Stempien v. Central Mutual Insurance Company
| Catherine Suzanne Stempien |
| Central Mutual Insurance Company |
| 8:2022cv01815 |
| August 9, 2022 |
| US District Court for the Middle District of Florida |
| Virginia M Hernandez Covington |
| Thomas G Wilson |
| Insurance |
| 28 U.S.C. ยง 1332 Diversity-Insurance Contract |
| Both |
Docket Report
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Filing 14
ORDER: The Clerk is directed to REMAND this case to state court because the Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction. After remand, the Clerk shall CLOSE this case. Signed by Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington on 8/16/2022. (DRG)
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| Filing 13 CORPORATE Disclosure Statement by Central Mutual Insurance Company identifying Corporate Parent Central Mutual Insurance Company for Central Mutual Insurance Company. (Brown, James) |
| Filing 12 ANSWER and affirmative defenses to Complaint with Jury Demand by Central Mutual Insurance Company.(Brown, James) |
| Filing 11 NOTICE of a related action per Local Rule 1.07(c) by Central Mutual Insurance Company. Related case(s): No (Brown, James) |
| Filing 10 NOTICE of Additional Information in Support by Central Mutual Insurance Company re #1 Notice of Removal. (Brown, James) |
| Filing 9 NOTICE of Local Rule 3.03, which requires each party to file a disclosure statement with the first appearance that identifies (1) each person that has or might have an interest in the outcome, (2) each entity with publicly traded shares or debt potentially affected by the outcome, (3) each additional entity likely to actively participate, and (4) each person arguably eligible for restitution. The disclosure statement must include this certification - I certify that, except as disclosed, I am unaware of an actual or potential conflict of interest affecting the district judge or the magistrate judge in this action, and I will immediately notify the judge in writing within fourteen days after I know of a conflict. (Signed by Deputy Clerk). (TWL) |
| Filing 8 NOTICE of Local Rule 1.07(c), which requires lead counsel to promptly file a Notice of a Related Action that identifies and describes any related action pending in the Middle District or elsewhere. (Signed by Deputy Clerk). (TWL) |
| Filing 7 NOTICE informing the parties that they may consent to the jurisdiction of a United States magistrate judge by filing Form AO 85 Notice, Consent, and Reference of a Civil Action to a Magistrate Judge using the event Consent to Jurisdiction of US Magistrate Judge. (Signed by Deputy Clerk). (TWL) |
| Filing 6 NOTICE to counsel Katherine C. Neal, Maria Glinatsi of Local Rule 2.02(a), which requires designation of one lead counsel who - unless the party changes the designation - remains lead counsel throughout the action. File a Notice of Lead Counsel Designation to identify lead counsel. (Signed by Deputy Clerk). (SET) |
| Filing 5 NOTICE to counsel Maria Glinatsi of Local Rule 2.01(a), which requires membership or special admission in the Middle District bar to practice in the Middle District, except for the limited exceptions identified in the Rule. To apply for membership in the Middle District, visit www.flmd.uscourts.gov/for-lawyers. (Signed by Deputy Clerk). (SET) |
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Filing 3
ENDORSED ORDER: On August 9, 2022, Defendant Central Mutual Insurance Company removed the case to this Court on the basis of diversity jurisdiction. (Doc. # 1). The Complaint does not specify the amount of damages sought, and when "damages are unspecified, the removing party bears the burden of establishing the jurisdictional amount by a preponderance of the evidence." Lowery v. Ala. Power Co., 483 F.3d 1184, 1208 (11th Cir. 2007). Central Mutual relies on a pre-suit demand letter from Plaintiff Catherine Stempien to establish that the amount in controversy exceeds the $75,000 jurisdictional threshold. But demand letters do not automatically establish the amount in controversy. Lamb v. State Farm Fire Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., No. 3:10-cv-615-J-32JRK, 2010 WL 6790539, at *2 (M.D. Fla. Nov. 5, 2010) (stating that demand letters and settlement offers "do not automatically establish the amount in controversy for purposes of diversity jurisdiction"). Rather, courts evaluate whether demand letters "reflect puffing and posturing" or "whether they provide 'specific information to support the plaintiff's claim for damages.'" Lamb, 2010 WL 6790539, at *2 (quoting Jackson v. Select Portfolio Servicing, Inc., 651 F. Supp. 2d 1279, 1281 (S.D. Ala. 2009)). Here, Stempien's letter demands the full amount of the combined bodily injury and underinsured motorist policy limits, which Central Mutual alleges in its Notice of Removal to be $500,000. (Doc. # 1-4 at 3, 1 at 2). However, Central Mutual provides no factual support for any concrete damages requested. Therefore, it appears to the Court that the demand letter is mere puffery. Central Mutual also relies on the state court civil cover sheet's "amount of claim" section, in which Stempien checked that the estimated amount of the claim was over $100,000. (Doc. # 1-5). However, the Court will not consider the estimated amount of the claim from the state court civil cover sheet because that cover sheet states that the "amount of the claim shall not be used for any other purpose" than the state court's "data collection and clerical processing purposes." (Doc. # 1-5); see also Bell v. Ace Ins. Co. of the Midwest, No. 2:20-cv-309-JLB-NPM, 2020 WL 7396934, at *3 (M.D. Fla. Dec. 17, 2020) ("To give the state civil cover sheet a substantive effect for purposes of the removal statute, as Plaintiffs argue the Court should do, would contravene the Supreme Court of Florida's own rule prohibiting the use of information in the cover sheet for any purpose other than the State's collection of data). Thus, Central Mutual has not established that the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000 by a preponderance of the evidence. Accordingly, Central Mutual is directed to provide additional information establishing, if possible, that the amount in controversy requirement has been met by August 16, 2022. Signed by Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington on 8/10/2022. (DRG)
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Filing 4
STANDING ORDER regarding discovery motions. Signed by Magistrate Judge Thomas G. Wilson on 8/09/2022. (ABC)
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| Filing 2 NEW CASE ASSIGNED to Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington and Magistrate Judge Thomas G. Wilson. New case number: 8:22-cv-1815-VMC-TGW. (SJB) |
| Filing 1 COMPLAINT and NOTICE OF REMOVAL from Sixth Judicial Circuit, case number 22-003447 filed in State Court on 7/18/2022. Filing fee $402, receipt number AFLMDC-19864249 filed by Central Mutual Insurance Company. (Attachments: #1 State Court COMPLAINT, #2 Civil Cover Sheet, #3 Exhibit, #4 Exhibit, #5 State Court Other Documents, #6 Exhibit, #7 Exhibit, #8 Exhibit, #9 Exhibit)(Brown, James) |
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| Plaintiff: Catherine Suzanne Stempien | |
| Represented By: | Katherine C. Neal |
| Represented By: | Maria Glinatsi |
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| Defendant: Central Mutual Insurance Company | |
| Represented By: | James R. Brown |
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