Court Opinion

ID: 9691081
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 20:08:00.318898+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:19:10.013353
License: Public Domain

ROGGENSACK, J.
(concurring in part; dissenting in part). I concur in this court's conclusion that the trial court lacked personal jurisdiction over Hubbell due to improper service, and that the respondents waived the "technical error" objection to that issue by not raising it at the trial court level. However, I respectfully dissent from the remainder of the opinion.
In order to decide the merits of a case, a court must have both subject matter jurisdiction and personal jurisdiction. P.C. v. C.C., 161 Wis. 2d 277, 297, 468 N.W.2d 190, 198 (1991). Personal jurisdiction requires a party to have both a sufficient relationship to the court attempting to exercise its power over the controversy, and notice of the claims being made. See State v. Smith, 131 Wis. 2d 220, 239, 388 N.W.2d 601, 609 (1986). A court has jurisdiction to determine its own power. Wisconsin Public Service Corp. v. Krist, 104 Wis. 2d 381, 391, 311 N.W.2d 624, 629 (1981). When personal jurisdiction is questioned, the trial court must try that issue before reaching the merits of the case. Pavalon v. Thomas Holmes Corp., 25 Wis. 2d 540, 547, 131 N.W.2d 331, 334-35 (1964).
Here, it is Hubbell who is claiming a lack of personal jurisdiction due to improper service and it is also Hubbell who is invoking the power of the court to decide a statute of limitations question in its favor and an estoppel defense to the statute of limitations against the respondents. Hubbell cannot have it both ways. Either there is power in the court to decide the merits *171of this case, in which event the jurisdictional challenge cannot stand, or there is no power for the trial court to go further than to decide the jurisdictional question. Once it was determined that no personal jurisdiction over Hubbell existed, the trial court lacked the legal power to decide the merits of other issues Hubbell placed before it. See State ex rel. Angela M.W. v. Kruzicki, 197 Wis. 2d 532, 546, 541 N.W.2d. 482, 487 (Ct. App. 1995). Therefore, it is not appropriate for this court to decide whether the statute of limitations has run, or whether Hubbell should be equitably estopped from raising the statute of limitations as a defense. I would hold that this case was properly dismissed without prejudice, as is appropriate when there is a lack of personal jurisdiction. Giese v. Giese, 43 Wis. 2d 456, 464, 168 N.W.2d 832, 836 (1969).