statement on the docket, they may satisfy the requirements of this Order by citation to that filing. 

 SO ORDERED on June 7, 2019. 

s/ Theresa L. Springmann 

CHIEF JUDGE THERESA L. SPRINGMANN 

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT