A franchisor’s lawsuit against the operators of two franchises in California was transferred this month to that state despite contractual forum selection clauses that had specified venue in the franchisor’s home state of New Jersey. Elite Sports Enterprises, Inc. v. Lococo, 2008 WL 4192045 (D.N.J. Sept. 5, 2008). Noting that the forum selection clauses “may be considered” in the court’s analysis of a transfer motion, the parties’ choice of venue is “not dispositive,” the New Jersey court held. In this case, the court found more significant that the “operative facts” of the dispute had occurred in California, where the corporate franchisees were headquartered, where the principals of the franchisees lived, where the franchised stores were located, and where the alleged trademark violations occurred. Witnesses and other evidence also were located primarily in California, the court found. Lastly, the court upheld what it viewed as the strong “public interest” of California in having franchisees located there governed by California law and California courts.
Procedure