The court reversed a previous decision denying Walgreens’ attempts to transfer the suit from St. Clair County to Christian County.
An Illinois appellate court sided with Walgreen Co., granting its request to move a personal injury suit to a different county after concluding that factors such as parties’ proximity, court congestion, and jury duty logistics weighed in favor of the move.
Illinois’ Fifth District Appellate Court reversed the St. Clair County Circuit Court’s decision denying Walgreens’ attempts to move the suit based on forum non conveniens from St. Clair County to Christian County. The three-judge panel reversed and remanded the decision to the circuit court, concluding that it erroneously denied the motion as both private- and public-interest factors strongly favored the move. Justice Amy Sholar authored the Nov. 27 decision, and Presiding Justice Barry Vaughan and Justice Mark Boie concurred.
“Here, we find that the circuit court abused its discretion by denying the defendant’s motion to transfer on the basis of forum non conveniens. Although we acknowledge the plaintiff’s right to choose the forum, a balance of the relevant factors strongly favors a transfer to Christian County,” Sholar said. “The record demonstrates that a trial in Christian County would better serve the ends of justice as well as the convenience of the parties.”
In Smith v. Walgreen, plaintiff Theresa L. Smith, as special administrator of the estate of John R. Brumley Jr., filed a petition in St. Clair County alleging that Walgreens improperly filled Brumley’s prescription for oral prednisone. Walgreens filed a motion to transfer the case, arguing that Christian County is where the action giving rise to the litigation occurred, and that all private- and public-interest factors weighed in favor of the transfer.
Smith argued that St. Clair County was more convenient to all parties, noting she, and Brumley’s disabled adult daughter, who she is the guardian of, both live closer to St. Clair County. Additionally, Smith claimed that Walgreens’ headquarters is in Lake County, Illinois, which is closer to St. Clair, and that public-interest factors support that venue.
Judge Kevin T. Hoerner denied Walgreens’ motion to transfer. On appeal, the appellate court analyzed both public- and private-interest factors, concluding that the majority weighed in favor of transferring the suit.
The court concluded that the public-interest factors weighed in favor of Christian County as the appropriate forum, which is about 90 minutes northeast of St. Louis.
Court congestion weighed in favor of the transfer. The panel determined that Christian County has significantly fewer residents and is less congested than St. Clair County, which is located directly east of St. Louis and considered part of the greater metropolitan area.
Walgreens highlighted statistics, including that in 2021 there were 6,706 new civil cases filed with 8,213 total cases pending at the time of the report in St. Clair County, while there were only 1,338 new civil cases filed and 651 pending in Christian County. Based on previous summary reports, the average time lapse between filing and a verdict in jury trial cases in Christian County was 16.2 months, compared with 33.6 months in St. Clair County.
The court further determined that jury duty favored Christian County as St. Clair residents shouldn’t be burdened with the duty for an action that didn’t raise or relate to the county.
The court considered the convenience of the parties, concluding that the private-interest factor weighed in favor of the transfer. The court noted that neither party resides in St. Clair County and that the Walgreens store at issue is in Christian County. The court highlighted that the estate is also in Christian County. It also noted that Walgreens’ headquarters in Lake County is 80 miles closer to the Christian County courthouse than the St. Clair County courthouse.
The relative ease of access to witnesses and sources of evidence weighed in favor of Christian County as that is where Brumley sustained his injury and the witnesses are closer to Christian County, the opinion said. The possibility of viewing the premises also favored the transfer, as “the complained-of action” occurred at the Walgreens location in Christian County. The court further determined that the trial court improperly considered the convenience of the dismissed defendants.
“For these reasons, we conclude that the weight of the private interest factors favors Christian County, and the weight of the public interest factors strongly favors Christian County. Our deference to plaintiff’s chosen forum is reduced, because she neither resides there nor did the action arise there,” Sholar said. “Accordingly, we find that the circuit court abused its discretion by denying defendant’s motion to transfer based on forum non conveniens.”
“In the last few years, we’ve seen decisions that regularly favor the interests of corporations and institutions over those of the individual. That could be coincidence or it could be a trend. In either case, it is our reality. In this case, the court has decided in a way that not only impacts my client’s right to elect a forum, but also the historic discretionary power granted to the circuit courts,” Smith’s attorney, Keith Short of Keith Short and Associates in Alton, Illinois, said.
This article was first published in Law.com.
