Dismissal on Grounds of Forum Non Conveniens - Assignment Example

It is more convenient to hold the case in Greece or Cyprus as most of the public and private considerations for a dismissal on grounds of forum non-convenient are met.

Summary of the Facts

• The Kakis flight was en route to Moscow from Russia and was making a stopover in Greece.
• The plane crashed near Athens and the entire wreckage is still there.
• Most of the passengers originated from Cyprus.
• Some evidence documents are in Greek.
• Both Cyprus and Greece communicate in the Greek language.
• The courts will need to view the wreckage as a review of the evidence.

Test for Forum Non Conveniens

            According to Lear (2005), there are several factors that a court examines to determine Forum Non-Conveniens. These include:

• Where are the plaintiff's and defendant's home countries?
• Where are the witnesses and evidence located?
• How burdened is the local and receiving court system.
• Which forum does the plaintiff favor for the hearing?
• How each of the party’s cases would be affected by the change of forum.
• Public policy.

Discussion

The majority of the plaintiffs in the case are Cyprian citizens, while the Kokis Airline is also a Cyprian Airline. Thus, it would be more convenient for the defendants and plaintiffs to attend the court hearing in either Greece or Cyprus. According to Lear, the doctrine of forum non-conveniens is supposed to provide convenience to the parties above all else (1147).

In Piper vs Reyno, the fact that most of the evidence including the plane wreckage and witnesses could be found in Scotland or near Scotland was given as one of the grounds for granting forum non-conveniens. Similarly, the plane wreckage is in Athens and since the flights took off from Cyprus, further evidence could be obtained from the ground crew there. Furthermore, some of the evidence is in Greek, and Greek law will be applicable in some matters. In Piper vs Reyno, it was reasoned that an American jury will have a hard time understanding foreign laws. If the case is heard in the district court, Greek law would have to apply and it is in doubt if the jury would comprehend Greek law.

In Piper vs Reyno, American courts were cautioned against adjudicating foreign matters as this would place an unnecessary burden on the American court system. In the case, both the defendant and plaintiffs are foreign citizens, therefore, meaning the US has little public interest in deciding the matter.

In this case, the plaintiffs favor the district court as here they would obtain ten times as much compensation and damages for the suit. However, in Piper vs Reyno, it was ruled that plaintiff’s favored forum had little bearing on granting dismissal on grounds of forum non-conveniens. If courts were to take plaintiffs' choice of forums as weighty consideration then dismissal would be rare. Furthermore, in Yavuz vs 61 MM LTD, it helped that claims do not have to be similar to those offered by the district courts for a foreign jurisdiction to be accessed as an adequate forum

In addition, the change of forum would not change either party’s case as plaintiffs could still make claims of negligence under Greek law.  Moreover, the district of Oklahoma is also not a good forum as there is an immense public interest in the case in Greece and Cyprus. In Piper v Reyno the courts consider the interest of Scottish authorities in the case to rule for dismissal.