Loya v. Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
583 F.3d 656 (2009)
- Written by Rich Walter, JD
Facts
Gillian Loya (plaintiff), an American citizen, sued Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (Starwood) (defendant), an American company, in connection with her husband’s accidental death while staying at Starwood’s Mexican resort. Starwood moved to dismiss the case on grounds of forum non conveniens. The Washington-based federal district court heard evidence as to whether Washington or Mexico provided the better forum for Loya’s case. Although many factors were neutral, the court found that several factors favored trying the case in Mexico: (1) with the exception of one key American witness, witnesses and sources of proof relating to the fatal accident would be easier to obtain in Mexico than in Washington; (2) Mexican-court judgments were enforceable in the United States; (3) Mexico’s interest in attracting foreign tourists by maintaining safe business operations outweighed Washington’s interest in protecting its residents; and (4) although Mexican legal costs were high relative to Mexican damages awards, which tended to be smaller than American awards, Mexican awards were adequate. The district court granted Starwood’s motion and dismissed the case. Loya appealed to the Ninth Circuit.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Rymer, J.)
Dissent (Kleinfeld, 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.
