Court Opinion

ID: 9767264
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 05:14:42.400172+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:30:29.929623
License: Public Domain

McEWEN, Judge,
concurring:
I concur in the result of the quite thoughtful opinion of the majority but have certain further thoughts.
Translation must here precede analysis. The Latin phrase, forum non conveniens, is, of course, too familiar to be any task. And while interpretation of the assertions of counsel may perplex the Berlitz School, the translation becomes routine for those who, in the words of Professor Harold Hill, “know the territory”.
Counsel for the parties provide the following assertions: The appellee, Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, seeks to transfer the suit to Luzerne County “for the convenience of the parties and the witnesses.”
The appellant-plaintiff urges the view that “Philadelphia County is as convenient a forum for the actual trial of this case as any other county.”
The actual propositions, when translated, are:
The appellee, Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, seeks the transfer since the verdict amounts in Luzerne *84County are not nearly as substantial as in Philadelphia County.
The appellant-plaintiff opposes the transfer because the settlement value and the verdict exposure is far greater in Philadelphia than in Luzerne.
While I am inclined to the view that once venue has been established, the case should not be transferred unless extreme inconvenience is demonstrated, Pa.R.C.P. 1006(d) refers simply to “the convenience of the parties and witnesses” as the standard by which the trial judge shall rule upon an application for transfer. And while our study of the facts leads to the conclusion that there was certainly a substantial basis for the denial of the petition for transfer, the scope of appellate review is limited to a determination of whether the hearing court abused its discretion. We are unable to so conclude since the record reflects a sufficient basis for the decision of the court to grant the petition for transfer. As a result, I concur in the result of the majority opinion.