Wholesale Auto Group, Inc. v. The Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission and The Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission

• Court: Louisiana Court of Appeal
• Decided: October 28, 2019
• Docket: 2019CW0747
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

STATE OF LOUISIANA

COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT

WHOLESALE AUTO GROUP, INC. NO. 2019 CW 0747

VERSUS

THE LOUISIANA MOTOR VEHICLE COMMISSION AND THE LOUISIANA USED MOTOR VEHICLE COMMISSION OCT 2 8 2019

In Re: Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission, for applying supervisory writs, 19th Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge, No. 678659.

BEFORE: WHIPPLE, C. J., MCDONALD, McCLENDON, THERIOT, AND CHUTZ, JJ.

WRIT GRANTED. The trial court' s May 24, 2019 judgment denying the defendant' s, Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission' s, Exception of Improper Venue and Exception of Improper Joinder of Parties/ Improper Cumulation of Actions, is hereby reversed. We find that La. R. S. 32: 1253( H) dictates Jefferson Parish as the mandatory venue for the Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission and

that the ancillary venue doctrine as articulated in Underwood v. Lane Memorial Hosp., 97- 1997 ( La. 7/ 8/ 98), 714 So. 2d 715, and

Black v. St. Tammany Parish Hasp., 2008- 2670 ( La. 11/ 6/ 09), 25 So. 3d 711, is not applicable to the present case because La. R. S. 32: 1253( H) provides Jefferson Parish as the mandatory venue for the Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission and La. R. S. 32: 783 provides East Baton Rouge Parish as for the the mandatory venue Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission. Under La. Code Civ. P. art. 464, the action against the Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission is dismissed because it was improperly joined to the plaintiff' s, Wholesale Auto Group' s, action against the Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission.

VGW JMM PMC MRT

Chutz, J., dissents and would deny the writ.

DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT FOR THE COURT