AUSTIN – The 14th Court of Appeals conditionally granted a writ of mandamus compelling Judge Lonnie Cox of the 56th District Court of Galveston to vacate an order denying a motion to dismiss.
The opinion was filed on Sept. 13. Justices’ panel consisted of Justice Kevin Jewell, Justice Ken Wise, and Justice Martha Hill Jamison.
Relator EP Floors Corp. filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Galveston Shrimp Co. LLC. EP Floor’s motion was based on a forum-selection clause in a contract signed by the parties. The trial court dismissed the motion, prompting the appeal.
According to the ruling, in February 2017, Galveston Shrimp and EP Floors signed a contract for EP Floors to install a new urethane floor at a Galveston Shrimp processing facility. The court notes that “The parties’ written contract included... a ‘Choice of Law and Forum’ provision, requiring that (1) Massachusetts law be applied to any dispute between the parties arising out of the contract or either parties’ performance, and (2) except in two situations, all actions brought by either party against the other be brought in the Superior Court of Hampden County, Massachusetts.”
Hurricane Harvey swept through the Texas Gulf Coast in August 2017, damaging the newly installed flooring. Soon after, Galveston Shrimp filed a suit in Galveston County alleging breach of contract. EP Floors responded by filing a motion pleading for the case to be dismissed, arguing that the forum-selection clause in their contract with Galveston Shrimp meant that the suit had to be filed in Hampden County.
“A trial court abuses its discretion when it fails to properly interpret or apply a forum-selection clause... Thus, mandamus relief is available to enforce an unambiguous forum-selection clause,” the justices wrote.
The trial court ruled that the forum-selection clause was ambiguous. The appeals court disagreed.
The justices conditionally granted the petition for writ of mandamus, noting that it would only be issued if the court failed to vacate its previous ruling.