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Murray v. Am. Lafrance, LLC

Superior Court of Pennsylvania

October 31, 2019, Argued; June 25, 2020, Decided; June 25, 2020, Filed

No. 2105 EDA 2016, No. 2106 EDA 2016, No. 2107 EDA 2016, No. 2108 EDA 2016, No. 2109 EDA 2016, No. 2110 EDA 2016

Opinion

 [*785]  OPINION BY BOWES, J.

Appellants,1 who comprise several plaintiffs from Massachusetts, New York, and Florida (hereafter "Plaintiffs"), appeal the May 25, 2016 orders sustaining the preliminary objections of Federal Signal Corporation ("Federal Signal"), a Delaware company with its principal place of business in Illinois, and dismissing Plaintiffs' claims for lack of personal jurisdiction.2 We granted en banc review to address whether Pennsylvania has general personal jurisdiction over Federal Signal due exclusively to its 1969 registration with the Pennsylvania Department of State as a foreign corporation pursuant to 15 Pa.C.S. § 411(a).3 Based upon Plaintiffs' failure to preserve the issue for our review, we affirm.

Plaintiffs sued Federal Signal in Pennsylvania under theories of negligence and strict liability for injuries alleged to have occurred in New York as a result of excessive sound exposure from fire engine sirens that Federal Signal designed and manufactured in Illinois. Federal Signal filed preliminary objections to the complaints for lack of personal jurisdiction. It supported the preliminary objection with the affidavit of [**3]  Ian Hudson, its Vice President and Corporate Controller, who attested to the company's inconsequential dealings in Pennsylvania, i.e., four of 633 employees reside in the Commonwealth and 3.5% of its total sales in 2015 were to Pennsylvania buyers. See Brief in Support of Preliminary Objections to Complaint, 3/4/16, Exhibit A at ¶¶ 8, 9.

Although Federal Signal neglected to affix a notice to plead to the preliminary objections, Plaintiffs filed a response and a memorandum of law asserting personal jurisdiction based upon Federal Signal's alleged continuous and systematic contacts with Pennsylvania. Plaintiffs supported their response by attaching, inter alia, 1) a "Confidential Information Sheet" that outlined Federal Signal's sales and employees in Pennsylvania between 2012 and 2015; and 2) the June 2010 deposition testimony of Philadelphia Fire Department Battalion Chief Henry Leary, from an unrelated case, regarding his department's use of Federal Signal's sirens. See Answer in Opposition of Preliminary Objections, 5/6/16, Exhibits 1 and 2.

On May 25, 2016, the trial court sustained the preliminary objections, concluding that Federal Signal's alleged contacts with Pennsylvania failed [**4]  to satisfy the due process standard that the U.S. Supreme Court reiterated in Daimler AG v. Bauman, 571 U.S. 117, 134 S.Ct. 746, 761, 187 L. Ed. 2d 624 (2015) (stating ] the inquiry "is  [*786]  whether th[e] corporation's affiliations with the State are so continuous and systematic as to render it essentially at home in the forum State."). Accordingly, it dismissed all of Plaintiffs' claims. These timely appeals followed. As the trial court did not order Plaintiffs to file a concise statement of

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234 A.3d 782 *; 2020 Pa. Super. LEXIS 516 **; 2020 PA Super 149

