Corbello v. DeVito

Filing 1005

ORDER DENYING ECF No. 988 Motion to Transfer Venue. Signed by Judge Robert C. Jones on 10/3/2016. (Copies have been distributed pursuant to the NEF - DRM)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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DISTRICT OF NEVADA

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_____________________________________
DONNA CORBELLO,

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Plaintiff,
vs.
THOMAS GAETANO DEVITO et al.,
Defendants.

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2:08-cv-00867-RCJ-PAL
ORDER

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Plaintiff Donna Corbello is the widow and heir of Rex Woodard, who assisted Defendant

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Thomas Gaetano “Tommy” DeVito in writing his unpublished autobiography (the “Work”).

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Plaintiff alleges that DeVito and others wrongfully appropriated the Work to develop the

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screenplay for Jersey Boys, a hit musical based on the band The Four Seasons that has played in

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the United States, Canada, England, and Australia. Corbello has sued several companies and

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individuals for copyright infringement, and she has sued DeVito for an accounting and under

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several state law causes of action.

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Defendants have asked the Court to hold the trial in Las Vegas rather than Reno. The

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Court denies the motion. Plaintiff resides in Texas, and most of the Defendants and witnesses

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reside in New York. Travel from Texas or New York to Reno is not meaningfully more

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inconvenient than travel from those places to Las Vegas. Either trip is essentially a coast to coast

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flight. Although there are more non-stop flights to Las Vegas than to Reno, ground

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transportation between airport and hotel is much quicker in Reno than in Las Vegas, especially

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during peak travel hours. Time spent at check-in, security, baggage claim, and ground

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transportation is also significantly lower at Reno-Tahoe than at McCarran. Considering the

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totality of the circumstances, the Court does not find that a trial in Las Vegas would be more

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convenient for parties and witnesses.

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Witness Thomas DeVito resides in Las Vegas and is in poor health. The Court will

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permit him to testify by video teleconference from Las Vegas if necessary, but the Court will not

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move the entire trial to Las Vegas. The Court also notes that DeVito is not beyond the subpoena

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power of the Court even as to testimony in Reno (as suggested by Defendants), so long as he

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would not incur “substantial expense” to travel to Reno from Las Vegas. See Fed. R. Civ. P.

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45(c)(1)(B)(ii). The Court finds that travel to Reno from Las Vegas would not result in

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“substantial expense” for DeVito under the meaning of the rule, and even if it would the Court

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(or any party demanding his testimony) could pay his expenses (which would be miniscule

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compared to the overall cost of this litigation) to require travel beyond 100 miles because DeVito

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resides in this state. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 45 advisory committee notes.
CONCLUSION

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IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Motion to Transfer Venue (ECF No. 988) is
DENIED.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.

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Dated this 3rd day of October, 2016.

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_____________________________________
ROBERT C. JONES
United States District Judge

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