Ponder v. PropheteMOTION to Dismiss for Forum Non ConveninesD. Kan.February 12, 2019Page 1 of 2 CASE NO. 2:16-CV-02376-CM-GLR IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF KANSAS BRIAN LAMAR PONDER, Plaintiff, v. DONALD SONY PROPHETE, Defendant. CASE NO. 2:16-CV-02376-CM-GLR DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO DISMISS FOR FORUM NON CONVENIENS Defendant Donald Sony Prophete (“Defendant”), by and through his undersigned counsel and pursuant to D. Kan. Rule 7.1, respectfully submits this Motion to Dismiss for Forum Non Conveniens. As further explained in Defendant’s accompanying Memorandum in Support, Plaintiff’s claims in this case arise out of an incident that occurred exclusively in the Dominican Republic. As several other trial courts have found under analogous circumstances, the Dominican Republic is the appropriate forum for Plaintiff’s claims. Dominican Republic law applies to this case, and the Dominican Republic is an adequate alternative forum available to Plaintiff to recover for all of the intentional tort claims he alleges here. Moreover, both the public and private interest factors in a forum non conveniens analysis weigh strongly in favor of dismissal. WHEREFORE, Defendant respectfully requests the Court grant its motion and dismiss this action under the doctrine of forum non conveniens. Case 2:16-cv-02376-CM Document 82 Filed 02/12/19 Page 1 of 2 Page 2 of 2 CASE NO. 2:16-CV-02376-CM-GLR MANNING, GROSS + MASSENBURG, LLP By: /s/ Daniel B. Rousseau Daniel B. Rousseau, #78627 1405 Green Mount Road, Suite 400 O’Fallon, IL 62269 Telephone: (618) 277-5500 Facsimile: (618) 277-6334 Email: drousseau@mgmlaw.com ATTORNEY FOR DEFENDANT DONALD SONY PROPHETE M. Elizabeth O’Neill NC Bar No. 24039348 Pro Hac Vice Admitted Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP One Wells Fargo Center, Suite 3500 301 South College Street Charlotte, NC 28202-6037 Telephone: (704) 350-6310 Email: Elizabeth.ONeill@wbd-us.com ATTORNEY FOR DEFENDANT DONALD SONY PROPHETE CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that I have served a copy of the foregoing Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss for Forum Non Conveniens via this Court’s CM/ECF system, which effected service through Notice of Electronic Filing to all counsel of record as follows: Brian L. Ponder, Esq. Brian Ponder, LLP 200 Park Avenue, Suite 1700 New York, NY 10166 Dated this 12th day of February, 2019. By: /s/ Daniel B. Rousseau Daniel B. Rousseau, #78627 ATTORNEY FOR DEFENDANT DONALD SONY PROPHETE Case 2:16-cv-02376-CM Document 82 Filed 02/12/19 Page 2 of 2