KENNETH MURRAY, ROBERT SCHNALL, MICHAEL SCOTT, JOHN SENESE, JOHN SHURINA, JOHN SIGNORILE, KEVIN SOKOL, ANTHONY TRICARICO, FRANK VENTRELLA, JOSPH VITALE, PATRICK VOGT, HENRY WHITE, WILLIAM WHITE, THOMAS WOSKA AND WILLIAM YOUNGSON, Appellants v. AMERICAN LAFRANCE, LLC AND FEDERAL SIGNAL CORPORATION;ANDREW BURNS, DOUGLAS KALBACHER, MICHAEL KOZAK, KEVIN KUBLER, JAMES LEMONDA, JOSEPH LOCHER, PATRICK LYONS, JOHN P. MALLEY, JOE MASTERSON, BRIAN MCDADE, KEVIN MCENERY, WILLIAM MONTEVERDE, VINCENT MOSCA, GERARD MURTHA, KEITH PALUMBO, JOEL PATTI, RICHARD PEITLER, DONALD REILLY, MARIO ROSATO, ROBERT RYAN AND FRANCIS TRAPANI, Appellants v. AMERICAN LAFRANCE, LLC AND FEDERAL SIGNAL CORPORATION;MIGUEL MORENO, NEIL MULLINS, JOHN NEVOLA, ROBERT O'FLAHERTY, JAMES O'ROURKE, MICHAEL PAGLIUCA, SAMUEL PANASCI, RONALD PATTILIO, JOEL PERECA, DANIEL PERITORE, VINCENT PINTO, CHRISTOPHER RAMOS, ROBERT REICH, ROCCO RINALDI, JAMES RUSSO, GREGORY SALONE, JAMES SAVARESE, WILLIAM SCHEU, KENNETH SMITH, JOHN SULLIVAN AND WARREN TERRY, Appellants v. AMERICAN LAFRANCE, LLC AND FEDERAL SIGNAL CORPORATION;MICHAEL FELDMAN, RONALD FERRANTE, CHARLES FEYH, DONALD FLORE, JOHN FORTUNATO, FRANK GACCIONE, ROBERT GLEISSNER, JAMES HELFRICH, FRANK INGOGLIA, ROBERT LABATTO, JOHN LILLIS, THOMAS LYONS, EUGENE MAHLSTED, JAMES MASONE, EDWARD MAURO, SEAN MCCOYD, JOHN MCGONIGLE, EUGENE MCGOWAN, JR., JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, ERIC MICHELSEN AND PAUL MILLER, Appellants v. AMERICAN LAFRANCE, LLC AND FEDERAL SIGNAL CORP.;RICHARD BARBARISE, JAMES BERGHORN, STEVEN BERNIUS, VASILIOS CHRISTODOULOU, GAETANO DIMAURO, JOHN FLYNN, WILLIAM GRAHAM, PETER GUNTHER, THOMAS LORELLO, JAMES MANGRACINA, NORMAN MARSTON, JOSEPH MAURER, ROBER MCGUIRE, ROBERT MOCCIA, JOHN MORABITO WILLIAM MUNDY, STANLEY PEACOCK, SALVATORE ROSINA, DONALD RUDDEN, THOMAS SCALLY, ROBERT SCHULTZ, PATRICK SCHWEIGER, RICHARD SCOTT, FRANK SFORZA, PATRICK SHANNON, EDMUND SULLIVAN, FREDERICK SUTTON, FRANCIS ULMER, RICHARD WALIGOVSKA, PAUL WEIS, JUSTIN WERNER AND RUDY WICKLEIN, Appellants v. AMERICAN LAFRANCE, LLC AND FEDERAL SIGNAL CORPORATION;ROOSEVELT ADAMS, ANTHONY ASARO, EUGENE BIANCONE, SALVATORE BONGIOVANNI, STEPHEN BROWN, MICHAEL CAIN, ROBERT CANZONERI, MICHAEL CARLIN, RAYMOND CLANCY, CASEY COLWELL, ROBERT CONDON, CHRISTIAN CORBIN, THOMAS COURTENAY, DANIEL COYLE, RAYMOND CREEDE, AUSTIN CSORNY, FRANK DEANGELO, PATRICK DIMICHELE, JOHN DRISCOLL AND KENNETH ERB, Appellants v. AMERICAN LAFRANCE, LLC AND FEDERAL SIGNAL CORPORATION;RICHARD ABBOTT, VINCENT ANZELONE, RICHARD BURBAN, DANIEL BUTLER, EDWARD CACHIA, VICTOR CARLUCCI, JOSEPH CLERICI, DERMOTT CLOWE, FRED CORTESE, ANTHONY CUMMO, STEVEN FERRARO, ROCCO FERTOLI, DAVID FISCHBEIN, CHARLES FORTIN, STEVEN GRECO, GARY HOEHING, WILLIAM HOPKINS, GREGORY HORAN, SCOTT HUMMEL, JOSEPH INGRISANI AND RONALD PATTILIO, Appellants v. AMERICAN LAFRANCE, LLC AND FEDERAL SIGNAL CORPORATION

Prior History:  [**1] Appeal from the Order May 25, 2016. In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Civil Division at No(s): November Term, 2015 No. 02536. Before IDEE C. FOX, J.

Appeal from the Order May 25, 2016. In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Civil Division at No(s): November Term, 2015 No. 02494.

Appeal from the Order May 25, 2016. In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Civil Division at No(s): November Term, 2015 No. 02522.

Appeal from the Order May 25, 2016. In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Civil Division at No(s): November Term, 2015 No. 02514.

Appeal from the Order May 25, 2016. In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Civil Division at No(s): December Term, 2015 No. 000187.

Appeal from the Order May 25, 2016. In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Civil Division at No(s): November Term, 2015 No. 002490.

Appeal from the Order May 25, 2016. In the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County Civil Division at No(s): November Term, 2015 No. 002492.

Murray v. Am. LaFrance, LLC, 2018 PA Super 267, 2018 Pa. Super. LEXIS 1064 (Pa. Super. Ct., Sept. 25, 2018)

CORE TERMS

preliminary objection, personal jurisdiction, trial court, contacts, notice, systematic, waived

Civil Procedure, In Rem & Personal Jurisdiction, In Personam Actions, Doing Business, Challenges, Evidence, Burdens of Proof, Burden Shifting, Substantial Contacts, Appeals, Reviewability of Lower Court Decisions, Preservation for Review, Responses, Defenses, Demurrers & Objections, Demurrers, Motions to Dismiss, Failure to State Claim, Pleading & Practice, Defenses, Demurrers & Objections, Default & Default Judgments, Default Judgments, Entry of Default Judgments