State of Indiana

05/25/2022 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/24/2022 22:12

[APPEALS] Cadorath Aerospace, Inc., et al. v. Brendan Mullen, et al. 21A-CT-2241

***Due to a scheduling conflict, the Court of Appeals traveling oral argument scheduled for Wednesday May 25th in Clark County has been cancelled. The argument will take place instead on the same date at 10:30 a.m. Indianapolis time in the Court of Appeals courtroom in Indianapolis.***

Brandon Ricks, Steven Cobb, and Brendan Mullen were aboard a Helicopter that crashed due to catastrophic engine failure. Ricks and Cobb died, and Mullen survived with severe injuries. Mullen and the Estates of Ricks and Cobb ("Helicopter Occupants") filed a lawsuit in Indiana against Rolls Royce Corporation, Inc., which is based in Indiana and produced the helicopter's engine; Cadorath Aerospace Lafayette, LLC, which is based in Louisiana and is alleged to have performed negligent work on the engine; and Cadorath Aerospace, Inc., which is based in Canada and is also alleged to have performed negligent work on the engine. After the Court of Appeals ruled the Indiana trial court lacked personal jurisdiction over the two Cadorath defendants because they had had inadequate contacts with Indiana, Cadorath Aerospace Lafayette, LLC v. Ricks, 133 N.E.3d 782 (Ind. Ct. App. 2019), the trial court dismissed those parties in January 2020. Just over a year later, evidence was discovered that revealed the Cadorath defendants had communicated with Rolls Royce (in Indiana) regarding the type of engine repair at issue. Based on this new evidence, the Helicopter Occupants filed a Trial Rule 60(B) motion for relief from judgment asking that the Cadorath defendants be reinstated as parties in the Indiana lawsuit. The trial court determined the motion should be granted under both Rule 60(B)(2) for newly discovered evidence and Rule 60(B)(3) for misconduct by Cadorath defendants. Cadorath defendants appeal the trial court's determination on multiple grounds, including the timeliness of the 60(B) motion and the determinations of misconduct and relevance of the evidence.

The scheduled panelists are Judge Najam, Judge May, and Judge Brown.