Hasse v. Downeast Energy Corp.

Superior Court of Maine·Decided June 1, 2010·No. CUMcv-09-406·Unpublished

Opinion

STATE OF MAINE SUPERIOR COURT CUMBERLAND, ss CIVIL ACTION DOCKET NO. CV-09-;106

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MICHELLE HASSE and THOMAS J. DIBIASE, on behalf of minor child, TRAINER DIABIASE, Plaintiff ORDER ON BAXI S.p.A.'s

v. MOTION TO DISMISS

DOWNEAST ENERGY CORP., BAXI S.p.A., MARATHON INT'L, PORTLAND WINNELSON, CO., COASTAL WINAIR, CO., and JIM GODBOUT PLUMBING & HEATING, CO., Defendants.

BEFORE THE COURT

Defendant Baxi S.p.A. 1 (hereinafter "Baxi") has filed a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction pursuant to Rule 12(b)(2) of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure. Plaintiffs Michelle Hasse and Tom Dibiase, on behalf of his minor child Trainer Dibiase, oppose Baxi's motion. Plaintiffs have filed a Motion for limited jurisdictional discovery in the event that the court finds the evidence insufficient for the Plaintiffs to establish personal jurisdiction over Baxi.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

Plaintiffs filed suit against Defendants Baxi, Marathon International (hereinafter "Marathon"), Downeast Energy Corporation, Portland Winnelson Co., Jim Godbout Plumbing & Heating, Inc., and Coastal Winair Company. Michelle Hasse is the mother of Trainer Dibiase. Tom Dibiase is Trainer's father. The Plaintiffs are Maine residents. On December 7, 2009, Michelle Hasse and her

I S.p.A is an Italian abbreviation for Societa Per Azioni, which means shared company. 2 Plaintiffs filed the Complaint on July 8, 2009, and the court accepted Plaintiffs' First Amended Complaint on January 11, 2010.

then ten-year old son Trainer were found unconscious in Michelle's apartment in South Portland, Maine. Medical testing revealed that Michelle and Trainer were both exposed to carbon monoxide. Plaintiffs allege that an investigation of Michelle's apartment revealed that the vent pipe on the Baxi Luna HT 330 boiler in Michelle's apartment had become completely detached and the boiler was emitting carbon monoxide directly into the apartment. Plaintiffs allege Michelle Hasse and Trainer Dibiase sustained significant brain injuries due to carbon monoxide poisoning as a result of the negligence of the Defendants. Plaintiffs' claims against Baxi include negligence (Count II), strict liability - products liability (Count IV), and negligent failure to warn (Count V).

Baxi is a company that is organized under the laws of Italy, and is based in Italy. Baxi is engaged in the business of designing and manufacturing boilers and other heating systems, including the Luna HT 330 wall mounted combination boiler at issue in this suit. Baxi does not sell its products directly to consumers in the United States. Instead Baxi has a sales agreement with Marathon, a company based in Ontario, Canada, which makes Marathon the exclusive distributor of Baxi products in North America. Among other things, the sales agreement provides: (1) Marathon is granted exclusive right to sell Baxi products, and in return agreed to not sell the products of Baxi competitors; (2) Marathon assumes title to Baxi's products on the day the products are shipped; (3) Marathon is required to issue quarterly reports to Baxi to inform Baxi of the state of the market, consumer tastes, and competitor's initiatives; (4) Marathon is required to inform Baxi of all changes to applicable laws and regulations pertinent to the sale of Baxi's products; (5) Baxi may supply advertising materials to Marathon and Baxi must approve all advertising materials used by Marathon

and may share in the costs of such materials; and (6) the sales agreement sets minimum purchase targets that increase yearly at a rate of 110% of the previous year's target unless agreed to otherwise by the parties.

The Baxi Luna boiler is designed and approved for sale in the United States. The Baxi Luna manual provides installation instructions specific to boilers installed in the United States. Baxi also maintains a website that is accessible by anyone, including Maine consumers and installers. On the Baxi website consumers can access product information and installers can obtain technical support and shop for spare parts. Maine consumers interested in purchasing a Baxi product are provided Marathon's contact information. However, those interested in contacting Baxi may do so directly by providing their information and submitting an online inquiry.

As the distributor for Baxi, Marathon places Baxi's products in Maine through its Maine distributors. From the Fall of 2005 to March 2008, Defendant Coastal Winair was one of Marathon's distributors of Baxi products in the State of Maine. From 2005 to present, Defendant Portland Winnelson has distributed Baxi products in Maine for Marathon. Baxi's Managing Director admits that Baxi knows Marathon targets Maine as a market for Baxi products.

Plaintiffs allege that Baxi derives a significant financial benefit from sales in Maine. Defendant Coastal Winair states that it sold 479 Baxi Luna boilers between the Fall of 2005 and March 2008. Defendant Portland Winnelson states that from 2005 to present it has sold approximately 300 Baxi Luna boilers. Plaintiffs estimate that since 2005, the gross sales for the Baxi Luna boiler from two Maine dealers is approximately $2.2 million. Baxi disputes the Plaintiffs' gross sales estimate, and points out that the Plaintiffs dq not provide invoices,

and rely solely on Portland Winnelson's and Coastal Winair's responses to Plantiffs' interrogatories.

Baxi argues that (1) Maine does not have a legitimate state interest in the Plaintiffs' action against it; (2) it does not have sufficient contacts with Maine to satisfy the requirement of due process; and (3) the assertion of personal jurisdiction over Baxi would not comport with traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice. Baxi does not have any offices, employees, real estate, or manufacturing and distributing facilities in Maine. Baxi claims that it does not market, sell products or ship goods directly to Maine customers; it has never entered into a contract with any entity located in Maine; and also that it is not obligated to perform any warranty work or after-sales service for its products because warranty work is handled by Marathon. Additionally, Baxi argues that it has not established a distribution network that serves Maine, and that all distribution to Maine is handled by Marathon.

DISCUSSION

1. Standard of Review On a motion to dismiss, the court must view the facts alleged in the complaint as if they were admitted. Fortin v. Roman Catlzolic Bislzop of Portland, 2005 ME 57, <IT 10, 871 A.2d 1208, 1213. Courts commonly rule on motions to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction prior to trial without resort to an evidentiary hearing. DOli v. Complastik Corp., 1999 ME 133, <IT 13, 735 A.2d 984, 988. A plaintiff opposing such a motion must base that opposition on "specific facts set forth in the record ...." Id. "This means that [the] plaintiff must go beyond the pleadings and make affirmative proof." Id. (internal quotations omitted). "This showing may be made by affidavit or otherwise." Id. When the

court decides a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction on the pleadings and affidavits of the parties, the plaintiff is only required to make a prima facie case that the court has jurisdiction. Id., 9I 14, 735 A.2d 988-89. Under these circumstances, the plaintiff's written allegations of jurisdictional facts are construed in its favor.

2. Personal Jurisdiction Analysis "Maine's long arm statute, 14 M.R.S. <j[ 704-A, and the due process clause of Maine's Constitution, Me. Const, art I, § 6-A, control determinations of personal jurisdiction over nonresident defendants." Harmo1l, v. Cause'way Autolllotive, LLC, 2007 Me. Super. LEXIS 201, * 4 (Sept. 28, 2007) (Crowley, J.). "Maine's jurisdictional reach is coextensive with the due process clause of the United States Constitution." Id. citing Murphy v. Keenan, 667 A.2d 591,593 (Me. 1995).

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