Bluetarp Financial, Inc. v. Melloul Blamey Construction S.C. Ltd.

846 F. Supp. 2d 307, 2012 WL 688299, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26950
CourtDistrict Court, D. Maine
DecidedMarch 1, 2012
DocketCivil no. 2:11-cv-291-NT
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 846 F. Supp. 2d 307 (Bluetarp Financial, Inc. v. Melloul Blamey Construction S.C. Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Maine primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bluetarp Financial, Inc. v. Melloul Blamey Construction S.C. Ltd., 846 F. Supp. 2d 307, 2012 WL 688299, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26950 (D. Me. 2012).

Opinion

ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO DISMISS

NANCY TORRESEN, District Judge.

The Defendant, Melloul Blarney Construction S.C., Ltd. (“MB Construction”), has filed a Motion to Dismiss Plaintiff BlueTarp Financial, Inc.’s Complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6), lack of personal jurisdiction under Fed R. Civ. P. 12(b)(2), improper venue under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(3), and forum non conveniens.

The Defendant contends that: (1) the forum selection clause is not part of the agreement between the Defendant and the Plaintiff; (2) the forum selection clause is unreasonable and unenforceable; (3) if the clause is an enforceable part of the agreement between the parties, it provides for Maine state court jurisdiction over the Defendant, not Maine federal court jurisdiction; (4) the Court’s assertion of personal jurisdiction over the Defendant violates the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process guarantees and Maine’s long-arm statute, 14 M.R.S.A. § 704-A (2003); (5) venue is improper under 28 U.S.C. § 1391(a) because the Court does not have personal jurisdiction over the Defendant; and (6) the Court should dismiss the action against the Defendant based on forum non conveniens.

Because the parties have consented only to jurisdiction in Maine state courts, and the Court otherwise lacks personal jurisdiction, the Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss is GRANTED.

I. STATEMENT OF FACTS

In July of 2009, BlueTarp Financial, Inc. (“BlueTarp”),1 a Delaware corporation which provides credit to contractors, entered into a Credit Services Agreement with Contract Supply, LLC (“Contract Supply”),2 a South Carolina corporation. Under this agreement, Contract Supply customers who wished to establish credit at Contract Supply were required to apply for credit accounts with the Plaintiff, Blue-Tarp. Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 3-4. BlueTarp provided Contract Supply with commercial credit applications to give to customers who were interested in obtaining credit. Id. at ¶ 4.

MB Construction is a South Carolina general contracting corporation with its principal place of business in South Car[310]*310olina. Mosser Declaration at ¶ 3. In 2009, MB Construction was working on construction projects in South Carolina and North Carolina, and it subcontracted with Contract Supply to purchase construction supplies for its projects. Id. at ¶ 18. In September of 2009, Contract Supply faxed a BlueTarp commercial credit application (the “Credit Application”) to MB Construction so that MB Construction could apply for a BlueTarp credit account to make purchases on credit from Contract Supply. Id. at ¶ 12.

The Credit Application stated that it could be returned either to Contract Supply or to BlueTarp by fax or mail, at BlueTarp’s Maine address. Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 5. MB Construction filled out the Credit Application, signed it, and faxed the completed Credit Application to Contract Supply in South Carolina. Mosser Declaration at ¶ 12. Contract Supply faxed the Credit Application to BlueTarp in Maine, which received it on or around September 16, 2009. Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 6.

Above the signature line on the Credit Application, there is a provision stating that:

All provisions contained on this form are incorporated by reference into the BlueTarp Financial Account Agreement on the back page, and you agree to be bound by the BlueTarp Financial Account Agreement in the event your application is approved. The Blue Tarp Financial Account Agreement sets forth additional terms relating to the BlueTarp Purchasing Program. This application and the BlueTarp Financial Account Agreement constitute the complete agreement between you and BlueTarp Financial, Inc.

Doc. No. 10-2 at 1.

On the back page of the application was the BlueTarp Financial Account Agreement (“Account Agreement”). Doc. No. 10-2 at 2. The Account Agreement stated that “[y]our use of the BlueTarp Financial Account constitutes acceptance of the following terms and conditions.” Doc. No. 10-4 at 2. The Account Agreement includes a choice of law provision stating that “[t]his Agreement will be governed by the laws of the State of Maine,” and a forum selection clause, providing that “[y]ou agree that in the event of default in payment, BlueTarp Financial may institute suit against you in the courts of the State of Maine, regardless of where you are geographically located or conduct business.” Id.

Upon receipt of MB Construction’s Credit Application, BlueTarp ran a credit check from its Maine office and decided not to extend credit based on MB Construction’s history of slow payment and collections. Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 7. On September 27, 2009, Blue-Tarp sent a letter to the Vice President of MB Construction, Andy Mosser, informing him that MB Construction’s Credit Application had been denied. Doc. No. 7-2.

In January of 2010, BlueTarp re-reviewed MB Construction’s Credit Application based on new information and decided to approve a line of credit for MB Construction. Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 9. On January 29, 2010, BlueTarp called MB Construction and informed Mr. Mosser that MB Construction’s Credit Application had been approved. Id. at ¶ 10. BlueTarp mailed MB Construction a “welcome letter” (“Letter”) including the Defendant’s approved credit limit and providing billing and payment information as well as a copy of the Account Agreement. Id. The Letter was on BlueTarp’s letterhead using BlueTarp’s Maine address.

Between February 1, 2010 and June 13, 2011, BlueTarp approved $603,446.33 in charges made on MB Construction’s Blue-[311]*311Tarp account at Contact Supply for construction projects in North and South Carolina. Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 12; Mosser Declaration at ¶ 17. Contract Supply sent invoices showing the charges to both MB Construction and BlueTarp. Doc. No. 10-5; Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 13. BlueTarp advanced money to Contract Supply as payment for the charges and sent MB Construction monthly billing statements. Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 14. At the top of BlueTarp’s monthly statements is its Atlanta, Georgia address. Doc. No. 10-6. An attached payment stub states a South Carolina return address for BlueTarp and uses a Georgia address where BlueTarp has a lockbox. Id. MB Construction paid BlueTarp in full for charges due before May 10, 2011, but it owes BlueTarp more than $110,000 for subsequent charges. Richardson-Newton Declaration at ¶ 15-16.

BlueTarp maintained a log of its contacts with MB Construction. Doc. Nos. 10-7 & 10-8. The Court counts twelve contacts in this log between BlueTarp and Marie Millward, BlueTarp’s contact at MB Construction, between January 29, 2010 and June of 2011, not including the initial telephone conversation between BlueTarp and Mr. Mosser. Id. Only two of these contacts appear to have been initiated by MB Construction. Doc. No. 10-7 at 5, 12.

The log shows that generally MB Construction paid Contract Supply directly.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
846 F. Supp. 2d 307, 2012 WL 688299, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26950, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bluetarp-financial-inc-v-melloul-blamey-construction-sc-ltd-med-2012.