Civil Procedure Flashcards
Subject Matter Jurisdiction: Federal Question (20%)
a) A federal court MUST have SMJ in order to decide cases before it. A federal court has SMJ under federal question jurisdiction if the complaint alleges a claim that arises under federal law.
b) Well-Pleaded Complaint Rule. The federal question MUST be presented on the face of the plaintiff’s complaint. Raising a defense or filing a counterclaim under federal law does NOT trigger federal question jurisdiction.
Subject Matter Jurisdiction: Diversity Jurisdiction (34%)
a) A federal court has SMJ under diversity jurisdiction if:
(1) Complete Diversity is present – every citizenship represented on the plaintiff’s side of the case must be different than EVERY citizenship represented on the defendant’s side of the case; AND
(2) The amount in controversy (AIC) exceeds $75,000.
(a) A claim for injunctive relief may be valued by the benefit to the plaintiff
or the cost of compliance for the defendant.
(b) One plaintiff can aggregate all of her claims against one defendant to meet the AIC requirement. One plaintiff can also aggregate all of her claims against multiple defendants if the defendants are jointly liable.
(c) If there are multiple plaintiffs; generally, each plaintiff’s claim must meet the AIC requirement separately (unless supplemental jurisdiction applies).
b) A federal court does NOT have diversity jurisdiction for probate actions and domestic relation matters (e.g., divorce, child support/custody, etc.)
Subject Matter Jurisdiction: Citizenship (18%)
a) The citizenship of each party to the action must be considered in order to decide whether complete diversity is present. The rules for determining citizenship vary depending on the types of parties involved:
(1) Individuals. For individuals, citizenship is determined by the individual’s state or country of domicile (i.e., the place of residence where the individual intends to remain indefinitely). An individual can only have one domicile at a time.
(2) Corporations. Corporations hold dual citizenship for diversity purposes:
(a) The state or country of incorporation; AND
(b) The state or country of its principal place of business (i.e., the “nerve
(3) Unincorporated Associations. Unincorporated associations and partnerships (e.g., unions, trade associations, partnerships, and limited partnerships) are considered a citizen of every state of which its members are citizens.
(4) Class Actions. For class actions, the citizenship of each named party in the class who are suing count for diversity purposes. Class members that are not named may join without regard to citizenship.
Subject Matter Jurisdiction: Supplemental Jurisdiction (14%
a) Supplemental jurisdiction allows a federal court with valid SMJ over a case to hear additional claims over which the court would NOT independently have jurisdiction if ALL the claims constitute the same case or controversy. Claims constitute the “same case or controversy” if they arise out of a common nucleus of operative fact (meaning all the claims arise out of the same transaction or occurrence).
b) Federal Question Cases. A federal court sitting in federal question jurisdiction may hear a pendent state law claim under supplemental jurisdiction if the state law claim arises out the same transaction or occurrence as the federal law claim.
(1) For example: P sues D for copyright infringement (federal law) and breach of
contract (state law). A federal court may hear the breach of contract claim IF the breach arose out of the same transaction or occurrence as the copyright
infringement claim. This holds true if the state and federal claims are spread out against multiple defendants (called “pendent party” jurisdiction – P v. D1Copyright Infringement, D2Breack of K).
c) Diversity Cases. There are three types of claims where supplemental jurisdiction is commonly tested in diversity cases:
(1) Compulsory Counterclaims. A compulsory counterclaim is a counterclaim (usually the defendant countersuing the plaintiff) that arises out of the same transaction or occurrence as the original claim filed. A federal court sitting in diversity jurisdiction has supplemental jurisdiction over a compulsory counterclaim.
(2) Permissive Counterclaims. A permissive counterclaim is a counterclaim (usually the defendant countersuing the plaintiff) that does NOT arise out of the same transaction or occurrence as the original claim filed. A permissive counterclaim can only be heard if it independently satisfies diversity jurisdiction (e.g., complete diversity is present + amount in controversy exceeds $75,000).
(3) Cross-Claims. A cross-claim is a claim filed by a plaintiff against another plaintiff or by a defendant against a co-defendant. A federal court sitting in diversity jurisdiction has supplemental jurisdiction over a cross-claim if the cross-claim arises out of the same transaction or occurrence as the original claim.
