Britton v. Dallas Airmotive, Inc

In Britton v. Dallas Airmotive, Inc. (2007) 153 Cal.App.4th 127, the defendant filed its motion to dismiss for forum non conveniens one year after most of the defendants had answered the complaint. The appellate court held the motion was timely. (Id. at p. 131.) Explaining its reasoning, the court noted that discovery directed toward developing the factual underpinnings of a motion for forum non conveniens might be necessary, and thus, by implication, not prejudicial. (Id. at p. 135.) As support for its observation, the appellate court cited the discussion in Morris v. AGFA Corp. (2006) finding no prejudice from a one-year delay between the filing of the complaint and the filing of the motion to dismiss.