Becker v. Angle

MURRAH, Circuit Judge.

The first question on this appeal is whether there is jurisdictional diversity of citizenship and amount in controversy.

The trial court first considered and decided the case adversely to the complainants (appellants here) on its merits. But, it also held that neither requisite diversity of citizenship nor amount in controversy was shown to exist. Of course, if either of these jurisdictional prerequisites is lacking, the court was without jurisdiction of the subject matter, and we therefore need not consider the correctness of its decision on the merits.

The complaint…