383 F.Supp. 844.
In re GLENN W. TURNER
ENTERPRISES LITIGATION.
No. 109.
Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation.
Oct. 16, 1974.
OPINION AND ORDER
PER CURIAM.
The Panel previously transferred all
actions involving defendants Dare To Be
Great, Inc., Koscot Interplanetary, Inc.
and Glenn Turner Enterprises, Inc., to the
Western District of Pennsylvania and, with
the consent of that court, assigned them
to the Honorable Gerald J. Weber for
coordinated or consolidated pretrial
proceedings pursuant to 28 U.S.C.
1407. [FN1] Those defendants move the
Panel for an order transferring the
additional actions listed on Schedule A to
the Western District of Pennsylvania
pursuant to Section 1407. [FN2] Several
of the plaintiffs and one defendant bank
oppose transfer of their respective
actions. We find that the actions listed on
Schedule A raise questions of fact
common to the actions previously
transferred to the Western District of
Pennsylvania and that their transfer to
that district for coordinated or
consolidated pretrial proceedings will
serve the convenience of the parties and
witnesses and promote the just and
efficient conduct of the litigation. [FN3]
I. Plaintiffs Opposed to Transfer
[1] All the plaintiffs opposing transfer
purchased distributorship interests *845 in
either the Dare To Be Great or Koscot
schemes organized and promoted through
Glenn Turner Enterprises. They argue
that the transactions that form the bases
for their causes of action are individual in
nature, completely distinct from each
other and took place in localities far from
Pennsylvania. They foresee little benefit
to be gained by transfer and contend that
they will be greatly inconvenienced if they
are forced to litigate their claims in the
distant transferee forum.
These tag-along actions and all the
actions previously transferred under
Section 1407 to the Western District of
Pennsylvania contain similar allegations of
an illegal pyramid sales scheme involving
the Dare To Be Great and Koscot
enterprises. Pursuit of the discovery of
the underlying facts necessary to support
such allegations will be common to all the
actions. A Section 1407 transfer of these
tag-along actions will ensure that
duplication of that discovery and
unnecessary inconvenience to the parties
and witnesses are avoided.
In addition, the transferee court has
declared a class action consisting of all
persons who purchased distributorship
interests in the alleged fraudulent
schemes. These plaintiffs apparently are
members of that class and, unless they
timely exercise their option to be excluded
from the class, they will become bound by
any final judgment entered by the
transferee court. Also, counsel for the
class representative has informed us that
a proposed settlement of the class action
involving all claims against defendant is
being negotiated, subject, of course, to
the transferee court's approval. If it
develops, however, that the proposed
settlement is not consummated or that
certain class members opt-out and pursue
their causes of action individually, the
discovery common to all actions will have
to be initiated and will be expedited under
the supervision of a single judge. Thus,
at this stage we foresee many advantages
that will redound to the benefit of plaintiffs
if their actions are transferred and placed
under the control of the transferee judge.
II. Defendant Bank Opposed to Transfer
[2] Central Penn National Bank is the
only defendant in the Smith action
pending in the Eastern District of
Pennsylvania. [FN4] Plaintiff purports to
represent a class of purchasers of
distributorships in the alleged fraudulent
pyramid sales schemes of Dare To Be
Great, Koscot, and Glenn W. Turner
Enterprises. Plaintiff alleges that the
defendant bank played an intimate part in
those schemes by arranging easy
financing for prospective purchasers and
recommending and endorsing the
purchases of distributorships as being
good investments, when the bank knew or
should have known that these were illegal
securities being sold in an illegal pyramid
scheme.
Defendant opposes transfer on the
ground that it is not a defendant in any of
the other actions in the litigation and that
the discovery involved against it will have
nothing in common with the discovery
supervised by the transferee court.
Two factors weigh heavily in favor of
transfer of this action to the Western
District of Pennsylvania. One is the
proposed settlement of the class action
litigation in the transferee district. All of
the purported members of the class
alleged in the Smith action are members
of the class in the transferee district on
whose behalf a settlement has been
negotiated, subject to approval by the
transferee court. It is unclear to us
whether the proposed settlement includes
a settlement of plaintiff's claims against
the Central Penn Bank. This question as
well as the propriety of allowing the Smith
action to proceed as a class action can
best be resolved by the transferee judge.
The second factor favoring transfer of
this action is the nature of the charging
allegations in the Smith complaint. If *846
the proposed settlement does not affect
plaintiff Smith's claims against the bank,
plaintiff's discovery will necessarily
encompass many of the same facts
underlying the Dare To Be Great and
Koscot schemes that are involved in the
other actions in this litigation. The extent
to which a discovery schedule focusing
solely on Central Penn's alleged
involvement can be coordinated with the
common discovery is, of course, within
the transferee judge's discretion. And
when the transferee judge deems remand
of the Smith action to the Eastern District
of Pennsylvania appropriate, he can so
advise the Panel and a timely order will be
entered. See Rule 15, RPJPML, 53
F.R.D. 119, as amended 55 F.R.D. LI
(1972).
It is therefore ordered that all actions
listed on the attached Schedule A pending
in districts other than the Western District
of Pennsylvania be, and the same hereby
are, transferred to the Western District of
Pennsylvania and, with the consent of that
court, assigned to the Honorable Gerald
J. Weber for coordinated or consolidated
pretrial proceedings, pursuant to 28
U.S.C. 1407, with the actions in the
above-captioned litigation that are already
pending in that district.
