NEW ORLEANS — A woman who allegedly fell at a Costco store has been denied a motion to amend defendants named in her complaint.
Chavela McIntosh sought to amend on June 5 in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana against Costco Wholesale Corp.
The plaintiff allegedly slipped and fell into a stack of sodas on June 10, 2018. The plaintiff sought to add three Costco employees as defendants.
If the plaintiff were allowed to amend her petition to add the defendants, it would destroy the court’s sole basis for subject-matter jurisdiction. However, the plaintiff’s proposed amendment did not add any specific factual allegations against the added defendants. The plaintiff alleges the defendants were negligent because they failed to fulfill their duties to keep the floor clean and clear of obstacles, but the court determined their addition was motivated solely by adding non-diverse parties to defeat the court’s subject matter jurisdiction.
The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana Case No. is 2:18-CV-09825.