Ford-Reyes v. Progressive Funeral Home
418 F.Supp.3d 286
N.D. Ill.2019Background
- Decedent Joel D. Ford died and was cremated in Georgia; funeral home divided remains into four urns and arranged shipping.
- A Georgia "pack-and-ship" business (D&S/The Mail Room) handled packaging; the urns were shipped via UPS rather than the U.S. Postal Service, without special labeling.
- Three packages arrived safely (Texas and Illinois); the fourth, destined for Indiana, was damaged in transit, the glass urn shattered, and UPS discarded the remains.
- Plaintiffs (four adult children) sued Progressive Funeral Home, D&S, and UPS in the Northern District of Illinois; all defendants are based in Georgia (UPS is Delaware-incorporated with principal place of business in Georgia).
- Defendants moved to dismiss for improper venue (among other grounds); the court found no substantial connection to Illinois and dismissed the case without prejudice rather than transferring it.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venue under 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b)(1) (defendant residence) | Venue proper because plaintiff Trayce Ford-Reyes resides in N.D. Ill. | All defendants reside in Georgia (and UPS is not an Illinois resident); plaintiff's residence is irrelevant. | Rejected plaintiff: venue under (b)(1) requires defendant residence; plaintiff residence irrelevant. |
| Venue under 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b)(2) (substantial part of events) | Venue proper because at least one plaintiff suffered harm in Illinois and one package was sent to Illinois. | The events/omissions giving rise to the claim (cremation, packaging, shipping decisions) occurred in Georgia; the Illinois package arrived safely and did not give rise to the claim. | Rejected plaintiff: Northern District of Illinois did not host a substantial part of the events or omissions. |
| Venue under 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b)(3) (last-resort where no other district applies) | Venue proper because the precise location of destruction is unknown and harms were dispersed across states. | Plaintiffs could have sued in Georgia, where all defendants are subject to suit; (b)(3) is unavailable if another proper district exists. | Rejected plaintiff: (b)(3) is a last resort; Georgia is a proper forum. |
| Transfer vs. dismissal under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a) | Implicit: prefer to proceed in Illinois. | Multiple proper Georgia districts exist (N.D. and M.D. Ga.); defendants left choice to plaintiffs. | Court dismissed without prejudice rather than transferring, leaving choice of Georgia forum to plaintiffs. |
Key Cases Cited
- Goodyear Dunlop Tires Operations Co. v. Brown, 564 U.S. 915 (2011) (explains limits of general and specific personal jurisdiction)
- Allstate Life Ins. Co. v. Stanley W. Burns, Inc., 80 F. Supp. 3d 870 (N.D. Ill. 2015) (venue focuses on defendant activities, not merely plaintiff's location of injury)
- Johnson v. Western & Southern Life Ins. Co., [citation="598 F. App'x 454"] (7th Cir. 2015) (dismissal without prejudice for improper venue)
- Farmer v. Levenson, [citation="79 F. App'x 918"] (7th Cir. 2003) (affirming dismissal for improper venue)