Opinion ID: 203996
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Claims brought by Tony Martínez Taveras

Text: Lastly, plaintiffs argue that the district court erred in dismissing state-law claims brought by plaintiff Tony Martínez Taveras, since there was an alternative basis of jurisdiction over those claims. Because Martínez Taveras is a citizen of Germany, plaintiffs argue, the district court has diversity jurisdiction over his state-law claims against defendants. We note that plaintiffs did not move to amend the Second Amended Complaint to reflect a claim of diversity jurisdiction, as is preferable. See 28 U.S.C. § 1653; Com. of Mass. v. U.S. Veterans Admin., 541 F.2d 119, 122 (1st Cir.1976). However, plaintiffs did raise the issue below in a proposed Pretrial Order submitted to the district court, and the defendants had an opportunity to respond to plaintiffs' claim. Because we can easily resolve plaintiffs' argument, we need not decide whether they properly raised the alternative basis of jurisdiction on appeal. See Futura Dev. of P.R. v. Estado Libre Asociado de P.R., 144 F.3d 7, 12 n. 4 (1st Cir.1998). Where it applies, diversity jurisdiction requires complete diversity of citizenship as between all plaintiffs and all defendants. Connectu LLC v. Zuckerberg, 522 F.3d 82, 91 (1st Cir.2008); Gabriel v. Preble, 396 F.3d 10, 13 (1st Cir.2005). This means that diversity jurisdiction does not exist where any plaintiff is a citizen of the same state as any defendant. Díaz-Rodríguez v. Pep Boys Corp., 410 F.3d 56, 58 (1st Cir.2005); see Strawbridge v. Curtiss, 7 U.S. (3 Cranch) 267, 267, 2 L.Ed. 435 (1806), overruled on other grounds, Louisville, Cincinnati & Charleston R.R. Co. v. Letson, 43 U.S. (2 How.) 497, 554-55, 11 L.Ed. 353 (1844). According to the Second Amended Complaint, several of the plaintiffs and the defendants are citizens of Puerto Rico. See 28 U.S.C. § 1332(e) (defining States in the diversity jurisdiction statute to include the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico). Therefore, no diversity jurisdiction exists. Affirmed.