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IN THE SUPREME COURT OF IOWA
No. 52 / 05-0306 Filed June 29, 2007 ADDISON INSURANCE COMPANY, Appellee, vs. KNIGHT, HOPPE, KURNIK & KNIGHT, L.L.C., Appellant.

Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, Kristin L. Hibbs, Judge.

An Illinois company appeals the district court's ruling that the court had personal jurisdiction over the company. AFFIRMED.

James E. Shipman and Chad M. Von Kampen of Simmons, Perrine, Albright & Elwood, P.L.C., Cedar Rapids, and David M. Macksey and Victor J. Pioli of Johnson & Bell, Ltd., Chicago, Illinois, for appellant.

Patrick M. Roby and Robert M. Hogg of Elderkin & Pirnie, P.L.C., Cedar Rapids, for appellee.

2 STREIT, Justice. An Illinois law firm regularly represented an Iowa insurance company's insureds in Illinois. After the law firm allegedly botched an appeal to the Illinois Appellate Court, the Iowa company filed a legal malpractice claim against the law firm in Linn County, Iowa. In a

preanswer motion, the law firm alleged lack of personal jurisdiction, improper venue, and forum non conveniens. The district court denied the motion and we granted the law firm's interlocutory appeal. We find the law firm had sufficient minimum contacts with the state of Iowa to warrant personal jurisdiction. The parties had a long-term business arrangement that caused the law firm to have substantial, ongoing communications with the insurance company in Iowa. We also find Linn County is proper for venue. The law firm failed to preserve for appeal the issue of forum non conveniens. We affirm the district court. I. Facts and Prior Proceedings

Addison Insurance Company is an Illinois corporation with its principal place of business in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It is a subsidiary of United Fire & Casualty and is part of the United Fire Group. Addison was originally located in Lombard, Illinois. However, since mid-1998, Addison's primary operations (including underwriting, marketing, claims handling, accounting, and support services) have been located in Cedar Rapids. Addison writes insurance in Iowa, Illinois, and several other states. The law firm of Knight, Hoppe, Kurnik & Knight ("Knight") is an Illinois limited liability company. Knight's principal place of business is Des Plaines, Illinois. In March 1993, Knight agreed to represent Addison's insureds in Illinois cases. When Addison informed Knight it was relocating its primary operations to Cedar Rapids in 1998, Knight expressed a strong interest in

3 continuing their relationship. Knight and Addison regularly communicated via telephone, facsimile and mail regarding the cases Knight was handling for Addison. Additionally, Pat Fanning, a partner at Knight, visited Addison in Cedar Rapids shortly after the company's relocation. 1 Fanning

conducted a seminar on recent changes to Illinois law and discussed current cases with management. From 1998 through 2003, Addison paid Knight $823,871 for its services. In September 2000, Knight on behalf of Addison, filed an action seeking a declaratory judgment against Knoedler Manufacturing, Inc. in Cook County, Illinois. Addison claimed Knoedler had a duty to indemnify Addison pursuant to a 1993 purchase agreement between Knoedler and one of Addison's insureds. Addison sought $683,419 for its attorney fees, costs, and settlement paid in connection with a products liability claim. The district court granted Knoedler's motion to dismiss. After Addison's motion to reconsider was denied, Knight filed a notice of appeal on Addison's behalf. However, Knight failed to either file the record or brief the issues with the Illinois Appellate Court. In June 2002, the Illinois Appellate Court granted Knoedler's motion to dismiss for failure to timely file the record on appeal. John Pearson, a partner at Knight, traveled to Cedar Rapids to break the news to Addison. Addison filed the present action against Knight and attorney James Meece for legal malpractice in Linn County, Iowa. Meece was the attorney at Knight assigned to the Knoedler action. Meece and Knight each filed a preanswer motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, improper venue, and forum non conveniens. The district court found Knight's

Fanning also traveled to Cedar Rapids in 1996 and gave a presentation to United Fire claims personnel. These visits to Cedar Rapids were part of Knight's efforts to strengthen the law firm's business relationships with Addison and United Fire.
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4 contacts with Iowa were sufficient to confer personal jurisdiction and that venue was proper in Linn County. It granted Meece's motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction. Knight filed an application for interlocutory appeal which this court granted. II. Standard of Review

