## Facts

- Jean Paul Mas, a French citizen, and Judy Mas, a U.S. citizen originally from Mississippi, were graduate assistants at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.
- The couple married in Mississippi and returned to Louisiana, where they rented an apartment from Oliver H. Perry, a Louisiana citizen.
- They discovered that Perry had installed “two-way” mirrors in the bedroom and bathroom and had secretly observed them during the early months of their marriage.
- The couple later moved to Illinois; at trial they contemplated returning temporarily to Baton Rouge for Mr. Mas to finish his Ph.D., but had not decided on a permanent residence.
- The Mases sued in federal district court in Louisiana for invasion of privacy, alleging $100,000 in damages.

## Issues

1. Whether complete diversity existed under 28 U.S.C. § 1332 given Mr. Mas’s alienage, Perry’s Louisiana citizenship, and Mrs. Mas’s residence in Louisiana and later Illinois after marrying an alien.
2. Whether the amount in controversy requirement (then more than $10,000) was met for Mr. Mas’s claim despite a jury award of $5,000.

## Decision

- The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court’s exercise of subject-matter jurisdiction and the judgment on the verdict.
- The court held diversity jurisdiction existed on two independent bases:
  - Mr. Mas (alien) versus Perry (Louisiana citizen) under § 1332(a)(2).
  - Mrs. Mas (Mississippi citizen for diversity purposes) versus Perry (Louisiana citizen) under § 1332(a)(1).
- The court held Mrs. Mas remained domiciled in Mississippi at filing because her Louisiana presence as a student did not show intent to remain, and she took no affirmative steps to change domicile.
- The court rejected the argument that Mrs. Mas’s marriage to an alien altered her citizenship in a way that destroyed diversity.
- The court held the amount in controversy was satisfied because the complaint’s allegation exceeded the statutory minimum in good faith; the later $5,000 verdict did not defeat jurisdiction.

## Legal Principles

- For diversity, citizenship equals domicile: the “true, fixed, and permanent home” with intent to return when absent.
- Temporary residence, including living in a state as a student, does not change domicile without intent to remain and objective acts consistent with that intent.
- Marriage to an alien does not, by itself, change a U.S. citizen spouse’s state citizenship for § 1332 purposes.
- Amount in controversy is determined at filing; a good-faith allegation controls unless it is legally certain the claim is for less than the jurisdictional minimum, and a smaller ultimate recovery does not oust jurisdiction.

## Conclusion

The Fifth Circuit upheld federal diversity jurisdiction because Mrs. Mas’s domicile remained Mississippi despite living in Louisiana as a student and marrying an alien, and because the amount in controversy was assessed at filing based on a good-faith allegation rather than the jury’s lower award.


Mas v. Perry, 492 F.2d 1242 (5th Cir. 1974)