Opinion
May 31, 1994
Appeal from the Supreme Court, New York County (Harold Tompkins, J.).
Plaintiff brought this action alleging he was defamed by three articles in Davar, an Israeli publication, with a very small circulation in New York. We agree with the IAS Court that defendant Davar established, on documentary evidence, that it is a foreign corporation not authorized to do business in New York. Therefore, service upon it was jurisdictionally defective since plaintiff failed to file an affidavit of compliance, pursuant to Business Corporation Law § 307. "[S]trict compliance with the procedures of Business Corporation Law § 307 is required to effect service on an unauthorized foreign corporation" (Flick v. Stewart-Warner Corp., 76 N.Y.2d 50, 57).
However, the IAS Court did not reach the issue of whether personal jurisdiction was obtained over the individual defendant Fuchs, which was raised by defendants on their motion to dismiss, and we remand for a traverse hearing as to that issue. Pending a determination as to such jurisdiction, we hold the remainder of the appeal in abeyance, and do not reach, at this time, the substantive issues raised as to the merits of the complaint.
Concur — Sullivan, J.P., Rosenberger, Ellerin, Asch and Nardelli, JJ.