United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Philadelphia & Reading Coal & Iron Co. v. Gilbert, 245 U.S. 162 (1917)

Philadelphia & Reading Coal & Iron Company v. Gilbert

No. 454

Argued November 6, 1917

Decided November 26, 1917

245 U.S. 162

Syllabus

A Pennsylvania corporation was sued in New York, where it transacted but a part of its business, upon a cause of action for personal injuries arising in Pennsylvania, and the summons was served upon a New York agent which it had designated to receive service of process, conformably to the New York laws. It moved to set aside the service as void in that consent to be sued in New York could be implied only in respect of causes arising out of its business there, and that the attempt to compel it to respond to the action was an invasion of its rights under the Constitution, particularly § 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment. Held that, as the motion did not draw

Page 245 U. S. 163

in question the validity of the state law, but only the validity of the service and the power of the court, consistently with § 1 of the Amendment, to proceed upon such service, no basis was laid for reviewing in this Court by writ of error a subsequent judgment on the merits, but only for application for certiorari. Jud.Code § 237, as amended by Act of Sept. 6, 1916.

Writ of error to review 176 App.Div. 889, dismissed.

The case is stated in the opinion.