Vasquez v. El Paso II Enterprises, LLC

912 F. Supp. 2d 445, 2012 WL 6160986, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 175067
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Texas
DecidedDecember 11, 2012
DocketNo. EP-12-CV-303-KC
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 912 F. Supp. 2d 445 (Vasquez v. El Paso II Enterprises, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Vasquez v. El Paso II Enterprises, LLC, 912 F. Supp. 2d 445, 2012 WL 6160986, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 175067 (W.D. Tex. 2012).

Opinion

ORDER

KATHLEEN CARDONE, District Judge.

On this day, the Court considered Defendants’ “Opposed Motion to Transfer Venue, and Subject Thereto, Original Answer” (“Motion”), ECF No. 7. For the reasons set forth herein, the Motion is DENIED.

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiff Angelina Vasquez (“Plaintiff’), a resident of El Paso County, Texas, alleges that she was injured in course and scope of her employment with Defendant El Paso II Enterprises, LLC d/b/a Oasis Nursing & Rehabilitation Center (“Defendant Oasis”) on August 13, 2010. See Compl. ¶¶ 1, '5. Plaintiff claims that the injury occurred at a facility owned and operated by Defendant Oasis and Defendant Creative Solutions in Healthcare, Inc. (together “Defendants”) in El Paso County, Texas. Pl.’s Resp. Opp’n Defs.’ Mot. Transfer Venue (“Response”) ¶ 3, ECF No. 8. All treatment for this injury, Plaintiff alleges, occurred in El Paso County, Texas. Id. ¶5. Plaintiff also alleges that all her “medical' providers, doctors, and custodian of records are located in or around El Paso County, Texas.” Id.

At the time of her injury, according to Plaintiff, Defendants self-administered an employee insurance- policy. Compl. ¶ 7. Plaintiff alleges that this insurance policy is an aspect of an employee benefit plan covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”). See id.; -App. A (“Plan”), ECF No. 7; 29 U.S.C. ■ § 1002 (2012). . Plaintiff alleges that she was. a participant in the Plan. See id. Next, Plaintiff alleges that she was denied benefits, by Defendants, under the Plan for her injury. See id. ¶¶ 11-13. Finally, Plaintiff alleges that Defendants retaliated against her and ultimately terminated her employment. See id. ¶¶ 14-15.

As a result of .these events, Plaintiff filed suit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, El Paso Division, on August 2, 2012. See generally id. Plaintiff brought claims, under ERISA, for discrimination, denial of benefits, breach of fiduciary duty, and statutory violations. Id. ¶¶ 16-29. On September 11, 2012, Defendants moved to transfer the venue of this case, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a), to the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division. See generally Defs.’ Opposed Mot. Transfer Venue, Subject, Original Answer (“Motion”), ECF No. 7. Defendants argue that transfer is appropriate, primarily, because a forum-selection clause in the Plan states that legal challenges to a denial of benefits “must be brought in the United States District Court- for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division.” Id. ¶¶ 2-4; Plan 22. On September 17, 2012, Plaintiff responded in [447]*447opposition to the motion to transfer. See generally Resp. Plaintiff argues that the forum-selection clause is not binding and violates public policy. Id. at 2-9. Defendants did not file a reply to this response.

II. DISCUSSION

A. Standard

Section 1404(a) allows “[f]or the convenience of parties and witnesses, in the interest of justice, a district court may transfer any civil action to any other district or .division where it might have been brought or to any district or division to which all parties have consented.” 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). However, a plaintiffs selection of venue is entitled to deference. In re Volkswagen of Am., Inc., 545 F.3d 304, 315 (5th Cir.2008) (“Thus, when the transferee venue is not clearly more convenient than the venue chosen by the plaintiff, the plaintiffs choice should be respected.”); Brock v. Baskin-Robbins USA Co., 113 F.Supp.2d 1078, 1086 (E.D.Tex.2000). When a party seeks to transfer venue, via § 1404(a), that party must show good cause. Volkswagen, 545 F.3d at 315. To show good cause, the moving party must produce evidence showing that a transfer of venue is “for the convenience of parties and witnesses, in the interest of justice.” Id. (citing 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a)).

To show a transfer of venue is for the convenience of parties and witnesses and is in the interest of justice, a court looks to private and public interest factors. See id. Private interest factors are “(1) the relative ease of access to sources of proof; (2) the availability of compulsory process to secure the attendance of witnesses; (3) the cost of attendance for willing witnesses; and (4) all other practical problems that make trial of a case easy, expeditious and inexpensive.” Id. (internal quotation marks omitted). Public interest factors are “(1) the administrative difficulties flowing from court congestion; (2) the local interest in having localized interests decided at home; (3) the familiarity of the forum with the law that will govern the case;- and (4) the avoidance of unnecessary problems of conflict of laws or in the application of foreign law.” Id. (internal quotation marks and alterations omitted).

The presence of a forum-selection clause, in a contract, is also considered in this analysis. Recently, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit examined the weight of a forum-selection clause in a § 1404(a). analysis. See In re Atl. Marine Constr. Co., 701 F.3d 736, 739-43 (5th Cir.2012). First, in Atlantic Marine, the Fifth Circuit examined its previous holdings and concluded that § 1404(a), not § 1406(a) or Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(3), is the proper means of enforcing a forum-selection clause that designates a specific federal forum. Id. at 738-41. Second, and of importance to this case, the Fifth Circuit discussed whether the existence of a forum-selection clause shifts the burden of demonstrating the propriety of transfer from the moving party to the non-moving party. Id. at 739-42. The Fifth Circuit noted that it had never previously confronted the issue. Id. at 741-42. Given this lack of prior guidance, the Fifth Circuit concluded that a district court did not abuse its discretion by keeping the burden on the moving party, despite the existence of a forum-selection clause. Id. Thus, the Fifth Circuit concluded that the district court was correct in “incorporating the forum-selection clause into the private and public factor'analysis....” Id.

This Court is cognizant that prior to Atlantic Marine, some district courts held that the presence of a forum-selection clause shifted the burden of demonstrating [448]*448the propriety of transfer from the moving party to the non-moving party. See, e.g., Zamora-Garcia v. Moore, M-05-331, 2006 WL 3341034, at *3 (S.D.Tex. Nov. 16, 2006) (surveying district courts in the Fifth Circuit and holding that the burden does not shift). However, this Court follows the Fifth Circuit’s guidance in Atlantic Marine.

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912 F. Supp. 2d 445, 2012 WL 6160986, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 175067, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/vasquez-v-el-paso-ii-enterprises-llc-txwd-2012.