‘controversies.’”40 To satisfy the case-or-controversy requirement, a plaintiff must establish that they have standing.41 Standing is a “threshold” issue.42 It is an “irreducible constitutional minimum,” without which a federal court lacks jurisdiction to rule on the merits of an action.43 Consequently, federal courts are obligated to raise the issue of standing sua sponte.44 The plaintiff bears the burden of establishing standing.45 To demonstrate standing, he must show: (1) an injury in fact, (2) that is fairly traceable to the challenged conduct of the defendant, and (3) that is likely to be redressed by a favorable judicial decision.46 “In assessing whether a plaintiff has carried this burden, [courts must] separate [the] standing inquiry from any assessment of the merits of the plaintiff’s claim.”47 “To maintain this fundamental separation between standing and merits at the dismissal stage, [courts] assume for the purposes of [the] standing inquiry that a plaintiff has stated valid legal claims.”48 “While [the Court’s] standing inquiry may necessarily reference the ‘nature and 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 Pa. Voters All. v. Centre Cnty., No. 4:20-CV-01761, 2020 WL 6158309, at *3 (M.D. Pa. Oct. 21, 2020) (quoting Cotrell v. Alcon Laboratories, 874 F.3d 154, 161-62 (3d Cir. 2017)). Cotrell, 874 F.3d at 161-62. Wayne Land & Mineral Grp., LLC v. Del. River Basin Comm’n, 959 F.3d 569, 573-74 (3d Cir. 2020) (internal citations omitted). Id. at 574 (quoting Lujan v. Defs. of Wildlife, 504 U.S. 555, 560 (1992)). Id. (quoting Seneca Reservation Corp. v. Twp. of Highland, 863 F.3d 245, 252 (3d Cir. 2017). Cottrell, 874 F.3d at 162 (quoting Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, 136 S. Ct. 1540, 1547 (2016)). Id. (quoting Spokeo, 136 S. Ct. at 1547). Id. Id. (citing Info. Handling Servs., Inc. v. Defense Automated Printing Servs., 338 F.3d 1024, 1029 (D.C. Cir. 2003)). - 13 -