SCHEDULE A
Western District of Pennsylvania
--------------------------------
Gary L. King, et al. v. Dare to be Civil Action
Great, Inc. et al. (D.Ore., CA No. 73-618
No. 72-840)
Gladys T. Burnelle v. Dare to be Civil Action
Great, Inc. et al.(D.Ore.,CA No. 73-619
No. 72-420)
Roger Dean Casey v. Koscot Civil Action
Interplanetary, Inc., et al. (D.Ore., No. 73-620
CA No. 72-607)
Jerry McNorton v. Dare to be Civil Action
Great, Inc., et al. (S.D.Ala., CA No. 73-621
No. 7408-72-H)
Virgil A. Fitzgerald v. Dare to be Civil Action
Great, Inc., et al. (S.D.Ala., CA No. 73-622
No. 7210-72-H)
Herbert C. Kearley v. Dare to be Civil Action
Great, Inc., et al. (S.D.Ala., CA No. 73-623
No. 7407-72-H)
Marc Harding v. Dare to be Great, Civil Action
Inc., et al. (S.D.Ala., CA No. 7406- No. 73-624
72-H)
J. Michael O'Bryan v. Dare to be Civil Action
Great, Inc., et al. (S.D.Ala., CA No. 73-625
No. 7405-72-H)
Harlan Cotton v. Dare to be Great, Civil Action
et al. (S.D.Ala., CA No. 7454- No. 73-626
72-H)
Richard W. Isler v. Dare to be Civil Action
Great, Inc., et al. (S.D.Ala., CA No. 73-627
No. 7453-72-H)
Michael G. Northcutt v. Dare to be Civil Action
Great, Inc. (N.D.Ala., CA No. 72- No. 73-628
767)
James E. Randall, et al. v. Dare Civil Action
to be Great, Inc., et al (N.D.Ala., No. 73-629
CA No. 72-750)
Bruce E. Wilson, et al. v. Glenn Civil Action
W. Turner, et al. (M.D.Fla., CA No. 73-630
No. 72-602-Civ.)
Gailey Beck, etc. v. Dare to be Civil action
Great, Inc., et al. (N.D.Ga., CA No. 73-631
No. 17139)
John A. Chestnutt, etc. v. Koscot Civil Action
Interplanetary , Inc., et al. (N.D. No. 73-632
Ga., CA No. 17209)
Elmo B. Shearouse, et al. v. Glenn W. Civil Action
Turner, et al. (S.D.Ga., CA No. No. 73-633
3001)
Maggie Kennebrew, et al. v. Dare Civil Action
to be Great, Inc., et al. (N.D.Ohio, No. 73-634
CA No. C72-925)
James A. Huggins, et al. v. Koscot Civil Action
Interplanetary, Inc., et al. (S.D. No. 73-635
Ohio, CA No. 4360)
Dominic Simms, et al. v. Glenn W. Civil Action
Turner, et al. (W.D.Ky., CA No. No 73-636
7499-A)
Arthur Reed Cafiero, et al. v. Civil Action
Glenn W. Turner Enterprises, Inc., No. 73-637
et al. (E.D.La., CA No. 72-2556,
Sec.B)
Wally Young & Christian Schneider Civil Action
v. Koscot Interplanetary , Inc., et al. No. 73-638
(D.Mass., CA No. 72-1918-F)
Gerome S. Goldblatt v. Glenn W. Civil Action
Turner, et al. (S.D.N.Y., CA No. No. 73-639
72 Civ. 2823)
Gregory Smith v. Central Penn Civil Action
National Bank (E.D.Pa., CA No. No. 73-640
72-2506)
John Paul Leidy, et al. v. Glenn W. Civil Action
Turner, et al. (M.D.Pa., CA No. No. 73-641
72-391)
George James Bennett, Sr. v. Glenn Civil Action
W. Turner, et al. (W.D.Texas., CA No. 73-643
No. SA 72 CA 310)
Peter A. Cannell, et al. v. Glenn Civil Action
W. Turner Enterprises, Inc., et al. No. 73-644
(D.Utah, CA No. C-374-72)
William E. Cohen, et al. v. Koscot Civil Action
Interplanetary, Inc. No. 71-975
FN1. In re Glenn W. Turner
Enterprises Litigation, 355 F.Supp.
1402 (Jud.Pan.Mult.Lit.1973).
FN2. The Panel also issued an
order to show cause why the
action entitled Securities &
Exchange Commission v. Koscot
Interplanetary, Inc., et al., N.D.Ga.,
365 F.Supp. 588, should not also
be transferred to the Western
District of Pennsylvania under
Section 1407. A trial on the merits
was completed prior to the Panel
hearing and, thus, the question of
transfer of that action under
Section 1407 is moot.
FN3. In order to expedite the
pretrial processing of this litigation,
we previously entered a brief order
transferring these actions to the
Western District of Pennsylvania
for coordinated or consolidated
pretrial proceedings under 28
U.S.C. 1407. This per curiam
opinion embodies the reasons for
our decision.
FN4. Gregory Smith v. Central
Penn National Bank, E.D.Pa. Civil
Action No. 72-2056.
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