"[W]e accept as true the allegations of the petition and the contents of uncontroverted affidavits. The plaintiff has the burden to sustain the requisite jurisdiction, but when he [or she] establishes a prima facie case the defendant has the burden of producing evidence to rebut that showing. The trial court's findings of fact have the effect of a jury verdict and are subject to challenge only if not supported by substantial evidence in the record; we are not bound, however, by the trial court's application of legal principles or its conclusions of law." Aquadrill, Inc. v. Envtl. Compliance Consulting Servs., Inc., 558 N.W.2d 391, 392 (Iowa 1997) (quoting Percival v. Bankers Trust Co., 450 N.W.2d 860, 861 (Iowa 1990)). Thus, we review the trial court's ruling dismissing Knight's motion to dismiss for errors at law. Iowa R. App. P. 6.4. III. A. Merits Personal Jurisdiction

Iowa Rule of Civil Procedure 1.306 "expands Iowa's jurisdictional reach to the widest due process parameters allowed by the United States Constitution." Hammond v. Fla. Asset Fin. Corp., 695 N.W.2d 1, 5 (Iowa 2005) (citing Hodges v. Hodges, 572 N.W.2d 549, 552 (Iowa 1997)). It provides in pertinent part: Every corporation, individual, personal representative, partnership or association that shall have the necessary minimum contact with the state of Iowa shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state, and the courts of this state shall hold such corporation, individual, personal representative, partnership or association amenable to suit in Iowa in every case not contrary to the provisions of the Constitution of the United States. Iowa R. Civ. P. 1.306.

5 The Due Process Clause requires a nonresident to have "certain minimum contacts with [the forum state] such that the maintenance of the suit does not offend `traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice.' " Int'l Shoe Co. v. Washington, 326 U.S. 310, 316, 66 S. Ct. 154, 158, 90 L. Ed. 95, 102 (1945) (quoting Milliken v. Meyer, 311 U.S. 457, 463, 61 S. Ct. 339, 343, 85 L. Ed. 278, 283 (1940)). In applying the standard, we consider five factors: 1. the quantity of the contacts; 2. the nature and quality of the contacts; 3. the source and connection of the cause of action with those contacts; 4. the interest of the forum state; and 5. the convenience of the parties. Larsen v. Scholl, 296 N.W.2d 785, 788 (Iowa 1980). Of these factors, the first three are the most important. Aquadrill, 558 N.W.2d at 393. "The minimum contacts test is meant to insure the fairness and reasonableness of requiring a nonresident to defend a lawsuit in the forum state." Taylor v. Trans-Action Assoc., Inc., 509 N.W.2d 501, 504 (Iowa Ct. App. 1993) (citing Int'l Shoe, 326 U.S. at 317, 66 S. Ct. at 158, 90 L. Ed. at 102). A defendant's conduct relative to the forum state must be such that the defendant should " `reasonably anticipate being haled into court there.' " Heslinga v. Bollman, 482 N.W.2d 921, 922 (Iowa 1992) (quoting World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson, 444 U.S. 286, 297, 100 S. Ct. 559, 567, 62 L. Ed. 2d 490, 501 (1980)). This requires "some act by which the defendant purposefully avails itself of the privilege of conducting activities within the forum State, thus invoking the benefits and protections of its laws." Hager v. Doubletree, 440 N.W.2d 603, 607 (Iowa 1989), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 934, 110 S. Ct. 325, 107 L. Ed. 2d 315 (1989) (quoting Hanson v. Denckla, 357 U.S. 235, 253, 78 S. Ct. 1228, 1239, 2 L. Ed. 2d 1283, 1298 (1958)). In

6 determining whether minimum contacts exist, we focus on " `the relationship among the defendant, the forum, and the litigation.' " Rush v. Savchuk, 444 U.S. 320, 327, 100 S. Ct. 571, 577, 62 L. Ed. 2d 516, 524 (1980) (quoting Shaffer v. Heitner, 433 U.S. 186, 204, 97 S. Ct. 2569, 2580, 53 L. Ed. 2d 683, 698 (1977)). There are two types of personal jurisdiction: specific jurisdiction and general jurisdiction. Helicopteros Nacionales de Colombia, S.A. v. Hall, 466 U.S. 408, 414

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