State Ex Rel. Jones v. Crookham

681 P.2d 103, 296 Or. 735
CourtOregon Supreme Court
DecidedApril 17, 1984
DocketTC A8304-02506, SC 29923
StatusPublished
Cited by33 cases

This text of 681 P.2d 103 (State Ex Rel. Jones v. Crookham) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Oregon Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State Ex Rel. Jones v. Crookham, 681 P.2d 103, 296 Or. 735 (Or. 1984).

Opinions

[737]*737CAMPBELL, J.

This is a mandamus proceeding by Jones, a resident of Idaho, and Lyle Jones Insurance and Investments, Inc., an Idaho corporation, to compel the trial court to dismiss a complaint filed against it in Multnomah County Circuit Court by Colonial Leasing Company of New England, Inc., a Massachusetts corporation doing business in Oregon. The question presented is whether Oregon’s long-arm statute, ORCP 4L., has sufficient reach to enable an Oregon court to exercise jurisdiction over a non-resident under these facts.1 We hold that it does not.

Jones owned and operated Lyle Jones Insurance and Investments, Inc. in McCall, Idaho.2 According to his affidavit, a representative of McCall Office and Home Appliance Company approached him in McCall about purchasing a new copier. In October 1980, Jones decided that he would buy or lease a copier from this company. In McCall he signed a document that Colonial sometimes terms an “application for financing,” but appears to be a lease. Colonial’s name and its Portland, Oregon, address appear at the top of this document. Colonial is in the business of financing business leases. Jones took possession of the copier in McCall, Idaho, and signed another document acknowledging receipt of the copier. This document also had the Colonial name and Portland address at the top.

Jones made two payments for the copier to McCall Office and Home Appliance Company in McCall. After these payments he received monthly statements from Colonial and sent payments directly to its Portland office. Later Jones sold his business and discontinued making payments. The people who bought the business, and who apparently entered into a stock sale and purchase agreement with Jones, also evidently failed to make payments.

[738]*738Colonial filed a complaint for breach of the equipment lease and claim on a third party beneficiary contract in the Multnomah County Circuit Court. Colonial had the summons and complaint served on Jones in Idaho. Jones moved to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction. Initially the trial court granted this motion, but on reconsideration denied it. Jones then petitioned this court for a writ of mandamus, and we issued an alternative writ.

The burden is on Colonial to allege and prove facts sufficient to establish jurisdiction. State ex rel Sweere v. Crookham, 289 Or 3, 7, 609 P2d 361 (1980). Colonial does not contend that a specific jurisdictional provision of the long-arm statute is applicable, so we must examine the general provision, ORCP 4L.:

“A court of this state having jurisdiction of the subject matter has jurisdiction over a party served in an action pursuant to Rule 7 under any of the following circumstances:
* * * *
“L. Notwithstanding a failure to satisfy the requirement of sections B. through K. of this rule, in any action where prosecution of the action against a defendant in this state is not inconsistent with the Constitution of this state or the Constitution of the United States.”

Under this provision, we must determine whether exercise of our jurisdiction over these defendants would comport with due process requirements. The issue is whether Jones, by signing a contract with a corporation doing business in Oregon and sending monthly payments pursuant to that contract, purposefully availed himself of the privilege of conducting activities within Oregon, thus invoking the benefits and protections of our laws to an extent that it is fair and reasonable for an Oregon court to exert jurisdiction over him. Hanson v. Denckla, 357 US 235, 253, 78 S Ct 1228, 2 L Ed2d 1283 (1958).

Colonial argues that Jones initiated the contact by sending the “application for financing” to its Portland office. It further argues that even if Jones had failed to realize he was doing business with a company in Oregon initially, he must have so realized when he received statements and mailed payments to the Portland office, and at that point chose to continue the transaction. Colonial also argues that Jones’ [739]*739actions caused sufficient economic consequences in Oregon because Colonial forwarded money to McCall to pay for the copier, deposited the money received from Jones into an Oregon bank and the breach will force Colonial to repossess the copier and attempt to resell it.

