Reference no: EM133579043
The Long Arm of the Law
Peter Smith was the owner and operator of Long Arm Guns based in Nashville, TN. Peter had bought and sold guns legally for years as a licensed arms merchant. In January of 2022, Peter sold an Ak47 assault rifle to Nancy Jones. Nancy was a member of the "Proud Boys" militia group that conducted shooting exercises in the hills of Tennessee and the AR47 carried enough ammunition to last a number of hours without having to restock the gun. There was nothing illegal about the sale of this assault rifle and all of the required paperwork was completed properly according to Federal and Tennessee law
During April of 2022, Nancy came to upstate New York, for a "Proud Boy" conference which was to be held in a remote part of the Adirondack Park. While stopping for gas in Syracuse, NY, her car was broken into and the assault rifle was stolen from her vehicle. Saddened and despondent, she reported the theft to the Syracuse Police and returned home to Nashville, TN.
In early May of 2022, the assault rifle was used in a shooting where members of the "315" Gang in Syracuse opened fire in a grocery store on the Southwest side of Syracuse. 20 people were injured and 10 lost their lives in this senseless killing. The gun was left at the scene of the crime and the police were able to trace the gun to Nancy and to Peter Smith's gun shop because the serial number had not been removed from the barrel of the rifle.
The victims of the shooting after a period of mourning, encouraged by a local group called "Take back the night" have sued not only Nancy, but Peter Smith in a wrongful death suit seeking $100 Million dollars in damages for loss of life. "Take back the night" is a local group of activists who are trying to stop the gun violence in the Syracuse community. Many of their efforts have failed through both the Legislative process and the criminal justice system so they have decided on a new strategy to sue civilly in an attempt to get more legislators serious about passing stricter gun laws. A member of this group was the husband of a victim of this senseless crime and has agreed to be the plaintiff in this lawsuit.
Peter Smith receives the summons and complaint commanding his appearance in State Trial Court in New York. Peter goes to the law offices of Dewey, Cheatum, and Howe seeking counsel with regard to this matter. Peter is the sole proprietor of Long Arm Guns and he has only one other employee. If he has to go to New York to appear on this matter it will create an undue hardship for him and his business.
In New York, Personal jurisdiction, using the long arm statute can only be acquired based on a three part test whereby the defendant: (1) purposefully availed himself of the laws of New York, whereby the nonresident did some act or committed some tortious action which invoked the benefits and protections of New York or the tortious act causes a reasonable expectation that the nonresident could be expected to respond in New York; (2) the claim must arise out of or result from the defendant's acts or duties in New York and (3) the exercise of jurisdiction must be reasonable meaning that due process of law is not offended or that the defendant can't be shocked by the service of the summons and complaint. In fact, Courts further clarified the purposely availed part of the test by what was known as the "effect doctrine". In summary the effect doctrine indicates that the defendant's conduct may give rise to personal jurisdiction if the defendant could have foreseen that his actions might avail him to the laws of some other jurisdiction.
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