PMC Property Group, Inc., et al. v. Viracon, LLC, et al.

District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania·Decided August 20, 2026·No. 2:26-cv-03345·Unknown

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA PMC PROPERTY GROUP, INC., et al., Plaintiffs, CIVIL ACTION v. NO. 26-3345 VIRACON, LLC, et al., Defendants. Pappert, J. August 20, 2026 MEMORANDUM PMC Property Group, Inc. sued Wausau Window and Wall Systems, Viracon, LLC and Apogee Enterprises, Inc., alleging several claims under Pennsylvania law. The defendants move to dismiss the claims against them, and the Court grants their motion in part and denies it in part. I PMC Property converts commercial buildings into modern apartment complexes. (Am. Compl. ¶ 2, Dkt. No. 9.) Among its Philadelphia properties are Franklin Tower and Riverwalk, which includes Riverwalk Tower I and Riverwalk Tower II. (Id. ¶¶ 3– 4, 21–23.) PMC Property contracted with Wausau to supply the window systems for

Franklin Tower and Riverwalk Towers I and II. (Id. ¶¶ 5, 30.) Viracon manufactured the glass panels Wausau used in designing the window systems it supplied to PMC Property. (Id. ¶¶ 7, 43.) Apogee is Wausau’s and Viracon’s corporate parent. (Id. ¶ 7.) Since Franklin Tower, Riverwalk Tower I and Riverwalk Tower II opened, portions of the glass in the window systems have broken. (Id. ¶¶ 67–70.) PMC Property alleges that windows in dozens of apartments have shattered, causing glass to fall on sidewalks and balconies, among other places. (Id. ¶¶ 1, 8.) PMC Property alleges that nickel sulfide, a byproduct of Viracon’s manufacturing process, contaminated the glass causing it to break. (Id. ¶ 8.) PMC Property sued Wausau, Viracon and Apogee alleging strict products

liability, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, breach of implied warranty of fitness, unjust enrichment and violations of Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law. PMC Property also seeks declarations that Wausau and Viracon are Apogee’s alter egos. II Apogee moves to dismiss on personal jurisdiction grounds. Personal jurisdiction refers to a court’s power to bind the parties before it. Fuld v. Pal. Liberation Org., 145 S. Ct. 2090, 2102 (2025). Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(2) permits a district court to dismiss claims for “lack of personal jurisdiction.” To withstand a Rule 12(b)(2)

motion, the “plaintiff bears the burden of establishing the court’s jurisdiction over the moving defendant[].” Miller Yacht Sales, Inc. v. Smith, 384 F.3d 93, 97 (3d Cir. 2004). A federal court may exercise personal jurisdiction over a defendant “who is subject to the jurisdiction of a court of general jurisdiction in the state where the district court is located,” so long as the exercise of jurisdiction comports with the Constitution. Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(k)(1)(A); Int’l Shoe Co. v. State of Wash., Off. of Unemployment Comp. & Placement, 326 U.S. 310, 316 (1945). Because Pennsylvania’s long-arm statute extends as far as federal due process permits, see 42 Pa. Stat. and Cons. Stat. Ann. § 5322(b), the only question is whether exercising personal jurisdiction over Apogee comports with the Constitution. There are two types of personal jurisdiction: general and specific. See Helicopteros Nacionales de Colombia, S.A. v. Hall, 466 U.S. 408, 414–15 & n.9 (1984). General jurisdiction permits a defendant to be sued in a particular forum for any claim, regardless of whether the claim has any connection to the forum State. Id. at 414 n.9.

Specific jurisdiction, by contrast, is “confined to adjudication of issues deriving from, or connected with, the very controversy that establishes jurisdiction.” Goodyear Dunlop Tires Operations, S.A. v. Brown, 564 U.S. 915, 919 (2011) (citation omitted). A court may exercise specific jurisdiction over a defendant if the plaintiff’s claims “arise[] out of or relate[] to” the defendant’s contacts with the forum State. Daimler AG v. Bauman, 571 U.S. 117, 127 (2014) (citation omitted). Only specific jurisdiction is at issue. Specific jurisdiction has three requirements. First, the defendant’s contacts with the forum State must show that it “purposely avail[ed] itself of the privilege of conducting activities within the forum State.” Hanson v. Denckla, 357 U.S. 235, 253

(1958). Second, the plaintiff’s alleged injury must arise out of, or relate to, the defendant’s contacts with the forum State. Ford Motor Co. v. Mont. Eighth Jud. Dist. Ct., 141 S. Ct. 1017, 1025 (2021). Finally, any exercise of personal jurisdiction must comport with traditional notions of fair play and justice. Burger King Corp. v. Rudzewicz, 471 U.S. 462, 476 (1985). PMC Property fails to satisfy the first requirement. To allege purposeful availment, a plaintiff must offer facts suggesting “‘minimum contacts’ between the defendant and the forum State.” World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson, 444 U.S. 286, 291 (1980). A “necessary” component of this standard is the “deliberate targeting of the forum.” O’Connor v. Sandy Lane Hotel Co., Ltd., 496 F.3d 312, 317 (3d Cir. 2007). Nothing suggests Apogee deliberately reached into Pennsylvania to target its citizens. PMC Property fails to allege, for example, that Apogee solicited its business in Pennsylvania, or targeted the Pennsylvania market generally through advertising. See Toys “R” Us, Inc. v. Step Two, S.A., 318 F.3d 446, 454 (3d Cir. 2003); Ford Motor Co.,

141 S. Ct. at 1028. Apogee neither manufactures, distributes, sells or offers any product or service in Pennsylvania, nor does it have contracts to provide services to any individual or entity in Pennsylvania. (Bryan A. Welp Decl. ¶¶ 6–7, Dkt. No. 5-3.) In response, PMC Property invokes the alter-ego theory which holds that “if [a] parent corporation . . . controls [a] subsidiary, then personal jurisdiction exists over the parent whenever personal jurisdiction (whether general or specific) exists over the subsidiary.” Shuker v. Smith & Nephew, PLC, 885 F.3d 760, 781 (3d Cir. 2018) (citation omitted). The alter-ego theory applies only if the parent corporation controls the day-to-day operations of the subsidiary, Kehm Oil Co. v. Texaco, Inc., 537 F.3d 290,

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PMC Property Group, Inc., et al. v. Viracon, LLC, et al., (E.D. Pa. 2026).

PMC Property Group, Inc., et al. v. Viracon, LLC, et al. (PMC Property Group, Inc., et al. v. Viracon, LLC, et al.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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