Dist. Ct. did not err in dismissing plaintiff’s lawsuit alleging that defendants’ actions led to plaintiff losing stake in partnership, where procedural history indicated that: (1) plaintiff had originally filed said claim in federal court and then stipulated to dismissal without prejudice, where one defendant destroyed diversity jurisdiction; (2) plaintiff then re-filed same claim in state court, which dismissed one of plaintiff’s claims; and (3) plaintiff then re-filed remaining claims in federal court, minus defendant that had destroyed diversity jurisdiction in first federal lawsuit. Dist. Ct. could properly find that dismissal was warranted under section 13-217 (735 ILCS 5/13-217), which precludes plaintiff from re-filing same lawsuit more than once, where: (1) stipulated dismissal of first federal lawsuit constituted “voluntary” dismissal under Rule 41(a); and (2) instant re-filing of remaining claims constituted plaintiff’s third lawsuit, which was barred by single re-filing provision of section 13-217. Fact that instant lawsuit had two defendants not named in first federal lawsuit did not require different result.
Federal 7th Circuit Court
Civil Court
Civil Procedure