In re Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc.
| Decision Date | 25 March 2002 |
| Docket Number | Master File No. IP 00-9373-C-B/S MDL No. 1373. |
| Citation | 190 F.Supp.2d 1125 |
| Parties | In re BRIDGESTONE/FIRESTONE, INC., TIRES PRODUCTS LIABILITY LITIGATION. This Document Relates To: Columbian Cases: IP 00-5083-C-B/S; IP 00-5089-C-B/S; IP 00-5090-C B/S; IP 00-5098-C B/S; IP 00-5099-C B/S. Venezuelan Cases: IP 00-5011-C-B/S; IP 00-5013-C-B/S; IP 00-5078-C-B/S; IP 00-5079-C-B/S; IP 00-5080-C-B/S; IP 00-5081-C-B/S; IP 00-5082-C-B/S; IP 00-5084-C-B/S; IP 00-5085-C-B/S; IP 00-5086-C-B/S; IP 00-5088-C-B/S; IP 00-5092-C-B/S; IP 00-5093-C-B/S; IP 00-5094-C-B/S; IP 00-5095-C-B/S; IP 00-5096-C-B/S; IP 00-5097-C-B/S; IP 00-5100-C-B/S; IP 00-5101-C-B/S; IP 00-5102-C-B/S; IP 00-5103-C-B/S; IP 00-5104-C-B/S; IP 00-5105-C-B/S; IP 00-5106-C-B/S; IP 00-5107-C-B/S; IP 00-5108-C-B/S; IP 00-5109-C-B/S; IP 00-5110-C-B/S; IP 00-5111-C-B/S; IP 00-5112-C-B/S; IP 00-5113-C-B/S; IP 00-5114-C-B/S; IP 00-5115-C-B/S; IP 00-5116-C-B/S; IP 00-5117-C-B/S; IP 00-5118-C-B/S; IP 00-5119-C-B/S; IP 00-5120-C-B/S; IP 01-5177-C-B/S; IP 01-5178-C-B/S; IP 01-5180-C-B/S; IP 01-5181-C-B/S; IP 01-5182-C-B/S; IP 01-5183-C-B/S; IP 01-5184-C-B/S; IP 01-5185-C-B/S; IP 01-5186-C-B/S; IP 01-5187-C-B/S; IP 01-5188-C-B/S; IP 01-5189-C-B/S; IP 01-5190-C-B/S; IP 01-5191-C-B/S; IP 01-5193-C-B/S; IP 01-5219-C-B/S; IP 01-5220-C-B/S; IP 01-5221-C-B/S; IP 01-5222-C-B/S; IP 01-5223-C-B/S; IP 01-5224-C-B/S; IP 01-5225-C-B/S; IP 01-5231-C-B/S; IP 01-5232-C-B/S; IP 01-5266-C-B/S; IP 01-5267-C-B/S; IP 01-5268-C-B/S; IP 01-5273-C-B/S; IP 01-5287-C-B/S; IP 01-5288-C-B/S; IP 01-5312-C-B/S; IP 01-5313-C-B/S; IP 01-5314-C-B/S; IP 01-5315-C-B/S; IP 01-5321-C-B/S; IP 01-5322-C-B/S; IP 01-5325-C-B/S; IP 01-5326-C-B/S; IP 01-5327-C-B/S; IP 01-5331-C-B/S; IP 01-5333-C-B/S; IP 01-5334-C-B/S; IP 01-5335-C-B/S; IP 01-5340-C-B/S; IP 01-5342-C-B/S; IP 01-5343-C-B/S; IP 01-5344-C-B/S; IP 01-5345-C-B/S; IP 01-5346-C-B/S; IP 01-5347-C-B/S; IP 01-5348-C-B/S; IP 01-5349-C-B/S; IP 01-5350-C-B/S; IP 01-5370-C-B/S; IP 01-5371-C-B/S; IP 01-5385-C-B/S; IP 01-5385-C-B/S; IP 01-5387-C-B/S; IP 01-5388-C-B/S; IP 01-5389-C-B/S; IP 01-5395-C-B/S; IP 01-5396-C-B/S; IP 01-5396-C-B/S; IP 01-5398-C-B/S; IP 01-5413-C-B/S; IP 01-5414-C-B/S; IP 01-5427-C-B/S; IP 01-5428-C-B/S; IP 01-5429-C-B/S; IP 01-5430-C-B/S; IP 01-5431-C-B/S; IP 01-5432-C-B/S; IP 01-5434-C-B/S; IP 01-5462-C-B/S; IP 01-5463-C-B/S; IP 01-5464-C-B/S; IP 01-5465-C-B/S; IP 01-5466-C-B/S. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of Indiana |
Don Barrett, Barrett Law Office Pa, Lexington, MS, Victor Manuel Diaz Jr, Podhurst Orseck Josefsberg & Eaton, Miami, FL, Mike Eidson, Colson Hicks Eidson, Coral Gables, FL, Irwin B Levin, Cohen & Malad, William E Winingham, Wilson, Kehoe & Winingham, Indianapolis, IN, for Plaintiffs.
