Opinion ID: 184058
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Brazil is an Adequate and Available Forum.

Text: The first factor involves two inquiries: whether the alternative forum is adequate and available. Aldana v. Del Monte Fresh Produce N.A., 578 F.3d 1283, 1290 (11th Cir.2009) (internal quotation marks omitted). Availability and adequacy warrant separate consideration. Leon, 251 F.3d at 1311. Both favor a Brazilian forum. The record supports the determination of the district court that Brazil is an available forum. An alternative forum is `available' to the plaintiff when the foreign court can assert jurisdiction over the litigation sought to be transferred. Id. Ordinarily, [the requirement of an available forum] will be satisfied when the defendant is `amenable to process' in the other jurisdiction. Piper Aircraft, 454 U.S. at 254 n. 22, 102 S.Ct. at 265 n. 22 (quoting Gulf Oil Corp. v. Gilbert, 330 U.S. 501, 506-07, 67 S.Ct. 839, 842, 91 L.Ed. 1055 (1947)). The manufacturers have stipulated that they will make themselves amenable to process in Brazil as a condition of dismissal. Specifically, the manufacturers have stipulated that they will consent to service of process in Brazil; toll any applicable Brazilian statutes of limitation; make relevant witnesses and documents available to a Brazilian civil court; and respect the final judgment of a Brazilian court. These stipulations ensure the availability of Brazil as an alternative forum. The record supports the determination of the district court that Brazil is also an adequate forum. An alternative forum is inadequate if the remedy provided by th[at] alternative forum is so clearly inadequate or unsatisfactory that it is no remedy at all. Id. at 254, 102 S.Ct. at 265. Other federal courts have found Brazil to be an adequate forum in similar circumstances. See, e.g., In re Air Crash Near Peixoto de Azeveda, Braz., 574 F.Supp.2d 272, 284-85 (E.D.N.Y.2008) (Brazil should be considered an adequate forum.) (collecting cases); Da Rocha v. Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc., 451 F.Supp.2d 1318, 1322 (S.D.Fla.2006) (Brazil provides Plaintiffs with an adequate alternative forum.). In fact, the Brazilian family members have conceded that, in theory at least, Brazil will provide an adequate alternative forum for litigation of plaintiffs' claims. Finally, the manufacturers have submitted compelling evidence that the family members are able to bring similar causes of action and seek adequate remedies in Brazil.