Johnson v. Ventra Group, Inc.
United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
191 F.3d 732 (1999)
- Written by Rich Walter, JD
Facts
John Johnson (plaintiff) was the American sales manager for Manutec Steel Industries, Inc. (Manutec), a Canadian company headquartered in the province of Ontario. Johnson’s employment contract provided that any dispute between the parties would be subject to Ontario law. Thus, when Manutec fired Johnson, Johnson filed his lawsuit for wrongful termination in an Ontario court, which ruled in Johnson’s favor. However, before Johnson could collect the Ontario court’s damages award, another Ontario company, Ventra Group, Inc. (Ventra) (defendant), acquired Manutec and Manutec’s Canadian assets. Johnson sued Ventra in a Michigan federal district court. Michigan law gave precedence to the choice-of-laws provision in Johnson’s employment contract. The court granted Ventra’s motion for summary judgment, ruling that Ontario law neither recognized the doctrine of successor liability nor provided any other basis for extending Manutec’s liability to Ventra. Johnson appealed to the Sixth Circuit, arguing that Ontario law was repugnant to Michigan law, which recognized successor liability and gave sales agents significant legal protections.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Gilman, J.)
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