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Said v. Strong Memorial Hospital ex rel. Its Agents
Citations: 255 A.D.2d 953; 680 N.Y.S.2d 785; 1998 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 12205
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; November 12, 1998; New York; State Appellate Court
Order unanimously affirmed with costs. Defendants appealed the denial of their motion to change the venue of a medical malpractice case from Onondaga County, where the plaintiff resides, to Monroe County, where the events occurred. The defendants argued that the change was necessary for the convenience of key witnesses, including five physicians from Strong Memorial Hospital and various ambulance and law enforcement personnel. The Supreme Court denied the motion, citing several reasons. The defendants failed to identify the ambulance attendants and police officers, including their names, addresses, or the content of their expected testimony, thus not meeting the burden of proof for the necessity of a venue change. Regarding the five physicians, the court noted that they were employees of Strong and therefore considered part of the defendants’ team, whose convenience holds little weight in venue considerations. Two physicians were current employees, and three were former employees, with one residing in New Jersey, undermining the argument for convenience in changing venue from Syracuse to Rochester. The convenience of non-resident witnesses is deemed subordinate in such matters. Even if some physicians were categorized as nonparty witnesses, defendants did not demonstrate that their convenience outweighed that of plaintiff's local witnesses, particularly three of whom are currently treating the plaintiff. Additionally, the court appropriately considered the plaintiff’s ill health in its decision. The appeal was from an order of the Supreme Court, Onondaga County, with Justice Major presiding, and was upheld by Justices Green, Wisner, Pigott Jr., Balio, and Fallon.