Rosen v. Execujet Services LLC

241 F. Supp. 3d 1303, 2017 WL 1011607, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 36332
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Florida
DecidedMarch 13, 2017
DocketCase No. 15-60681-CIV
StatusPublished

This text of 241 F. Supp. 3d 1303 (Rosen v. Execujet Services LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rosen v. Execujet Services LLC, 241 F. Supp. 3d 1303, 2017 WL 1011607, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 36332 (S.D. Fla. 2017).

Opinion

ORDER GRANTING MOTIONS TO DISMISS ON FORUM NON CONVENIENS GROUNDS

KENNETH A. MARRA, United States District Judge

THIS CAUSE comes before the Court on Defendants Execujet Services, LLC (“Execujet”), Michael Humphrey, and Calvin Humphrey’s (“the Execujet Defendants”) Motion to Dismiss Under the Doctrine of Forum Non Conveniens (DE 89), and Defendant Aerologistics II, LLC’s (“Aerologistics”) Motion to Dismiss Under the Doctrine of Forum Non Conveniens (DE 90). The motions are now fully briefed (DE 93, 98, 99) and are ripe for review. The Court has carefully considered the motions and the record and is otherwise fully advised in the premises.

Notwithstanding the strong presumption in favor of Plaintiffs chosen forum, because the critical witnesses in this case are located in the Bahamas outside the subpoena power of the Court and since Defendants cannot implead a potential Bahamian third party in this case, the Court is thoroughly convinced that Defendants would suffer material injustice if forced to defend this action in this forum instead of the Bahamas. Further, and notwithstanding the interest of the United States in adjudicating this matter, the fact that the Bahamas has a substantial interest in ad[1307]*1307judicating a dispute occurring entirely on Bahamian soil and concerning the safety of aircraft maintenance at its airport, the remote connection of this lawsuit to this forum, and the likely application of Bahamian law, all militate in favor of dismissal. As a result, as explained in greater detail below, the Motions to Dismiss based upon forum non conveniens grounds are granted.

I. BACKGROUND

This is a wrongful death case. The decedent, Raymond Donat Charron, Jr., died in the Bahamas on February 28, 2013, when the left landing gear of the aircraft that he was servicing at a Bahamas airport collapsed on him.

In the Amended Complaint, Plaintiff Jared Rosen, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Raymond Donat Charron, Jr. and for the benefit of Lottie Mae Char-ron, brings negligence and related claims against Defendants Execujet, Michael Humphrey, Calvin Humphrey, and Aerolo-gistics arising out of the incident that occurred in the Bahamas.1 (DE 26, Amended Complaint (“Compl.”).) Plaintiff claims that Defendants failed to maintain the aircraft properly, which caused the landing gear to collapse on the decedent.

Plaintiff, the personal representative, is an individual residing in Palm Beach County, Florida. (Id. ¶ 5.) The decedent’s spouse and only survivor, Lottie Mae Charron, resides in the state of Connecticut. (DE 89, Def.’s Mot. at 6.)

Execujet, which is a limited liability company, is a citizen of Texas for purposes of diversity jurisdiction. (DE 1, Notice of Removal ¶ 8). Execujet has its principal place of business in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (DE 93-12, Pl.’s Resp. Ex. 12.) Aerolo-gistics, which is a limited liability company, is a citizen of Texas for purposes of diversity jurisdiction. (DE 1, Notice of Removal ¶ 9.) Aerologisties has its principal place of business in North Seattle, Washington. (DE 26, Compl. ¶ 37.) At the time of filing and presently, Michael Humphrey is a citizen of the state of Georgia. (DE 1, Notice of Removal ¶ ll.)2 Calvin Humphrey is a citizen of the state of Texas. (DE 26, Compl. ¶ 11).

Defendants now move to dismiss the Amended Complaint filed against them on grounds oí forum non conveniens.

II. LEGAL STANDARD

The federal doctrine of forum non conveniens allows the Court to use its inherent power to dismiss an action because of the inconvenience of the plaintiffs chosen forum. Gulf Oil Corp. v. Gilbert, 330 U.S. 501, 506-07, 67 S.Ct. 839, 91 L.Ed. 1055 (1947). Under the doctrine, dismissal is “appropriate where trial in the plaintiffs chosen forum imposes a heavy burden on the defendant or the court, and where the plaintiff is unable to offer any specific reasons of convenience supporting his choice.” Piper Aircraft v. Reyno, 454 U.S. 235, 249, 102 S.Ct. 252, 70 L.Ed.2d 419 (1981).

In deciding a motion to dismiss based upon the doctrine of forum non conveniens, the Court must first consider whether an “adequate alternative forum” [1308]*1308exists which has jurisdiction over the case. La Seguridad v. Transytur Line, 707 F.2d 1304, 1307 (11th Cir. 1983). The Court must then consider whether private interest factors suggest that the Court should disturb the strong presumption in favor of a plaintiffs choice of forum. Id, If the Court finds that the private interest factors are indeterminate, the Court must then proceed to consider whether considerations of public interest favor a trial in the foreign forum. Id. Dismissal is only warranted if these factors weigh heavily towards trial in the foreign forum. Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 249, 102 S.Ct. 252. If the trial judge decides that the balance favors such a foreign forum, the trial judge must finally ensure that plaintiffs can reinstate their suit in the alternative' forum without undue inconvenience or prejudice. La Seguridad, 707 F.2d at 1307.

The strong presumption in favor of the plaintiffs choice of forum is strongest when the plaintiff is a citizen or resident of the United States. SME Racks, Inc. v. Sistemas Mecanicos Para Electronica, S.A., 382 F.3d 1097, 1101 (11th Cir. 2004). To that end, “district courts [must] require positive evidence of unusually extreme circumstances, and should be thoroughly convinced that material injustice is manifest before exercising any such discretion as may exist to deny a United States citizen access to the courts of this country.” Id. (internal citations and quotation marks omitted).3

III. DISCUSSION

A.- Adequate Alternative Forum

A defendant will satisfy the initial burden of establishing that an adequate alternative forum exists upon a showing that the defendant will submit to jurisdiction in the foreign forum and that the foreign forum allows the plaintiff the opportunity for “appropriate redress.” See Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 264 n. 22, 102 S.Ct. 252.

An adequate alternative forum exists when the defendant is “amenable to process” in the foreign forum, Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 254 n.22, 102 S.Ct. 252. Here, all four Defendants presently in this action “agree to submit, and will not challenge the jurisdiction of the Bahamian courts over this matter.” (DE 89, Mot. at 3; DE 90, Mot. at 3.) Defendants’ willingness to submit to the jurisdiction of the Bahamian courts satisfies the availability requirement.

As to the adequacy, of the Bahamian courts, Defendants have pointed to case law indicating that the Bahamian legal system recognizes negligence actions like Plaintiffs claims in the instant case. (DE 89, Mot. at 3; DE 90, Mot. at 3.) Plaintiff has not intimated that Plaintiffs claims would not be recognized under Bahamian law.

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Bluebook (online)
241 F. Supp. 3d 1303, 2017 WL 1011607, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 36332, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rosen-v-execujet-services-llc-flsd-2017.