Dorcas W. Green v. the Equitable Mutual Life & Endowment Association of Waterloo, Iowa (Iowa 1898)

Summary

The court affirmed recovery on a North Dakota default judgment against an Iowa corporation. It held that the corporation had submitted to North Dakota jurisdiction by appointing an agent for service, that service on the agent remained effective after the corporation ceased doing business there, and that the summons was sufficient under North Dakota law. The court also held that the relevant North Dakota laws could be introduced as evidence of jurisdictional facts without having been pleaded.

Holding

Personal jurisdiction over a nonappearing foreign corporation. Because the record showed that the defendant was a nonresident and did not appear, the ordinary presumption that a court of general jurisdiction had jurisdiction did not apply unless the plaintiff established that the defendant had submitted to North Dakota jurisdiction.

Pleading and proof of North Dakota law. The plaintiff was entitled to introduce North Dakota constitutional and statutory provisions without pleading them because they supplied evidence of the ultimate jurisdictional facts rather than constituting facts that had to be pleaded independently.

Service on the appointed agent despite the separate insurance-agent statute. Service on Carey was sufficient even though the summons was not served on North Dakota's insurance commissioner because the statute requiring appointment of the commissioner did not make that method exclusive and another statute authorized appointment of an agent upon whom process could be served.

Effect of the power of attorney and cessation of business. The power of attorney and the defendant's conduct made service on Carey effective even though the instrument did not expressly say that process could be served on him and Carey did not accept service; service also remained authorized after the defendant ceased doing business because North Dakota law continued the last-designated agent for liabilities incurred while the corporation operated there.

Sufficiency of the summons and enforceability of the North Dakota judgment. The summons was sufficient under North Dakota law even though it did not state when or where the defendant had to appear, and the plaintiff's lack of North Dakota residence did not defeat the judgment because the insurance contract was issued under North Dakota law and was presumed enforceable there.

Summary

Holding

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