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EXPLANATION-Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in this bill is not enacted
and is intended to be omitted in the law.
SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 856
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR BRATTIN.
4951S.02I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary
AN ACT
To repeal sections 477.050 and 508.010, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof two new sections
relating to courts.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Sections 477.050 and 508.010, RSMo, are 1
repealed and two new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be 2
known as sections 477.050 and 508.010, to read as follows:3
477.050. The jurisdiction of the eastern district of 1
the court of appeals shall be coextensive with the counties 2
of Monroe, Shelby, Knox, Scotland, Clark, Lewis, Marion, 3
Ralls, Pike, Lincoln, Montgomery, Warren, St. Charles, St. 4
Louis, Jefferson, Ste. Genevieve, Perry, Cape Girardeau, 5
Madison, St. Francois, Washington, Franklin, Audrain, 6
Gasconade, Osage, Cole, and the city of St. Louis. 7
508.010. 1. (1) As used in this section, "principal 1
place of residence" shall mean the county which is the main 2
place where an individual resides in the state of Missouri. 3
There shall be only one principal place of residence. 4
(2) For an individual person, there shall be a 5
rebuttable presumption that the county of voter registration 6
at the time of injury is the principal place of residence. 7
(3) Notwithstanding subdivision (2) of this 8
subsection, for an individual whose conduct at issue was 9
alleged in at least one count to be in the course and scope 10
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of his or her employment with a corporation, the 11
individual's principal place of residence for venue purposes 12
shall be deemed to be the applicable corporation's principal 13
place of residence. 14
(4) For a corporation that, either directly or through 15
its subsidiaries, wholly owns or operates a railroad, the 16
place where the corporation has its registered agent is its 17
principal place of residence for the purposes of venue, 18
provided that the registered agent is in a city not within a 19
county, a charter county, or a first class county. 20
2. Except as provided in subsection 3 of this section, 21
in all actions in which there is no count alleging a tort, 22
venue shall be determined as follows: 23
(1) When the defendant is a resident of the state, 24
either in the county within which the defendant resides, or 25
in the county within which the plaintiff resides, and the 26
defendant may be found; 27
(2) When there are several defendants, and they reside 28
in different counties, the suit may be brought in any such 29
county; 30
(3) When there are several defendants, some residents 31
and others nonresidents of the state, suit may be brought in 32
any county in this state in which any defendant resides; 33
(4) When all the defendants are nonresidents of the 34
state, suit may be brought in any county in this state, 35
provided there is personal jurisdiction over each defendant, 36
independent of each other defendant. 37
3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in all 38
actions in which there is any count alleging a procedural 39
defect in the enactment of a bill into law or the validity 40
of a provision in the Constitution of Missouri, a Missouri 41
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statute, or a Missouri regulation, venue shall be in Cole 42
County. 43
4. The term "tort" shall include claims based upon 44
improper health care, under the provisions of chapter 538. 45
[4.] 5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in 46
all actions in which there is any count alleging a tort and 47
in which the plaintiff was first injured in the state of 48
Missouri, venue shall be in the county where the plaintiff 49
was first injured by the acts or conduct alleged in the 50
action. 51
[5.] 6. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in 52
all actions in which there is any count alleging a tort and 53
in which the plaintiff was first injured outside the state 54
of Missouri, venue as to that individual plaintiff shall be 55
determined as follows: 56
(1) If the defendant is a corporation, then venue 57
shall be in any county where a defendant corporation's 58
registered agent is located or, if the plaintiff's principal 59
place of residence was in the state of Missouri on the date 60
the plaintiff was first injured, then venue may be in the 61
county of the plaintiff's principal place of residence on 62
the date the plaintiff was first injured; 63
(2) If the defendant is an individual, then venue 64
shall be in the county where the defendant has his or her 65
principal place of residence in the state of Missouri, which 66
