Wilson v. Bruks-Klockner Inc.

Plaintiffs-Appellants (1) Kevin Wilson, individually and on behalf of his children, and (2) Kevin Wilson’s wife, Peggy Renae Wilson, (collectively “Plaintiffs”), all Louisiana residents, appeal the district court’s order denying their motion for leave to amend their complaint that had been filed first in a state court of Louisiana against non-resident defendants and was then removed by the defendants to federal court on the basis of diversity of citizenship. Plaintiffs’ motion to amend sought to add a non-diverse defendant, Reynolds Industrial Contractors, Inc. (“Reynolds”), in place of a voluntarily dismissed diverse defendant, Pierce Construction Company (“Pierce”). If allowed, that amendment would have destroyed federal diversity jurisdiction. After permitting limited discovery, the district court denied Plaintiffs’ motion to amend, holding, on the basis of a Louisiana statute of peremption,*fn1 that Plaintiffs could assert no colorable claim against Reynolds and thus should be denied leave to implead it at the cost of destroying subject matter jurisdiction. After the court designated its order as a final judgment, Plaintiffs appealed. We affirm.

I. FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS