DECISION AND ORDER The defendant, Frontier Travel Camp Inc. (“FTC”), moves, pursuant to CPLR §3211(a)(1), to dismiss the complaint on the force of an unambiguous forum selection clause in the contract between the parties, choosing the State of Florida as the exclusive venue for litigation. That clause consists of the following explicit statement by the plaintiffs: In the event that I file a lawsuit against FTC, I agree to do so solely in the state of Florida, and I further agree that the substantive law of Florida shall apply in that action without regard to the conflict of law rules of that state….(Participation Agreement, Release and Assumption of Risk, signed by the plaintiffs on June 1, 2017 [the "Contract"], reproduced as Exhibit 2 to the Moving Affidavit of Scott Fineman, officer of defendant, sworn to January 2, 2018 [the "Fineman Aff."],6.) The Contract closes with the following, equally explicit, acknowledgment by plaintiffs:I have had sufficient opportunity to read this entire document. I have read and understood it, and I agree to be bound by its terms.The plaintiffs, who admit signing the Contract (Complaint3), oppose the motion to dismiss.1FACTUAL BACKGROUND2FTC is a Florida corporation (Complaint2; Fineman Aff.4) which was established as a luxury special needs tour operator catering to individuals with Autism, Asperger’s Syndrome, developmental disabilities, and other special needs (Affidavit of Stacey Stein, sworn to March 28, 2018 [the "Stacey Stein Aff."],3; Fineman Aff.6). Plaintiff Max Stein, who at the time of the underlying events was 22 years old, had been, as of said time, diagnosed as High Performing Autistic with Asperger’s Syndrome (Complaint4). Plaintiff Stacey Stein is the mother of plaintiff Max Stein (Complaint5). In early 2017, Ms. Stein promised Max a trip to California and Australia as a college graduation present (Complaint
3-4; Stacey Stein Aff.3). While seeking out an appropriate travel program for Max, i.e., “a tour where the participants had the same challenges as Max and the same level of performance” — the plaintiffs discovered FTC (Stacey Stein Aff.3). The plaintiffs met with Scott Feinman, an officer of FTC, at a Starbuck’s coffee shop in New York City, on March 23, 2017 (Stacey Stein Aff.6). Attendance by Max at that meeting was specifically requested by Mr. Fineman, so that Mr. Fineman could observe Max’s level of functionality and learn about other details of his life (Stacey Stein Aff.
