BLOUNT v. SJP (2008)

Order, Supreme Court, Bronx County (Patricia Anne Williams, J.), entered January 12, 2007, which granted defendant SJP Properties, Inc.'s renewed motion to dismiss the complaint as against it for lack of jurisdiction, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

Plaintiff failed to demonstrate that defendant so completely controls SJP Residential, a related limited liability company formed in 2004 specifically to develop New York residential property, as to render SJP Residential a “mere department” of defendant (see Delagi v. Volkswagenwerk AG of Wolfsburg, Germany, 29 N.Y.2d 426, 432, 328 N.Y.S.2d 653, 278 N.E.2d 895 [1972] ).   The only evidence in the record as to whether there is common ownership of the two entities indicates that defendant is solely owned by one individual who is also one of two shareholders in SJP Residential (see id.).   There is no evidence whatever as to whether defendant controlled the day-to-day financial operations or the marketing and operational activities of SJP Residential, or whether the entities shared common officers and directors or freely exchanged employees (see id.;  Public Adm'r of County of N.Y. v. Royal Bank of Can., 19 N.Y.2d 127, 131-32, 278 N.Y.S.2d 378, 224 N.E.2d 877 [1967];  Taca Intl. Airlines, S.A. v. Rolls-Royce of England, 15 N.Y.2d 97, 101-102, 256 N.Y.S.2d 129, 204 N.E.2d 329 [1965] ).

We have considered plaintiff's remaining contention and find it unavailing.