Personal Jurisdiction: Requirements (16%)
a) A court MUST have personal jurisdiction in order to adjudicate the rights and liabilities of a defendant. If any of the following four “traditional bases” are satisfied, the court will have personal jurisdiction over the defendant:
(1) Domicile. Domicile will be satisfied if the defendant is domiciled in the forum state. If the defendant is a corporation, it must be “at home” in the forum state (e.g., state of incorporation + principal place of business).
(2) Physical Presence. Service of process on the defendant while he is physically present in the forum state will satisfy this base UNLESS the defendant was in the state only to answer a summons or was brought there by force or fraud.
(3) Consent. Out-of-state defendants may consent to personal jurisdiction (can be express or implied by conduct).
(4) Waiver. Unlike subject matter jurisdiction, lack of personal jurisdiction can be waived by the defendant. A defendant waives any objection to personal jurisdiction by substantial participation on the merits before raising the objection (e.g., making a general appearance).
b) If none of the traditional bases are satisfied above, personal jurisdiction may still be obtained by using a state long-arm statute. This requires (via Constitutional Due Process) that minimum contacts exist between the defendant and the forum state. Sufficient minimum contacts exist when:
(1) General or specific jurisdiction is present (see below); AND
(2) The exercise of such jurisdiction does NOT offend traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice – courts weigh the following factors to determine fairness of the forum jurisdiction in regard to the defendant:
(a) Convenience for the defendant;
(b) Whether the forum state has a legitimate interest in providing redress;
(c) Whether the plaintiff’s interest in obtaining relief is proper;
(d) The interstate judicial system’s interest in efficiency; AND
(e) The shared interest of the several states in furthering social policies.
Personal Jurisdiction: Specific Jurisdiction (14%)
a) Specific Jurisdiction gives courts jurisdiction over out-of-state defendants for the defendant’s specific contact with the forum state. The claim MUST arise out of the defendant’s specific contact with the forum state. Specific jurisdiction is present if:
(1) The defendant purposefully availed himself of the benefits of the forum state (e.g., using state highways); AND
(2) The defendant knew or reasonably should have anticipated that his activities in the forum state made it foreseeable that he may be “hailed into court” there.
b) Stream of Commerce Cases. Generally, there will be specific jurisdiction over a defendant if the defendant:
(1) Places a product in the stream of commerce in the forum state; AND
(2) Commits some other act to show intent to serve the forum state.
c) Internet Cases. Generally, internet cases involve either passive or active websites.
(1) Passive Websites. A passive website is a website that is used for information purposes rather than online sales and commerce. Generally, the maintenance of a passive website, without more activity in the forum, is insufficient for general jurisdiction. However, it may be sufficient for specific jurisdiction if the defendant is targeting readers in the forum.
(2) Active Websites. An active website is a website that is used for online commerce to make sales. The maintenance of an active website may be sufficient for general jurisdiction if the defendant is conducting significant business in the forum state such that the defendant is at home in the forum.
Venue
a) Venue. Venue determines the judicial district in which a lawsuit may be filed or commenced. Venue is proper in a judicial district where:
(1) ANY defendant resides, IF all the defendants reside in the same state;
(2) A substantial part of the events or omissions giving rise to the claim occurred,
or a substantial part of property that is the subject of the action is located; OR
(3) If there is NO district anywhere in the United States that satisfies (1) or (2), a
judicial district in which ANY defendant is subject to personal jurisdiction.
b) Residence. For venue purposes, the rules for determining the defendant’s residence
vary depending on the type of party involved:
(1) Individuals. An individual is deemed to reside in the judicial district where he is domiciled.
(2) Business Entities. A business entity is deemed to reside in any judicial district where the entity is subject to personal jurisdiction with respect to the action in question.
(3) Foreign Defendants. A defendant who is NOT a resident of the United States, whether a U.S. citizen or an alien, may be sued in ANY judicial district.
c) NOTE. The rules to determine residence for venue purposes are different than the rules to determine citizenship for jurisdiction purposes.
Motion for Summary Judgement (10%)
a) A MSJ may be filed at any time until 30 days after the close of discovery.
b) A MSJ must be granted if, from the pleadings, affidavits, and discovery materials on file, when viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, it appears that:
(1) No genuine dispute of material fact exists; AND
(2) The moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
c) Summary judgment may be partial (e.g., limited to certain issues rather than the entire
case) . Denial of a MSJ is NOT appealable.
