COLORADO COURT OF APPEALS 2 East 14th Avenue Denver, CO 80203 DATE FILED: May 4, 2016 5:32 PM Appeal From: District Court, City and County of Denver, Colorado Honorable Michael A. Martinez, District Court Judge Plaintiff/Appellant: John Cox COURT USE ONLY Case No. v. Defendant/Appellee: Sage Hospitality Resources, LLC J. Keith Killian, Esq. No. 9042 Andrew S. Petroski, Esq. No. 42871 KILLIAN DAVIS Richter & Mayle, PC 202 North Seventh Street Post Office Box 4859 Grand Junction, Colorado 81502 Telephone: (970) 241-0707 Attys. for Plaintiff/Appellant: John Cox District Court Case Number: 2015CV33990 Courtroom: 259 NOTICE OF APPEAL Plaintiff-Appellant John Cox, by and through his attorneys of record, KILLIAN DAVIS Richter & Mayle, PC, hereby submits his Notice of Appeal and states as follows:
I. DESCRIPTION OF THE NATURE OF THE CASE A. General Statement of the Nature of the Controversy This controversy arises out of a fall sustained by John Cox while staying at a hotel. Mr. Cox, a Colorado citizen and current resident, filed this action against defendant Sage Hospitality Resources, LLC ( Sage ), a limited liability corporation whose principal place of business is in Denver and whose members are Colorado citizens, alleging that Sage was responsible for some or all of the operation and/or management of the hotel. The hotel is located in Del Mar, California. Mr. Cox sustained serious injuries as a result of the fall. Separately, Mr. Cox filed an action in California state court against WS HDM, LLC d/b/a Hilton San Diego/Del Mar ( WS HDM ), an owner, operator, and/or manager of the hotel. WS HDM is not registered with the Colorado Secretary of State. Mr. Cox could not bring WS HDM into the Colorado action due to lack of jurisdiction. The trial court granted Sage s motion to dismiss based on the doctrine forum non conveniens, ruling that the ongoing California action against WS HDM was an unusual circumstance justifying dismissal of the action. 2
B. The Judgment, Order or Parts Being Appealed and the Basis for the Court s Jurisdiction Mr. Cox appeals the order filed on March 16, 2016, dismissing Mr. Cox s action against Sage. The March 16, 2016, order dismissed all of Mr. Cox s claims against Sage. The March 16, 2016, order therefore resulted in a final judgment pursuant to C.R.C.P. 54(b). Thus, this Court has jurisdiction based on a final judgment as contemplated by C.A.R. 1. C. Whether the Judgment resolved all Issues Pending before the Trial Court The trial court s March 16, 2016, order resolved all substantive issues. Defendants have not filed a motion for costs. D. Whether Judgment was made Final Pursuant to C.R.C.P. 54(b) The March 16, 2016, order dismissed all of Mr. Cox s claims against Sage. Thus, there was no need for C.R.C.P. 54(b) certification. E. The Date Judgment was Entered Final judgment was entered the day Mr. Cox s cause of action against Sage was dismissed on March 16, 2016. 3
F. Whether there were any Extensions Granted to File any Motions for Post-Trial Relief There were no motions for extension of time to file post-trial motions; therefore, no extensions were granted. G. The Date any Motion for Post-Trial Relief was Filed No motions for post-trial relief were filed. H. The Date any Motion for Post-Trial Relief was Denied Not applicable. I. Whether there were any Extensions Granted to File a Notice of Appeal None. II. AN ADVISORY LISTING OF THE ISSUES ON APPEAL 1. Did the trial court err in dismissing Mr. Cox s Colorado state court action against Sage pursuant to the doctrine of forum non conveniens when Mr. Cox is a Colorado citizen who currently resides in the state and Sage is a limited liability corporation whose principal place of business is in Colorado and whose members are citizens of Colorado? 4
2. Is the ongoing California state court action against WS HDM a most unusual circumstance which overcomes the strong presumption in favor of Mr. Cox s choice to bring the action against Sage in his home state of Colorado when Sage is also located in the state? 3. Did the trial court err in granting dismissal pursuant to the doctrine of forum non conveniens based on its finding that (1) the parties and witnesses will already be involved in the California case, and (2) Plaintiff is able to join both Sage and WS HDM in the same case in California, it is unnecessarily redundant to hold a parallel trial in Colorado with Sage listed as the sole defendant. III. WHETHER A TRANSCRIPT IS NECESSARY No transcript of evidence taken before the trial court will be necessary to resolve the issues on appeal. IV. WHETHER THE ORDER ON REVIEW WAS ISSUED BY A MAGISTRATE WHERE CONSENT WAS NECESSARY. IF THE ORDER ON REVIEW WAS ISSUED BY A MAGISTRATE WHERE CONSENT WAS NOT NECESSARY, WHETHER A PETITION FOR REVIEW OF THE ORDER WAS FILED IN THE TRIAL COURT AND RULED ON BY A TRIAL COURT JUDGE PURSUANT TO THE COLORADO RULES FOR MAGISTRATES The order on review was not issued by a magistrate judge. 5
V. THE COUNSEL FOR THE PARTIES Counsel for plaintiff-appellant John Cox: J. Keith Killian, Esq. No. 9042 Andrew S. Petroski, Esq. No. 42871 KILLIAN DAVIS Richter & Mayle, PC 202 North Seventh Street Post Office Box 4859 Grand Junction, Colorado 81502 Telephone: (970) 241-0707 Counsel for defendant-appellee Sage Hospitality Resources, LLC: Brian Petroff, Esq. No. 32680 The Law Office of Brian Petroff 11290 Pyrites Way, Suite 210 Rancho Cordova, CA 95670 Telephone: (303) 665-0137 VI. DOCUMENTS IN THE APPENDIX Attached hereto is an appendix containing the following document: 1. Order Granting Defendants Motion to Dismiss, filed on March 16, 2016. 6
DATED this 4th day of May, 2016. KILLIAN DAVIS Richter & Mayle, PC Duly authorized original signature on file at the offices of KILLIAN DAVIS Richter & Mayle, PC pursuant to C.R.C.P. 121, section 1-26(9) /s/ Andrew S. Petroski J. Keith Killian, Esq. No. 9042 Andrew S. Petroski, Esq. No. 42871 Attorneys for Plaintiff-Appellant 7
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I HEREBY CERTIFY that a true and correct copy of the foregoing NOTICE OF APPEAL has been placed with the United States Mail, properly addressed and first-class postage prepaid, or transmitted by other means as indicated below, this 4th day of May, 2016, as follows: COLORADO COURT OF APPEALS Ralph L. Carr Judicial Center 2 East 14th Avenue Denver, CO 80203 Clerk of the Court City and County of Denver Honorable Judge Michael A. Martinez 1437 Bannock St. Denver, Colorado 80202 Brian Petroff, Esq. The Law Office of Brian Petroff 11290 Pyrites Way, Suite 210 Rancho Cordova, CA 95670 *Counsel for: Sage Hospitality Resources, LLC John Cox 1625 White Avenue, Apartment B Grand Junction, CO 81501 *ICCES *ICCES *ICCES *E-mail Duly authorized original signature on file at the offices of KILLIAN DAVIS Richter & Mayle, PC, pursuant to C.R.C.P. 121, section 1-26(9) /s/ Andrew S. Petroski Andrew S. Petroski, Esq. 8