Cox v. HP Inc.

504 P.3d 52, 317 Or. App. 27
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedJanuary 12, 2022
DocketA172614
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 504 P.3d 52 (Cox v. HP Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cox v. HP Inc., 504 P.3d 52, 317 Or. App. 27 (Or. Ct. App. 2022).

Opinion

Argued and submitted November 10, 2020, affirmed January 12, 2022

William COX and Diosdada “Josie” Cox, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. HP INC., dba HP Computing and Printing, Inc., a foreign corporation; and Charter Mechanical Contractors, Inc., dba Charter Mechanical, an Oregon corporation, Defendants, and SPIRAX SARCO, INC., a foreign corporation, Defendant-Respondent. HP INC., dba HP Computing and Printing, Inc., Third-Party Plaintiff, v. TÜV RHEINLAND OF NORTH AMERICA, INC., a foreign corporation; and Proton Energy Systems, Inc., a foreign corporation, Third-Party Defendants. Multnomah County Circuit Court 19CV14525; A172614 504 P3d 52

After William Cox sustained injuries from an explosion of a hydrogen gen- erator, plaintiffs brought claims against defendant Spirax Sarco, Inc. (Spirax), an entity that supplied a component part to the generator’s manufacturer. On appeal, plaintiffs argue that the trial court erred when it granted Spirax’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Held: Spirax’s activities in Oregon were insufficiently related to plaintiffs’ claims so as to support the exercise of personal jurisdiction. Accordingly, the trial court did not err when it granted Spirax’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Affirmed. 28 Cox v. HP Inc.

Jerry B. Hodson, Judge. J. Randolph Pickett argued the cause for appellants. Also on the briefs were R. Brendan Dummigan, Kimberly O. Weingart, Shangar S. Meman, and Pickett Dummigan McCall LLP, and Matthew D. Kaplan and Kaplan Law, LLC. Nicholas Kampars argued the cause for respondent. Also on the brief was Wildwood Law Group, LLC. Before DeHoog, Presiding Judge, and Mooney, Judge, and DeVore, Senior Judge.* DeVORE, S. J. Affirmed.

______________ * Mooney, J., vice Hadlock, J. pro tempore. Cite as 317 Or App 27 (2022) 29

DeVORE, S. J. William Cox was severely injured when a hydrogen generator exploded at HP Inc.’s (HP) campus in Corvallis. Cox and his wife brought claims for personal injuries against a number of defendants. Defendant Spirax Sarco, Inc. (Spirax) is an entity that supplied a component part—a drain trap—to the generator’s manufacturer, third-party defendant Proton Energy Systems, Inc. (Proton). In this appeal, plaintiffs argue that the trial court erred when it granted Spirax’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Given the record before us, we conclude that Spirax’s activities in Oregon lack the relationship to plain- tiffs’ claims that due process requires. For that reason, the trial court did not err in concluding that Oregon state courts lack personal jurisdiction to resolve plaintiffs’ claims against Spirax. We affirm. I. FACTS Spirax is a Delaware corporation with its princi- pal place of business in South Carolina. It manufactures a range of products, including drain traps, and it sells sys- tems for the control and efficient use of steam, air, and other industrial fluids to commercial users. Proton purchased sev- eral FA-150 drain traps from Spirax, which Spirax shipped from its South Carolina location to Proton’s manufactur- ing facility in Connecticut. Proton incorporated the FA-150 drain traps into its hydrogen generators,1 one of which was the generator at issue in this case. Proton would also resell drain traps separately if a customer asked. In 2018, HP purchased a hydrogen generator from Proton and had it installed at HP’s Corvallis campus. Cox worked for Proton as a technician and was servicing the generator when it exploded. Plaintiffs brought claims for products liability and negligence against Spirax, alleging that the drain traps were defectively designed and manufactured “in that they allowed the emission of hydrogen through the Condensate

