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Hansen v. Scott6/10/2002
mation to North Dakota officials, the Texas defendants unreasonably and recklessly failed to comply with the appropriate standard of care under the applicable policies and procedures governing supervision of parolees, and the Texas defendants acted in an unreasonable and reckless manner in developing and implementing policies and procedures for determining when a parole violater should be returned from a receiving state to Texas. The daughters allege the Texas defendant's conduct proximately caused the deaths of Gordon and Barbara Erickstad, which occurred in North Dakota. Under these allegations and in this posture, the daughters' wrongful death and survivorship claims against the Texas defendants are sufficient to allege prima facie torts within or without this state causing injury to another person within this state under N.D.R.Civ.P. 4(b)(2)(C). See Adden, 688 F.2d at 1155. We must therefore consider whether the exercise of personal jurisdiction over the Texas defendants comports with due process.
B.
[ ] The Texas defendants argue the trial court erred in deciding they had sufficient minimum contacts with North Dakota for the exercise of personal jurisdiction over them. They argue they were not required to file a cross-appeal to preserve this issue for review.
[ ] In Stewart v. North Dakota Workers Comp. Bur., 1999 ND 174, 37, 599 N.W.2d 280(citations omitted), we said:
when the judgment below provides all of the relief sought by the appellee, it is unnecessary to file a cross-appeal. In such a case, the appellee may attempt to save the judgment by urging any ground asserted in the trial court. An appellee who fails to cross-appeal is only precluded from seeking greater relief than she received in the trial court.
[ ] The relief granted by the trial court was a dismissal for lack of personal jurisdiction, which was the relief sought by the Texas defendants. Under Stewart, the Texas defendants are seeking the same relief, a dismissal for lack of personal jurisdiction, under their minimum contacts argument, and their failure to file a cross-appeal does not preclude them from now arguing the minimum contacts issue.
[ ] The Texas defendants argue the exercise of personal jurisdiction over them violates due process, because they have insufficient contacts with North Dakota and the maintenance of this action against them offends traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice. They argue the minimum contacts concept of placing a product in the stream of commerce does not apply to their activities, which are mandated by the Interstate Compact for Out-of-State Parolee Supervision.
[ ] Consistent with due process, a state may exercise personal jurisdiction over a nonresident defendant who is not present within the state when the nonresident defendant has "certain minimum contacts with [the forum state] such that the maintenance of the suit does not offend `traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice.'" International Shoe Co. v. Washington, 326 U.S. 310, 316 (1945) (quoting Milliken v. Meyer, 311 U.S. 457, 463 (1940)). In Hanson v. Denckla, 357 U.S. 235, 253 (1958), the United States Supreme Court said in order to exercise personal jurisdiction, "it is essential in each case that there be some act by which the defendant purposely avails itself of the privilege of conducting activities within the forum State, thus invoking the benefits and protections of its laws." In World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson, 444 U.S. 286, 297 (1980), the Court explained a critical part of the due process analysis is whether a nonresident defendant's conduct and connection with the forum state is such that the defendant should r
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