IFS International, Inc. v. SLM Software, Inc.
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; February 14, 1996; New York; State Appellate Court
An appeal was made from a Supreme Court order that granted the defendant's motion to dismiss a complaint based on the doctrine of forum non conveniens. The plaintiff, a New York corporation, entered into a contract in January 1989 with the defendant, a Canadian corporation, to market the defendant's software. In June 1989, the plaintiff sued for breach of contract and fraud. In response, the defendant initiated a separate action in Ontario related to the same contract, to which the plaintiff did not counterclaim. The Supreme Court initially dismissed the plaintiff's action under CPLR 327 for forum non conveniens. However, this dismissal was reversed on appeal due to insufficient determination of personal jurisdiction over the defendant. Upon remand, the Supreme Court found that it had jurisdiction and the defendant again moved for dismissal based on forum non conveniens. The court granted this motion, leading to the current appeal. The appellate court affirmed the Supreme Court's decision, stating it did not abuse its discretion. Key considerations included that the defendant, a Canadian corporation, has no business presence, offices, assets, or real property in New York. The contract was executed in Canada and governed by Canadian law, which is a significant factor in forum non conveniens cases. Additionally, there is an ongoing similar case in Ontario involving the same parties and issues, indicating that the plaintiff would not suffer undue prejudice from the dismissal, as a resolution is available in Ontario. The court ordered the affirmation of the dismissal, with costs awarded.