Do Rosario Veiga v. World Meteorological

• Decision Date: 07 May 2007
• Docket Number: No. 07-CIV-3182VM.,07-CIV-3182VM.
• Citation: 486 F.Supp.2d 297
• Parties: Maria DO ROSÁRIO VEIGA, Plaintiff, v. WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANISATION et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York

486 F.Supp.2d 297

Maria DO ROSÁRIO VEIGA, Plaintiff, v. WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANISATION et al., Defendants.

No. 07-CIV-3182VM.

United States District Court, S.D. New York.

May 7, 2007.

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Monika Ona Bileris, New York, NY, for plaintiff.

DECISION AND ORDER

MARRERO, District Judge.

Plaintiff Maria Do Rosario Veiga ("Veiga"), a citizen of Portugal and Italy, brought this action naming as defendants her former employer, the World Meteorological Organisation ("WMO"), an international organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, as well as Michel Jarraud ("Jarraud"), a French national, who is a Secretary General of the WMO and a resident of Switzerland; Joachim Muller ("Muller"), a German national, who is a Director of the WMO and a resident of Switzerland; Jorge Cortes ("Cortes"), an American national who is a Director of the WMO and a resident of Switzerland; and Iwona Rummel-Bulska ("Rummel-Bulska"), a Polish national who is a former legal advisor of the WMO and now a resident of Nairobi, Kenya (collectively "Defendants"). Because on its face the complaint indicates that all material events and operative facts that gave rise to the action occurred at the WMO in Geneva, that the parties, witnesses, and documents associated with the case are situated primarily in Switzerland, and that Veiga's substantive claims for relief are grounded on various instruments of international law, as well as local and federal law of Switzerland and the United States, the Court directed Veiga to show cause why this action should not be dismissed under the doctrine of forum non conveniens. Veiga responded by letter, urging the Court to permit the litigation of the case in this District. The Court finds no merit in any of Veiga's arguments, nor any other compelling ground supporting the continuation of this action here. Accordingly, for the reasons stated below, the Court dismisses this action pursuant to the doctrine of forum non conveniens.

I. FACTS

Veiga asserts that she currently resides in Portugal, and that she was employed by the WMO as Chief of Internal Audit and Investigation Service at the organization's headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland for three years, until her alleged wrongful termination in November 2006. In that capacity, she was assigned to investigate certain allegations of fraud and embezzlement of WMO funds. She states that an investigation she conducted revealed an unlawful scheme involving over 33.5 million of WMO funds that were used improperly to influence the 2003 election for WMO Secretary General, which resulted in the selection of Jarraud. The results of that investigation were turned over to Swiss criminal justice authorities.

According to Veiga, at a meeting of the WMO Audit Committee in February 2005, she was instructed by Jarraud and the Committee to close her internal investigation by March 2005, allegedly because Veiga was close to revealing the connection of Jarraud to the fraudulent use of WMO funds. Veiga asserts that as a consequence of her work and the information about the alleged misconduct she acquired in connection with this matter, she was subjected by Jarraud, Muller, Rummel-Bulska, and Cortes to various acts of intimidation, harassment, threats, diminution of job responsibilities, and eventually to retaliatory termination of her employment by the WMO in November 2006, allegedly on false grounds of misconduct on her part.

Veiga pleads several common law causes of action, specifically breach of contract, wrongful termination, intentional interference with a contractual relationship, breach of covenant of good faith and fair dealing, intentional infliction of emotional distress, defamation, and violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act ("RICO"), 18 U.S.C. § 1961 et seq. As grounds for the Court's exercise of authority to adjudicate this action, she invokes the Alien Tort Statute ("ATS"), 28 U.S.C. § 1350 and federal question jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1331. As substantive bases of relief, she cites various sources of international law and Swiss laws, as well as federal and New York state law.

II. DISCUSSION

As a threshold matter, the Court is guided in its ruling on this, matter by a statement of the Second Circuit noting that "the Supreme Court observed that the doctrine of forum non conveniens `leaves much to the discretion of the court' ... and the cases ... confirm that the discretion is wide." Schertenleib v. Traum, 589 F.2d 1156, 1164 (2d Cir.1978) (quoting Gulf Oil Corp. v. Gilbert, 330 U.S. 501, 508, 67 S.Ct. 839, 91 L.Ed. 1055 (1947)); The Circuit Court has further elaborated that the doctrine is based on the principle that "`a court may resist imposition upon its jurisdiction even when jurisdiction is authorized....'" Norex Petroleum Ltd. v. Access Indus., Inc., 416 F.3d 146, 153 (2d Cir.2005) (quoting Gilbert, 330 U.S. at 507, 67 S.Ct. 839); see also Royal Indus. v. Kraft Foods Inc., 926 F.Supp. 407, 415 (S.D.N.Y.1996) ("Dismissal of a case on forum non conveniens grounds is discretionary and should only be granted `when trial in the chosen forum would "establish ... oppressiveness and vexation to a defendant ... out of proportion to plaintiffs convenience" or when "the chosen forum [is] inappropriate because of considerations affecting the court's own administrative and legal problems."'" (quoting Piper Aircraft v. Reyno, 454 U.S. 235, 241, 102 S.Ct. 252, 70 L.Ed.2d 419 (1981) (quoting Koster v. Lumbermen Mut. Cas. Co., 330 U.S. 518, 524, 67 S.Ct. 828, 91 L.Ed. 1067 (1947)).

Courts in this Circuit employ a three-part test to analyze the application of the forum non conveniens doctrine. See Iragorri v. United Techs. Corp., 274 F.3d 65, 73-74 (2d Cir.2001) (en banc); see also Norex Petroleum, 416 F.3d at 153. Initially, the court determines the degree of deference that should be accorded to the plaintiff's choice of forum. Second, the court considers whether there exists an available and adequate alternative forum where the dispute could be adjudicated. See Gilbert, 330 U.S. at 506-07, 67 S.Ct. 839; Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 254 n. 22, 102 S.Ct. 252. This inquiry consists of two parts: availability and adequacy. Ordinarily, the availability requirement is met if the defendant is amenable to process in the alternative forum. See Gilbert, 330 U.S. at 507, 67 S.Ct. 839 (noting that the doctrine "presupposes at least two forums in which the defendant is amenable to process"); see also Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 254 n. 22, 102 S.Ct. 252. The adequacy test addresses the sufficiency of the alternative forum as a source of remedies for the wrongs the plaintiff claims. See Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 254, 102 S.Ct. 252 (noting that dismissal may not be in the interest of justice "if the remedy provided by the alternative forum is so clearly inadequate or unsatisfactory that it is no remedy at all").

Finally, if the preceding standards are met, the court assesses the appropriateness of litigating the action in the plaintiff's choice of forum, as opposed to the alternative venue, by balancing the private interests of the litigants and the public interest concerns of the court in accordance with the factors articulated by the Supreme Court in Gilbert. See Gilbert, 330 U.S. at 508-09, 67 S.Ct. 839; In re Monegasque De Reassurances S.A.M. v. Nak Naftogaz of Ukraine, 311 F.3d 488, 500 (2d Cir.2002); Turedi v. Coca Cola Co., 460 F.Supp.2d 507, 521 (S.D.N.Y.2006); Corporacion Tim, S.A. v. Schumacher, 418 F.Supp.2d 529, 531-32 (S.D.N.Y.2006), aff'd, 2007 WL 1120376 (2d Cir. Apr.17, 2007). The inquiry probes whether, in the interest of justice and all other relevant concerns, the action would best be brought in another venue.

A. DEFERENCE TO PLAINTIFF'S CHOICE OF FORUM

Generally, there is a strong presumption in favor of the plaintiffs choice of forum. See Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 250, 102 S.Ct. 252; DiRienzo v. Philip Svcs. Corp., 294 F.3d 21, 28 (2d Cir.2002); Iragorri, 274 F.3d at 70-71. In consequence, this presumption may be overcome by a showing that on balance the Gilbert private and public interest factors "tilt strongly in favor" of the alternative forum. Wiwa v. Royal Dutch Petroleum Co., 226 F.3d 88, 100 (2d Cir.2000); see also Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 255-56, 102 S.Ct. 252; Gilbert, 330 U.S. at 508, 67 S.Ct. 839 (instructing that "unless the balance is strongly in favor of the defendant, the plaintiffs choice of forum should rarely be disturbed"); Iragorri, 274 F.3d at 72-73. Deference to the plaintiffs forum becomes a stronger consideration where the plaintiff is an American citizen, especially in cases in which the underlying claims arose under United States law or seek to enforce or promote significant American policy interests. See Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 256, 102 S.Ct. 252 (emphasizing that this rule is not intended to disadvantage foreign plaintiffs but rather reflects a realistic prediction of the ultimate convenience of the forum); DiRienzo, 294 F.3d at 31.

However, where the circumstances indicate that the parties and material events bear no bona fide connection to the United States, or that in relation to the core operative facts in dispute the parties and events at best have only marginal links to the plaintiffs chosen venue, that choice of forum is not entitled to special deference, in particular where the claimants are all foreign residents. See Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 256, 102 S.Ct. 252; Iragorri, 274 F.3d at 71; Turedi, 460 F.Supp.2d at 523. Weighed in this analysis is a sliding-scale consideration of whether forum-shopping reasons may have served as a motivation in the plaintiffs chosen venue. See Iragorri, 274 F.3d at 72 ("[T]he more it appears that the plaintiffs choice of a U.S. forum was motivated by forum-shopping reasons ... the less deference the plaintiffs choice commands and, consequently, the easier it becomes for the defendant to succeed...