Guimei v. General Electric Co.
California Court of Appeal
91 Cal. Rptr. 3d 178 (2009)
After a China Eastern Yunnan Airlines flight crashed in China killing mostly Chinese citizens, victims' families (plaintiffs) sued the Canadian plane manufacturer, its American engine maker, and the Chinese airline (defendants) in California state court, even though the plane was built in Canada, sold in Quebec, and the tickets, crew licenses, and nearly all victims were tied to China. The defendants moved to stay or dismiss under forum non conveniens, consenting to Chinese jurisdiction and waiving any statute-of-limitations defense if refiled there within six months and presenting expert testimony that Chinese courts were independent and adequate; the trial court granted the stay, and the plaintiffs appealed.
Whether, under the doctrine of forum non conveniens, a court should stay or dismiss an action if there is a suitable alternative forum and the balance of the litigants' private interests and the state's public interest favors transferring the case.