John H Beisner, O'Melveny & Myers LLP, Washington, DC, Daniel P Byron, Bingham McHale, LLP, Indianapolis, IN, Mark Herrmann, Jones Day Reavis & Pogue, Thomas S Kilbane, Squire, Sanders & Dempsey LLP, Cleveland, OH, Mark Merkle, Krieg Devault LLP, Randall Riggs, Locke Reynolds LLP, Indianapolis, IN Colin P Smith, Holland & Knight LLP, Chicago, IL, Thomas G Stayton, Baker & Daniels, Indianapolis, IN, for Defendants.
ORDER DENYING DEFENDANT FORD AND FIRESTONE'S MOTIONS TO DISMISS COLOMBIAN AND VENEZUELAN CASES ON GROUND OF FORUM NON CONVENIENS
Defendants Ford Motor Co. ("Ford") and Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc.1 (Firestone) filed various motions and supplemental motions to dismiss certain personal injury and wrongful death cases on the ground of forum non conveniens. For the reasons set forth below, these motions are DENIED with respect to the cases listed in the caption above.
Approximately 700 personal injury and wrongful death cases have been filed against Ford and/or Firestone in federal courts around the country alleging that defects in Ford Explorers and certain models of Firestone tires were responsible for the accidents causing the injuries suffered by Plaintiffs. The cases were transferred to this court by the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407 on October 26, 2000. Approximately 200 of these cases were filed by Plaintiffs who were injured in accidents that occurred in foreign countries, including Colombia, Venezuela, Thailand, Panama, and Ecuador. On December 21, 2000, the first of many motions to dismiss these cases on the ground of forum non conveniens was filed by Ford. Ford asked that, for the cases involving accidents in Venezuela, the cases be dismissed from this litigation in lieu of further proceedings in Venezuelan courts. A corresponding motion sought dismissal of the cases involving accidents occurring in Colombia in favor of trial in Colombian courts. Firestone soon followed Ford's lead in seeking such relief. In February 2001, we granted Plaintiffs' motion to conduct discovery on forum non conveniens issues. In re Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. ATX, ATX II and Wilderness Tires Products Liability Litigation, 131 F.Supp.2d 1027 (S.D.Ind.2001). Because of the complexities of this doctrine and because the majority of the foreign cases originate from Colombia and Venezuela, the parties briefed, and we rule on here, only the cases listed in the caption above, all of which are Colombian or Venezuelan cases. Of course, our ruling carries implications for the remainder of the forum non conveniens motions which the parties should take into account when determining their strategies in the remaining cases.
