AI Generated Opinion Summaries

This summary was computer-generated without any editorial revision. It is not official, has not been checked for accuracy, and is NOT citable.

Facts

• Joshua Marchand, the adult son of Alfred G. Marchand who died in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, filed a civil action against Rebecca L. Marchand, Alfred's wife, to determine his share of a compensation award from the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund. The Fund awarded $769,972, which was to be distributed according to federal and New Mexico law. Despite a court order for the funds to be held in a supervised account in New Mexico, Rebecca, with the assistance of Kreindler & Kreindler, LLP, a New York law firm, distributed the funds in a manner that did not comply with the order, leading to Joshua receiving less than he was entitled to (paras 2-7).

Procedural History

• Marchand v. Marchand, 2008-NMSC-065: The New Mexico Supreme Court reversed a summary judgment that found Joshua entitled to an additional $98,750 of the award, concluding he was entitled to about $569,972 of the award (para 7).

Parties' Submissions

• Plaintiff-Appellant (Joshua Marchand): Argued that Kreindler subjected itself to the personal jurisdiction of New Mexico courts by violating orders related to the distribution of the compensation award and by its actions causing harm to a New Mexico resident. Asserted that Kreindler's website claims and its representation of clients worldwide and in New Mexico establish general jurisdiction, and specific jurisdiction exists due to Kreindler's interactions with Rebecca in New Mexico and its breach of fiduciary duty to Joshua (paras 9, 16-23).
• Defendant (Rebecca L. Marchand): [Not applicable or not found]
• Attorneys-Appellees (Kreindler & Kreindler, LLP): Contended that the district court did not have personal jurisdiction over them as they did not conduct business or have sufficient minimum contacts in New Mexico. Argued that their actions did not constitute a tortious act within New Mexico and that they did not purposefully avail themselves of conducting activities within New Mexico (paras 8, 14-23).

Legal Issues

• Whether Kreindler & Kreindler, LLP subjected itself to the personal jurisdiction of New Mexico courts by its actions related to the distribution of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund award (para 9).
• Whether New Mexico courts have general or specific jurisdiction over Kreindler based on its website claims, representation of clients worldwide, and specific interactions related to the case at hand (paras 16-23).

Disposition

• The district court's ruling that it did not have personal jurisdiction over Kreindler & Kreindler, LLP was affirmed, and the order to show cause was quashed (para 24).

Reasons

• Per Timothy L. Garcia, with concurrence from Michael E. Vigil and Linda M. Vanzi, the court found that Joshua Marchand adequately alleged a tortious act within New Mexico by Kreindler's actions, which fell within the long-arm statute. However, the court concluded that Kreindler did not have the requisite minimum contacts with New Mexico for general or specific jurisdiction. The court distinguished this case from others by emphasizing that Kreindler's website and representation of clients did not specifically target New Mexico, and its interactions related to the Fund award did not amount to purposeful availment of conducting activities within the state. The court also noted that Kreindler's alleged disregard for federal and district court orders did not, without more, subject it to personal jurisdiction in New Mexico courts (paras 10-23).