Can federal courts exercise jurisdiction over a case where some parties are citizens of different states but others are not competent to sue in federal court?

This case involved a jurisdictional challenge in federal court. The parties had joint interests in the matter, but not all parties met the requirements for federal jurisdiction under the diversity statute. Some parties were competent to sue or be sued in federal courts while others were not. The case raised the question of whether complete diversity of citizenship was required for federal jurisdiction when parties shared joint interests.

The case was brought in federal court based on diversity jurisdiction. The court considered whether it had proper jurisdiction over the matter given the citizenship status of the parties involved. The lower court's decree was ultimately affirmed by the Supreme Court.

(Marshall, J.)

No. Federal courts cannot exercise jurisdiction over cases involving joint interests where some parties are not competent to sue in federal court. The Judiciary Act requires that where parties have joint interests, each person concerned in that interest must be competent to sue or liable to be sued in federal courts. The statutory language requiring diversity between citizens of different states means that each distinct interest should be represented by persons who are all entitled to sue or may be sued in federal courts. Complete diversity is therefore required for cases involving joint interests. The court specifically declined to address situations where several parties represent several distinct interests and some parties are competent while others are not competent to sue in federal court, leaving that question for future determination.