Francis v. Caribbean Transport, Ltd.

882 F. Supp. 2d 275, 2012 A.M.C. 2780, 2012 WL 3161292, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 111453
CourtDistrict Court, D. Puerto Rico
DecidedAugust 6, 2012
DocketCivil No. 11-1876(FAB)
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 882 F. Supp. 2d 275 (Francis v. Caribbean Transport, Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Puerto Rico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Francis v. Caribbean Transport, Ltd., 882 F. Supp. 2d 275, 2012 A.M.C. 2780, 2012 WL 3161292, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 111453 (prd 2012).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER1

BESOSA, District Judge.

Before the Court are two motions: defendants’ G & W Transport Ltd. (“G & W”) and Caribbean Transport Ltd. (“CTL”) motion for summary judgment, (Docket No. 30), and plaintiff Jerome Francis’s (“Francis”) motion to strike various exhibits introduced by defendants in support of their motion for summary judgment. (Docket No. 53.) After reviewing the record and relevant law, the Court GRANTS IN PART and DENIES IN PART plaintiffs motion to strike and GRANTS defendants’ motion for summary judgment.

I. Procedural History

Plaintiff Francis filed an initial complaint on September 6, 2011 (Docket No. 1), and an amended complaint on December 15, 2011 (Docket No. 5), claiming damages as a result of defendants’ alleged negligence. Plaintiff avers that his injury was “due to the fault and/or negligence of Defendants, its agents, servants, and/or employees.” (Docket No. 5 at ¶ 13.) Plaintiff seeks relief pursuant to 46 U.S.C. § 30104 (2012) (“The Jones Act”) and gen[278]*278eral maritime law. (Docket No. 5 at ¶¶ 16, 22.)

On February 16, 2012, defendants filed a motion for summary judgment, (Docket No. 30), a statement of uncontested material facts, (Docket No. 31), and a memorandum in support of the summary judgment motion. (Docket No. 32.) Defendants do not address the merits of plaintiffs claims, but instead allege that this Court lacks jurisdiction over this case. (Docket No. 32 at 2.) Alternatively, defendants rely on the doctrine of forum non conveniens to justify dismissing plaintiffs complaint. Id. at 14. On July 20, 2012,2 plaintiff filed a motion to strike defendants’ motion for summary judgment based on the inadmissibility of various documents used by defendants as evidence supporting their motion. (Docket No. 53.) Plaintiff also filed a response in opposition to defendants’ motion for summary judgment, (Docket No. 54), and a statement of uncontested facts in support of plaintiffs response in opposition. (Docket Nos. 56, 57, & 60.) Defendants filed a response in opposition to plaintiffs motion to strike on July 30, 2012 (Docket No. 62), and included two additional sworn affidavits in support of their motion for summary judgment. (Docket Nos. 62-1, 63-1.)

II. Plaintiffs Motion to Strike

Plaintiff filed a motion to strike various documents included as part of defendants’ motion for summary judgment. (Docket No. 53.) The Court will rule on each contested exhibit before establishing the findings of fact that are necessary for evaluating defendants’ motion for summary judgment. Plaintiff objects to defendants’ exhibits on the grounds that (1) they are inadmissible hearsay based on Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56, or (2) they are not properly authenticated Foreign Public Documents pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 902. (Docket No. 53 at 3, 7.) The Court will analyze each exhibit or set of exhibits based on the plaintiffs specific objections.

A. Objection to Exhibits Based on Inadmissible Hearsay

i. Legal Standard

The authenticity and admissibility of evidence at the summary judgment stage is based on the interplay of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56 (“Rule 56”) and Federal Rules of Evidence 901 and 902. See, e.g., Rojas-Ramirez v. BMJ Foods, Inc., 2011 WL 693621 at *5 (D.P.R. Feb. 24, 2011). There is established precedent by the First Circuit Court of Appeals that focuses on Rule 56’s requirement that evidence used for adjudicating a summary judgment motion must be admissible at trial. E.g., Carmona v. Toledo, 215 F.3d 124, 131 (1st Cir.2000) (“Documents supporting or opposing summary judgment must be properly authenticated.”) (citing Rule 56(e)).

Rule 56, however, was amended in 2010. As the Advisory Committee Notes from the 2010 amendments state, 56(c) “is new,” and “[sjubdivision (c)(4) carries forward some of the provisions of former subdivision (e)(1).” Fed.R.Civ.P. advisory committee’s note to the 2010 amendment (subdivision c(4)). Moreover, the Notes state that if exhibits are challenged, “[t]he burden is on the proponent to show that the material is admissible as presented or to explain the admissible form that is anticipated.” Id. (emphasis added); see also Santos v. Nogueras, 2012 WL 2871108 at *4 (D.P.R. July 11, 2012) (noting that in lieu of the 2010 amendment to Rule 56, “evidence need not necessarily be present[279]*279ed in an admissible form at summary judgment.”). Based on the relaxed, newer Rule 56 standard, the Court now examines each of plaintiffs objections to the defendants’ exhibits in support of their motion for summary judgment.

ii. Plaintiffs Specific Objections

Plaintiff avers that defendants’ exhibits 11, 17, 12 & 13, 14 and 16 do not satisfy Rule 56 and are therefore inadmissible hearsay. The Court will address each objection in turn.

a. Exhibit 11

Plaintiff moves to strike defendants’ exhibit 11, a document signed by the President of Nieves Maritime Corp. (“Nieves”) that states that Nieves has served as CTL’s “ship agent” for the past 32 years, because it is not attached to a sworn affidavit. (Docket No. 31-11.) Defendants stated no objection to plaintiffs request to strike Docket No. 31 at ¶ 17 and the exhibits in support of it, including exhibit 11. (Docket No. 62 at ¶ 17.) Accordingly, the Court GRANTS plaintiffs motion to strike exhibit 11.

b. Exhibit 17

Plaintiff also moves to strike defendants’ exhibit 17, a memorandum prepared by a Tortola, British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) law firm providing a legal opinion on whether the BVI courts are available to the plaintiff should he choose to pursue his claims there after dismissal from this Court. (Docket No. 53 at 4.) Plaintiff argues that the memorandum is inadmissible hearsay, but the Court disagrees.

O’Neal Webster is a BVI law firm whose legal memorandum includes their contact information and the signature of the lawyer who prepared the legal memorandum, Paul B. Dennis. (Docket No. 31-17.) Moreover, defendants submitted an affidavit signed by Dennis under penalty of perjury that declares he is admitted to the practice of law in BVI and that he prepared exhibit 17 “to assist the Court in its consideration” of this case. (Docket No. 63-1.) Therefore, the Court DENIES plaintiffs motion to strike Exhibit 17.

c.Exhibits 12 & 13

Plaintiff argues that exhibits 12 & 13, letters sent to plaintiffs home that informed him of his employment with CTL and related details such as his salary, are inadmissible hearsay because they do not contain a an affidavit or unsworn statement that authenticates them. (Docket No. 53 at 5.) Both documents were signed by CTL employees: Lorraine Stoutt, the Managing Director, and Garvin Stoutt, the Owner.

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Bluebook (online)
882 F. Supp. 2d 275, 2012 A.M.C. 2780, 2012 WL 3161292, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 111453, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/francis-v-caribbean-transport-ltd-prd-2012.