State Supreme Court Justice Sherry Klein Heitler said in a ruling made public Tuesday that New York is the wrong place to try the case since similar litigation between Hingis and the company, Sergio Tacchini, is pending in Milan, Italy.

In court papers filed in June 2001, Hingis, 21, said she and Tacchini signed a five-year endorsement deal in 1996 that was to pay her $5.6 million. The deal also required her to wear Tacchini clothes at tennis matches.

During the U.S. Open in New York in September 1998, Hingis said she sustained a severe foot injury because Tacchini had outfitted her with ``defective'' shoes, ``unsuitable for competition.'' She said the injury hurt her career.

In May 1999, Tacchini sued Hingis in Milan, charging breach of contract because she allegedly had failed to wear Tacchini clothing at a tennis match. Hingis countersued in Milan on grounds similar to those in the New York case. That action is pending.

In granting Tacchini's motion to dismiss, Heitler noted that the Milan lawsuit concerns the same issues as in the New York action, and that it would be ``unjust, unfair and inconvenient'' to require the defendant to answer here.''