Almquist v. Synergo, LLC, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79261 (D. Ore. May 20, 2016):

Cassidy Almquist ("Almquist") filed an Amended Complaint against Synergo, LLC, an Oregon limited liability company, Synergo, an Oregon corporation (collectively "Synergo"), and the Association for Challenge Course Technology, a Delaware non-profit corporation ("ACCT"), alleging claims for negligence. Almquist's [*2]  action arises from an accident at the Bar-M-Ranch, in which she fell from a Giant Swing and was paralyzed. With respect to ACCT, Almquist alleges that ACCT was negligent (1) in promulgating standards for its certified inspectors, that allow them to certify challenge courses as safe when the inspector knows that untrained challenge course workers will operate the course, and (2) by failing to include in the inspection standards a provision directing an inspector to recommend that a course be closed until workers receive proper training. (Am. Compl. ¶¶ 16, 17 and 26.)

Synergo filed an Answer to Almquist's Amended Complaint, and ACCT filed a Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Personal Jurisdiction, pursuant to Rule 12(b)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. On April 5, 2016, this Court heard oral argument on ACCT's request for dismissal. For the reasons set forth below, the district judge should deny ACCT's Rule 12(b)(2) motion.

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ACCT argues that it did not purposefully direct its activities toward Oregon.³ By Declaration, Todd Domeck, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors with ACCT, informed the Court that ACCT is a Delaware non-profit corporation with its principal place of business in Illinois. (Todd Domeck Decl. ¶ 3, Oct. 4, 2015.) ACCT has no office or registered agent in Oregon, and no employees who reside in Oregon. [*10]  (Domeck Decl. ¶¶ 4-6.) Domeck also states that "ACCT was not consulted during the construction of the 'Giant Swing,'" nor did ACCT provide training for "any employees of the Bar-M-Ranch who were to be operators of the 'Giant Swing.'" (Domeck Decl. ¶¶ 9-10.)

3   ACCT also argues that "there has been absolutely no evidence submitted that plaintiff, the camp, or the specific ride operator . . . ever had any interaction with ACCT . . . or that they in any way relied on any information promulgated by ACCT." (Def.'s Reply 10.) With regard to ACCT's claim that Almquist cannot show that ACCT directed activity toward the people involved in the accident, this argument is foreclosed by the Supreme Court's decision in Walden. 134 S. Ct. at 1122 ("[O]ur "minimum contacts" analysis looks to the defendant's contacts with the forum State itself, not the defendant's contacts with persons who reside there.") With regard to ACCT's contention that Almquist has not shown reliance on the "information promulgated by ACCT," that evidence is relevant to the merits of Almquist's claim for negligence, and not to the jurisdictional question presently before the Court.

In light of those facts, the jurisdictional analysis here turns on the extent [*11]  to which ACCT, as a non-profit trade association, acted by way of its website and its certification of Synergo to create a presence in Oregon. In aid of the Court's analysis of ACCT's purposeful direction in Oregon, the Court relies on the uncontroverted allegations of the Amended Complaint, the Micah Henderson Declaration, and the Internet websites of ACCT and Synergo.⁴ See Boschetto, 559 F.3d at 1015 ("plaintiff need only make a prima facie showing of jurisdictional facts" (quotations and citation omitted)).

4   ACCT argues that the websites are not authenticated and, thus, should not be considered by the Court. ACCT's and Synergo's websites were created and are maintained by Defendants in this case. Further, there is no challenge to the accuracy of the content presented on the websites. The parties dispute the sufficiency of ACCT's contacts with Oregon, including contacts made through ACCT's website. In the context of Almquist's prima facie showing on a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, the Court may consider the information provided by ACCT and Synergo on their commercial websites. See, e.g., West Marine, Inc. v. Watercraft Superstore, Inc., No. C11-04459 HRL, 2012 WL 479677, at *10 (Feb. 14, 2012) ("Courts have taken notice of defendants' [*12]  websites or characteristics thereof when determining personal jurisdiction."); Coremetrics, Inc. v. Atomic Park.com, LLC, 370 F. Supp. 2d 1013, 1021 (N.D. Cal. 2005) (taking judicial notice of defendants' website in personal jurisdiction analysis).

