Vincent Derosa v. Costco Wholesale Corporation

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

VINCENT DEROSA, 2:24-cv-00442-DSF-AJRx Plaintiff, Order GRANTING Motion to v. Remand (Dkt. 13)

COSTCO WHOLESALE

CORPORATION, et al., Defendants.

On January 17, 2024, Defendant Costco Wholesale Corporation removed this case from state court. Plaintiff Vincent Derosa now moves to remand. The Court deems this matter appropriate for decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 78; Local Rule 7- 15. Plaintiff makes several arguments in favor of remand, most significantly that there is not complete diversity and that, even if there were, the notice of removal was untimely. There is no dispute that Defendant Costco Wholesale Membership, Inc. (Costco Membership) is a California corporation and not diverse from Plaintiff, who is a California citizen. Therefore, there would appear to be no subject matter jurisdiction over the case in this Court. Defendants try to counter the apparent lack of complete diversity by arguing that Costco Membership fraudulently joined. A defendant who is a resident of the forum state is fraudulently joined “‘if the plaintiff fails to state a cause of action…