Personal Jurisdiction Flashcards
Basic Concept of Personal Jur
- deals w/ court’s power over the parties
-> vs. subject matter jur deals w/ power over case - court automatically has jur over pl b/c they filed case -> big q = whether there’s PJ over def
Two-Step Analysis for Personal Jurisdiction
1 - exercise of PJ must first fall w/in a state statute
2 - exercise of PJ must satisfy the Constitution (due process)
- same in both fed + state ct (no difference in analysis either way)
Personal Jurisdiction - Statutory Step
- each state has own statute for PJ (CHECK NC’s)
- each state has a “long arm” statute
Long Arm Statute
- grants PJ over nonresidents who perform or cause certain things w/in the state
- in many states, this just says it allows courts to exercise PJ to the full extent of the Constitution -> statutory grant of PJ becomes the same as constitutional test
- other states have laundry-list long-arm statutes -> specify the situations in which exercise of PJ is statutorily authorized
Constitutional Analysis - Core Q
- does the defendant have such minimum contacts with the forum so jurisdiction does not offend traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice?
Constitutional Analysis - Key Factors
- contact
- relatedness
- fairness
Constitutional Analysis - Contact
- there must be relevant “minimum contacts” between defendant + forum state
- two factors to be addressed = purposeful availment + foreseeability
Constitutional Analysis - Purposeful Availment
- the contact must result from Defendant’s purposeful availment (i.e. voluntary act)
-> means def must reach out to the forum, + the contact must result from this targeting of the forum - def CAN avail w/o setting foot in the forum though (by causing an effect in the forum)
Purposeful Availment - Examples
1) marketing a product in the forum
2) using the roads in a forum
3) establishing a domicile in the forum
4) traveling in the forum
5) sending a tortious email into the forum
6) maintaining an interactive website w/in the forum may be sufficient for PJ if def was targeting customers or readers w/in the forum
Contact - Foreseeability
- is it foreseeable that def could be sued in the forum?
Constitutional Analysis - Relatedness
- core q: does pl’s claim arise from or relate to def’s contact w/ the forum?
-> if “yes”, the case involves “specific pj”
-> if “no”, the only way to proceed is if the court has general PJ
How to Test For Relatedness
- q = whether pl’s claim “arises out of or relates to” def’s contact w/ the forum
-> definitely arises out of the contact if def’s contact caused the harm to pl
-> even if contact didn’t clearly cause the injury, relatedness satisfied if def has substantial contact w/ forum state + the claim merely relates to def’s contacts w/ the forum
What happens if relatedness is satisfied?
- case gets assessed for specific PJ -> next assess whether exercise of jur would be fair or reasonable
General PJ - Requirements
- exists where def is either at home in the forum or has registered to do business in the state + has appointed an agent for service of process there (assuming state law authorizes pj on this basis)
General PJ -Significance
- look for this if relatedness is NOT satisfied
- if general PJ exists, def can be sued in the forum on a claim that arose anywhere in the world
Where is a human always “at home”?
- where the human is domiciled -> means you’re then subject to general pj there
Significance of Def Being Served with Process in a State
- court has general jurisdiction when def is served w/ process in the state
- concept of “tag jurisdiction” (even if you’re temporarily there, you’re still subject to gen pj if you’re served)
Where is a corporation subject to general PJ?
- in any state that allows PJ to be exercised on registration w/ the state
-> failing that, the co must be “at home” in the forum - applies to:
1) the state in which it is incorporated AND
2) the state in which it has its principal place of business
Personal Jurisdiction - Exam Tip
- DON’T FORGET THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF PJ
-> general AND specific -> means that even if you don’t have one, may still have the other
-> i.e. even if def not “at home”, might still have specific pj
Constitutional Analysis - Fairness
- assess whether PJ would be fair (or reasonable) under the circumstances
- ONLY addressed for specific PJ (NOT for general)
Fairness Factors
- burden of def + witnesses
- state’s interest
- pl’s interest
Fairness - Burden on Def + Witnesses
- due process doesn’t guarantee most convenient forum for def
-> forum constitutionally okay unless def can show severe disadvantage in the litigation (very difficult to meet)
Fairness - State’s Interest
- forum state may want to provide a courtroom for its citizens who are allegedly being harmed by out-of-state defs
- should mention state’s interest in answer to essay q
Fairness - Pl’s Interest
- pl is maybe injured in forum state and/or wants to sue at home
Summary of the Constitutional Test for PJ
- contact: purposeful availment + foreseeability
- relatedness (arise out of and relate to) -> determines whether jur will be based on gen pj or specific
- fairness (specific PJ only): burden/convenience, state’s interest, plaintiff’s interest
Limits on Personal Jurisdiction - Statutory
States generally require that def:
- is present in the forum state at the time of service
- is domiciled in the forum state
- has given express or implied consent to jurisdiction OR
- meets the requirements of the forum’s states long arm or other statute
Limits on Personal Jurisdiction - Constitutional: Contacts
Contacts must show that def:
- purposefully availed herself of the forum state’s laws AND
- knew or reasonably should’ve anticipated that her activities in the forum made it foreseeable that she may be “haled into court” there
Limits on Personal Jurisdiction - Constitutional: Relatedness
- if the claim is related to def’s contact w/ the forum, a court is more likely to find that jur as to that claim (specific jur) is fair + reasonable OR
- if claim = unrelated to def’s contact w/ the forum, the court must have gen jur over def, which requires the def to have registered to do business or be at home in the jur
Limits on Personal Jurisdiction - Constitutional: Fairness
Court will also consider:
- whether forum is “so gravely difficult + inconvenient” that the def is put at a severe disadvantage
- forum state’s legit interest in providing redress for its resident
- pl’s interest in obtaining convenient + effective relief
- interstate judicial system’s interest in efficiency AND
- shared interest of the states in furthering social policies
