State News : Alabama

NWCDN is a network of law firms dedicated to protecting employers in workers’ compensation claims.


NWCDN Members regularly post articles and summary judgements in workers’ compensations law in your state.  


Select a state from the dropdown menu below to scroll through the state specific archives for updates and opinions on various workers’ compensation laws in your state.


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Alabama

FISH NELSON & HOLDEN, LLC

  205-822-6611

Earlier this month, we reported on a case where a trial court denied an employer’s motion to transfer venue based on the doctrine of forum non conveniens. The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals subsequently denied the employer’s petition for a writ of mandamus noting that such a petition is an extraordinary remedy and will only be granted if the trial court clearly abused its discretion. That opinion was clearly an example of when the first to file was rewarded by filing first.

More recently, the Court of Civil Appeals released an opinion on July 11, 2014, wherein it, again, refused to grant the employer’s petition for a writ of mandamus. This time, it was the party that placed second in the race to the courthouse that ended up winning the venue battle.

Specifically, the employer filed a workers’ compensation complaint in Mobile County. The employee then filed a motion to transfer the action to Clarke County based, in part, on the doctrine of forum non conveniens. It was undisputed that the employer’s principal place of business was in Mobile County and that the employee had been transferred to a Mobile hospital on the day of the accident. It was further undisputed that the employee resided in Clarke County at the time of the accident and on the date of filing the lawsuit, the accident occurred in Clarke County, and that at least some of the employee’s medical treatment and therapy occurred in Clarke County. There was a dispute as to whether or not there existed any witnesses to the accident.

Based on the foregoing, the trial judge granted the employee’s motion and transferred the matter to Clarke County. In denying the employer’s petition, the Court of Appeals noted that it could not find that the trial court exceeded its discretion in transferring the action.

My To Cents:

Although this appears on its face to be a different result than the case reported on earlier this month, the Court of Appeals’ basically ruled the same way. In both cases, the Court held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion.

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About the Author

This article was written by Michael I. Fish, Esq. of Fish Nelson & Holden LLC, a law firm dedicated to representing employers, self-insured employers and insurance carriers in workers’ compensation matters. Fish Nelson is a member of The National Workers’ Compensation Network (NWCDN). If you have any questions about this article or Alabama workers’ compensation issues in general, please feel free to contact the author atmfish@fishnelson.com or any firm member at 205-332-1448.