Thakkar v. Good ( 2020 )

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA CASE NO.: 1:20-cv-21576-GAYLES/OTAZO-REYES CHITTRANJAN (CHUCK) K. THAKKAR, a Florida individual, ROHAN THAKKAR, a London, England, individual, NILOY & ROHAN, LLC, a Georgia Limited Liability Corporation, ORLANDO GATEWAY HOSPITALITY, LLC, a Florida Limited Liability Company, ORLANDO GATEWAY HAMPTON, LLC, a Florida Limited Liability Company, and BKGD, LLC, a Florida Limited Liability Company, Plaintiffs, v. M. CARSON GOOD, a Florida individual, GOOD GATEWAY, LLC, a Florida Limited Liability Company, STEVEN SMITH, a Georgia individual, CLAY M. TOWNSEND, a Florida individual, JAMES BALLETTA, a Florida individual, SEG GATEWAY, LLC, a Florida Limited Liability Company, ORLANDO GATEWAY, LLC, a dissolved Georgia Limited Liability Company, and MORGAN & MORGAN, P.A., a Florida Corporation, Defendants. _______________________________________/ ORDER THIS CAUSE comes before the Court on Magistrate Judge Alicia M. Otazo-Reyes’s Report and Recommendation (the “Report”) [ECF No. 62] on Defendants M. Carson Good, Good Gateway, LLC, Steven Smith, Clay M. Townsend, James Balletta, SEG Gateway, LLC, Orlando Gateway, LLC, and Morgan & Morgan, P.A.’s (collectively, “Defendants”) Joint Motion to Dismiss or, in the Alternative, Motion to Transfer Venue under 28 U.S.C.A. § 1404 (the “Joint Motion”) [ECF No. 37]. This matter was referred to Judge Otazo-Reyes pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B) for a ruling on all pre-trial, non-dispositive matters and a report and recommendation on all dispositive matters. [ECF No. 36]. On June 17, 2020, Defendants filed their Joint Motion, and on August 18, 2020, a hearing was held on the Joint Motion. [ECF No. 56 & 61]. On September 1, 2020, Judge Otazo-Reyes issued her Report recommending that Defendants’ Motion to Transfer Venue be granted in part, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a), and that this action be transferred to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida. [ECF No. 62 at 5]. Judge Otazo-Reyes’s Report also recommends that Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss for improper venue be denied and Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss for failure to state a viable cause of action be denied without prejudice. Id. Neither party timely filed objections. A district court may accept, reject, or modify a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1). Those portions of the report and recommendation to which objection is made are accorded de novo review, if those objections “pinpoint the specific findings that the party disagrees with.” United States v. Schultz, 565 F.3d 1353, 1360 (11th Cir. 2009); see also Fed. R. Civ. P. 72(b)(3). Any portions of the report and recommendation to which no specific objection is made are reviewed only for clear error. Liberty Am. Ins. Grp., Inc. v. WestPoint Underwriters, L.L.C., 199 F. Supp. 2d 1271, 1276 (M.D. Fla. 2001); accord Macort v. Prem, Inc., 208 F. App’x 781, 784 (11th Cir. 2006). Having reviewed the Report, the Court finds no clear error and agrees with Judge Otazo- Reyes’s well-reasoned analysis and conclusion that: (1) Defendants’ Motion to Transfer Venue be granted in part, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a); (2) this action be transferred to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida; (3) Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss for improper venue be denied; and (4) Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss for failure to state a viable cause of action be denied without prejudice. Accordingly, it is ORDERED AND ADJUDGED as follows: 1. Magistrate Judge Alicia M. Otazo-Reyes’s Report and Recommendation, [ECF No. 62], is AFFIRMED AND ADOPTED and incorporated into this Order by reference; 2. Defendants M. Carson Good, Good Gateway, LLC, Steven Smith, Clay M. Townsend, James Balletta, SEG Gateway, LLC, Orlando Gateway, LLC, and Morgan & Morgan, P.A.’s Joint Motion to Dismiss or, in the alternative, Motion to Transfer Venue under 28 USCA § 1404, [ECF No. 37], is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part; 3. Defendants’ Motion to Transfer Venue, [ECF No. 37], is GRANTED in part, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a); 4. This action shall be TRANSFERRED to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida; 5. Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss for improper venue, [ECF No. 37], is DENIED; 6. Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss for failure to state a viable cause of action, [ECF No. 47], is DENIED without prejudice; and 7. This case is CLOSED. DONE AND ORDERED in Chambers at Miami, Florida, this 26th day of October, 2020. DARRIN P. GAYLES UNITED STATES DISTR JUDGE