Freeman et al v. Carroll et al

Filing 16

ORDER OF CONSOLIDATION. Signed by Honorable J Michelle Childs on 9/20/2012.(hcic, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF SOUTH CAROLINA
FLORENCE DIVISION
Barbara Park, et al,

)
)
Plaintiffs,
) Civil Action No.: 4:12-cv-01132-JMC
)
v.
)
)
Kimberly Page as Personal Representative )
of the Estate of Daniel Charles Carroll, et al, )
)
Defendants.
)
___________________________________ )
Sandra Freeman, et al,

)
)
Plaintiffs,
) Civil Action No.: 4:12-cv-01939-JMC
)
v.
)
)
Estate of Daniel Charles Carroll, et al,
)
)
Defendants.
)
___________________________________ )
ORDER OF CONSOLIDATION
Presently before the court are Defendant Concord Regional Flight Services LLC’s
Motion to Consolidate [Dkt. No. 7, Civil Action No. 4:12-cv-01132-JMC] and
Defendants Concord Regional Flight Services LLC and Robert O'Neale, III’s Motion to
Consolidate [Dkt. No. 9, Civil Action No. 4:12-cv-01939-JMC] the above captioned
actions with three related actions: Ronnie Bryant v. Concord Regional Flight Services,
LLC, et al, Civil Action No. 4:11-cv-1564-JMC; Crystal Black v. Kimberly Carroll Page,
et al, Civil Action No. 4:11-cv-1835-JMC; and Takisana Black v. Kimberly Carroll Page,
et al, Civil Action No. 4:11-cv-1838-JMC for pretrial purposes. All five cases arise from
an airline crash that occurred on July 14, 2010, in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Although each case involves different plaintiffs, the defendants are the same in all but
one case.1 These motions are made without objection from any party.
The court may consolidate multiple pending actions involving “common
question[s] of law or fact” into one action in the interest of efficiency. Fed. R. Civ. P.
42(a).

Upon review, the court finds that judicial efficiency is best served by

consolidating these five related actions for pretrial purposes. Accordingly, the court
GRANTS Defendant Concord Regional Flight Services LLC’s Motion to Consolidate
[Dkt. No. 7, Civil Action No. 4:12-cv-01132-JMC] and Defendants Concord Regional
Flight Services LLC and Robert O'Neale, III’s Motion to Consolidate [Dkt. No. 9, Civil
Action No. 4:12-cv-01939-JMC]. The matters are consolidated for pretrial purposes only
unless otherwise ordered by the court. The Clerk shall enter an amended scheduling
order reflecting the consolidation. The parties are further notified that the consolidated
cases will now be tracked for purposes of court deadlines, including the date by which all
actions must be concluded, based on the earliest filed case, Ronnie Bryant v. Concord
Regional Flight Services, LLC, et al, Civil Action No. 4:11-cv-1564-JMC.
IT IS SO ORDERED.

United States District Judge
September 20, 2012
Greenville, South Carolina

1 No claims were brought against Robert O’Neale III in Barbara Park v. Kimberly Page,
et al, Case No. 4:12-cv-01132-JMC. Because the nature of the claims are substantially
the same and the incident from which they arise is identical in all cases, the court may
still consolidate the actions despite the fact that Mr. O’Neale is not a defendant in one of
them. See, e.g., Attala Hydratane Gas, Inc. v. Lowry Tims Co., 41 F.R.D. 164, 165 (N.D.
Miss. 1966).