## Facts

- A toxic gas leak occurred on December 2–3, 1984 at a pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, causing thousands of deaths and widespread injuries.
- The plant was owned and operated by Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL), an Indian corporation majority-owned by Union Carbide Corporation (UCC), a New York corporation.
- Numerous personal injury and wrongful death actions were filed in the United States against UCC on behalf of Indian victims.
- Federal actions were centralized by multidistrict litigation transfer to the Southern District of New York.
- India enacted legislation authorizing the Union of India to represent victims’ claims, and the Union of India joined as a co-plaintiff in the consolidated U.S. proceedings.
- UCC moved to dismiss the consolidated cases on forum non conveniens grounds in favor of litigation in India.

## Issues

1. Whether the consolidated actions against UCC should be dismissed under forum non conveniens in favor of adjudication in Indian courts.
2. Whether India provided an adequate alternative forum for the claims.
3. Whether the private and public interest factors favored trial in India despite UCC’s U.S. domicile.
4. Whether dismissal should be conditioned on UCC’s commitments concerning Indian jurisdiction, defenses, and satisfaction of any Indian judgment.

## Decision

- The court granted UCC’s motion to dismiss on forum non conveniens grounds.
- The court held that India was an adequate alternative forum and materially more convenient given the locus of the disaster and proof.
- The court concluded that both private interest factors (evidence, witnesses, third-party practice) and public interest factors (local interest, court burden, foreign law) strongly favored India.
- The court imposed conditions, including that UCC submit to Indian jurisdiction, waive certain limitations defenses arising during the U.S. proceedings, and satisfy any final Indian judgment subject to ordinary enforcement principles.

## Legal Principles

- Forum non conveniens dismissal requires (1) an adequate alternative forum and (2) a balance of private and public interest factors showing the foreign forum is substantially more appropriate.
- Private interest factors include access to sources of proof, availability and cost of obtaining witnesses, and the ability to join necessary third parties.
- Public interest factors include the forum’s local interest in the dispute, administrative burdens on courts and juries, and the difficulty of applying foreign law.
- A court may condition forum non conveniens dismissal to reduce prejudice and ensure meaningful access to the alternative forum, including submission to jurisdiction and waiver of time-bar defenses attributable to the U.S. litigation.

## Conclusion

The court dismissed the consolidated Bhopal disaster claims filed in New York, holding that Indian courts were the proper forum because the dispute, parties, evidence, and sovereign interests were centered in India, and conditioned dismissal on UCC’s acceptance of Indian jurisdiction and related protections for claimants.


In re Union Carbide Corp. Gas Plant Disaster at Bhopal, India in December 1984, 634 F. Supp. 842 (S.D.N.Y. 1986)