30 Fla. L. Weekly D1386c
Insurance — Uninsured motorist — Venue — Error to grant insurer’s motion for change of venue to foreign state in which accident occurred for convenience of witnesses in absence of affidavits or other evidence demonstrating that there were any witnesses who would be inconvenienced by Florida trial
KAREN LENKIEWICZ, Appellant, v. NATIONWIDE MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY, a foreign corporation, Appellee. 4th District. Case No. 4D04-2258. June 1, 2005. Appeal from the Circuit Court for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward County; Robert A. Rosenberg, Judge; L.T. Case No. 03-19876 (25). Counsel: Carmen J. Cuetos of Andres Berrio, P.A., Plantation, for appellant. Doreen E. Lasch of Conroy, Simberg, Ganon, Krevans & Abel, P.A., Hollywood, for appellee.
(Per Curiam.) Plaintiff, a Broward County resident, sued Nationwide in Broward County, alleging she was injured by an uninsured motorist who collided with the rear of her car in Pennsylvania. Nationwide moved to transfer venue to Pennsylvania for convenience of the witnesses under section 47.122, Florida Statutes (2001); however, it submitted no affidavits stating that there were any witnesses who would be inconvenienced by a Florida trial. In the absence of affidavits or other evidence demonstrating the inconvenience of witnesses, a transfer of venue based on that ground is error. Graham v. Graham, 648 So. 2d 814 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995); Eggers v. Eggers, 776 So. 2d 1096 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001); Gov’t Employees Ins. Co. v. Burns, 672 So. 2d 834 (Fla. 3d DCA 1996).
Reversed. (Klein, Shahood and Taylor, JJ., concur.)
