GECA STEWART, ET AL., RESPONDENTS, v. VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC., ET AL.,
DEFENDANTS, VOLKSWAGEN WERK AKTIEN-GESELLSCHAFT, APPELLANT.
81 N.Y.2d 203, 613 N.E.2d 518, 597 N.Y.S.2d 612 (1993).
April 29, 1993
2 No. 93 (1993 N.Y. Int. 87)
Decided April 29, 1993
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This opinion is uncorrected and subject to revision before publication
in the New York Reports.
Herbert Rubin, for Appellant.
E. Richard Rimmels, Jr., for Respondents.
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BELLACOSA, J.:
Appellant-defendant Volkswagen A.G. (VWAG) appeals by leave of the
Appellate Division from an order of that court which affirmed Supreme
Court's denial of its motion to dismiss the action. VWAG claimed
respondents-plaintiffs failed to acquire personal jurisdiction over it
in accordance with Business Corporation Law § 307(b)(2). We conclude
that plaintiffs have not satisfied the statute's strictly specified
service of process prescriptions necessary to acquire jurisdiction
over a foreign corporation not authorized to do business in New York.
We therefore reverse, answer the certified question in the negative,
and grant the motion to dismiss the action.
Plaintiffs sued for damages for personal injuries arising out of
automobile accidents, allegedly caused by the "unintended
acceleration" of Audi 5000 vehicles manufactured by VWAG, a German
corporation. The vehicles were exported to the United States, title
was transferred to Volkswagen of America, Inc. (VOA), and they were
then sold to World Wide Volkswagen Corp., which distributed them to
Audi dealers, who sold them to consumers.
Plaintiffs sought to secure jurisdiction over VWAG by serving the
summons and complaint on the New York Secretary of State pursuant to
Business Corporation Law § 307. That jurisdiction/service of process
section allows for service on the Secretary of State as the "agent" of
a foreign corporation not authorized to do business in New York. The
statute is precise as to the sequence of service and notice actions
necessary to initiate and complete acquisition of jurisdiction. A
party must first serve the Secretary of State, and then either deliver
SNIPPETS:
Appellant-defendant Volkswagen A.G. (VWAG) appeals by leave of the Appellate Division from an
We conclude that plaintiffs have not satisfied the statute's strictly specified service of
Plaintiffs sought to secure jurisdiction over VWAG by serving the summons and complaint on
That jurisdiction/service of process section allows for service on the Secretary of State as
such foreign corporation by registered mail with return receipt requested, at the post office
In this case, plaintiffs served the Secretary of State but did not deliver a copy personally
The summons had a rider attached indicating that VWAG "was and is a corporation organized and
Supreme Court denied VWAG's motion to dismiss, stating that VOA was a proper agent for
The Appellate Division affirmed the order, stating that personal jurisdiction is acquired
The local corporation in such instance is deemed the involuntary agent of the foreign
That court then cited a number of non-New York cases, as well as Luciano v Garvey Volkswagen
The incontestable starting proposition in cases of this kind is that once jurisdiction and
Business Corporation Law § 307 establishes a mandatory sequence and progression of service
Thus, when VWAG contested plaintiffs' effort to obtain New York jurisdiction over it by
They did not do so and claim they were under no obligation to proceed in this strict
First, plaintiffs do not even purport to satisfy the first two statutory specifications,
Finally, we note that Luciano v Garvey Volkswagen, so heavily relied upon by plaintiffs, did
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