Ex parte Elizabeth A. Morton.

167 So. 3d 295, 2014 WL 4290622
CourtSupreme Court of Alabama
DecidedAugust 29, 2014
Docket1130302
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 167 So. 3d 295 (Ex parte Elizabeth A. Morton.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ex parte Elizabeth A. Morton., 167 So. 3d 295, 2014 WL 4290622 (Ala. 2014).

Opinions

PARKER, Justice.

Elizabeth A. Morton petitions this Court for a writ of mandamus directing the Greene Circuit Court to vacate its order denying Morton’s motion to transfer this case to Jefferson County on the ground of forum non conveniens and to enter an order granting the motion. We grant the petition and issue the writ.

[297]*297 Facts and Procedural History

The relevant facts of this case are undisputed. On August 26, 2011, Morton, a resident of Greene County, and Annie P. Watkins, a resident of Jefferson County, were involved in a motor-vehicle collision in Jefferson County. Following the collision, Watkins was treated at a hospital in Jefferson County and subsequently received medical treatment at four healthcare facilities located in Jefferson County.

On August 26, 2013, Watkins filed a complaint in the Greene Circuit Court against Morton, asserting claims arising out of the August 26, 2011, motor-vehicle collision. On September 26, 2013, Morton filed a motion to transfer this case to the Jefferson Circuit Court pursuant to the doctrine of forum non conveniens, as codified in § 6-3-21.1(a), Ala.Code 1975.1 On October 1, 2013, Watkins filed a response. On October 30, 2013, the Greene Circuit Court entered an order denying Morton’s motion, stating: “After review of [Watkins’s] response, the Motion to Transfer Venue of defendant, Elizabeth A. Morton, is hereby denied on authority of Ex parte Coley, 942 So.2d 349 ([Ala.] 2006).” On December 11, 2013, Morton filed this petition for a writ of mandamus.

Standard of Review

“ ‘The proper method for obtaining review of a denial of a motion for a change of venue in a civil action is to petition for the writ of mandamus.’ Ex parte Alabama Great Southern R.R., 788 So.2d 886, 888 (Ala.2000). ‘Mandamus is a drastic and extraordinary writ, to be issued only where there is (1) a clear legal right in the petitioner to the order sought; (2) an imperative duty upon the respondent to perform, accompanied by a refusal to do so; (3) the lack of another adequate remedy; and (4) properly invoked jurisdiction of the court.’ Ex parte Integon Corp., 672 So.2d 497, 499 (Ala.1995). Moreover, our review is limited to those facts that were before the trial court. Ex parte National Sec. Ins. Co., 727 So.2d 788, 789 (Ala.1998).
“ ‘The burden of proving improper venue is on the party raising the issue and on review of an order transferring or refusing to transfer, a writ of mandamus will not be granted unless there is a clear showing of error on the part of the trial judge.’ Ex parte Finance America Corp., 507 So.2d 458, 460 (Ala.1987). In addition, this Court is bound by the record, and it cannot consider a statement or evidence in a party’s brief that was not before the trial court. Ex parte American Res. Ins. Co., 663 So.2d 932, 936 (Ala.1995).”

Ex parte Pike Fabrication, Inc., 859 So.2d 1089, 1091 (Ala.2002).

Discussion

Morton seeks a writ of mandamus directing the Greene Circuit Court to transfer this case to the Jefferson Circuit Court pursuant to the forum non conveniens statute, § 6-3-21.1, which states, in pertinent part:

“With respect to civil actions filed in an appropriate venue, any court of general jurisdiction shall, for the convenience of parties and witnesses, or in the interest of justice, transfer any civil action or any claim in any civil action to any court of general jurisdiction in which the action might have been properly filed and [298]*298the ease shall proceed as though originally filed therein.”
This Court has stated:
“ ‘A party moving for a transfer under § 6-3-21.1 has the initial burden of showing, among other things, one of two factors: (1) that the transfer is justified based on the convenience of either the parties or the witnesses, or (2) that the transfer is justified “in the interest of justice.”’ Ex parte Indiana Mills & Mfg., Inc., 10 So.3d 536, 539 (Ala.2008).”

Ex parte Wachovia Bank, N.A., 77 So.3d 570, 573 (Ala.2011). Additionally, this Court has stated that,

“‘[w]hen venue is appropriate in more than one county, the plaintiffs choice of venue is generally given great deference.’ Ex parte Perfection Siding, Inc., 882 So.2d 307, 312 (Ala.2003) (citing Ex parte Bloodsaw, 648 So.2d 553, 555 (Ala.1994)). See also Ex parte Yocum, 963 So.2d 600, 602 (Ala.2007) (‘The trial court should give deference to the plaintiffs choice of a proper forum.’).”

Ex parte J & W Enters., LLC, 150 So.3d 190, 194 (Ala.2014).

As set forth above, the Greene Circuit Court denied Morton’s motion to transfer this case pursuant to § 6-3-21.1(a) on the authority of Ex parte Coley, 942 So.2d 349 (Ala.2006). In Coley, the parents of a deceased passenger, as her personal representatives, filed a wrongful-death action in the Jefferson Circuit Court against the driver of the vehicle following an automobile accident in Perry County. The defendant filed a motion to transfer the case to the Perry Circuit Court, arguing, among other things, that the case should be transferred under the doctrine of forum non conveniens, as codified in § 6-3-21.1(a). The Jefferson Circuit Court denied the defendant’s motion, and the defendant filed a petition for a writ of mandamus asking this Court to direct the Jefferson Circuit Court to transfer the case to the Perry Circuit Court.

This Court held that the defendant had not demonstrated a clear legal right to have the case transferred under § 6-3-21.1(a):

“It appears that the action ‘might have been properly filed’ in Perry County, because the accident occurred there. See AIa.Code 1975, § 6-3-2. The parties do not argue this point. Thus, the trial court could properly transfer the case to Perry County ‘for the convenience of parties and witnesses, or in the interest of justice.’ See Ala.Code 1975, § 6-3-21.1(a). As the [plaintiffs] correctly point out, [the defendant’s] burden was to show the trial court that Perry County is a significantly more convenient forum than is Jefferson County. See Ex parte Perfection Siding, Inc., 882 So.2d [307] at 312 [ (Ala.2003) ] (‘The defendant must show that his inconvenience and expense in defending the action in the selected forum outweigh the plaintiffs right to choose the forum; that is, the defendant must suggest transfer to a county that is “significantly more convenient” than the county in which the action was filed.’). [The defendant’s] burden before this Court on mandamus review is to show that she is clearly entitled to a transfer to Perry County.
“In support of her contention that a trial in Perry County would be more convenient for the witnesses, [the defendant] contends that
“ ‘the Perry County law enforcement personnel who investigated the accident and will be called to testify at trial likely reside in Perry County. At least two key witnesses expected to be called at the trial of this case ... [299]*299are thought to reside in Perry County-’
“[The defendant’s] petition, p. 11. With respect to the convenience of the parties, [the defendant] states:

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167 So. 3d 295, 2014 WL 4290622, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ex-parte-elizabeth-a-morton-ala-2014.