Trahan v. Manco Products, Inc.

479 So. 2d 979, 1985 La. App. LEXIS 10427
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 11, 1985
DocketNo. 84-905
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 479 So. 2d 979 (Trahan v. Manco Products, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Trahan v. Manco Products, Inc., 479 So. 2d 979, 1985 La. App. LEXIS 10427 (La. Ct. App. 1985).

Opinion

KING, Judge.

The issue presented on this appeal is whether or not the trial court erred in sustaining defendant’s declinatory exception of lack of personal jurisdiction.

Mr. and Mrs. Hilary L. Trahan (hereinafter referred to as plaintiffs), residents of Cameron Parish, Louisiana, brought this suit against Manco Products, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as defendant) for the wrongful death of their eleven-year-old son, Timothy Luke Trahan, alleging that their child’s death was caused by the defective design and manufacture of defendant’s go-cart. Defendant was served under the provisions of the Louisiana Long Arm Statute, LSA-R.S. 13:3201, et seq. In response, defendant filed a declinatory exception of lack of personal jurisdiction. After a hearing on the exception, the trial court sustained the exception and dismissed plaintiffs’ suit. Plaintiffs timely appeal. We reverse and remand.

FACTS

On April 4, 1983, in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, Timothy Luke Trahan, plaintiffs’ son, was a passenger in a go-cart manufactured by defendant and owned by John E. Portie, the plaintiffs’ neighbor. Timothy sustained severe head injuries when the go-cart overturned. On April 7th, Timothy died as a result of the head injuries that he sustained in the accident.

Plaintiffs filed suit in Cameron Parish, Louisiana to recover damages incurred as a result of the death of their son and served defendant with citation and process under the provisions of the Louisiana Long Arm Statute. Defendant filed a declinatory exception of lack of personal jurisdiction.

Evidence presented at the hearing on the exception reveals the following facts. The go-cart involved in this accident was manufactured by defendant, as was admitted by the defendant’s president, William Hatlem. Defendant is a corporation, organized under the laws of Indiana, which manufactures off-road gasoline powered recreational vehicles including go-carts. Defendant is not qualified to do business in Louisiana. It has never incurred or paid taxes in Louisiana, nor has it ever appointed an agent for service of process in this state. Additionally, the defendant has no assets in Louisiana, nor has it ever advertised directly in Louisiana or listed itself in any telephone directories within this state.

Despite the lack of authorization to do business in Louisiana defendant, during the years 1982 and 1983, sold its go-carts to dealers in Louisiana. Specifically, Hatlem admitted that the defendant sold and shipped go-carts direct to Joe’s Lawn Mower Service, a dealer in New Orleans, Louisiana. Hatlem also testified that the defendant had derived approximately $10,000.00 in revenue in each of the years 1982 and 1983 from the wholesale sales of its products in the State of Louisiana. Hatlem estimated a very conservative figure would be that between 20-25 go-carts were sold in Louisiana during each of the years 1982 and 1983.

Defendant is truly a national enterprise. Its products are shipped through at least half of the 50 states. Defendant maintains a “sales order department” to fill orders for replacement parts for its go-carts, from individuals, dealers, and distributors throughout the nation, including those in Louisiana. Defendant supplies an order form for replacement parts in the crates in which its go-carts are shipped. Defendant also advertises its products in national trade magazines and has participated in trade shows in the southern cities of Atlanta and Memphis.

Additionally, defendant sold 200 to 300 go-carts per year to Small Engine Distributors in Kansas City, Missouri when they last did business with them. Defendant was aware that Small Engine Distributors was a mail-order business, which advertised its products for sale nationally. It was from Small Engine Distributors that Mr. Portie, in response to mail advertisements, purchased for his use in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, via mail order, several of [982]*982defendant’s go-carts, including the one involved in the accident. Mr. Portie had also used the order form for replacement parts, provided by defendant in its shipping crates, to order replacement parts which he purchased direct from defendant and which defendant shipped direct for use in his go-carts located in Cameron Parish, Louisiana.

Plaintiffs brought this suit against defendant for the wrongful death of their son. They alleged that the defective design and manufacture of defendant’s go-cart caused the accident and their son’s death. Defendant was served under LSA-R.S. 13:3201, the Louisiana Long Arm Statute. Defendant filed a declinatory exception of lack of personal jurisdiction, which was sustained by the trial court. The trial court found, as set forth in its oral reasons for judgment given at the close of the hearing on the exception, that there was not “minimum contact” between defendant and the State of Louisiana to satisfy the constitutional due process requirements, as set forth in International Shoe Co. v. State of Washington, 326 U.S. 310, 66 S.Ct. 154, 90 L.Ed. 95 (1945); and McGee v. International Life Insurance Co., 355 U.S. 220, 78 S.Ct. 199, 2 L.Ed.2d 223 (1957), needed for the exercise of personal jurisdiction over defendant.

Plaintiffs appeal alleging that the trial court erred in finding that minimum contacts did not exist and in sustaining defendant’s declinatory exception of lack of personal jurisdiction under LSA-R.S. 13:3201(d), the law in effect at the time of the accident. Plaintiffs further contend that legislative changes effective after the accident, adding Section (h) to LSA-R.S. 13:3201 1, but prior to the hearing on the exception, should have been applied retroactively.

LSA-R.S. 13:3201(d) in effect at the time of the accident provided in pertinent part that:

“A court may exercise personal jurisdiction over a nonresident, who acts directly or by an agent, as to a cause of action arising from the nonresident’s
sjc * * * * *
(d) causing injury or damage in this state by an offense or quasi offense committed through an act or omission outside of this state if he regularly does or solicits business, or engages in any other persistent course of conduct, or derives substantial revenue from goods used or consumed or services rendered, in this state;” 2

The comments to LSA-R.S. 13:3201, provided by the Louisiana State Law Institute, indicate its purpose was:

“(a) ... to permit the courts of this state to tap the full potential of jurisdiction in personam over nonresidents permitted by [983]*983International Shoe Co. v. State of Washington, 326 U.S. 310, 66 S.Ct. 154, 90 L.Ed. 95, 161 A.L.R. 1057 (1945); and McGee v. International Life Insurance Company, 355 U.S. 220, 78 S.Ct. 199, 2 L.Ed.2d 223 (1957).”

In Soileau v. Evangeline Farmer’s Co-Op., 386 So.2d 179 (La.App. 3rd Cir.1980), this Court, in discussing LSA-R.S. 13:3201, stated:

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Bluebook (online)
479 So. 2d 979, 1985 La. App. LEXIS 10427, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/trahan-v-manco-products-inc-lactapp-1985.