Lawrence Wright, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated v. LeafFilter North, LLC

CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 31, 2025
Docket3:25-cv-01080
StatusUnknown

This text of Lawrence Wright, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated v. LeafFilter North, LLC (Lawrence Wright, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated v. LeafFilter North, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lawrence Wright, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated v. LeafFilter North, LLC, (M.D. Pa. 2025).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA LAWRENCE WRIGHT, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated, CIVIL ACTION NO. 3:25-CV-01080-KM Plaintiff (MEHALCHICK, J.) v.

LEAFFILTER NORTH, LLC,

Defendants.

MEMORANDUM

Before the Court is Defendant LeafFilter North, LLC’s (“LeafFilter”) motion to transfer pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). (Doc. 12). LeafFilter requests that this matter be transferred to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. (Doc. 12, at 1). For the reasons provided herein, LeafFilter’s motion to transfer (Doc. 12) is GRANTED. I. BACKGROUND AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY The following background is taken from the complaint and, for the purposes of the instant motion, is taken as true. On May 18, 2023, Plaintiff Lawrence Wright (“Wright”) registered his personal telephone on the National Do-Not-Call Registry. (Doc. 1, ¶ 23). That following July, Wright began receiving prerecorded calls and telemarketing text messages from LeafFilter, an Ohio corporation headquartered in Hudson, Ohio. (Doc. 1, ¶¶ 12, 24). On June 13, 2025, Wright commenced this putative class action pursuant to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) (Doc. 1, ¶ 1). According to the complaint, the purpose of LeafFilter’s communications was to market its gutter protection products. (Doc. 1, ¶ 16). Wright never provided LeafFilter with his telephone number or gave any consent to receive these calls or text messages. (Doc. 1, ¶¶ 77-78). Wright brings two TCPA claims: (i) one claim alleging violation of the TCPA’s prerecorded call provisions and (ii) one claim alleging violation of the TCPA’s national do- not-call registry provisions. (Doc. 1, ¶¶ 109-121). Further, Wright seeks to pursue these claims on behalf of the following putative nationwide classes:

Prerecorded Call Class: Plaintiff and all persons within the United States to whose cellular telephone number Defendant placed (or had placed on its behalf) a prerecorded or artificial voice call from four (4) years prior to the filing of the Complaint through the date of Certification.

National Do Not Call Class: Plaintiff and all persons within the United States (1) to whose telephone number Defendant placed (or had placed on its behalf) two or more calls or text messages, (2) from four years prior to the filing of the Complaint to the date of certification, (3) for the purpose of encouraging the purchase of Defendant’s products or services (4) in a 12-month period (5) when the telephone number to which the text messages were sent was on the National Do-Not-Call Registry at the time of the messages. (Doc. 1, ¶ 94). On August 6, 2025, LeafFilter filed its answer to the complaint. (Doc. 7). On August 19, 2025, LeafFilter filed a motion to transfer the action to the Northern District of Ohio (Doc. 12). On August 20, 2025, LeafFilter filed its brief in support. (Doc. 14). On September 2, 2025, Wright filed his brief in opposition to the motion to transfer. (Doc. 16). On September 13, 2025, LeafFilter filed its reply brief. (Doc. 19). On September 25, 2025, both parties appeared before the Court for oral argument. This matter has been fully briefed and is now ripe for adjudication. (Doc. 19). II. LEGAL STANDARD A court may transfer venue to any other district court where the civil action might have been brought if it serves the interests of justice and the convenience of the parties. 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a).“‘The decision to transfer is in the court's discretion, but a transfer is not to be liberally granted.’”. Shutte v. Armco Steel Corp., 431 F.2d 22, 25 (3d Cir. 1970) (quoting Handlos v. Litton Indus., Inc., 304 F. Supp. 347, 352 (E.D. Wis. 1969)). A court adjudicating a motion pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) must first determine whether the proposed venue is appropriate—that is, a district court can only transfer the action to a district or division “where [the case] might have been brought.” 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) ; see also High River Ltd. P'ship v.

Mylan Labs., Inc., 353 F. Supp. 2d 487, 491 (M.D. Pa. 2005). If venue is proper in the proposed district, courts consider the following non-exhaustive list of factors first outlined by the Third Circuit in Jumara v. State Farm Insurance Company: (1) the plaintiff's choice of forum; (2) the defendant's preference; (3) where the claim arose; (4) the convenience of the parties; (5) the convenience of the witnesses, but only to the extent that the witnesses may actually be unavailable for trial in one of the fora; (6) the location of books and records, similarly limited to the extent that the files could not be produced in the alternative forum; (7) the enforceability of the judgment; (8) practical considerations that could make the trial easy, expeditious, or inexpensive; (9) the relative court congestion in the competing courts; (10) the local interest in deciding local controversies at home; (11) the public policies of the fora; (12) and the familiarity of the trial judge with the applicable state law. High River, 353 F. Supp. 2d at 491 (citing Jumara v. State Farm Ins. Co., 55 F.3d 873, 879-80 (3d Cir. 1995)). The first six factors are considered the “private interest factors,” while the last six factors are the “public interest factors.” See Petroleum Serv. Co. v. Santie's Wholesale Oil Co., No. 3:23CV1500, 2024 WL 816619, at *3-8 (M.D. Pa. Feb. 27, 2024). The moving party bears the burden of showing that these factors warrant transfer. Jumara, 55 F.3d at 879. However, the moving party “is not required to show ‘truly compelling circumstances for ... change ... [of venue, but rather that] all relevant things considered, the case would be better off transferred to another district.’ ” In re United States, 273 F.3d 380, 388 (3d Cir. 2001) (quoting In re Balsimo, 68 F.3d 185, 187 (7th Cir. 1995)). III. DISCUSSION LeafFilter contends that this matter should be transferred to the Northern District of Ohio because venue is proper in the proposed district and the balance of the Jumara private and public interest factors weigh in favor of transfer. (Doc. 14, at 6, 12); see 55 F.3d at 879-80.

Wright counters that LeafFilter has not met its “burden required to disturb Plaintiff’s choice of venue[,]” and the proposed transfer shifts the inconvenience to Wright. (Doc. 16, at 1). Under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), the Court must first determine “whether venue would be proper in the transferee district.” Weber v. Basic Comfort Inc., 155 F. Supp. 2d 283, 284 (E.D. Pa. 2001) (citing Jumara, 55 F. 3d at 879). If the first prong is satisfied, then the Court must consider “all relevant factors to determine whether on balance the litigation would more conveniently proceed and the interests of justice be better served by transfer to a different forum.” Jumara, 55 F. 3d at 879. A.

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Lawrence Wright, on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated v. LeafFilter North, LLC, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lawrence-wright-on-behalf-of-himself-and-all-others-similarly-situated-v-pamd-2025.