Commerce Trust Co. v. Air 1st Aviation Companies, Inc.

851 N.E.2d 131, 366 Ill. App. 3d 135
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMay 10, 2006
Docket1-05-2761
StatusPublished
Cited by42 cases

This text of 851 N.E.2d 131 (Commerce Trust Co. v. Air 1st Aviation Companies, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Commerce Trust Co. v. Air 1st Aviation Companies, Inc., 851 N.E.2d 131, 366 Ill. App. 3d 135 (Ill. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinion

JUSTICE KARNEZIS

delivered the opinion of the court:

Christine Marie White and John Michael White (White) were killed when the small plane piloted by White crashed in New Mexico. Plaintiffs, the Commerce Trust Company, as the personal representative of the Whites’ estates, and the Whites’ four children, Adam White, Katherine White, Ian White and Giovanna White, filed a wrongful death and survivorship action in the circuit court of Cook County against manufacturers and sellers of the plane and its component parts, including against defendant Air 1st Aviation Companies (Air 1st Aviation), the firm that sold the plane to White. Air 1st Aviation filed a motion to dismiss the action against it for lack of personal jurisdiction. The court denied the motion. On interlocutory appeal, Air 1st Aviation argues that the court erred in finding personal jurisdiction. We affirm.

BACKGROUND

On June 10, 2001, the Whites were killed when their plane, a model MU-2B-20 passenger aircraft manufactured by Mitsubishi, crashed in Cerrillos, New Mexico, upon approach to land in Santa Fe, New Mexico. White, a licensed private pilot, was flying the plane from Peoria County, Illinois, to Santa Fe. Illinois residents, the Whites resided in Woodford County, the county adjacent to Peoria County. An orthodontist, Michael had offices in Peoria County, Woodford County, Tazewell County, La Salle County, Fulton County and Bureau County and business interests in several subdivisions and a shopping center in Peoria County.

White bought the plane from Air 1st Aviation, an aircraft brokerage firm, in South Carolina on April 27, 2001. He signed an agreement with Royal Robbins, president and co-owner of Air 1st Aviation, for the purchase of the plane for $285,000. Pursuant to the agreement, White paid $75,000 by check and signed bills of sale for two aircraft he already owned, a Cessna and an Aerostar, transferring title to the two aircraft to Air 1st Aviation. The agreement provided that Air 1st Aviation would tender any offers to purchase it received on the two aircraft to White for his approval. Upon sale of one or both aircraft, the $210,000 balance due under the agreement would be paid to Air 1st Aviation and any overage received by Air 1st Aviation would be remitted to White. White was to pay monthly interest at a 10% annualized rate on the unpaid balance. The full amount due under the agreement was due and payable on or before September 1, 2001.

White flew the Cessna to Air 1st Aviation in South Carolina and left it there when he took possession of the Mitsubishi. The Aerostar remained in Illinois pending repair of a broken propeller. After White’s death, Air 1st Aviation submitted offers to purchase it received on the Cessna to the executor of White’s estate. None were accepted. Air 1st Aviation sent a letter to the executor stating its claim to the $210,000 balance due under the agreement. In December 2001, Air 1st Aviation filed an action in the Aiken County, South Carolina, court of common pleas against White’s estate for the balance and interest due under the agreement. In November 2002, Air 1st Aviation won a summary judgment motion against the estate for $241,986.68. The estate satisfied the judgment in June 2003.

In February 2003, plaintiffs filed a wrongful death and survival action in Cook County against defendants Honeywell International, Inc.; Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.; Mitsubishi Heavy Industries America, Inc.; Woodward Governor Company; Stan Blaylock and Wayne Bates. 1 On June 9, 2003, in their 22-count first amended complaint, plaintiffs added Air 1st Aviation as a defendant. The complaint alleged that Air 1st Aviation entered into a purchase and sale agreement with White under which White would receive the Mitsubishi MU-2B-20 aircraft in exchange for a sum of money and ownership of two aircraft located in Illinois and that, on April 27, 2001, White obtained ownership of the Mitsubishi pursuant to the agreement.

Product liability counts XVII and XVIII charged that, when the plane left Air 1st Aviation’s control, it was defective, unreasonably dangerous and/or unfit for its intended use, proximately causing the crash that killed the Whites. Negligence counts XIX and XX charged that Air 1st Aviation breached its duty of care to decedents and plaintiffs by negligently selling a defective and unreasonably dangerous aircraft, selling an aircraft that had not been properly maintained or repaired and failing to provide adequate instructions regarding the aircraft, proximately causing the crash that killed the Whites. Breach of warranty counts XXI and XXII charged that Air 1st Aviation breached express and/or implied warranties that the aircraft was airworthy, of merchantable quality, fit and safe for the purpose for which it was designed, manufactured, serviced and sold and free from defects, thereby proximately causing the crash that killed the Whites.

In August 2003, Air 1st Aviation filed a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction pursuant to section 2 — 301 of the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure (Code) (735 ILCS 5/2 — 301 (West 2002)). It argued that it was a Georgia corporation with its principal place of business in South Carolina and registered offices in Georgia and South Carolina, it neither transacted business in Illinois nor specifically marketed its products to Illinois consumers and it did not have the requisite minimum contacts for jurisdiction under the Illinois and United States Constitutions. On August 2, 2005, the court denied the motion to dismiss. It found Air 1st Aviation submitted to personal jurisdiction in Illinois pursuant to sections 2 — 209(a)(2) and 2 — 209(a)(7) of the Illinois long-arm statute (735 ILCS 5/2 — 209(a)(2), (a)(7) (West 2002)) and the due process requirements of the United States and Illinois Constitutions. On September 1, 2005, Air 1st Aviation filed a timely petition in this court for leave to file an interlocutory appeal pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 306(a)(3) (166 Ill. 2d R. 306(a)(3)). We granted the petition.

ANALYSIS

The sole question in this case is whether the court erred in denying Air 1st Aviation’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Plaintiffs have the burden of establishing a prima facie basis for in personam jurisdiction over Air 1st Aviation, a nonresident defendant. Kostal v. Pinkus Dermatopathology Laboratory, PC., 357 Ill. App. 3d 381, 383, 827 N.E.2d 1031, 1033 (2005). Where, as here, the circuit court decided the issue of jurisdiction without an evidentiary hearing, we review the court’s decision de novo. Kostal, 357 Ill. App. 3d at 383, 827 N.E.2d at 1034.

In determining whether an Illinois court may assert personal jurisdiction over a nonresident defendant, we traditionally used a two-prong analysis, evaluating whether the facts of the case met the requirements for (1) personal jurisdiction under the Illinois long-arm statute (735 ILCS 5/2 — 209 (West 2002)) and (2) due process under both the United States and Illinois Constitutions. Rollins v. Ellwood, 141 Ill. 2d 244, 275,

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Bluebook (online)
851 N.E.2d 131, 366 Ill. App. 3d 135, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/commerce-trust-co-v-air-1st-aviation-companies-inc-illappct-2006.