Civil Procedure Flashcards
Interpleader
Service of Process on an Organization
When the defendant is an organization (e.g., a corporation), FRCP 4(h) permits service in the United States by either:
following the service-of-process rules of the state where the court is located (i.e., forum state) or where service is made or
delivering process to an officer, managing or general agent, or agent authorized by appointment or law to receive service AND, if required by statute, mailing process to the defendant.
Collateral Order Doctrine
The collateral-order doctrine provides a narrow exception to the final-judgment rule. Under this doctrine, an interlocutory order will be characterized as final and immediately appealable if three elements are met:
The order conclusively resolves an important issue
That issue is separate from the merits of the underlying claim
The order cannot be effectively reviewed on appeal from a final judgment
Stateless Person
Diverse citizenship does not exist when a suit involves stateless persons—i.e., (1) noncitizens present in the U.S. but not citizens of a foreign country or (2) U.S. citizens domiciled in a foreign country.
Personal Jurisdiction w/o Min. Contacts
The federal rules establish personal jurisdiction over a defendant who does not have minimum contacts with the forum state when (1) the plaintiff asserts a federal-law claim, (2) the defendant is not subject to personal jurisdiction in any state court, and (3) the defendant has minimum contacts with the United States as a whole.
*This rule is typically used for non-U.S. residents who have contacts with the United States generally, but not with any particular state.
Home-Court Advantage Rule
The forum-defendant rule prohibits removal from state to federal court when (1) the federal court’s subject-matter jurisdiction arises solely from diversity jurisdiction and (2) a defendant is a citizen of the state where the case was filed.
Amended Pleading
Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15, a party may amend its original pleading (e.g., complaint) once as a matter of course (i.e., without the court’s permission). When this occurs, a response to the amended pleading (e.g., answer) generally must be made by the later of the following deadlines:
The time remaining to respond to the original pleading—e.g., an answer is generally due within 21 days after service of process
14 days after the service of the amended pleading*
Class Action - Notice
A federal court has the power to certify (i.e., authorize) the following types of class actions:
Prejudicial risk – when separate actions would create a risk of inconsistent decisions regarding the parties or impairing absent class members’ interests
Common question – when common questions of law or fact predominate over individual questions and a class action is the best method to fairly and efficiently adjudicate the dispute
Final equitable relief – when injunctive or declaratory relief is appropriate because the opposing party’s actions generally apply to the whole class
In a “common question” class action, adequate notice must be provided to all class members because they have the right to opt out of the class action and sue on their own behalf. However, in “prejudicial risk” and “final equitable relief” class actions, notice is not required because class members do not have a right to opt out.
Specific Findings and Conclusions
A case will be tried by the court without a jury if no right to a jury trial exists (or if it has been waived). The court is the finder of fact; it must find the facts specially and state its conclusions of law separately. The findings and conclusions may be stated on the record after the close of the evidence or may appear in an opinion or a memorandum of decision filed by the court. The court is not required to state findings or conclusions when ruling on a motion under Rule 12 (motions against the complaint) or 56 (summary judgment) or, unless the rules provide otherwise, on any other motion.
Receiver
Although generally a district court order that does not constitute a final order is not immediately appealable, there is a special statutory exception for an order that appoints or refuses to appoint a receiver. The special statutory exception applies both to an order that results in the appointment of a receiver and to an order that refuses such an appointment.
Venue Transfer
If venue is transferred under the change of venue rules of 28 U.S.C. § 1404, the new court must apply the law of the state of the transferor court, including that state’s rules regarding conflict of laws.
Expert Disclosure
Under Rule 37(c)(1), if a party fails to make or supplement its automatic disclosures as required by Rules 26(a) and (e), then the party will not be permitted to use the documents or witnesses that were not disclosed unless the nondisclosure was substantially justified or was harmless.
Voluntary Dismissal
A plaintiff may dismiss an action without court approval or the agreement of the other parties prior to the service of an answer or summary judgment motion.
Discovery re Insurance Agreements
Unless otherwise agreed by stipulation or ordered by the court, each party must provide to the other parties for inspection and copying, any insurance agreement under which an insurance business may be liable to satisfy all or part of a possible judgment in the action or to indemnify or reimburse for payments made to satisfy the judgment. Accordingly, the defendant is required to make the insurance agreement available to the plaintiff even if the plaintiff does not ask for it.
