SB 258 - In addition to current law regarding when plaintiffs and defendants may join in one civil action, this act states that in tort actions two or more plaintiffs may be joined in a single action only if each plaintiff can independently establish proper venue. Likewise, in cases where the plaintiff was injured outside of Missouri, two or more defendants may be joined in a single action only if the plaintiff can establish proper venue against each defendant individually. If in either situation proper venue cannot be established then the plaintiff or defendant will be deemed misjoined, the plaintiff or defendant will be severed from the action, and the claims shall be transferred to a county with proper venue. If there is no county in Missouri in which venue exists, then the claims shall be dismissed. If a trial has occurred over objection to venue improperly established by joinder or intervention, any judgment entered shall be vacated and the claim shall be remanded to the trial court for the purpose of transferring any claim to a county with venue, and if there is no county in Missouri in which jurisdiction and venue exists, such claims shall be dismissed.
For the purposes of meeting the venue requirement, the residence of a domestic or foreign insurance company is the county where its registered office is maintained. If a foreign insurance company does not have a registered office in Missouri, then the residence of the foreign insurance company shall be Cole County.
These provisions are similar to provisions contained in HCS/HB 460 (2017).
Currently, a products liability order of dismissal for a defendant whose liability is based solely on his or her status as a seller shall not divest a court of venue or jurisdiction that was proper at the beginning of the action. Further, the defendant seller dismissed in the action shall remain a party to such action for venue and jurisdiction purposes. This act repeals these provisions.
This provision is identical to SB 4 (2017), SB 5 (2017), provisions in HCS/HB 460 (2017), HB 459 (2017), SB 792 (2016), provision contained in SB 793 (2016), and provisions contained in SB 487 (2015).
JESSI BAKER