This Blog has previously written about the equitable estoppel doctrine in the context of the statute of limitations ( here ). See General Stencils v. Chiappa , 18 N.Y.2d 125, 128 (1966); Zumpano v. Quinn , 6 N.Y.3d 666, 674 (2006); Matter of Steyer , 70 N.Y.2d 990, 993 (1988). The doctrine has also been used as a basis to reject a jurisdictional defense. Matre v. Erie County Pub. Adm’r. , 283 A.D.2d 1025, 1026 (4th Dept. 2001) (applied to personal jurisdiction and statute of

Proper service of process is necessary before the court can acquire personal jurisdiction over the defendant to a lawsuit.  If service of process is not properly effectuated the court is “…without personal jurisdiction over the defendant, and all subsequent proceedings are thereby rendered null and void.”    Citimortgage, Inc. v. Twersky , 153 A.D.3d 1230 (2 nd Dep’t 2017) (citations and internal quotation marks omitted).  CPLR 308 sets forth several methods by which servic

As readers of this Blog know, we cover a broad range of issues that fall under the umbrella of commercial and business litigation. Two issues that often receive treatment from this Blog are the application of the statute of limitations to fraud-based claims, and the court’s ability to exercise jurisdiction over a defendant. Recently, Justice Saliann Scarpulla of the Supreme Court, New York County, Commercial Division, issued an opinion that involves both of these issues. Mago

Commercial transactions very often involve parties from different states. One party can be domiciled in New York, for example, while the other can be incorporated or headquartered in Delaware. When a dispute arises between such geographically diverse parties, questions concerning the jurisdiction of a court over the parties often gets litigated.  This becomes even more pronounced when the corporation is a multinational company, which conducts business across the county and th