Ford Motor Company v. James
Florida District Court of Appeal
33 So. 3d 91 (2010)
- Written by Liz Nakamura, JD
Facts
Tatyana Allen’s dance team rented a van in Broward County, Florida, to drive to a dance competition in Alabama. The van was manufactured by Ford Motor Company (Ford) (plaintiff) and was outfitted with tires made by Michelin North America, Inc. (Michelin) (plaintiff). There were 10 people in the van, including Allen, all of whom resided in Broward County. While driving through Columbia County, the van suffered a tire-blowout and flipped. Allen was ejected from the van and died from her injuries. Sheila James (defendant), as the personal representative of Allen’s estate, sued Ford and Michelin for negligence and strict liability, alleging that the accident was caused by design and manufacturing defects in the van and in the tires. Ford and Michelin filed a forum non conveniens motion to transfer James’s pending action to Columbia County, arguing that transfer was appropriate because (1) the accident occurred in Columbia County; (2) the emergency and medical personnel who responded to the accident all resided in Columbia County; and (3) Allen’s autopsy occurred in Columbia County. James countered, arguing that Broward County was the most convenient and appropriate forum because (a) the nine other van occupants, all of whom were eyewitnesses to the accident, resided in Broward County; (b) Allen was a resident of Broward County; and (c) the Ford van was rented in Broward County. The trial court denied Ford and Michelin’s transfer motion, holding that Ford and Michelin had failed to present sufficient evidence to overcome the deference to which James’s choice-of-forum was entitled. Ford and Michelin appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Polen, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 811,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
