DAB, Incorporated et al v. Sunbelt Rentals, Inc.

Filing 56

ORDER that the motion to change the trial location, (Filing No. 54 ), is granted. The trial of this case will be held in Lincoln, Nebraska. Ordered by Magistrate Judge Cheryl R. Zwart. (LAC)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEBRASKA
DAB, INCORPORATED, a Nebraska
Corporation; NCS TRANSPORTATION,
INC., a Nebraska Corporation; CAROL
A. BENSON, and MARVIN D. BENSON,
Plaintiffs,

7:16CV5004
ORDER

vs.
SUNBELT RENTALS, INC., a North
Carolina Corporation;
Defendant.
Defendant has moved to change the trial location to Lincoln, Nebraska.
(Filing No. 54). For the reasons discussed below, the motion will be granted, and
this case will be tried in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Under the court’s local rules, when deciding the place of trial “the judge
shall consider the convenience of litigants, witnesses and counsel,” NECivR.
40.1(b)(1), with the convenience of the litigants and witnesses generally afforded
greater weight than the convenience of counsel. Bank of Beaver City v.
Southwest Feeders, L.L.C., No. 4:10CV3209, 2011 WL 116863, at *1 (D. Neb.
Jan. 13, 2011).

Plaintiffs are residents and businesses located in Bertrand, Nebraska.
They are represented by attorneys in Kearney, Nebraska. Defendant is a North
Carolina corporation represented by attorneys from Omaha, Nebraska.

The

claims raised in Plaintiffs' complaint and Defendant's counterclaim concern
Plaintiffs' inventory located at businesses in five Nebraska cities: Lincoln,
Hastings, Carney, Grand Island, and Columbus. Defendant’s personnel from

these locations may be witnesses at trial, and Defendant may also call witnesses
from Fort Mill, South Carolina.

As to travel accommodations, those witnesses traveling from South
Carolina will have an easier time obtaining flights into Lincoln, Nebraska. And as
to the employees who are still working in Nebraska, with the exception of
Kearney, Nebraska, all locations are closer to Lincoln. Although Plaintiffs reside
closer to North Platte than Lincoln, Plaintiff Marvin D. Benson frequently travels
to Lincoln, and the individual Plaintiffs own real estate in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Plaintiffs’ counsel office in Kearney, Nebraska, is only approximately 30 miles
closer to North Platte than to Lincoln.

Having considered the convenience of litigants, witnesses, and counsel as
supported by the evidence of record, the court finds that, on balance, Lincoln is
the proper location for the trial of this case.
Accordingly,
IT IS ORDERED:
1)

The motion to change the trial location, (Filing No. 54), is granted.

2)

The trial of this case will be held in Lincoln, Nebraska.

October 17, 2017.
BY THE COURT:
s/ Cheryl R. Zwart
United States Magistrate Judge

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