Opinion
CIVIL ACTION NO: 12-380
04-02-2012
ANTHONY SMITH v. WEEKS MARINE, INC.
ORDER AND REASONS
Before the Court is a Motion to Transfer Case (Rec. Doc. 6)
filed by defendant Weeks Marine, Inc. Plaintiff Anthony Smith opposes the motion. The motion, set for hearing on March 28, 2012, is before the Court on the briefs without oral argument.
Plaintiff filed this lawsuit to recover under the Jones Act and general maritime law for injuries that he allegedly sustained aboard the BOBBY L. Defendant Weeks Marine, Inc. is sued as the vessel's owner and operator. The accident is alleged to have occurred on December 24, 2011.
The instant motion to transfer is grounded for the most part on Weeks's having been the first party to reach the courthouse. On January 26, 2012, less than one month after the accident, Weeks filed a declaratory judgment action in the Southern District of Mississippi pertaining to its obligation to pay maintenance and cure. Weeks contends that Smith's claims in the instant case are compulsory counterclaims in the Mississippi case and that this case has little to do with Louisiana. Weeks therefore moves to transfer the case to Mississippi under the auspices of 28 U.S.C. § 1240(a) for the convenience of the parties.
Weeks is correct in its assertion that the case has little to do with Louisiana. But it likewise has nothing to do with Mississippi. The accident did not occur in Mississippi and the only medical treatment rendered thus far did not take place in Mississippi. Weeks is a New Jersey corporation with its principal place of business in New Jersey. The sole connection to Mississippi is that the plaintiff himself lives there. But the Court is loathe to upset the forum choice of a Jones Act seaman simply because the defendant believes that its chosen forum would be more convenient for the plaintiff.
Weeks provided the Court with its corporate registration for Mississippi. (Rec. Doc. 6-7). This exhibit is particularly unconvincing because Weeks has the very same registration on file with the Louisiana Secretary of State. Of course the Louisiana registration has the name of the registered agent for service located in this state.
In sum, Weeks has not established that transfer is appropriate under § 1404(a).
Accordingly, and for the foregoing reasons;
IT IS ORDERED that the Motion to Transfer Case (Rec. Doc. 6) filed by defendant Weeks Marine, Inc. is DENIED.
_______________________________
JAY C. ZAINEY
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE