Brown v. Canadian Pac. Ry. Co.

25 F. Supp. 566, 1938 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1701
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. New York
DecidedNovember 30, 1938
DocketNo. 2241A
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 25 F. Supp. 566 (Brown v. Canadian Pac. Ry. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brown v. Canadian Pac. Ry. Co., 25 F. Supp. 566, 1938 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1701 (W.D.N.Y. 1938).

Opinion

KNIGHT, District Judge.

This is a motion to quash the service of the summons and for a dismissal of the complaint. Service of the summons and complaint was made herein by delivery thereof in this District to William P. Wass, an employee of the defendant corporation and designated by it as “general agent.” The Canadian Pacific Railway Company owns no line of railway in this District. It operates a line of railway between Toronto and Hamilton, Ontario. The Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo Railway Company operates a line between Hamilton and Welland, Ontario, and the New York Central Railway, lessee of the Michigan Central, operates over a line between Welland, Ontario, and Buffalo, New York. These three railroad companies operate between Buffalo and Toronto under an agreement claimed to provide for the entire operation and management by each company over its own line. It also provides for the furnishing and maintenance of locomotives and cars by the separate companies and for a schedule of charges for maintenance, except as to café-parlor and dining room cars. The Canadian engines, freight and passenger cars are run through to Buffalo from Canada, and Pullman cars are operated between Toronto, Buffalo and New York. Five separate agreements with respect to preceding matters had been entered into commencing in 1935.

The Canadian Pacific occupies an office of considerable proportions in Buffalo, "New York, in this District. It also has offices in Albany and New York City, and in the latter city is-lessee of a large building designated as the Canadian Pacific Building. It occupies considerable space and lets space therein. It has fourteen employees in Buffalo. These include one, W. P. Wass, designated as "general agent” and one, Frank B. Ward, designated as “district freight agent.” The offices contain both passenger and freight offices. Defendant’s name appears on the sides of two entrances to its Buffalo offices. It sells passenger tickets from Buffalo to Toronto, Canada. These state upon their faces that they are “Issued by Canadian Pacific Railway” and on the reverse side appears “Can. Pac. Ry.” Under date of June 15, 1938, defendant issued a time table entitled “Canadian Pacific Railway Lines,” and therein appears in the designation of names [567]*567of “traffic representatives,” Buffalo, New York, 22 Court Street, “W. P. Wass, General Agent, Pas. R. Dept.” “F. B. Ward, District Freight Agent” and a similar designation as to such general agent appears elsewhere therein. Defendant advertised in a Buffalo newspaper the sale of trip tickets from Buffalo to various Canadian points. It maintains a bank account in Buffalo. It carries its office address in the telephone book.

Defendant has been sued at various times at places within this District. It has on occasions raised the present question of jurisdiction; on numerous occasions such question has not been raised. The State Court in the State of New York, in Hewitt v. Canadian Pacific R. Co., 124 Misc. 186, 207 N.Y.S. 797, affirmed 212 App.Div. 815, 207 N.Y.S. 851, held that the defendant “engages in substantial business” [page 798] in this state. It, however, appeared in the latter case that the officials in the state solicited traffic and handled freight claims.

Defendant appearing specially moves to quash the service of the summons.and complaint on these grounds: (1) that the attempted service of such summons was in violation of the Due Process and Commerce clauses of the Federal Constitution U.S.C.A.Const. Amend. 5 and art. 1, § 8, cl. 3; (2) that this court does not have jurisdiction of this defendant; (3) that the attempted service was not made upon the proper person; and (4) that it does not appear that due diligence was used to effect service as provided by subdivisions 1 and 2 of Section 229 of the Civil Practice Act of the State of New York.

There was no violation of the Due Process clause, if defendant was “doing business” within the district when service was made. The place of origin of the cause of action makes no difference. In re Hohorst, 150 U.S. 653, 14 S.Ct. 221, 37 L.Ed. 1211; Barrow S. S. Co. v. Kane, 170 U.S. 100, 18 S.Ct. 526, 42 L.Ed. 964; Connecticut Mutual Life Ins. Co. v. Sprately, 172 U.S. 602, 19 S.Ct. 308, 43 L.Ed. 569; Frink Co. v. Erikson, 1 Cir., 20 F.2d 707; Roses Notes on U. S. Reports, Vol. 17, p. 96. Innumerable are the cases in which an alien corporation has been sued in a district outside the district where the cause of action arose. The Judicial Code, section 24, as amended, 28 U.S.C.A. § 41 (1) (c) provides that district courts shall have original jurisdiction in suits “between citizens of a State and foreign States, citizens or subjects. * * *” and Section 51 Judicial Code, 28 U.S.C.A. § 112(a) has no application in suits against aliens. In re Hohorst, supra.

Louisville & N. R. Co. v. Chatters, 279 U.S. 320, 49 S.Ct. 329, 73 L.Ed. 711; Old Wayne Mutual Life Ass’n v. McDonough, 204 U.S. 8, 27 S.Ct. 236, 51 L.Ed. 345; Simon v. Southern R. Co., 236 U.S. 115, 35 S.Ct. 255, 59 L.Ed. 492, cited by defendant, involved the question of state and not federal jurisdiction. The question there was whether a foreign corporation could be subjected to state jurisdiction by force of state statutes where the cause of action arose outside of the state. Jaroski v. Hamburgh-American Packet Co., 2 Cir., 182 F. 320.

There was no unreasonable burden upon commerce. If defendant was “doing business” in the district he was amenable to suit here, and this imposed no unreasonable burden. Davis v. Farmers’ Co-op. Equity Co., 262 U.S. 312, 43 S.Ct. 556, 67 L.Ed. 996, and cases following, cited by defendant, involved question of whether a state statute violated the commerce clause and these are clearly distinguished from the instant case in Southern Railway Co. v. Cochran, 6 Cir., 56 F.2d 1019. Referring to the Davis Case the court said [page 1020] : “There the court had presented to it for decision a question as to whether a state statute, * * * violated the Federal Constitution by imposing an unreasonable burden upon interstate commerce. * * * That is not the question here presented. Jurisdiction is here asserted by a court of the United States under the mandate of a federal statute. * * * If the effect of a federal statute conferring jurisdiction upon a federal court is to place a burden upon interstate commerce, the power for that purpose exists, and the remedy is legislative and not judicial.” citing Schendel v. McGee, 8 Cir., 300 F. 273. See also U. S. Merchants’ & Shippers’ Ins. Co. v. A/S den Norske A. Og A. Line, 2 Cir., 65 F.2d 392; Second Employers’ Liability Cases, 223 U.S. 1, 32 S.Ct. 169, 56 L.Ed. 327.

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Bluebook (online)
25 F. Supp. 566, 1938 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1701, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brown-v-canadian-pac-ry-co-nywd-1938.