Motion to Dismiss For Lack of Personal Jurisdiction in North Dakota

Background

"Jurisdiction precedes adjudication. Before a court may say anything worth listening to regarding the (de)merits of a party's claim, that court must have authority to speak.” (See Franciere v. City of Mandan (2020) 945 N.W.2d 251, 254-55.)

“That court has such authority only when the claim is one within the court's subject matter jurisdiction and after the court has acquired personal jurisdiction of the parties.” (See id.)

“If the court is without jurisdiction—subject matter or personal—no one is bound by anything the court may say regarding the (de)merits of the case." (See id.)

General Information for Complaints and Motions

“A party must strictly comply with the specific requirements for service of process." (See Franciere v. City of Mandan (2020) 945 N.W.2d 251, 255.)

“Absent valid service of process, even actual knowledge of the existence of a lawsuit is insufficient to effectuate personal jurisdiction over a defendant.” (See id.)

“Personal service on a city must comply with N.D.R.Civ.P. 4(d)(2)(E) and requires delivering a copy of the summons to any member of its governing board.” (See id.)

Standard of Review and Burdens of Proof

"Analysis of a district court's ruling regarding personal jurisdiction is a question of law, which we consider under the de novo standard of review.” (See Franciere v. City of Mandan (2020) 945 N.W.2d 251, 254.)

“If the defendant challenges the court's [exercise of personal] jurisdiction, the plaintiff bears the burden of proving jurisdiction exists.” (See id.)

“The plaintiff must make a prima facie showing of jurisdiction to defeat a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, and if the court relies only on pleadings and affidavits, the court must look at the facts in the light most favorable to the plaintiff.” (See id.)

“Questions of personal jurisdiction must be decided on a case-by-case basis, depending on the particular facts and circumstances.” (See id.)

The Court’s Decisions

It is well settled that “an elementary principle for rendition of a valid judgment is that the district court have both subject matter jurisdiction over the cause of action and personal jurisdiction over the parties.” (See Franciere v. City of Mandan (2020) 945 N.W.2d 251, 254.)

It is also well settled that “a district court has broad discretion regarding the scope of discovery, and the court's discovery decisions will not be reversed on appeal unless the court abuses its discretion.” (See id.)