Summary
The Alabama Supreme Court granted Citizens State Bank's petition for a writ of mandamus and directed transfer of the McGees' declaratory-judgment action from Jefferson County to Lamar County. The court held that venue under Alabama Code § 6-3-7(a)(3) requires the corporate defendant to do business by agent in the county where the plaintiff resided, and the McGees presented no evidence satisfying that requirement.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the Supreme Court of Alabama should review the denial of the Bank's motion to transfer venue by writ of mandamus.
- Whether venue was proper in Jefferson County under Ala. Code 1975, § 6-3-7(a)(3), when the plaintiffs resided there but the corporation did not do business by agent in that county.
Holdings
- The proper method for obtaining review of a denial of a motion for a change of venue in a civil action is a petition for a writ of mandamus.
- A plaintiff may sue a corporation in the county of the plaintiff's residence under Ala. Code 1975, § 6-3-7(a)(3), only if the corporation does business by agent in that county.
Key quotations
“The proper method for obtaining review of a denial of a motion for a change of venue in a civil action is to petition for the writ of mandamus.” (507)
“Consequently, to determine whether venue is proper in Jefferson County, we need only apply the clear language of § 6-3-7(a)(3) to the undisputed facts of this case.” (508)
Factual background
Citizens State Bank's principal office was in Lamar County, and the Bank had never done business by agent in Jefferson County. The McGees, Jefferson County residents, filed a declaratory-judgment action against the Bank in Jefferson County. The Bank submitted an affidavit stating that it did not and had never done business in Jefferson County by an agent, while the McGees offered no contrary evidence.
Procedural history
Bill and Betty McGee filed a declaratory-judgment action against Citizens State Bank in the Jefferson Circuit Court. The Bank moved to transfer the action to Lamar County, asserting that venue was improper in Jefferson County. The trial court denied the motion without explanation, and the Bank sought mandamus relief. The Supreme Court of Alabama granted the petition and directed the trial court to vacate its order and transfer the case.
Remand instructions
The Jefferson Circuit Court was directed to vacate its order denying the Bank's motion to transfer and to enter an order transferring the action to the Lamar Circuit Court.