BATON ROUGE, La. – The defendants in a medical malpractice lawsuit, originally filed in Louisiana state court, have requested it be removed to federal court.
Defendants LA Westfork LLC and ARK Post Acute Network LLC filed their removal notice to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana Jan. 5.
The action was originally filed by Allen Rose, as mandatary for Edward Rose, Dec. 2. Rose filed the petition for damages in the 19th Judicial District Court for the Parish of East Baton Rouge.
Legally speaking, a mandatary is a person or entity who is given the authority – often through a power of attorney or similar document – to act on someone else’s behalf.
LA Westfork and ARK, in their nine-page notice, contend the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000 and there is diversity of citizenship.
In federal court, the “amount in controversy” refers to the monetary value of a plaintiff’s claim. This must exceed $75,000, exclusive of interest and costs, for diversity jurisdiction.
According to the filing, LA Westfork was served with Rose’s petition on Dec. 15 and ARK was served on Dec. 17. Rose’s petition was filed in state court Dec. 2.
LA Westfork is a for-profit company associated with White Oak Post Acute Care, a skilled nursing facility located in Baton Rouge, providing post-hospital care, rehabilitation, and long-term nursing services.
ARK, according to its website, currently manages a network of 14 post-acute, assisted living, independent living, and memory care facilities.
Allen Rose alleges ARK was negligent in its care of Edward Rose. In particular, he claims physical injuries and damages allegedly resulted from underfunding and understaffing – including past and future medical expenses for the treatment of pressure sores; general damages; disability; disfigurement; and loss of enjoyment of life.
Allen Rose also alleges LA Westfork violated the state’s Nursing Home Residents’ Bill of Rights, and seeks attorneys’ fees.
“While Defendants dispute and reserve all rights to contest all elements of Plaintiff’s claim, the alleged facts support a finding that the amount in controversy exceeds the $75,000 threshold where cases [with] similar facts have awarded in excess of this amount,” the notice states, pointing to other legal precedents.
Rose is a Louisiana resident; however, LA Westfork claims in its removal notice that it is not.
Citizenship, the defendant argues, is determined by “the citizenship of its members.” The citizenship of a corporation is determined based on the principal place of business. LA Westfork claims it is a citizen of Wyoming.
ARK makes similar arguments, claiming it, too, is a Wyoming citizen.
Baton Rouge law firm Keogh Cox & Wilson Ltd. is representing the defendants in the action.
