Richmark Corp. v. Timber Falling Consultants, Inc.

• Decision Date: 16 October 1990
• Docket Number: Civ. No. 88-1203-FR.
• Parties: RICHMARK CORPORATION, a California corporation, Plaintiff, v. TIMBER FALLING CONSULTANTS, INC., an Oregon corporation, Defendant. TIMBER FALLING CONSULTANTS, INC., an Oregon corporation, Counterclaim Plaintiff, v. RICHMARK CORPORATION, a California corporation; Peacock Manufacturing Company, Inc., a Texas corporation; Beijing Ever Bright Ind. Co., a foreign corporation; Zhu Yuanchang; Eugene Wang; James Yang; and Francis Tong, Counterclaim Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Oregon

747 F. Supp. 1409

RICHMARK CORPORATION, a California corporation, Plaintiff, v. TIMBER FALLING CONSULTANTS, INC., an Oregon corporation, Defendant.

TIMBER FALLING CONSULTANTS, INC., an Oregon corporation, Counterclaim Plaintiff, v. RICHMARK CORPORATION, a California corporation; Peacock Manufacturing Company, Inc., a Texas corporation; Beijing Ever Bright Ind. Co., a foreign corporation; Zhu Yuanchang; Eugene Wang; James Yang; and Francis Tong, Counterclaim Defendants.

Civ. No. 88-1203-FR.

United States District Court, D. Oregon.

October 16, 1990.

Thomas V. Dulcich, Kurt F. Hansen, Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt, Portland, Or., for Richmark Corp.

John F. Neupert, Stephen K. Bushong, Miller, Nash, Wiener, Hager & Carlsen, Portland, Or., for Timber Falling Consultants, Inc.

Thomas G.P. Guilbert, J. Marc Abrams, Bogle & Gates, Portland, Or., for Beijing Ever Bright Ind. Co.

OPINION

FRYE, District Judge:

The matters before the court are:

1. the motion of counterclaim defendant Beijing Ever Bright Ind. Co. (Ever Bright) for relief from default judgment (# 223);

2. the motion of Ever Bright for a protective order restricting discovery by defendant/counterclaim plaintiff, Timber Falling Consultants, Inc. (TFC), (# 224); and

3. the motion of TFC to compel discovery from Ever Bright (# 230).

BACKGROUND

This action originated as a claim for breach of contract by plaintiff, Richmark Corporation (Richmark) against TFC. In its Amended Answer and Counterclaims, TFC has asserted counterclaims against seven counterclaim defendants, including Ever Bright. Ever Bright is a company located in the People's Republic of China which engages in the import and export trade. Ever Bright was served with the Amended Answer and Counterclaims of TFC on March 20, 1989. Ever Bright did not appear within sixty days, and the court entered an order of default in favor of TFC and against Ever Bright on June 9, 1989.

On June 5, 1990, after all of the claims against the other counterclaim defendants had been resolved, this court entered final judgment against Ever Bright in the amount of $2,194,419.59. Ever Bright subsequently filed an appeal with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, as well as its present motions for relief from the default judgment.

This court recently denied the motion of TFC for an order restraining Ever Bright from selling, transferring or otherwise disposing of its property in the United States until the default judgment is satisfied.

ANALYSIS AND RULING

1. Motion for Relief From Default

As a preliminary matter, TFC argues that this court does not have jurisdiction to consider Ever Bright's motion for relief from default because Ever Bright appealed to the Ninth Circuit. In Gould v. Mutual Life Ins. Co., 790 F.2d 769 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 987, 107 S.Ct. 580, 93 L.Ed.2d 582 (1986), the Ninth Circuit considered this issue at length. The court held that although the filing of a notice of appeal divests the district court of jurisdiction, a district court may consider a motion under Fed.R.Civ.P. 60(b) without first securing leave from the Ninth Circuit. 790 F.2d at 772-73.

The Gould court stated that the proper procedure, once an appeal has been taken, is to ask the district court whether it wishes to entertain the motion or to grant it, and then, if appropriate, move the Ninth Circuit to remand the case. Id. at 772. Therefore, this court will consider the motion of Ever Bright on its merits and determine whether to move the Ninth Circuit to remand this case.

