In the case of Somerlot v. Jung, Sept. Term 2023, No. 3138 (C.P. Phila. Co. Nov. 25, 2024 Bright, J.), the trial court issued a Rule 1925 Opinion requesting the Pennsylvania Superior Court to uphold the Philadelphia County trial court’s decision to transfer a medical malpractice case from Philadelphia County to Bucks County.
According to the Opinion, this matter arose out of an alleged medical malpractice claim related to a surgery that was rendered in Bucks County to a Bucks County resident Plaintiff by a Bucks County physician/medical practice.
The court based its decision on transferring the case from Philadelphia County to Bucks County on a valid forum selection clause that was contained in a pre-surgery consent form executed by the Plaintiff.
The Plaintiff pointed to the fact that one of the Defendants, a medical device manufacturer, had previously stipulated with the Plaintiffs that venue was proper in Philadelphia as to that Defendant. However, the trial court noted that the propriety of venue in Philadelphia was not dispositive based on the fact that a Defendant had previously stipulated to venue in Philadelphia.
Here, the court noted that the injured Plaintiff had contracted to litigate in a different, but also proper venue when the Plaintiff executed the consent form. The trial court held that it was giving preference to the Plaintiffs’ original choice of forum, as reflected in the executed consent form.
The court additionally noted that litigating the entire case in Bucks County would void splitting the case just as effectively as reversing the transfer of moving the matter back to Philadelphia as was requested by the Plaintiffs.
The trial court additionally stated that there were no exceptional circumstances present in this case that would warrant straying from the general principle that a valid forum selection clause is to be honored by the courts.
Anyone wishing to review a copy of this decision may click this LINK.
Source: The Legal Intelligencer Common Pleas Case Alert, www.Law.com (March 27, 2025).
Anyone wishing to review a copy of this decision may click this LINK.
Source: The Legal Intelligencer Common Pleas Case Alert, www.Law.com (March 27, 2025).