De Leon v. Radisson Hotels International, Inc. et al

Filing 19

///ORDER granting 14 Motion to Dismiss. So Ordered by Judge Steven J. McAuliffe.(gla)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
Shannon Nichole De Leon,
Plaintiff
v.

Case No. 13-cv-218-SM
Opinion No. 2014 DNH 143

Radisson Hotels International, Inc.,
Radisson Property Management, Inc.,
Radisson Hotels International, Inc.,
d/b/a Radisson Hospitality Worldwide, Inc.,
Radisson Internal Management, Inc.,
Radisson Hotels International, Inc.,
d/b/a Radisson Hotels Worldwide, Inc.,
and Harbour Plaza Hotel Management, Ltd.,
Defendants

O R D E R
Shannon De Leon brings this action seeking damages for
injuries she sustained in a parasailing accident while
vacationing at the Radisson Our Lucaya Resort in Freeport, Grand
Bahama Island.

One of the defendants - Harbour Plaza Hotel

Management, Ltd. (“Harbour Plaza”) - moves to dismiss the sole
claim advanced against it for lack of personal jurisdiction.
Leon has not filed an objection.
motion is granted.

For the reasons stated, that

De

Discussion
When personal jurisdiction is contested, the plaintiff bears
the burden of establishing that the court has such jurisdiction.
See Sawtelle v. Farrell, 70 F.3d 1381, 1387 (1st Cir. 1995);
Kowalski v. Doherty, Wallace, Pillsbury & Murphy, 787 F.2d 7, 8
(1st Cir. 1986).

Allegations of jurisdictional facts are

construed in the plaintiff’s favor, see Buckley v. Bourdon, 682
F. Supp. 95, 98 (D.N.H. 1988), and if, as here, the court
proceeds based upon the written submissions of the parties
without an evidentiary hearing, the plaintiff need only make a
prima facie showing that jurisdiction exists.

See Kowalski, 787

F.2d at 8; Boit v. Gar-Tec Products, Inc., 967 F.2d 671, 674-75
(1st Cir. 1992).

Nevertheless, the plaintiff’s demonstration of personal
jurisdiction must be based on specific facts set forth in the
record in order to defeat a defendant’s motion to dismiss.

See

TicketMaster-New York, Inc. v. Alioto, 26 F.3d 201, 203 (1st Cir.
1994).

See also Jet Wine & Spirits, Inc. v. Bacardi & Co., 298

F.3d 1, 8 (1st Cir. 2002) (“Although the burden of proof is
light, [the plaintiff] may not rely on the mere allegations of
its complaint, but must point to specific facts in the record
that support those allegations.”).

And, “[i]n reviewing the

record before it, a court ‘may consider pleadings, affidavits,

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and other evidentiary materials without converting the motion to
dismiss to a motion for summary judgment.’”

VDI Technologies v.

Price, 781 F. Supp. 85, 87 (D.N.H. 1991) (quoting Lex Computer &
Management Corp. v. Eslinger & Pelton, P.C., 676 F. Supp. 399,
402 (D.N.H. 1987)).

Here, as noted above, De Leon has not objected nor has she
filed any type of response to Harbour Plaza’s motion.
Accordingly, the court will take as uncontested the factual
allegations set forth in that motion, as supported by the
affidavit of Cheah Leng Leng, Financial Controller - Management
Accounting, of Harbour Plaza (document no. 14-1).

In short,

Harbour Plaza is a Hong Kong corporation, with a principal place
of business in Kowloon.

It is a hotel management company that

manages hotels primarily in Hong Kong and China.

It has no

property interests in New Hampshire, has never transacted
business in New Hampshire, has no registered agent in this state,
and has not regularly solicited business in this state.

Based upon those uncontested facts, it is plain that this
court lacks both general and specific personal jurisdiction over
Harbour Plaza.

See generally Dagesse v. Plant Hotel N.V., 113 F.

Supp. 2d 211 (D.N.H. 2000) (court lacked general and specific
personal jurisdiction over hotel management company that was sued

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in New Hampshire when plaintiff’s husband was injured in a hotel
in Aruba).

Harbour Plaza’s motion to dismiss for lack of

personal jurisdiction (document no. 14) is, therefore, granted.
SO ORDERED.
____________________________
Steven J. McAuliffe
United States District Judge
June 23, 2014
cc:

Phillip S. Bixby, Esq.
John E. Brady, Esq.
Glenn J. Holzberg, Esq.

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