(a) Parties Required to Make Disclosure. (1) Every non-governmental entity that is a party to a civil case, a non-governmental entity that seeks to intervene, and an entity defendant in a criminal case must file a Statement of Disclosure as described in part (d). A negative report is also required. (2) For the purposes of this Rule and the Statement of Disclosure, the term “entity” refers to any corporation, partnership, trust, limited liability company, unincorporated association, and any other organization with a legally recognized existence.

(b) Entities – Financial Interest to be Disclosed. (1) Whenever a party entity is a parent, subsidiary, or affiliate of any non-party entity, counsel for the party entity must identify the Statement of Disclosure the non-party entity’s relationship to the party entity. A party entity is considered an affiliate of a nonparty entity if the party entity controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with the non-party entity. (2) A party entity must identify any non-party entity that owns 10% or more of the party entity’s stock or otherwise has at least a 10% ownership interest in the party entity. (3) Whenever, by reason of insurance, a franchise agreement, lease, profit sharing agreement, or indemnity agreement, a non-party entity has a direct financial interest in the outcome of the litigation, counsel for the party entity whose interest is aligned with that of the non-party entity must identify on the Statement of Disclosure the non-party entity and the nature of that non-party entity’s direct financial interest in the outcome of the litigation.

(c) Parties in Diversity Cases. Whenever the jurisdiction of a cause of action is based on diversity of citizenship under 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a), every party entity must identify on the Statement of Disclosure the name and citizenship of every individual or entity whose citizenship is attributed to that party.

(d) Statement of Disclosure. The Statement of Disclosure must be made on a form provided by the Clerk. A party entity must file the Statement of Disclosure as part of the first pleading or paper filed by the party in this Court. The duty of disclosure described in this Rule is continuing, and a party must file promptly a supplemental statement immediately upon learning new or additional information, including when any later event occurs that could affect the Court’s jurisdiction under § 1332(a).

COMMENT: LR 83.4 is based on 6th Cir. R. 26.1. It is the responsibility of the courtroom deputy clerk for the judge to whom the case is assigned to monitor compliance with this Rule, including but not limited to sending out copies of the statement of disclosure to new defendants, third-party defendants, and others affected under (b).

COMMENT TO 2024 REVISIONS: The disclosure rule and related form were rewritten to align the local rule with the 2022 amendments to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 7.1, which took effect December 1, 2022.

June 1, 2024