a. ACCT's Website

The Ninth Circuit has established a sliding scale analysis to consider how interactive an Internet website is for the purpose of determining its jurisdictional effect. Cybersell, Inc. v. Cybersell, Inc., 130 F.3d 414, 419 (9th Cir. 1997) ("In sum, the common thread, well stated by the district court in Zippo, is that the 'likelihood that personal jurisdiction can be constitutionally exercised is directly proportionate to the nature and quality of the commercial activity that an entity conducts over the Internet.'") (quoting Zippo Mfg. Co. v. Zippo Dot Com, 952 F. Supp. 1119, 1124 (W.D. Pa. 1997)); see also ALS Scan, Inc. v. Digital Service Consultants, Inc., 293 F.3d 707, 714 (4th Cir. 2002) (holding that a state may assert jurisdiction over a nonresident defendant "when that person (1) directs electronic activity into the State, (2) with the manifested intent of engaging in business or other interactions within the State, and (3) that activity creates, in a person within the State, a potential cause of action cognizable to the State's courts").

On its website, ACCT describes itself as "the world's leading and largest American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Accredited Standards Developer focused specifically and solely on the [*13]  challenge course industry." http://www.acctinfo.org (last visited May 20, 2016). Through its website, ACCT represents that it "develops, refines, and publishes standards for installing, maintaining, and managing challenge courses; provides forums for education and professional development; and advocates for the challenge course and adventure industry." Id. ACCT's website is an interactive commercial website, and ACCT uses it to advertise and sell its services and merchandise. Specifically, individuals and businesses may purchase memberships and ACCT's standards book, apply and register for inspector certification courses and exams, and access challenge course related employment listings.

As of November 2015, ACCT had 2,524 total members, with 136 of those members located in Oregon. (Micah Henderson Decl. ¶ 7, Jan. 7, 2016.) As such, slightly over 5% of ACCT's worldwide members are located in Oregon. In addition, three of ACCT's 129 certified inspectors (2.3%) are located in Oregon. (Henderson Decl. ¶ 9.) During the period from June 1, 2014 through November 24, 2015, seven of the 200 standards (3.5%) sold by ACCT were delivered within Oregon. (Henderson Decl. ¶ 10.) ACCT attributes less than one percent of [*14]  its 2015 annual dues to members located in Oregon. (Henderson Decl. ¶ 8.) Finally, as of November 12, 2015, two of the 100 job postings (2%) on ACCT's website were related to jobs in Oregon. (Henderson Decl. ¶ 11.) ACCT solicited and transacted these sales and services through its website.

Although the business ACCT conducts in Oregon is not overwhelming, the Court concludes that the nature and quality of ACCT's contacts with Oregon via its website are sufficient to satisfy the purposeful direction test. See Tech Heads, Inc. v. Desktop Serv. Cntr., Inc., 105 F. Supp. 2d 1142, 1150-51 (D. Or. 2000) (finding personal jurisdiction proper where plaintiff presented evidence of a transaction involving an Oregon resident made through the defendant's interactive website); see also Neogen Corp. v. Neo Gen Screening, Inc., 282 F.3d 883, 891-892 (6th Cir. 2002) (holding that quantity and specifically a "'percentage of business' analysis" is not the proper test for personal jurisdiction; rather the proper test is "whether the absolute amount of business conducted . . . [in the forum state] represents something more than 'random, fortuitous, or attenuated contacts' with the state") (quoting Burger King, 471 U.S. at 475); Zippo Mfg. Co., 952 F. Supp. at 1126-1127 (recognizing that 3,000 subscriptions, or 2 percent of total subscriptions, was a sufficient basis for jurisdiction because the Supreme Court emphasizes the nature and [*15]  quality of contacts with the forum rather than the quantity of contacts); cf. Millennium Enterprises, Inc. v. Millennium Music, LP, 33 F. Supp. 2d 907, 923 (D. Or. 1999) (declining to find personal jurisdiction based on an interactive website when there was no evidence of transactions with forum residents or evidence that the forum was targeted).

In any event, even if ACCT's reach into Oregon via its website was not sufficient, standing alone, to confer personal jurisdiction, the Court finds that ACCT's reach into Oregon went beyond mere solicitation of members and sales through its website. See Brayton Purcell, 606 F.3d at 1129 ("operating even a passive website in conjunction with something more -- conduct directly targeting the forum -- is sufficient to confer personal jurisdiction" (quotations and citation omitted)).