Golant v. German Shepard Dog Club of America, Inc.
35 Fla. L. Weekly D 159 (Fla. 4th DCA 2010) (January)
A club member brought suit against the club, which was organized under the laws of New York, in Florida court. The club did not have a physical office anywhere and approximately 150 to 170 of its members resided in Florida. The club also collected dues from Florida members, sponsored regional clubs in Florida, mailed copies of its magazine to Florida, and held a dog show and meetings in Florida. The trial court dismissed the complaint against the club for lack of personal jurisdiction, ruling that its contacts with Florida were not sufficient to meet the requirements of the Florida long arm stature. The district court held that the facts of this case brought it within the ambit of the long arm statute and that the club had sufficient “minimum contacts” with Florida to satisfy personal jurisdiction.