Mechanical Appliance Company v. Benjamin Castleman, No. 48

• Court: United States Supreme Court
• Writing for the Court: Day
• Citation: 54 L.Ed. 272,30 S.Ct. 125,215 U.S. 437
• Parties: MECHANICAL APPLIANCE COMPANY, Plff. in Err., v. BENJAMIN T. CASTLEMAN
• Docket Number: No. 48
• Decision Date: 03 January 1910

215 U.S. 437 30 S.Ct. 125 54 L.Ed. 272 MECHANICAL APPLIANCE COMPANY, Plff. in Err.,

v.

BENJAMIN T. CASTLEMAN.

No. 48. Argued and submitted December 3, 1909. Decided January 3, 1910.

Messrs.

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Lee W. Grant and P. B. Kennedy for plaintiff in error.

Mr. Benjamin T. Castleman, in propria persona, and Messrs. Rassieur, Schnurmacher, & Rassieur for defendant in error.

Mr. Justice Day delivered the opinion of the court:

This case comes here under § 5 of the court of appeals act (26 Stat. at L. 827, chap. 517, U. S. Comp. Stat. 1901, p. 549), upon a certificate from the circuit court of the United States for the eastern district of Missouri, presenting a question of the jurisdiction of that court to entertain a suit brought by Benjamin T. Castleman, defendant in error, against the Mechanical Appliance Company, plaintiff in error, to recover for the breach of a certain alleged contract concerning the making and delivery of massage motors.

The action was originally brought in the circuit court of the city of St. Louis, in the state of Missouri, and the

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Mechanical Appliance Company, a foreign corporation, then defendant, removed the case to the circuit court of the United States for the eastern district of Missouri upon the ground of diverse citizenship. After the case reached the United States circuit court, the bill of exceptions shows that a motion to quash the summons and certain affidavits were withdrawn, and a plea to the jurisdiction was filed.

The original service of summons in the state court had been made by the sheriff, who returned the summons as follows:

'Served this writ at the city of St. Louis, Missouri, on the within named defendant the Mechanical Appliance Company (a corporation), this 29th day of December, 1906, by delivering a copy of the writ and petition furnished by the clerk to Dudley Shaw, agent of the said defendant corporation, he being in said defendant's usual business office and in charge thereof. The president or other chief officer of said defendant could not be found in the city of St. Louis at the time of service.'

In the plea to the jurisdiction, in the circuit court of the United States, the plaintiff in error set up:

'1. That it is a corporation, organized under the laws of the state of Wisconsin; that it has never taken out a license to do business in the state of Missouri; and that at the time of the alleged service of the writ of summons herein as set out in the return of the sheriff, to wit, 29th day of December, 1906, the defendant did not have any agent, office, or place of business in the city of St. Louis or in the state of Missouri.

'2. That the person upon whom service was attempted to be had by the sheriff, and to whom a copy of the summons and petition was delivered, to wit, Dudley Shaw, was not and had not been for some time prior thereto an officer, agent, or employee of this defendant. That said Dudley Shaw was not, at the time of the delivery of the summons herein to him by the sheriff, in charge of defendant's usual business office, or in defendant's usual business office in the city of St. Louis, for the reason that this defendant had, at said time, no

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business office nor any other office in the city of St. Louis, state of Missouri.'

Certain affidavits are set out in the bill of exceptions, and it is therein stated that they were filed. Two affidavits appear to have been filed in support of the plea to the jurisdiction, and one, by the plaintiff, in opposition thereto. In the certificate the learned circuit judge states:

'I hereby certify that in this cause the following question of jurisdiction arose; the defendant filed a plea to the jurisdiction of the court on the ground that it was a corporation organized under the laws of the state of Wisconsin, that it has no office, place of business, or agent in, and was not doing business in, the state of Missouri at the time of the service of summons herein, and that the person served with the process herein was not the agent of the defendant at the time of said service. Defendant filed affidavit in support of the plea. I overruled the plea on the ground that the facts stated in the return of the sheriff to the summons were conclusive on the defendant and could not be controverted by it. When the cause was called for trial, the same objection was made by the defendant, and overruled for the same reason. The question only of jurisdiction of the court is, therefore, hereby certified to the Supreme Court of the United States for its decision thereon.'

It is settled that a question of this character involves the jurisdiction of the circuit court as a Federal court, and may be brought here by writ of error under § 5 of the court of appeals act of 1891. Remington v. Central P. R. Co. 198 U. S. 95, 49 L. ed. 959, 25 Sup. Ct. Rep. 577.

It is contended by the defendant in error that the plea to the jurisdiction did not definitely state that the corporation defendant was not doing business in the state of Missouri at the time of the attempted service; and, furthermore, that the affidavits were not shown to have been offered in evidence, although the bill of exceptions states that the same were filed. The certificate of the judge, which is required by statute in

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order to bring the case to this court, states that the defendant raised, by plea to the jurisdiction, the grounds of objection that it was a foreign corporation, having no office, place of business, or agent in, and was not doing business in, the state of Missouri at the time of the service of summons, and that the person served with the process was not the agent of the...