Opinion
Docket No. 1437
June 13, 2002
BEFORE WM. TERRELL HODGES, CHAIRMAN, JOHN F. KEENAN, MOREY L. SEAR, BRUCE M. SELYA, JULIA SMITH GIBBONS, D. LOWELL JENSEN AND J. FREDERICK MOTZ, JUDGES OF THE PANEL
ORDER VACATING CONDITIONAL TRANSFER ORDER
Before the Panel is a motion brought, pursuant to Rule 7.4, R.P.J.P.M.L., 199 F.R.D. 425, 435-36 (2001), by defendants American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.; Disney Enterprises, Inc.; Regis Philbin; and Simon Marketing, Inc., in the Northern District of Ohio action to vacate the Panel's order conditionally transferring the action to the Northern District of Illinois for inclusion in the coordinated or consolidated pretrial proceedings occurring there in this docket. Defendant McDonald's Corporation (McDonald's) opposes the motion to vacate and favors inclusion of the action in MDL-1437.
On the basis of the papers filed and hearing session held, the Panel finds that transfer of this action to the Northern District of Illinois would neither serve the convenience of the parties and witnesses nor further the just and efficient conduct of this litigation at this time. The actions in this litigation all involve the alleged corruption of promotional games related to McDonald's during the time period 1995 through 2001. Specifically, plaintiffs in the MDL-1437 actions allege that the misappropriation of high-value winning game cards significantly hindered or blocked their chances of receiving such a game card. Given that the plaintiff in the action currently before the Panel alleges that she received a high-value winning game card, the Panel is persuaded that inclusion of this action in MDL-1437 is not presently warranted.
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the Panel's conditional transfer order designated as "CTO-1" and filed on March 6, 2002, is vacated insofar as it applies to Kisha Hagler v. McDonald's Corp., et al., N.D. Ohio, C.A. No. 1:01-2099.