"[T]he central focus of the forum non conveniens inquiry is convenience." Piper Aircraft Co. v. Reyno, 454 U.S. 235, 249, 102 S.Ct. 252, 70 L.Ed.2d 419 (1981). In other words, "a trial court may dismiss a suit over which it would normally have jurisdiction if it best serves the convenience of the parties and the ends of justice." Kamel v. Hill-Rom Co., Inc., 108 F.3d 799, 802 (7th Cir.1997) (citations omitted). The forum non conveniens inquiry is guided by a number of considerations. First, an adequate alternative forum must be available to hear the case. Id. If this threshold criterion is satisfied, then the court must identify various private and public interest factors and balance them to determine if their weight favors dismissal. Id. at 803; see also ISI International, Inc. v. Borden Ladner Gervais, LLP, 2001 WL 1382572, at *2 (N.D.Ill. Nov.5, 2001) (). Ford and Firestone "bear[] the burden of persuasion as to all elements of the forum non conveniens analysis." Lacey v. Cessna Aircraft Co., 862 F.2d 38, 43-44 (3d Cir.1988) (Lacey I); see also Pyrenee, Ltd. v. Wocom Commodities, Ltd., 984 F.Supp. 1148, 1161 (N.D.Ill.1997) ().
We first determine whether there is an adequate alternative forum in which to hear these cases. Piper, 454 U.S. at 254 n. 22, 102 S.Ct. 252. Whether there is an adequate alternative forum for Plaintiffs' claims is a "two-part inquiry: availability and adequacy." Kamel, 108 F.3d at 802. A forum is "available" if "all parties are amenable to process and are within the forum's jurisdiction." Id. at 803 (citing Piper, 454 U.S. at 254 n. 22, 102 S.Ct. 252). An alternative forum is "adequate" when "the parties will not be deprived of all remedies or treated unfairly." Id. (citing Piper, 454 U.S. at 255, 102 S.Ct. 252).
We begin by addressing whether the courts of Venezuela provide Plaintiffs allegedly injured in Venezuela an adequate alternative forum in which to bring their claims. Defendants have submitted the affidavits of two experts (Rengel and Cottín) who testify that "citizens and residents of Venezuela may bring suit in the Venezuelan courts to assert claims against nonresident defendants such as Ford and Firestone for conduct related in part to events occurring in Venezuela." Rengel Aff. ¶ 9; see also Cottín Dec. ¶ 13 (). Plaintiffs contest this assertion with the affidavits of their own experts. Tatiana B. deMaekelt, head of the private international law department at Universidad Central de Venezuela and Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, reaches the opposite conclusion regarding the jurisdiction of Venezuelan courts in these cases. As explained below, the testimony of Rengel and Cottín does not satisfy Defendants' burden of establishing Venezuela as an available alternative forum.
Plaintiffs' expert, deMaekelt, explains that Article 39 of the Statute of Private International Law "provides that the first forum for bringing suit against a non-domiciliary defendant is the country where the defendant is domiciled." DeMaekelt Aff. ¶ 3. DeMaekelt, in partial agreement with Defendants' experts, then identifies two potentially applicable exceptions to this principle, which are set forth in Article 40 of the Statute on Private International Law. Id. at ¶ 6; see also Rengel Aff. ¶ 12. The first of these exceptions permits jurisdiction over personal injury cases with non-domiciliary defendants "where the facts are verified" in Venezuela and where a contract is executed in Venezuela. Article 40(2) (cited in Cottín Reply Aff. ¶ 6; deMaekelt Aff. ¶¶ 6, 12). According to Ford and Firestone, because the vehicles involved in the accidents at issue were purchased or leased in Venezuela, and because the accidents occurred in Venezuela, Venezuelan courts have jurisdiction over these cases as the site "where the facts were verified." Cottín Reply Aff. ¶ 7-9. DeMaekelt calls Cottín's conclusions into serious doubt. She opines that the language of Article 40(2) is not as clear as Defendants suggest and states that this subparagraph requires the equivalent of a "most...
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