Full opinion text
TRANSFER ORDER PER CURIAM. This litigation consists of 42 actions pending in eight districts as follows: Presently before the Panel are one motion and two cross-motions, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407, to centralize actions in this litigation in a single district for coordinated or consolidated pretrial proceedings. Defendant Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. (KAL) has moved to centralize actions in the District of the District of Columbia. Defendant The Boeing Company (Boeing) has submitted a cross-motion seeking to centralize actions in the Western District of Washington. Plaintiffs in eleven actions have submitted a cross-motion seeking to centralize actions in either the Southern District of New York or the Eastern District of New York. In addition to movant KAL, plaintiffs in twelve actions and defendant the United States favor transfer to the District of the District of Columbia. In addition to cross-movant plaintiffs, plaintiffs in two actions favor transfer to either the Southern District of New York or the Eastern District of New York; defendant Litton Industries, Inc. and plaintiffs in seven actions favor transfer to the Southern District of New York. Plaintiff in one California action favors transfer to the Northern District of California. No responding party has opposed centralization. On the basis of the papers filed and the hearing held, the Panel finds that these 42 actions involve common questions of fact and that centralization under 28 U.S.C. § 1407 in the District of the District of Columbia will best serve the convenience of the parties and witnesses and promote the just and efficient conduct of the litigation. The actions share numerous factual questions concerning the circumstances of the air disaster involving KAL Flight 007 on September 1, 1983. Centralization under Section 1407 is thus necessary in order to eliminate duplicative discovery, prevent inconsistent pretrial rulings, and conserve the resources of the parties, their counsel, and the judiciary. None of the five forums suggested by the parties as potential transferee districts could be characterized as the nexus of this litigation involving an overseas air disaster. On balance, however, we are persuaded that the District of the District of Columbia is the appropriate transferee forum. Several governmental agencies located in or near the District of Columbia will likely be principal targets of discovery in these actions. Moreover, this air disaster and the resultant litigation implicate sensitive areas of national policy, international relations and military intelligence. These considerations, we find, favor selection of the District of the District of Columbia as the transferee court. See In re Air Crash Disaster near Saigon, South Vietnam, on April 4, 1975, 404 F.Supp. 478, 480 (Jud. Pan.Mult.Lit.1975). IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1407, the actions listed on the following Schedule A and pending in districts other than the District of the District of Columbia be, and the same hereby are, transferred to the District of the District of Columbia and, with the consent of that court, assigned to the Honorable Aubrey E. Robinson, Jr. for coordinated or consolidated pretrial proceedings with the actions pending in that district and listed on Schedule A. SCHEDULE A District of the District of Columbia Fred Wyler v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. CA 83-2792 Philomina Dooley v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. CA 83-2793 Robert Ho v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. CA 83-2794 Olga Hjalmarsson, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83-2940 Edward Ocampo, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-2941 Ho Yan Chee, etc. v. Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd., et al., C.A. No. 83-3007 Maureen M. Lombard v. Korean Airlines Co., Ltd., et al., C.A. No. 83-Civ-3154 David Eustace Powrie v. Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd., C.A. No. 83-Civ-3177 Northern District of California Michael Kole, et al. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. C-83-4038 Potaban Ariyadej v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. C-83-4379 Maria Beirn v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. C-83-4380 Thomas L. Mahalek v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. C-83-4381 Joseph Munder, et al. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. C-83-4382 Michael Kole, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. C-83-4049- Marie Lombard Gill, et al. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. C83-5185 Southern District of New York Betty B.S. Lim, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83-CIV-6977 Maureen E. Oren, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-CIV-7003 David Wu Dunn, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83 Civ 7231 Renay Lynne Bevins, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83 Civ 7232 Jose A. Bolante, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-Civ-7683 Robert Caltabellatta, Sr., etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-Civ-7717 Sungwha Oh Yoo, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-Civ-7681 Jose A. Bolanta, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-Civ-7682 JWA Hong, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-Civ-7875 Christina Ting, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83 Civ. 7894 Barbara Swift, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83 Civ. 7899 Kyung Hwa Park, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83 Civ. 7900 Hee Sook Lee, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83 Civ. 7901 Ul Ran Lim, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83 Civ. 7902 Eun Jung Oh, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83 Civ. 7903 Eastern District of New York Hans Ephraimson-Abt v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., et al., C.A. No. 83-3890 Jeung Em Yun, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83 C 4492 Elisa E. Chan, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-Civ-4641 Elisa E. Chan, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-Civ-4642 Maria Beirn, etc. v. Korean Air Lines Inc., etc., et al., C.A. No. 83-CV-4624 Robert Speir, etc. v. Korean Air Lines Inc., etc., et al., C.A. No. 83-CY-4626 Eastern District of Michigan James L. Chambers, et al. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., C.A. No. 83CV-3846 Michael D. Jones v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83CV-3777 Valerie Faye Stoift, etc. v. Korean Air Lines, Inc., C.A. No. 83-CV-3960 Northern District of Illinois Cecille Albert Chuapoco, etc. v. Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd., et al., C.A. No. 83-7078 District of Massachusetts Alice F. Simmons, Adm. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-2727 District of New Jersey Felino Bayona, Adm. v. Korean Air Lines, et al., C.A. No. 83-3613 . The Panel has been advised of the pendency of several recently filed related actions. These actions will be treated as potential tag-along actions. See Rules 9 and 10, R.P.J.P.M.L., 89 F.R.D. 273, 278-80 (1981).