for venue purposes shall be deemed to be that of his or her 67
employer corporation if any count alleges conduct in the 68
course and scope of his or her employment with that 69
corporation, or, if the plaintiff's principal place of 70
residence was in the state of Missouri on the date the 71
plaintiff was first injured, then venue as to that 72
individual plaintiff may be in the county containing the 73
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plaintiff's principal place of residence on the date the 74
plaintiff was first injured; 75
(3) Notwithstanding subdivisions (1) and (2) of this 76
subsection, if the plaintiff was first injured in a foreign 77
country in connection with any railroad operations therein 78
and any defendant is a: 79
(a) Corporation that, either directly or through its 80
subsidiaries, wholly owns or operates the foreign railroad; 81
or 82
(b) Wholly owned subsidiary of a corporation that, 83
either directly or through its subsidiaries, wholly owns or 84
operates the foreign railroad; 85
then venue shall exclusively be in the county where any such 86
defendant corporation's registered agent is located, 87
regardless of venue as to any other defendant or, if the 88
plaintiff's principal place of residence was in the state of 89
Missouri on the date the plaintiff was first injured, then 90
venue may be in the county of the plaintiff's principal 91
place of residence on the date the plaintiff was first 92
injured. 93
[6.] 7. Any action, in which any county shall be a 94
plaintiff, may be commenced and prosecuted to final judgment 95
in the county in which the defendant or defendants reside, 96
or in the county suing and where the defendants, or one of 97
them, may be found. 98
[7.] 8. In all actions, process shall be issued by the 99
court in which the action is filed and process may be served 100
in any county within the state. 101
[8.] 9. In any action for defamation or for invasion 102
of privacy, the plaintiff shall be considered first injured 103
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in the county in which the defamation or invasion was first 104
published. 105
[9.] 10. In all actions, venue shall be determined as 106
of the date the plaintiff was first injured. 107
[10.] 11. All motions to dismiss or to transfer based 108
upon a claim of improper venue shall be deemed granted if 109
not denied within ninety days of filing of the motion unless 110
such time period is waived in writing by all parties. 111
[11.] 12. In a wrongful death action, the plaintiff 112
shall be considered first injured where the decedent was 113
first injured by the wrongful acts or negligent conduct 114
alleged in the action. In any spouse's claim for loss of 115
consortium, the plaintiff claiming consortium shall be 116
considered first injured where the other spouse was first 117
injured by the wrongful acts or negligent conduct alleged in 118
the action. 119
[12.] 13. The provisions of this section shall apply 120
irrespective of whether the defendant is a for-profit or a 121
not-for-profit entity. 122
[13.] 14. In any civil action, if all parties agree in 123
writing to a change of venue, the court shall transfer venue 124
to the county within the state unanimously chosen by the 125
parties. If any parties are added to the cause of action 126
after the date of said transfer who do not consent to said 127
transfer then the cause of action shall be transferred to 128
such county in which venue is appropriate under this 129
section, based upon the amended pleadings. 130
[14.] 15. A plaintiff is considered first injured 131
where the trauma or exposure occurred rather than where 132
symptoms are first manifested. 133
[15.] 16. If the county where the plaintiff's claim is 134
filed is not a proper venue, that plaintiff shall be 135
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transferred to a county where proper venue can be 136
established. If no such county exists in the state of 137
Missouri, the claim shall be dismissed without prejudice. 138
[16.] 17. Denial of a motion to transfer venue 139
pursuant to this section or section 507.040[,] or 507.050, 140
[or 508.010,] if denied in error, requires reversal, and no 141
finding of prejudice under Missouri supreme court rule 142
84.13(b) is required for reversal. 143
[17.] 18. For the purposes of this section, a domestic 144
insurance company shall be deemed to reside in, and be a 145
resident of, the county where its registered office is 146
maintained. A foreign insurance company shall be deemed to 147
reside in, and be a resident of, the county where its 148
registered office is maintained. If a foreign insurance 149
company does not maintain a registered office in any county 150
in Missouri, the foreign insurance company shall be deemed 151
to reside in, and be a resident of, Cole County. 152
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