Flick v. Sessions
Flick v. Sessions
Opinion of the Court
Plaintiff resides in Douglasville, Georgia, located in the Northern District of Georgia. ECF No. 1 ("Compl.") ¶ 7. In 1987, he pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia to federal copyright-infringement and smuggling charges. Id. ¶¶ 11, 13. As a result of these felony convictions, Plaintiff is prohibited by federal statute,
Defendant has moved to transfer the case to the Northern District of Georgia pursuant to
*207I. Legal Standard
Section 1404(a) provides that any case may be transferred "[f]or the convenience of parties and witnesses, in the interest of justice, ... to any other district or division where it might have been brought."
II. Analysis
A. Potential Prejudice to Plaintiff from Proceeding under the Law of the Transferee Court
Before turning to the familiar private- and public-interest factors that govern a transfer-of-venue analysis, the Court must address a threshold issue that Plaintiff has raised. He argues that this case cannot be transferred to the Northern District of Georgia because he would suffer prejudice if he had to proceed under the law of the Eleventh Circuit. He claims that D.C. Circuit law is favorable to him, and specifically, he relies on dictum in Schrader v. Holder ,
Plaintiff's threshold objection fails. As an initial matter, his reference to Schrader 's dictum notwithstanding, Plaintiff has not identified a difference in law between the two jurisdictions. Plaintiff points to no binding authority in the D.C. Circuit or the Eleventh Circuit that controls the sort of as-applied challenge he seeks to bring. See Pl.'s Opp'n at 6-9.
And even if there were differences in circuit law, they would not prevent a transfer of venue under § 1404(a) here. Certainly, Plaintiff cites no authority actually supporting that proposition. To the contrary, "[i]n federal-question cases, transfer is permissible even when the transferee forum is in a circuit that has interpreted a federal law differently than the circuit of the transferor forum." Sierra Club v. Flowers ,
Therefore, the Court proceeds to the well-recognized framework for analyzing a motion to transfer venue. The parties agree that this action might have been brought in the Northern District of Georgia. Def.'s Br. at 6; Pl.'s Opp'n at 10; see also
B. Private-Interest Factors
The private-interest considerations that a court may weigh in evaluating a *208motion to transfer venue include: "(1) the plaintiff's choice of forum; (2) the defendant's preferred forum; (3) the location where the claim arose; (4) the convenience of the parties; (5) the convenience of witnesses; and (6) ease of access to sources of proof." Mazzarino ,
The first factor, the plaintiff's choice of forum, weighs slightly against transfer. The plaintiff's choice usually receives deference, especially when the plaintiff brings suit in his home district.
The second factor, the defendant's preferred forum, slightly favors transfer, as Plaintiff concedes. Pl.'s Opp'n at 11. While this factor does not weigh strongly here, "the weight of a defendant's choice of forum may be strengthened when the weight of the plaintiff's choice is comparatively weak." Mazzarino ,
The third factor, the location where the claim arose, strongly favors transfer. Plaintiff argues that it favors him, because Defendant enforces the federal firearms laws from the District of Columbia. Pl.'s Opp'n at 10-11. This argument is meritless. "[V]enue is not appropriate in the District of Columbia, where 'the only real connection [the] lawsuit has to the District of Columbia is that a federal agency headquartered here is charged with generally regulating and overseeing the [administrative] process.' " Shawnee Tribe v. United States ,
The parties agree that the fourth, fifth and sixth factors are neutral. See Def.'s Br. at 7; Pl.'s Opp'n at 11.
*209Taken together, the private-interest factors clearly weigh in favor of transfer. To the extent the first factor tips against transfer, it is vastly outweighed by the second and third.
C. Public-Interest Factors
Public-interest considerations relevant to a transfer-of-venue analysis include: "(1) the transferee's familiarity with the governing law; (2) the relative congestion of the courts of the transferor and potential transferee; and (3) the local interest in deciding local controversies at home." Mazzarino ,
The parties agree that the first factor is neutral. See Def.'s Br. at 8; Pl.'s Opp'n at 11.
The parties also agree that the second factor, congestion of the courts, favors transfer. See Def.'s Br. at 8; Pl.'s Opp'n at 11-12. Defendant attaches an exhibit showing that, while the Northern District of Georgia has a higher caseload, civil matters proceed much more quickly there than in this District. See ECF No. 8-1.
The third factor, the "local interest in deciding local controversies," weighs strongly in favor of transfer. Plaintiff disagrees, arguing that he "seeks the restoration of his firearm rights, which have been banned not just locally in Georgia but throughout the United States." Pl.'s Opp'n at 12. But Plaintiff conveniently ignores the fact that he brings an as-applied, not facial, challenge to the statute. He wishes to own firearms "for sport and for self-defense within his own home." Compl. ¶ 7. Clearly, those most affected by the outcome of this case will be Plaintiff, his family, and the surrounding community in the Northern District of Georgia. Therefore, this factor strongly favors transfer.
Together, the public-interest factors weigh in favor of transfer. And when they are combined with the private-interest factors, the case for transfer is overwhelming.
III. Conclusion and Order
Therefore, the Court hereby ORDERS that Defendant's motion (ECF No. 8) is GRANTED . The action shall be transferred to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
SO ORDERED.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.