MGM Resorts International is suing more than 1,000 victims of the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting in a bid to avoid any liability claims from the massacre, according to reports. 
 
 The owners of the Mandalay Bay hotel, where gunman Stephen Paddock positioned himself to repeatedly fire at the crowd attending the Route 91 Harvest country music festival last October, said they could not be held responsible for the deaths and injuries resulting from the shooting, and all claims against them “must be dismissed,” reports the Las Vegas Review-Journal. 
 
 According to the complaints filed in Nevada and California, the company, which also owns the Route 91 Harvest festival location, took reasonable steps to ensure such an atrocity did not occur and that it has “no liability of any kind to defendants.” 
 
 Hundreds of lawsuits have been filed against the company in the wake of last October’s shooting, which left 58 people dead and more than 850 injured. 
 
 Suits claim the company was negligent for not properly monitoring who was entering and leaving the building and allowing Paddock to take an arsenal of weapons and several thousand rounds of ammunition up to his hotel room before committing the attack. 
 
 Las Vegas lawyer Robert Eglet, who is representing several of the victims, described the lawsuits as a “blatant display of judge shopping” that “quite frankly verges on unethical.” 
 
 “I’ve never seen a more outrageous thing, where they sue the victims in an effort to find a judge they like,” Eglet told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “It’s just really sad that they would stoop to this level.” 
 
 David Becker/Getty Images 
 
 In a statement to 8 News Now, MGM spokeswoman Debra DeShong said: “The unforeseeable events of October 1 affected thousands of people in Las Vegas and throughout North America. 
 
 “From the day of this tragedy, we have focused on the recovery of those impacted by the despicable act of one evil individual. While we expected the litigation that followed, we also feel strongly that victims and the community should be able to recover and find resolution in a timely manner. 
 
 “Congress provided that the Federal Courts were the correct place for such litigation relating to incidents of mass violence like this one where security services approved by the Department of Homeland Security were provided. 
 
 “The Federal Court is an appropriate venue for these cases and provides those affected with the opportunity for a timely resolution. Years of drawn out litigation and hearings are not in the best interest of victims, the community and those still healing.” 
 
 The massacre at the Las Vegas music festival is the deadliest in modern U.S. history. Authorities have still not been able to determine a possible motive for the attack. ||||| MGM files federal complaint over 1 October shooting David Becker/Getty Images David Becker/Getty Images MGM files federal complaint over 1 October shooting prev next 
 
 LAS VEGAS - More than nine months after 1 October, MGM International Resorts is fighting back against the victims who say the property is partially to blame. 
 
 The company says under a post 9/11 law, it's not liable for the deaths and injuries at the festival that night. 
 
 8 News Now obtained the 60-page complaint filed Friday in federal court by attorneys representing MGM Resorts International. 
 
 READ: Federal Complaint filed by MGM Resorts International 
 
 In it, the company files for relief from nearly 250 people who have filed lawsuits against the company related to the 1 October mass shooting. 
 
 Attorneys ask the court for a declaration that says, among other things, that "the Safety Act precludes any finding of liability against plaintiffs for any claim for injuries arising out of or related to Paddock's mass attack" and that the "plaintiffs have no liability of any kind to defendants." 
 
 MGM asserts that because event security company CSC is certified by the Department of Homeland Security, that the mass shooting falls under the "Safety Act." 
 
 In a statement, MGM spokesperson Debra DeShong provided the following statement: 
 
 “The unforeseeable events of October 1st affected thousands of people in Las Vegas and throughout North America. From the day of this tragedy, we have focused on the recovery of those impacted by the despicable act of one evil individual. While we expected the litigation that followed, we also feel strongly that victims and the community should be able to recover and find resolution in a timely manner. Congress provided that the Federal Courts were the correct place for such litigation relating to incidents of mass violence like this one where security services approved by the Department of Homeland Security were provided. The Federal Court is an appropriate venue for these cases and provides those affected with the opportunity for a timely resolution. Years of drawn out litigation and hearings are not in the best interest of victims, the community and those still healing.” 
 
 "MGM is trying to beat these people to the courthouse and declare that they have no rights," said Craig Eiland, attorney. 
 
 He represents several victims from Texas and says this is a continuation of a court battle over which courts should handle anything related to the shooting. 
 
 "The proper venue for this is Nevada State Court, plain and simple, under the law," Eiland said. 
 
 8 News Now reached out to several of the other attorneys representing people who have filed lawsuits against MGM, as well as MGM's attorneys and they either did not respond or declined to comment for this story.
– MGM Resorts is suing more than 1,000 victims of the Oct. 1 shooting in Las Vegas, claiming it has "no liability of any kind." The company—which owns the Mandalay Bay hotel from which Stephen Paddock opened fire, as well as the targeted venue of the Route 91 Harvest country music festival—argues it shouldn't be held responsible for 58 dead and more than 850 injured because it hired a security company certified by the Department of Homeland Security for "protecting against and responding to acts of mass injury and destruction," per the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Under the 2002 Safety Act, a company is granted liability protection if it uses "anti-terrorism" services that can "help prevent and respond to mass violence." Therefore, all claims against MGM Resorts "must be dismissed,” the federal complaint states. Lawyers for victims don't agree. "MGM is trying to beat these people to the courthouse and declare that they have no rights," a Texas attorney tells Las Vegas Now, arguing the case should be heard in state court in Nevada, where MGM is based. Las Vegas attorney Robert Eglet says filing in federal court is a "blatant display of judge shopping" that "verges on unethical." In a statement, per Newsweek, however, MGM says federal court is indeed "the correct place for such litigation relating to incidents of mass violence … where security services approved by the Department of Homeland Security were provided." Additionally, it provides "the opportunity for a timely resolution," MGM says. (Paddock allegedly showed the "mark of a sociopath.")