Opinion ID: 154231
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Independent Distributor Contacts with Wyoming

Text: 19 At the time of Ms. Kuenzle's accident, Tyrolia's independent United States distributor was Raichle Molitor USA, Inc. (Raichle), which is based in Brewster, New York. Raichle bought Tyrolia bindings F.O.B. Schwechat, Austria 7 and shipped them to the United States. Sometime after Ms. Kuenzle's accident, Tyrolia changed to a new distributor, the firm of Head Sports (Head) in Boulder, Colorado. Tyrolia now ships its products directly to Head in Colorado. As independent distributors, Raichle and Head promoted Tyrolia's products. Through these efforts, Tyrolia products apparently command a one-sixth share of the bindings market, although the record does not specify whether this figure refers to sales within the United States as a whole or just the Rocky Mountain area. One-fifth of Tyrolia's entire sales of bindings are to the United States and Canada. In the past, promotional activities by the distributors have included: training technicians to service Tyrolia equipment; staffing product booths at trade shows; assigning sales representatives to territories which include Wyoming; authorizing retail outlets to act as dealers of Tyrolia products, some of which apparently sell Tyrolia products in Wyoming; and authorizing retail stores to serve as recall dealers in Wyoming. 8 20 From these facts it is clear that Tyrolia products are distributed in the United States and in Wyoming through an independent distributor. It is not equally clear, however, that the acts of the independent distributor can be attributed to Tyrolia for the purpose of establishing general jurisdiction. As the Court in International Shoe explained, a nonresident corporate entity creates contacts for personal jurisdiction purposes through its authorized representatives: its employees, directors, officers and agents. International Shoe, 326 U.S. at 316, 66 S.Ct. at 158 (a corporation's presence, for personal jurisdiction purposes, is manifested only by activities carried on in its behalf by those who are authorized to act for it). The actions of an independent distributor may not insulate a foreign company from specific jurisdiction. See Asahi Metal Indus. Co. v. Superior Court, 480 U.S. 102, 112, 107 S.Ct. 1026, 1032, 94 L.Ed.2d 92 (1987) (plurality opinion of Justice O'Connor) (marketing the product through a distributor who has agreed to serve as the sales agent in the forum State may constitute the [a]dditional conduct needed to establish minimum contacts); Renner v. Lanard Toys Ltd., 33 F.3d 277, 282 (3d Cir.1994) (a foreign manufacturer or seller [which] rids itself of title by a sale F.O.B. a foreign port [does not] insulate [itself] from jurisdiction if there is the other type of activity indicating purposeful availment). However, a different analysis applies in the general jurisdiction context because, [f]or general jurisdiction, the defendant's contacts with the state must be greater than those required for specific jurisdiction. Doe v. National Medical Servs., 974 F.2d 143, 146 (10th Cir.1992). 21 In Wells Fargo & Co. v. Wells Fargo Express Co., 556 F.2d 406, 422 (9th Cir.1977), the court stated that, to achieve general jurisdiction over a corporation through a subsidiary, the existence of a general agency relationship must be demonstrated so that it is not unfair or unreasonable to have [the foreign corporation] answer to the general jurisdiction of the ... district court. Id. Other courts have concluded in the general jurisdiction context that an independent distributor's actions in a forum state will not be attributable to a foreign corporation in the absence of an agency relationship. See Conti v. Pneumatic Prods. Corp., 977 F.2d 978, 981 (6th Cir.1992) (holding that actions of distributors in forum state to sell and service products will not constitute continuous and systematic contact by manufacturer with forum required for general jurisdiction); R.L. Lipton Distrib. Co. v. Dribeck Importers, Inc., 811 F.2d 967, 970 (6th Cir.1987) (concluding that, since the [distributor's] status was that of an independent contractor [rather than an agent,] ... we cannot attribute its conduct and contacts to [the importer]); Cascade Corp. v. Hiab-Foco AB, 619 F.2d 36, 37 (9th Cir.1980) (finding no general jurisdiction in Oregon over Swedish corporation that sells its products F.O.B. in Sweden to a United States subsidiary which markets through an Oregon independent distributor, when only additional contact between defendant and forum were letters and occasional visits). But cf. Michigan Nat'l Bank v. Quality Dinette, Inc., 888 F.2d 462, 465 (6th Cir.1989) (reversing dismissal for lack of general personal jurisdiction where corporation had in-state contacts established by an independent sales representative, by solicitation of sales, and by making sales accounting for three percent of gross). 22 We are persuaded that in the absence of an agency relationship, the acts of a distributor are not ordinarily attributable to a foreign manufacturer for purposes of establishing general jurisdiction. In the circumstances of this case, where there are no direct contacts between Tyrolia and Wyoming, we hold that the Kuenzles must show the existence of an agency relationship between Tyrolia and its distributor in order for the distributor's contacts with Wyoming to support general jurisdiction over Tyrolia. 23 An agency relationship is the fiduciary relation which results from the manifestation of consent by one person to another that the other shall act on his behalf and subject to his control, and consent by the other so to act. True v. Hi-Plains Elevator Mach., Inc., 577 P.2d 991, 999 (Wyo.1978) (quoting RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF AGENCY § 1 (1957)). There can be no agency relationship unless the factual element of control is present. Id. at 999. An agency relationship cannot be presumed, but rather must be clearly demonstrated. Sarchet v. Roach, 62 Wyo. 97, 163 P.2d 185, 188 (1945). Although it is not inconceivable that an agency relationship existed between Tyrolia and Head, 9 the Kuenzles have not introduced evidence sufficient to permit us to draw that conclusion. Consequently, we cannot impute to Tyrolia any contacts Head had with Wyoming in its efforts to market products made by Tyrolia. 24 Because the record does not establish that Tyrolia had continuous or systematic contacts with Wyoming, either directly or through an agent, we hold that the Kuenzles did not meet their prima facie burden of establishing that the district court could exercise general jurisdiction over Tyrolia.