Alonso v. Line

846 So. 2d 745, 2003 WL 21152861
Supreme Court of Louisiana·Decided May 20, 2003·No. 2002-CC-2644·Published·Cited by 25 cases

Opinion

846 So.2d 745 (2003)

Pamela ALONSO
v.
Billie B. LINE, Jr., and Wisner, Adams, Walker & Line, P.C.

No. 2002-CC-2644.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

May 20, 2003.

*746 Edward J. Walter, Jr., Darrel J. Papillion, Moore, Walters, Thompson, Hoover, Thompson, Papillion & Cullens, Baton Rouge, for Applicant.

David A. Bowling, Susannah R. Cooley, Robyn S. Ford, Wilson & Bowling, New Orleans, for Respondent.

*747 VICTORY, Justice.

We granted this writ to determine whether Louisiana has personal jurisdiction over an Alabama attorney based upon either the Louisiana long-arm statute, La. R.S. 13:3201, or personal service upon the attorney in Louisiana while he was waiting to testify at a hearing on his exception of lack of personal jurisdiction. Finding that sufficient minimum contacts with Louisiana support the exercise of personal jurisdiction under La. R.S. 13:3201, we reverse the judgments of the lower courts and remand the matter to the trial court for further proceedings.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On January 14, 1998, plaintiff, Pamela Alonso ("Alonso") and her mother were involved in an automobile accident in Baton Rouge, Louisiana when they were rear ended at an intersection. At that time, Alonso was a resident of Alabama and her mother was a resident of Louisiana, as was the driver of the other vehicle. Both vehicles were insured under contracts of insurance issued in Louisiana. In March of 1998, Alonso contacted defendant, Billie Line ("Line"), an Alabama attorney whom she had known since 1996 and who had represented her in connection with several real estate closings and related matters. Alonso told Line that she had been involved in a traffic accident in Louisiana and that she had been visited by an insurance adjuster from State Farm Insurance Co. regarding the accident and asked Line if he would represent her in connection with the accident and deal with the insurance adjuster. It was Alonso's understanding that Line was going to represent her in connection with the accident and handle all aspects of the case. They discussed a fee and Line told her that the usual fee in this type of case was a one-third contingency fee but that they would wait and see what happened before committing to a fee. There was no written representation agreement. Alonso and Line went over the details of the accident, discussed the medical aspects of the case, and he subsequently called the insurance adjuster in Alabama to discuss the case. In June of 1998, Alonso moved to Louisiana, at which time she was also being represented by Line in connection with an Alabama lease dispute. Line contacted Alonso several times by telephone in Louisiana to inform her of the status of the lease dispute.

At the time Line undertook the representation, he was a sole practitioner, though in January of 1999 he joined the law firm of Wisner, Adams, Walker & Line, P.C. He confirmed that he agreed to represent Alonso in connection with the accident but testified it was never his intention to file suit. He testified that his usual practice would be to try and settle the case and if he could not, he would refer the case to another Alabama attorney. He testified that he contacted the State Farm insurance adjuster in Alabama to inform him that he would be filing a claim on Alonso's behalf. Line testified as to his belief that because Alonso was an Alabama resident when the accident occurred, Alabama law would apply, including that state's two-year statute of limitations, and that the case could be filed in Alabama. After Alonso called him in late 1999 checking on the status of the case, in January of 2000, Line called the adjuster and was told that the adjuster had closed the file because the one-year Louisiana prescriptive period had run. Upon learning this, Line contacted a Louisiana attorney through Martindale Hubbell who confirmed that Louisiana had a one-year prescriptive period that applied to this case. He then called Alonso on January 11, 2000, and told her that the statute of limitations had run.

*748 On January 11, 2001, Alonso filed a malpractice suit in Louisiana against Line and the law firm of Wisner, Adams, Walker & Line, P.C., for failing to timely pursue the matter. On January 22, 2001, Line and the law firm were served in Alabama through the Louisiana long-arm statute. They did not contest service, but filed an exception alleging lack of personal jurisdiction. The hearing was held on December 3, 2001 and Line traveled to Baton Rouge to attend and testify at the hearing. While waiting in the courtroom for the hearing to commence, he was personally served with an additional copy of the petition.

At the hearing, Alonso alleged that because personal service had been effected upon Line in Louisiana, the issue of whether personal jurisdiction existed under the Long-arm Statute was moot. The trial judge took that matter under advisement, but also heard testimony from Line regarding his contacts with Louisiana. Line testified that his only contact with Louisiana was as a free agent with the New Orleans Saints football team in 1971 when he trained with them in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He testified that he is not licensed to practice law in Louisiana and has never solicited business in this state or advertised in this state. Without deciding whether jurisdiction was proper under the long-arm statute, the trial court denied the exception of lack of personal jurisdiction finding that service within the state conferred personal jurisdiction. The court of appeal reversed in a 2-1 decision, ruling as follows:

WRIT GRANTED. The trial court's judgment denying relator's exception of lack of personal jurisdiction is hereby reversed, and judgment is rendered in favor of Billie B. Line, Jr. and Wisner, Adams, Walker & Line, P.C. on the basis that there were insufficient minimum contacts with the State of Louisiana to exercise personal jurisdiction over the nonresident defendants. See LSA-R.S. 13:3201; LSA-C.C.P. art. 930; and Griffith v. French, 97-2635, p. 3 (La.App. 1st Cir.12/28/98), 723 So.2d 1140, 1142; writ denied, 99-0220 (La.3/19/99), 740 So.2d 116.

Alonso v. Line, 02-0786 (La.App. 1 Cir. 9/24/02).[1] We granted this writ to determine whether the Louisiana court has personal jurisdiction over Line in this case. Alonso v. Line, 02-2644, 833 So.2d 944 (La.1/10/03).[2]

*749 DISCUSSION

Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure article 6 defines personal jurisdiction as "the legal power and authority of a court to render a personal judgment against a party to an action or proceeding." Pursuant to that article, the exercise of personal jurisdiction in this case requires service of process on the defendant, and "the submission of the party to the jurisdiction of the court by commencing an action or by the waiver of objection to jurisdiction by failure to timely file the declinatory exception." La. C.C.P. art. 6(A). In addition, pursuant to La. C.C.P. art. 6, "a court of this state may exercise personal jurisdiction over a nonresident on any basis consistent with the constitution of this state and with the Constitution of the United States." La. C.C.P. art. 6(B).

We discussed the history of Louisiana's long-arm Statute, whereby this state's courts can constitutionally exercise personal jurisdiction over non-residents, in Ruckstuhl v. Owens Corning Fiberglas Corp., 98-1126 (La.4/13/99), 731 So.2d 881, cert. denied, 528 U.S. 1019, 120 S.Ct. 5

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