E. & J. Gallo Winery v. Andina Licores S.A. involves a dispute between Gallo and its Ecuadorian distributor, Andina. Although the agreement between Gallo and Andina contained forum selection and choice of law clauses in favor of California, Andina sued Gallo in Ecuador. Gallo filed suit in California, seeking to enjoin Andina from pursuing the litigation in Ecuador. The district court denied Gallo's motion for an injunction. Gallo appealed.
The Ninth Circuit reversed. The court held:
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that Gallo need not meet the usual test of a likelihood of success on the merits of the underlying claim to obtain an anti-suit injunction;
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that the claims in both the California and Ecuadorian actions are the same;
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that the policy in favor of enforcing forum selection clauses would be frustrated by allowing Andina to pursue litigation in Ecuador;
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that refusing to enforce the forum selection clause would have “considerable” ramifications on “international commerce;” and
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that the interest in enforcing the forum selection clause trumped comity concerns.
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