Bryant v. Finnish National Airline, 15 N.Y.2d 426 (1965)
A foreign corporation is subject to personal jurisdiction in New York if it engages in a continuous and systematic course of “doing business” within the state, even if the cause of action arises outside of New York.
Summary
Bryant, a New York resident, sued Finnish National Airline (Finnair) for negligence after being injured in Paris by a baggage cart allegedly propelled by the blast of Finnair’s aircraft. Finnair moved to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, arguing it wasn’t “doing business” in New York. The Court of Appeals reversed the Appellate Division’s dismissal, holding that Finnair’s New York office, which conducted activities like public relations, maintaining contacts with other airlines, and transmitting requests for space, constituted sufficient “doing business” to warrant jurisdiction.
Facts
The plaintiff, a New York resident and employee of Trans World Airlines, sustained injuries at an airport in Paris after being struck by a baggage cart, allegedly due to the excessive blast of air from a Finnair aircraft. Finnair is a Finnish corporation with its principal place of business in Helsinki, Finland. Finnair maintained a one and a half-room office in New York City, staffed with three full-time and four part-time employees. This office received reservations for Finnair flights from international air carriers and travel agencies, which were then transmitted to Finnair’s space control office in Europe. The New York office also engaged in information and publicity work for Finnair, including advertising its European services. The office had a bank account with an average balance of less than $2,000, used for salaries, rent, and operating expenses.
Procedural History
The Supreme Court, Special Term, denied Finnair’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, finding that Finnair’s activities in New York constituted “doing business” within the state. The Appellate Division reversed, dismissing the complaint. The New York Court of Appeals then reversed the Appellate Division, reinstating the Special Term’s order and allowing the case to proceed in New York.
Issue(s)
Whether Finnair’s activities in New York State, specifically maintaining an office for publicity, public relations, and transmitting reservation requests, constitute “doing business” sufficient to subject it to personal jurisdiction in New York, even though the cause of action arose outside of New York.
Holding
Yes, because Finnair maintains a New York office that systematically and continuously engages in activities that promote its business, including public relations, maintaining contacts with other airlines and travel agencies, and transmitting requests for space, which is enough to constitute “doing business” within New York and subject Finnair to personal jurisdiction there.
Court’s Reasoning
The Court reasoned that the test for “doing business” should be a simple, pragmatic one. While Finnair did not operate its airplanes within New York State, its New York office was one of many directly maintained by the airline in various parts of the world. The office had a lease, employed several people, maintained a bank account, did public relations and publicity work, maintained contacts with other airlines and travel agencies, and transmitted requests for space to Finnair in Europe. The Court emphasized that the New York office helped generate business for Finnair. The court distinguished Miller v. Surf Props., emphasizing the person served in that case was an independent travel agency, not an employee of the defendant. Citing Berner v. United Airlines, the court noted that operating airplanes within the state isn’t determinative. The court stated, “The test for ‘doing business’ is and should be a simple pragmatic one, which leads us to the conclusion that defendant should be held to be suable in New York.”