Conflict of Laws Flashcards
Under the full faith and credit doctrine, state courts are:
required to give full faith and credit to the judgments of other states AND are required to treat federal judgments as those judgments would be treated by federal courts
In a diversity action, the district court is required to:
apply the substantive law of the state in which the district court is located, if there is no federal law on point
If a procedural issue is addressed by a valid federal law, then the federal law will be applied for procedural issues, even if a state rule or statute is in conflict
Most Significant Relationship Test (Restatement, Second)
Applies the law of the state with the most significant relationship
Torts: place of injury, place where conduct causing injury occurred, domicile of parties, place where relationship is centered
Contracts: consider place of performance, place of contracting, place of negotiation, party domicile
In a contract with an express COL provision, the provision governs unless:
(1) it is contrary to public policy of the forum state,
(2) there is no reasonable basis for the parties choice, OR
(3) true consent was not given because of fraud or mistake
Vested Rights Approach
The law that controls is the law of the jurisdiction where the parties’ rights were vested
First characterize: substance v. procedure, tort, contract, property
Torts: place where last even necessary to make the actor liable for the tort took place
Contracts: place of execution determines validity, defenses to formation and interpretation; place of performance determines performance
Governmental Interest Approach
Presumption that the forum state will apply its own law, but parties may request that another state’s law be applied because that state has a greater interest in the outcome
Torts: forum state law so long as it has a legit interest
Contracts: forum applies its own law so long as it has legit interest
Personal Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction over the people or entities due to their contacts
General PJ: A court may always exercise PJ over a D in the state in which he is domiciled
Specific PJ: minimal contacts are sufficient so long as the COA arises out of the contacts
Tag PJ: PJ is proper over D personally served with summons and complaint while inside state
- may not be “tagged” while in the state for judicial proceedings or making an appearance to contest PJ
Venue is proper:
In any district in which any D resides so long as all D’s reside in the same state, or in the state where a substantial amount of the events given rise to the COA accrued
If neither exist, then any district with PJ over D will suffice.
A court with improper venue need not dismiss a case - it can transfer to a proper venue that has PJ and SMJ over the case.
Supplemental jurisdiction over state law claims is proper in federal court under federal question when:
The state law claim arises out of the same common nucleus of operative fact as the federal claim
