Civil Procedure Outline
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
3:26 PM
1. Personal Jurisdiction
A. In Personam Jurisdiction: Statute must allow the court to exercise in personam jurisdiction, and then the constitutionality is determined.
1. Statutory Limitations
a. States have statutes granting their courts in personam jurisdiction in four situations:
i. Physical Presence at Time of Personal Service: States grant in personam jurisdiction when the defendant is present in the state, even if it is unrelated to his brief passing through.
· State Law Exceptions to Traditional Rule
· If a plaintiff brings a defendant into a state by fraud or force to serve process, most courts will find the service invalid.
· Most state also grant immunity to nonresidents who are present in the state to take part in a judicial proceeding, or passing through the state on the way to a judicial proceeding.
ii. Domicile: Permanent Residence, coupled with the intention to make that place their home.
iii. Consent
· Express Consent
· By Contract: A person can, by contract, give advance consent to jurisdiction in the event a suit is brought against him.
· By Appointment: A person can, by contract, appoint an agent in a particular state to receive service in that state in an action against him.
· Implied Consent: By engaging in in-state activity, the nonresident appoints a designated state official as his agent for service of process. (Example: Motorists subject in any state in which he has an accident.)
· Voluntary Appearance: A defendant may consent to jurisdiction by a voluntary appearance (by contesting the case without challenging personal jurisdiction).
iv. Long Arm Statutes
· Unlimited Long Arm Statutes: give the court power over any person or property over which the state can constitutionally exercise jurisdiction.
· Limited (Specific) Long Arm Statutes: specify in detail the situations in which their courts can exercise jurisdiction.
2. Constitutional Limitations
a. Minimum Contacts
· International Shoe requires that the defendant have such minimum contacts with the forum that the exercise of jurisdiction would be fair and reasonable.
i. Contact
· Purposeful Availment
· The defendant must purposefully avail itself of the privilege of conducting activities within the forum state, thus invoking the benefits and protections of its laws.
· Stream of Commerce
· If the sale of a product of a manufacturer or distributor . . . is not simply an isolated occurrence, but arises from the efforts of the manufacturer or distributor to serve, directly or indirectly, the market for its product in other States, it is not unreasonable to subject it to suit in one of those States if its allegedly defective merchandise has been the source of injury to its owner or to others.
· The forum state does not exceed its powers under the Due Process Clause if it asserts personal jurisdiction over a corporation that delivers its products into the stream of commerce with the expectation that they will be purchased by consumers in the forum state.
· Foreseeability: The defendant must know or reasonably anticipate that her activities in the forum render it foreseeable that she may be subject to jurisdiction there.
· Relatedness of Claim to Contact
· Specific Jurisdiction: Claim Arising from Activity in the State
· If the defendant’s in-state activity is less than systematic or continuous, jurisdiction will be proper only for causes of action arising from that in-state activity.
· General Jurisdiction: Systematic and Continuous Activity in the State
· If the defendant engages in systematic and continuous activity in the forum state, the court could have jurisdiction for any cause of action against the defendant, whether the cause of action arose from in-state activity or from activity outside the state.
ii. Fairness: The exercise of jurisdiction must not offend traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice.
·
of computer files over the Internet, personal jurisdiction is proper.
o Posted Information:
o Interactive Web Site: A user can exchange information with the host computer.
o Passive Web Site: does little more than make information available to those who are interested in it is not grounds for the exercise of personal jurisdiction.
Young v. New Haven Advocate: A State may exercise judicial power over a person outside of the State when that person (1) directs electronic activity into the State, (2) with the manifested intent of engaging in business or other interactions within the State, and (3) that activity creates, in a person within the State, a potential cause of action cognizable in the State’s courts.
Federal Subject-Matter Jurisdiction
Diversity Jurisdiction–28 U.S.C.§1332: The district courts shall have original jurisdiction of all civil actions where the matter in controversy exceeds the sum or value of $75,000, exclusive of interest and costs, and is between
(1) citizens of different states;
(2) citizens of a State and citizens or subjects of a foreign state;
(3) citizens of different States and in which citizens or subjects of a foreign state are additional parties; and
(4) a foreign state, defined as plaintiff and citizens of a State or of different States.
Complete Diversity of Citizenship Requirement: Citizenship is determined at the time that the complaint is filed.
Individuals: citizens of their domicile
Residence within a State (or U.S. territory) WITH
Intention to remain there for an indefinite period of time (Subjective).
**A person cannot have multiple domiciles.
Corporations: citizens of any State in which:
It is Incorporated; or
It has its principal place of business
Nerve Center Test: locus of corporate decision-making authority and overall control
Corporate Activities Test: location of a corporation’s production or service activities
Total Activity Test: hybrid of both Nerve Center and Corporate Activities Tests
