Plaintiff filed a lawsuit against the defendants on behalf of herself and her minor child, alleging that her child, who was born prematurely, was injured by the defendants’ cow’s milk-based infant feeding products. The lawsuit alleged strict products liability, failure to warn, negligence, and intentional misrepresentation. The circuit court entered a case management order for coordination for pretrial and discovery of nearly two dozen similar lawsuits filed in St. Clair County. Defendants filed a motion to transfer based on forum non conveniens as well as a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. The circuit court denied the motions and defendants sought leave to file an interlocutory appeal. The appellate court affirmed both the dismissal of the motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and the court’s dismissal of the defendants’ venue and forum non conveniens motions, finding that defendant was not a non-resident during the applicable time period and that the circuit court did not err in its analysis of the public and private factors relevant to venue. (MOORE and HACKETT, concurring)
Illinois Appellate Court
Civil Court
Forum Non Conveniens