Colonial relies heavily on State ex rel White Lbr v. Sulmonetti, 252 Or 121, 448 P2d 571 (1968). In that case, a Florida corporation, a lumber and plywood wholesaler, ordered 20 cars of plywood manufactured to its specifications from plaintiff in Oregon by telephone. A dispute over the suitability of the plywood gave rise to the underlying action. We held that under these facts Oregon had jurisdiction because defendant purposefully availed itself of the privilege of acting in Oregon by telephoning the order. Also important was that the product ordered had to be specially manufactured. The cause of action arose from consequences in Oregon of the defendant’s actions and these activities had substantial enough connection with Oregon to make the exercise of jurisdiction over the defendant reasonable.

Jones argues that he did not purposefully avail himself of doing business in Oregon. His desire throughout was to purchase or lease a copier from a local business so that he could be assured of prompt service. The record fails to indicate how Colonial came to be involved in this transaction; likely a third party, perhaps a broker of some sort, actually made the connection between Colonial and McCall Office and Home Appliance Service, which in turn brought the documents to Jones. At any rate, nothing indicates that Jones himself chose to deal with a firm in Oregon rather than one from Idaho or any other state. Jones has been consistent in declaring that he wanted to enter into this transaction with a local firm and that for a period of time, at least, he believed that he had done so.

Colonial had the burden to prove Jones purposefully availed himself of the privilege of doing business in Oregon. We find it failed to sustain this burden.

We are not convinced that either the activities or the consequences relied on by Colonial are sufficient for this state to have jurisdiction over defendants. Boiled down, Jones in Idaho signed a contract with a corporation doing business in Oregon and sent some monthly payments to that corporation at its place of business in Oregon.

[740]*740The reasonableness of a state exercising jurisdiction over non-residents is a case-by-case question. It is a determination “in which few answers will be written ‘in black and white. The greys are dominant and even among them, the shades are innummerable.’ Estin v. Estin, 334 US 541, 545, 92 L Ed 1561, 68 S Ct 1213, 1 ALR2d 1412 (1948).” Kulko v. California Superior Court, 436 US 84, 92, 98 S Ct 1690, 56 L Ed2d 132 (1978).

Our legislature decided to extend the jurisdiction of the courts of our state to the maximum allowed by the constitution of Oregon and the federal constitution. Because we do not have a due process clause in our state constitution, we must examine the federal constitution to ascertain the limitations on exercising jurisdiction over non-residents.

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

Related

Potter v. Baxter
565 P.3d 64 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2025)
MARC Transp. LLC v. Aviation Dep't, LLC (In re Maint. Grp., Inc.)
261 So. 3d 337 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 2017)
Hinrichs v. General Motors of Canada, Ltd.
222 So. 3d 1114 (Supreme Court of Alabama, 2016)
Robinson v. Harley-Davidson Motor Co.
316 P.3d 287 (Oregon Supreme Court, 2013)
O'Neil v. Martin
312 P.3d 538 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2013)
Robinson v. Harley-Davidson Motor Co.
270 P.3d 367 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2012)
Englert v. MacDonell
551 F.3d 1099 (Ninth Circuit, 2009)
Englert v. MacDonnell
Ninth Circuit, 2009
Vuylsteke v. Broan
17 P.3d 1072 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2001)
Halbasch v. Med-Data, Inc.
192 F.R.D. 641 (D. Oregon, 2000)
Dreher v. Smithson
986 P.2d 721 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1999)
In re Marriage of Oberoi
928 P.2d 1007 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1996)
Sutherland v. Brennan
901 P.2d 240 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1995)
Biggs v. Robert Thomas, O.D., Inc.
893 P.2d 545 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1995)
State v. Cookman
873 P.2d 335 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1994)
State Ex Rel. Circus Circus Reno, Inc. v. Pope
854 P.2d 461 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1993)
Smith v. O'BYRNE
831 P.2d 709 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1992)
In re the Marriage of Resnik
781 P.2d 856 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1989)
In re the Marriage of Horn
775 P.2d 338 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1989)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
681 P.2d 103, 296 Or. 735, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-jones-v-crookham-or-1984.