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Kolkmeyer’s venue and joinder bill moving to Senate

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Missouri House gave final approval of a bill that limits how and where plaintiffs can join together in certain civil cases.

HB 1578 is aimed at ending the practice of out-of-state cases being transferred into Missouri, particularly St. Louis, which has a reputation for being plaintiff-friendly, according to bill supporters. The bill was amended during perfection to play only to future cases and not those that are already in progress.

Speaker Todd Richardson stepped off the dais to speak in support of Rep. Glen Kolkmeyer’s bill addressing joinder and venue tort procedures.

“The question is, what is the proper place for that claim to be heard? It has been a well-established principle of Missouri law since 2005 that the primary place that the plaintiff brings that action is the county in which they were injured,” said Richardson. “The issue here is, not whether that underlying principle is good or not because it is a principle we have had for a long time, the question is how and when can you do something different or go around that law by joining claims together. That is really what this is about.”

While Richardson recognizes that “there are good reasons to join cases,” as opponents “rightly” point out, this bill “is really trying to address is where joiner has been abused.”

The legislation still encountered pushback, with opponents saying that this will affect in-state residents and that it could harm Missourians. Rep. Gina Mitten took issue with a provision that would move certain cases in some scenarios to Cole County. 

The arguments against the bill echo those made in committee and during perfection.

House committee signs off on arbitration agreements, takes up venue bill

“For Missouri to reach our economic potential, we have to stop being one of the top travel destinations for out-of-state trial lawyers,” said Daniel P. Mehan, Missouri Chamber president and CEO. “I’d like to thank Rep. Kolkmeyer and his colleagues in the Missouri House for making this a priority. It’s time to clean up Missouri’s courtrooms and stop venue shopping in our state.”

The bill passed in a 104-47 and now moves to the Senate.