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b) provides that the court may relieve a party from a final judgment for the following reasons:

(1) mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect; (2) newly discovered evidence which by due diligence could not have been discovered in time to move for a new trial under Rule 59(b); (3) fraud (whether heretofore denominated intrinsic or extrinsic), misrepresentation, or other misconduct of an adverse party; (4) the judgment is void; (5) the judgment has been satisfied, released, or discharged, or a prior judgment upon which it is based has been reversed or otherwise vacated, or it is no longer equitable that the judgment should have prospective application; or (6) any other reason justifying relief from the operation of the judgment.

The Ninth Circuit has held that Rule 60(b) is meant to be remedial in nature, and therefore must be liberally applied. Falk v. Allen, 739 F.2d 461, 463 (9th Cir.1984). The Falk court set out three factors which should be evaluated in considering a motion to set aside a judgment of default under Rule 60(b): (1) whether the plaintiff will be prejudiced; (2) whether the defendant has a meritorious defense; and (3) whether culpable conduct of the defendant led to the default. Id. at 463-64.

The standard for determining whether the plaintiff will be prejudiced is whether its ability to pursue its claim will be hindered if relief is granted. Id. In this case, there is no evidence that TFC would not be able to pursue its claim against Ever Bright if the case is reopened.

Ever Bright contends that it has not one but three meritorious defenses: that this court lacks personal jurisdiction over it; that the service of process was defective; and that it cannot be held liable on the contract claims of TFC because Ever Bright did not contract with TFC or enter into an agency or joint venture relationship with Richmark.

TFC claims that Ever Bright is an "agency or instrumentality" of the People's Republic of China, and is therefore subject to the personal jurisdiction of this court under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA), 28 U.S.C. § 1603(b). An agency or instrumentality of a foreign state includes any entity which is a separate legal person, corporate or otherwise, and which is an organ of a foreign state or is an entity, the majority of whose shares or other ownership interest is owned by a foreign state. Id.

TFC points to statements made by witnesses in depositions, newspaper and magazine articles, and to promotional materials published by Ever Bright which describe Ever Bright as:

a state-owned comprehensive corporation with independent accounting and sole responsibility for its profits and losses and functions as a domestic import and export company.... BEBIC's goal is to develop foreign trade and foreign economic and technical cooperation of various forms in the service of the nation's modernization program, strictly in compliance with the laws and administrative statutes of the People's Republic of China and under the guidance of state policies and plans.

Exhibit A to Affidavit of John F. Neupert, p. 3.

Ever Bright contends that it is not an agency or instrumentality of the People's Republic of China. Ever Bright relies on materials which refer to it as a member of the Everbright Group, an entity which was established by China Everbright Holdings Company Limited, "a large non-governmental company" incorporated in Hong Kong. Exhibit F to Affidavit of John F. Neupert, p. 5. However, these materials do not suggest that Ever Bright is not owned or controlled by the People's Republic of China. In fact, they include the statement that China Everbright was founded with the backing of the government of the People's Republic of China. Id.

Thus, the evidence strongly supports the conclusion that Ever Bright is an agency or instrumentality of the People's Republic of China and therefore subject to the personal jurisdiction of this court under the FSIA. Ever Bright has not submitted evidence sufficient to create a factual question as to this issue. Therefore, the court would find that Ever Bright is an agency or instrumentality of the People's Republic of China and that this court has personal jurisdiction over it.

Ever Bright contends, however, that even if the court finds that the FSIA applies to it, TFC cannot show that Ever Bright has the minimum contacts with the State of Oregon to permit this court to exercise personal jurisdiction over it. Under the FSIA, personal jurisdiction may be exercised by a court over an agency or instrumentality of a foreign government which engages in commercial activity which creates minimum contacts with the United States as a whole, not merely with the forum state, such as the State of Oregon. Meadows v. Dominican Republic, 817 F.2d 517, 523 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 484 U.S. 976, 108 S.Ct. 486, 98 L.Ed.2d 485 (1987). The evidence submitted by the parties indicates that Ever Bright has engaged in commercial activity in the United States which would allow this court to exercise general jurisdiction over Ever Bright. Moreover, Ever Bright has had significant contacts with the State of California and with the State of Oregon in connection with this transaction, by contracting with Richmark, a California corporation; by meeting with Richmark in the State of California; and by sending a ship to the State of Oregon for the export of logs.

Although a party seeking...