Hurtado

BACKGROUND

The facts are undisputed. On April 7, 2009, Luz Maria Hurtado Verdugo was driving in Sonora, Mexico in a Ford Explorer bearing Bridgestone tires. Her passengers were Enriqueta Verdugo Ruelas, Luz Maria Vazquez Hurtado, Luz Brizeyda Hurtado Verdugo, and Antonio Alonzo Perez Hurtado. She lost control of the vehicle and it left the roadway and rolled over, killing Luz Maria Vazquez Hurtado and Antonio Alonzo Perez Hurtado and injuring everyone else. On March 24, 2010, the surviving accident victims and their family members, including Hurtado, the husband of Enriqueta Verdugo Ruelas, father of Luz Maria Hurtado Verdugo, and guardian ad litem Luz Maria Vazquez Hurtado, filed a lawsuit in the Los Angeles Superior Court, naming as defendants Ford, Bridgestone, Rouiben Djoujian (the original owner of the vehicle), and Peter Ramos, an intermediate owner.

2 Ford and Bridgestone answered in May 2010, Ford asserting forum non conveniens among other defenses and Bridgestone claiming the lawsuit was filed in an improper venue. Ramos, who was never located, was served by publication. His default was taken when he failed answer. Djoujian’s liability was discharged in bankruptcy,…