3M Co. v. Johnson

926 So. 2d 860, 2006 Miss. LEXIS 189, 2006 WL 948049
CourtMississippi Supreme Court
DecidedApril 13, 2006
Docket2004-IA-00289-SCT
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 926 So. 2d 860 (3M Co. v. Johnson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Mississippi Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
3M Co. v. Johnson, 926 So. 2d 860, 2006 Miss. LEXIS 189, 2006 WL 948049 (Mich. 2006).

Opinion

926 So.2d 860 (2006)

3M COMPANY
v.
Simeon JOHNSON, et al.

No. 2004-IA-00289-SCT.

Supreme Court of Mississippi.

April 13, 2006.

*861 Barry W. Ford, Walker (Bill) Jones, III, Scott William Bates, Barry Clayton Campbell, Jackson, attorneys for appellant.

Suzanne Griggins Keys, and Isaac K. Byrd, Jr., Jackson, attorneys for appellees.

EN BANC.

COBB, Presiding Justice, for the Court.

¶ 1. This interlocutory appeal comes from the Holmes County Circuit Court's denial of the 3M Company's motion to dismiss for forum non conveniens. On appeal, 3M argues the trial court erred because: (1) it abused its discretion in failing to apply the multi-factor-balancing test to determine whether the application of forum non conveniens is appropriate, and (2) it violated 3M's due process rights under the United States and Mississippi Constitutions. The 19 appellees argue this appeal is moot because, prior to 3M's filing, they offered to voluntarily dismiss their claims.

¶ 2. We hold that the appeal is not moot and the trial court abused its discretion in failing to apply the multi-factor-balancing test to the wholly out-of-state appellees.[1] Therefore we reverse and render, granting 3M's motion to dismiss as to the wholly *862 out-of-state appellees. As to Willie Kern[2], we reverse the trial court's decision and remand with an order to apply the multi-factor-balancing test to see whether he, too, should be dismissed. Because the first issue is dispositive of this appeal, we need not address 3M's violation of constitutional rights argument.

FACTS

¶ 3. 3M is one of many defendants in this asbestos action, which initially involved a single complaint by 185 plaintiffs against 70 defendants seeking damages for injuries from exposure to asbestos-containing products. Only 36 of the 185 plaintiffs in the initial mass-tort action had a claim against 3M, and only 17 of those 36 clearly had a connection with Mississippi. One plaintiff, Willie Kern, had a connection with Mississippi, but his connection with Illinois was longer in duration. None of the 18 wholly out-of-state appellees worked, resided or had any connection with Holmes County.

¶ 4. This is the second time this case has found its way to this Court. Previously, in 3M Co. v. Johnson, 895 So.2d 151 (Miss. 2005) (Johnson I), a trial group of ten[3] plaintiffs was chosen: three settled before or during trial, and one was dismissed. Of the six remaining plaintiffs in the trial group, only four had a claim against 3M. The other two had claims against other defendants. At trial the jury awarded $25 million to each plaintiff. On appeal this Court reversed and rendered in favor of 3M as to the four plaintiffs with claims against 3M. As to the plaintiffs not in the trial group, this Court instructed that their claims be severed according to this Court's opinion in Janssen Pharmaceutica, Inc. v. Armond, 866 So.2d 1092 (Miss.2004).

¶ 5. 3M now argues that the 19 out-of-state appellees should be dismissed because 3M is substantially inconvenienced by having to litigate their claims in Holmes County. Twelve of the 19 claim exposure to asbestos-containing products at the Greenlee Brothers Foundry in Rockford, Illinois.[4] Six claim similar asbestos exposure in other places including: Chicago, Colorado, Minnesota, Louisiana, Missouri and North Carolina.[5] Only Kern claims exposure from more than one place.

¶ 6. On October 17, 2003, 3M filed its motion to dismiss for forum non conveniens against the out-of-state plaintiffs. In response, the out-of-state plaintiffs argued that, while they were not from Mississippi, they were properly joined with plaintiffs from Mississippi, and therefore venue was proper in Holmes County. The plaintiffs argued that because of the variety of parties, there was no perfect forum, and therefore a less-than-perfect, but still proper forum, was acceptable. After hearing *863 arguments, the trial judge's bench ruling, in its entirety, provided that:

The court finds that the out-of-state plaintiffs have similar claims to the plaintiffs in Mississippi and in Holmes County, and therefore, they are properly before this Court, and the Motion to Dismiss Forum of [sic] Non Conveniens is denied.

3M moved for permission to file an interlocutory appeal which was denied by the trial court, but its subsequent petition for interlocutory appeal to this Court was granted.

ANALYSIS

¶ 7. The appellees argue this appeal is moot, because, prior to the filing of briefs, they had offered to "dismiss out of state plaintiffs who did not have exposure here in Mississippi or have a Mississippi defendant". That offer was made in a July 1, 2005, letter from Byrd, Gibbs & Martin, PLLC to 3M's counsel, Baker Donelson, after 3M filed its petition in the trial court but prior to the filing of 3M's petition in this Court. The letter states in its entirety:

I was calling to see if we could resolve this last interlocutory appeal on the Simeon Johnson case. In light of the numerous decisions that have come down from the Supreme Court, it appears to me that out of state cases filed here for those who did not have exposure here in Mississippi or have a Mississippi defendant, need to be dismissed. To me that was the thrust of 3M's motion that is on the interlocutory appeal.
We are prepared to move forward with a Mangialardi Order in the Simeon Johnson case that would dismiss out of state plaintiffs who were not exposed here in Mississippi, if 3M would voluntarily dismiss the interlocutory appeal.
Please give me a call so we can discuss this further.

The letter did not contain a list of appellees that would be dismissed. No proposed Mangialardi Order was ever proffered to 3M or the trial court. 3M did not respond to the letter, citing that it did not offer to unconditionally dismiss the out-of-state appellees. The letter was at best an offer to begin negotiations and not one that would moot the appeal. When the appeal was taken, the dispute was seasonable, and the offer was incomplete and ambiguous in both scope and effect. Therefore, this case is ripe for review.

¶ 8. In reviewing the trial court's decision to grant or deny a motion for forum non conveniens this Court will uphold the trial court unless it was clearly erroneous. Ill. Cent. R.R. Co. v. Travis, 808 So.2d 928, 930 (Miss.2002). This Court recently held that even though asbestos litigation is a "mature tort", the parties must still comply with the traditional limits imposed by the rules of civil procedure. Harold's Auto Parts, Inc. v. Mangialardi, 889 So.2d 493, 493 (Miss. 2004). Expanding on that, this Court has pointed out that convenience and judicial economy must yield to a paramount concern for a party's right to a fair trial. Ill. Cent. R.R., Co. v. Gregory, 912 So.2d 829, 834 (Miss.2005) (benefits of efficiency can never be purchased at the cost of fairness).

¶ 9. This Court has held that the courts of this state should not try cases that would be seriously inconvenient to one or more of the parties, provided that a more appropriate forum can be found. McWhorter v. Cal-Maine Farms, Inc., 913 So.2d 193, 196 (Miss.2005); Mo. P.R. Co. v. Tircuit, 554 So.2d 878, 881-82 (Miss.1989). This Court has also laid out a multi-factor test which should be considered in any application for forum non conveniens dismissal. Tircuit, 554 So.2d at 882. The *864

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
926 So. 2d 860, 2006 Miss. LEXIS 189, 2006 WL 948049, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/3m-co-v-johnson-miss-2006.