bank's Motion to Dismiss the case on the grounds that the claim has prescribed. For the reasons that follow, it is recommended that the motion be denied.

Subject Matter Jurisdiction
This case was commenced in state court. The defendant, First American National Bank, operating as Deposit Guaranty National Bank, removed it on the alleged basis of diversity jurisdiction. The amount in controversy is sufficient. The plaintiffs are citizens of Louisiana, California and Maryland. The defendant is a national banking association organized under the laws of the United States with its principal place of business in Tennessee. Yet, there is a question about diversity. The plaintiffs have not raised the issue, but subject-matter jurisdiction cannot be waived and the court must always ascertain its existence, on its own motion if necessary.June 3, 1987 and that there shall be "[n]o interest after maturity." Finally, the CD features a notation, in all-capital letters that are at least as large as any other type in the text, that it is "NONTRANSFERABLE."
The CD may have been community property belonging to the community of Mrs. Baker and her late husband who died in 1991. Because Mr. and Mrs. Baker's two sons inherited their father's portion of the community, they joined Mrs. Baker in her efforts to collect payment of the CD. In April of 1999, the Bakers' lawyer wrote to Deposit Guaranty National Bank, the successor by merger to Commercial National Bank in Shreveport. He advised the bank of the Bakers' intent to present the CD for payment on April 19, 1999. The