Lower Court Decision Upheld in Dispute Between ZTE, NTCH-West Tenn
The 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s ruling it lacked jurisdiction over Chinese defendant ZTE in a suit brought by NTCH-West Tenn. “This is a case about jurisdiction. It involves unsuccessful and prolonged business ventures, numerous…
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corporate partners and affiliates, and a foreign defendant,” ruled Judge Deborah Cook in the decision filed Wednesday. “The appeal concerns a simple question: Did NTCH-TN establish sufficient facts supporting the exercise of personal jurisdiction over Chinese defendant ZTE Corp.?” The appeals court panel decided it didn’t. The case involved network equipment ZTE sold the wireless carrier through sales-arm ZTE USA. NTCH initially bought the equipment for use by Florida subsidiary PTA-FLA and ran into problems, the panel said. When NTCH exited the Florida market, NTCH decided to install the equipment instead in Tennessee, where it “experienced the same network malfunctions that PTA-FLA had confronted in Florida,” the 6th Circuit held. NTCH-Tenn “proffers insufficient facts to make a prima facie showing” that ZTE’s connections with Tennessee “are substantial enough that it should reasonably have anticipated being hauled into court there,” Cook wrote: NTCH “fails to demonstrate that the district court improperly construed facts in favor of” ZTE. Judges Damon Keith and Joan Larsen were the other members of the 3-0 panel. NTCH didn't comment.