Gadea v. Star Cruises, Ltd.

949 So. 2d 1143, 2007 A.M.C. 769, 2007 Fla. App. LEXIS 2807, 2007 WL 601852
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedFebruary 28, 2007
Docket3D05-2300
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 949 So. 2d 1143 (Gadea v. Star Cruises, Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gadea v. Star Cruises, Ltd., 949 So. 2d 1143, 2007 A.M.C. 769, 2007 Fla. App. LEXIS 2807, 2007 WL 601852 (Fla. Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

949 So.2d 1143 (2007)

Rafeal GADEA, Appellant,
v.
STAR CRUISES, LTD., et al., Appellee.

No. 3D05-2300.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District.

February 28, 2007.

*1145 Ralph O. Anderson, Davie; Downs Brill Whitehead & Sage, Pembroke Pines, for appellant.

Mase & Lara and Curtis Mase and Beverly D. Eisenstadt, Miami, for appellee, Star Cruises, Ltd.

Before WELLS, CORTIÑAS, and ROTHENBERG, JJ.

WELLS, Judge.

Rafael Gadea, appeals from an order granting with prejudice Star Cruises, Ltd.'s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Because Gadea has failed to demonstrate jurisdiction over Star under either section 48.193(1) or 48.193(2) of the Florida Statutes, we affirm.

In March 2004, Gadea, an employee of Seaking, Inc. ("Seaking"), was allegedly injured while working on the M/V Superstar Leo. At the time, the vessel was owned and operated by Star and was located in international waters off the coast of China. Gadea was working on the vessel under a contract between Seaking and NCL (Bahamas), Ltd. ("NCL"), a Star subsidiary,[1] which planned to acquire ownership of the vessel from Star for use in the American market.

Gadea sued Seaking, NCL, and Star claiming, as to Star, unseaworthiness and general maritime negligence. Jurisdiction over Star was asserted under sections 48.193(1) and 48.193(2) of the Florida Statutes. The court below, finding no basis for jurisdiction under either provision, dismissed the action. We agree with this assessment.

General Jurisdiction under Section 48.193(2) of the Florida Statutes

Section 48.193(2) of the Florida Statutes provides that "[a] defendant who is engaged in substantial and not isolated activity within this state, whether such activity is wholly interstate, intrastate, or otherwise, is subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state, whether or not the claim arises from that activity." An assertion of general jurisdiction under this provision requires a "showing of `continuous and systematic general business contacts'" with this state. Carib-USA Ship Lines Bahamas Ltd. v. Dorsett, 935 So.2d 1272, 1275 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006) (quoting Helicopteros Nacionales de Colombia, S.A. v. Hall, 466 U.S. 408, 416, 104 S.Ct. 1868, 80 L.Ed.2d 404 (1984)); Philip J. Padovano, Florida Civil Practice § 8.7 (2007 ed.) (stating that "[t]he phrase `substantial and not isolated activity' in section 48.193(2) refers to a `continuous and systematic general business contact' with the state").

Gadea cites to the following "contacts with Florida" as demonstrating that Star "engaged in substantial and not isolated activity" in this state:

1) Star's acquisition of NCL, an entity doing substantial business in Florida;
2) Star's installation of NCL's top management upon acquiring NCL;
3) Star's press releases and other public announcements representing NCL as an extension of Star and a critical component of Star's global cruise line strategy;
*1146 4) Star's use of NCL's Miami headquarters as a booking agent for Star cruises; and
5) Star's advertisement of its cruises in NCL's brochures and its listing of NCL's reservation number as a contact number for booking Star Cruises.

None of these contacts, taken individually or as a whole, constitutes substantial activity within this state on Star's part to satisfy section 48.193(2) requirements.

There is no evidence in the record before us that Star itself engaged in business activities in this state.[2] And the presence of NCL in Florida, without more, could not subject Star to the court's general jurisdiction. As this court in Qualley v. International Air Service Co., 595 So.2d 194, 196 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992), confirmed, the "presence of a subsidiary corporation within Florida is not enough, without more, to subject a non-Florida parent corporation to long-arm jurisdiction within this state."

Nor can NCL's activity in Florida form the basis for a finding of general jurisdiction over Star. A substantial body of Florida law makes clear that it is only where a parent corporation exerts such extensive operational control over a subsidiary that the subsidiary is no more than an agent existing to serve only the parent's needs, that jurisdiction over the parent exists. Sharing some officers and directors, having a unified or "global" strategy and goals, cross-selling in promotional materials, and performing services for one another is not sufficient to satisfy this test:

In Enic, PLC v. F.F. South & Co., Inc., 870 So.2d 888 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004), a plaintiff sought to obtain jurisdiction over the foreign parent corporation of a local subsidiary for misrepresentations connected with the sale of its business. The foreign parent moved to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction. The court examined whether the subsidiary could be said to be the agent of the parent so as to subject it to jurisdiction under section 48.193(1)(a). The court explained:
It is well settled in Florida that the mere presence of a subsidiary in Florida, without more, does not subject a non-Florida corporate parent to long-arm jurisdiction. See, e.g., Walt Disney Co. v. Nelson, 677 So.2d 400, 403 (Fla. 5th DCA 1996); Qualley v. International Air Service Co., 595 So.2d 194, 196 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992), cause dismissed, 605 So.2d 1265 (Fla.1992). However, when a parent exercises sufficient *1147 control over a subsidiary, that control establishes an agency and supports jurisdiction. E.g., State v. American Tobacco Co., 707 So.2d 851, 854-55 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998); see also Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Associated Data Consultants, Inc., 714 So.2d 523 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). The amount of control exercised by the parent must be high and very significant. American Tobacco, 707 So.2d at 851 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998).
. . .
The instant case is analogous to Kramer Motors, Inc. v. British Leyland, Ltd., 628 F.2d 1175 (9th Cir.) cert. denied, 449 U.S. 1062, 101 S.Ct. 785, 66 L.Ed.2d 604 (1980). In Kramer Motors, the court found that there was insufficient control by the parent over the subsidiary despite: 1) some of the directors of the parent were members of the board of the subsidiary; 2) the president of the subsidiary served as a director of the parent; 3) the parent had a general executive responsibility for the subsidiary's operation and reviewed and approved the major policy decisions of the subsidiary; 4) the parent guaranteed obligations of the subsidiary to United States banks; 5) executives of the parent worked closely with executives of the subsidiary on pricing and products and sometimes traveled to the United States for meetings; 6) the parent approved the subsidiary's proposal to consolidate product distribution; and 7) the parent established goals and gave directives to the subsidiary. Id. at 1177. Despite the amount of involvement in Kramer Motors, of the parent over the subsidiary, the court found that such contact was insufficient to establish an agency because no evidence was shown that the parent controlled the internal day-to-day affairs of the subsidiary. All goals and directives of the parent were "normal" and did not show "operational control" of the subsidiary by the parent necessary to establish personal jurisdiction.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Ferrari S.P.A. v. Gregory Romanelli and TR3 Racing, Inc.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2025
TEAM HEALTH HOLDINGS, INC. v. LIZETTE C. CACERES
District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2023
D-I DAVIT INTERNATIONAL-HISCHE GMBH v. JELEN CARPIO, etc.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2022
VADIM PIAZENKO v. PIER MARINE INTERIORS GMBH, etc.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2020
Spigot, Inc. v. Hoggatt
M.D. Florida, 2020
Bryant v. Hasbro, Inc.
M.D. Florida, 2020
3lions Publ'g, Inc. v. Interactive Media Corp.
389 F. Supp. 3d 1031 (M.D. Florida, 2019)
Banco De Los Trabajadores v. Cortez Moreno
237 So. 3d 1127 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2018)
E & H Cruises, Ltd. v. Baker
88 So. 3d 291 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2012)
VERIZON TRADEMARK SERVICES, LLC v. Producers, Inc.
810 F. Supp. 2d 1321 (M.D. Florida, 2011)
Singer v. Unibilt Development Co.
43 So. 3d 784 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2010)
Ferguson v. ESTATE OF CAMPANA
47 So. 3d 838 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2010)
Vos, B v. v. Payen
15 So. 3d 734 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2009)
Kertesz v. Net Transactions, Ltd.
635 F. Supp. 2d 1339 (S.D. Florida, 2009)
TRW Vehicle Safety Systems, Inc. v. Santiso
980 So. 2d 1149 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 2008)
Keston v. FirstCollect, Inc.
523 F. Supp. 2d 1348 (S.D. Florida, 2007)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
949 So. 2d 1143, 2007 A.M.C. 769, 2007 Fla. App. LEXIS 2807, 2007 WL 601852, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gadea-v-star-cruises-ltd-fladistctapp-2007.