Subject matter jurisdiction of the New Hampshire Motor Vehicle Industry Board

As I may have mentioned before, part of the purpose of this blawg is for me to learn more about civil law (all of my experience is on the criminal side). So I will be describing and discussing civil cases as they come out. If anything looks funny, send me a line and I'll issue a correction if necessary.

Harley Davidson Motor Company v. Seacoast Harley Davidson (June 23, 2005)

The seacoast franchise protested when Harley Davidson reassigned nine Mass. zip coes that had previously been assigned to Seacoast. Seacoast filed a protest with the Motor Vehicle Industry Board (See RSA 357-C:12), and Harley Davidson moved to dismiss, arguing, among other things, that the Board does not have subject matter jurisdiction over decisions affecting Mass. The Board denied that motion and Harley Davidson appealed to the Superior Court, which dismissed the appeal as premature.

The N.H Supreme Court found that RSA 357-C:12 authorizes appeals only of final orders. This includes decisions regarding subject matter jurisdiction. Therefore, the superior court correctly ruled that Harley Davidson's appeal was premature.