1 A hydrogen generator is a piece of equipment that produces hydrogen from water. 30 Cox v. HP Inc.

Drain Traps at a time when leakage of hydrogen was nei- ther authorized nor permitted,” that the drain traps failed to contain a warning about the potential danger of hydro- gen leakage, and that they were not adequately inspected to reveal the danger of hydrogen leakage. Spirax filed a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Spirax attached a declaration asserting that drain traps account for a small category of its products; that it sells FA-150 drain traps in bulk to Proton; that Proton does not inform Spirax when it sends one of its products to a customer; that Spirax’s total sales for all products in the United States from 2016 to 2018 was $280 million; that Spirax’s total sales for products in Oregon from 2016 to 2018 was $1.2 million; that Spirax’s total sales for drain traps in the United States for 2016 to 2018 was $1.6 million; that Spirax’s total sales for the FA-150 drain trap in the United States for 2016 to 2018 was $122,182.66; and that Spirax only sold two FA-150 drain traps in Oregon from 2016 to 2018. Based on those facts, Spirax did not dispute that it had purposefully availed itself of the privilege of doing business in Oregon, but it argued that, because those con- tacts were unrelated to the claims at issue, the court lacked the ability to assert specific personal jurisdiction over Spirax. To support personal jurisdiction, plaintiffs relied on a statement from Spirax’s website that the company has a “global presence with a local focus”; a statement from Spirax’s parent company’s annual report that the company planned to increase its direct sales presence in the western United States; and Spirax’s reported $1.2 million in direct sales in Oregon from 2016 to 2018. With all that, plaintiffs asserted, Spirax had sufficient contacts with Oregon for its courts to exercise personal jurisdiction over Spirax. Plaintiffs added that a stream of commerce theory would support personal jurisdiction, because the injury occurred in Oregon and because Spirax sold its drain traps to a nationwide manu- facturer and distributor, thereby purposefully availing itself of doing business in Oregon. Unpersuaded, the trial court granted Spirax’s motion to dismiss. Cite as 317 Or App 27 (2022) 31

II. LAW In reviewing a trial court’s ruling on a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, we consider the facts as alleged in plaintiff’s complaint, any relevant sup- porting affidavits, and other evidence submitted by the par- ties. Robinson v. Harley-Davidson Motor Co., 354 Or 572, 576, 316 P3d 287 (2013), abrogated in part on other grounds by Cox v. HP Inc., 368 Or 477, 494, 492 P3d 1245 (2021). Plaintiffs bear the burden of alleging and proving facts suf- ficient to establish jurisdiction over a particular defendant. Id. Once the jurisdictional facts are established, we review the determination of personal jurisdiction for errors of law. Portland Trailer & Equipment v. A-1 Freeman Moving, 166 Or App 651, 654, 5 P3d 604, adh’d to as modified on recons, 168 Or App 654, 4 P3d 741 (2000). In Oregon, a court that has subject matter jurisdic- tion has personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state defendant as authorized in the state’s long-arm statute—ORCP 4—if the exercise is consistent with the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Cox v. HP Inc., 368 Or 477, 480-81, 492 P3d 1245 (2021) (Cox I); ORCP 4 L. The “catchall provision” in ORCP 4 L, upon which plaintiffs rely, confers jurisdiction to the extent permitted by due process. Id. at 481; ORCP 4 L. Naturally then, our analysis under ORCP 4 is guided by the decisions of the United States Supreme Court. Robinson, 354 Or at 577. The Due Process Clause limits the power of a state court to render a personal judgment against an out-of-state defendant. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of California, San Francisco County, 582 US ___, ___, 137 S Ct 1773, 1779, 198 L Ed 2d 395 (2017). The primary focus of a personal jurisdiction analysis is the nature and extent of the defendant’s relationship to the forum state. Id.

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Bluebook (online)
504 P.3d 52, 317 Or. App. 27, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cox-v-hp-inc-orctapp-2022.