Opinion ID: 2075042
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Welter had sufficient minimum contacts with South Dakota to cause him to be subject to the jurisdiction of South Dakota courts under SDCL 15-7-2.

Text: Welter first asserts, that since he has never been in South Dakota or transacted any business in South Dakota, no personal jurisdiction exists. Specifically, Welter argues that his contacts with the State of South Dakota are insufficient to pass constitutional muster. [4] In support of his contention, Welter insists that he did not do any act or consummate any transaction in the State of South Dakota. He further insists that since he has never been in the State of South Dakota, he could not have engaged in any activity which would give rise to a cause of action. Finally, Welter advocates that no contacts, no presence, no solicitations, and no activities in South Dakota have been shown. Opp submits, to the contrary, that Welter had sufficient minimum contacts with South Dakota to cause him to be subject to the jurisdiction of South Dakota courts. In support of his contention, Opp cites the following facts: Welter was informed at the time of the sale that the cattle he sold would eventually reach South Dakota; Welter misrepresented to South Dakota officials the age of the cattle, both at the time of vaccination and their entry into South Dakota; Welter contacted a carrier and had the cattle shipped to South Dakota; Welter had post-sale negotiations over certain disputed cattle with Nieuwsma of South Dakota. Therefore, the first issue before us is whether these contacts are sufficient to give South Dakota personal jurisdiction over Welter. [5] Our second inquiry is whether an assertion of personal jurisdiction would violate the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. [6] State v. American Bankers Ins. Co., 374 N.W.2d 609 (S.D.1985). We now apply the principles set out for determining if a given set of circumstances provides sufficient minimum contacts between a nonresident defendant and a forum state to support personal jurisdiction. State v. American Bankers Ins. Co., 374 N.W.2d 609 (S.D.1985). First, the defendant must purposefully avail himself of the privilege of acting in the forum state, thus invoking the benefits and protections of its laws. Hanson v. Denckla, 357 U.S. 235, 78 S.Ct. 1228, 2 L.Ed.2d 1283 (1958); Ventling v. Kraft, 83 S.D. 465, 161 N.W.2d 29 (1968). Second, the cause of the action must arise from defendant's activities directed at the forum state. Finally, the acts of defendant must have substantial connection with the forum state to make the exercise of jurisdiction over defendant a reasonable one. An important factor bearing upon the reasonableness of asserting jurisdiction is to determine if defendant's conduct and connection with the forum state are such that he would have reasonably anticipated being brought into court there. World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson, 444 U.S. 286, 297, 100 S.Ct. 559, 567, 62 L.Ed.2d 490 (1980). In the present case, Welter admitted in his affidavit that he was informed at the time of the sale that the cattle he sold would eventually reach South Dakota. He sent the Iowa Health papers to South Dakota, representing to South Dakota officials that the cattle met the requirements of SDCL 40-7-20. [7] Furthermore, Welter contacted a carrier and instructed the cattle be shipped to South Dakota, although he did not pay for the shipping. He received a check drawn on the Campbell County Bank in South Dakota. This check was sent to Welter from South Dakota and was paid in South Dakota. Welter made telephone calls to Nieuwsma in South Dakota. Welter also had post-sale negotiations over seven disputed cattle with Nieuwsma, a resident of South Dakota. The instant cause of action clearly arose from Welter's activities directed at South Dakota. He could reasonably have expected to be responsible in a South Dakota court in the event something went wrong with the South Dakota bound cattle. We conclude that the minimum contacts test is met in the instant case and that the trial court properly asserted personal jurisdiction over Welter without any due process violations.