Civil Procedure I Outline

Civil Procedure Outline

General Info.
– Sources of Federal Civil Procedure (listed in descending order of power)
– 1. Constitution- most powerful legal document in U.S.
– 2. 28 U.S.C. sections- passed by Congress to set certain rules
– 3. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure- promulgated by Supreme Court
– 4. Decisional Law- aims to fill in gaps or variations
– Overview of Court System
– There are 50 state systems, and 1 federal system
Federal courts have uniform, while state courts may vary greatly

I. Personal Jurisdiction – A court’s power to bring a person into its adjudicative process; jurisdiction over a defendant’s personal rights, rather than merely over property interests.
a. Full Faith and Credit Clause- article IV section 1, and 28 U.S.C. 1738
i. Full faith and credit given to one state shall be recognized in other states. Valid court judgments must be recognized.
1. If D lost case in KS, as a citizen of IL he would still be liable
Due Process Clause (5th and 14th amendment)
ii. Cannot deprive life, liberty, or property without due process
iii. If a judgment is rendered in a state where they did not have jurisdiction, that judgment cannot be held in full faith and credit
Pennoyer v. Neff
Holding:
The state was not justified in granting a judgment against a non-resident when he was not present and because he may not have received notice. So the original sale of land to Pennoyer should not have been valid, since the summons by publication was not sufficient to constitute attachment to the land, nor did it qualify the state to have jurisdiction in personam or in rem against Neff.

A. Neff would have had to appear in court, or be found in the state, or be a resident of Oregon, or have had already bought the 300 acres of land at the time the judgment was made by that jurisdiction (or have any other property in OR).

Pennoyer’s Impact
– Actual personal service of process w/in the state is necessary to acquire jurisdiction on a non-resident when an attachment of property is not found
– The authority of every tribunal is necessarily restricted by the boundaries of the state in which it is established (p. 62)
o Relevant for both state and federal courts
– Every state possesses exclusive jurisdiction and sovereignty over persons and property within its territory
o Every state has the power to determine for itself the civil status and capacities of its inhabitants…(p. 63)
– Exceptions to states having exclusive control over their persons and property within their boundaries include:
o Dissolving marital relations (but not child support or alimony), if a corporation or someone doing business in their state (they can designate an agent, and states sometime force companies to consent to jurisdiction now)
States may also obtain jurisdiction through: Consent.
– If Neff had showed up in court against Mitchell, he could have been held under Oregon’s jurisdiction. This is a right that can be accidentally waived
Getting around Pennoyer:
o Designated Agents
§ Some states would require agents for people to force them into consenting to their jurisdiction
o Non-resident motorist statutes
§ Driving on roads in a state can hold you to their jurisdiction if you get in an accident (implied consent)
o Domicile
§ Jurisdiction for people who reside in the state
Types of Judgments that a court will render:
In Personam
– Jurisdiction against a person; judgment is limitless—money, inj. relief, etc.
– Need to have physical service of process for In Personam cases.
In Rem
– An action against a piece of property. The judgment is the value of the property.
– For In Rem cases, if the property is attached by the court, the court asserts jurisdiction over that property, and does not have to be served in person.
– Publication would suffice.
– If a property is attached by a court, it should be known that court has jurisdiction upon that property. So a lesser notice is acceptable
Quasi in Rem
– A case that is in personam (like Mitchell v. Neff), or against a person, but property is taken for a substitute in order to satisfy the judgment.
Collateral Attack and Waiver
Personal jurisdiction can be waived if someone appears in that state court
– Defendants have two options
o Collateral attack, allow default judgment to be taken against you, then show up and attack the judgment against you
§ If you lose on the jurisdictional challenge, then you are going to lose so this is a very risky strategy
§ Default judgment is the only one you can attack collaterally
o Rule 12 permits D to appear in court the first time, and attack personal jurisdiction, but you have to do it the first time you appear. Sending something in the mail is considering “appearing” in court
§ You can either file an answer to the complaint where you raise 12(b) and challenge jurisdiction
§ You can also file a pre-answer motion, but if you do this you must challenge personal jurisdiction in this document, since it was the first one filed (i.e. you couldn’t file a pre-answer, then try to challenge personal jurisdiction only in the answer).
Milliken v. Meyer [you can be served in another state for a suit in your home state] o D was a resident of Wyoming, served in CO for a suit in WY.
o Court says in this situation, traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice implicit in due process are satisfied
Corporations can be held to jurisdiction:
o In state of incorporation
o Through designated Agents
§ agents in states accept process for them
o If they are deemed to be present (“principal place of business”)
§ If corp. is doing business in state – they are present,

II. Minimum Contacts
International Shoe Co. v. Washington (1945)
a. “A person or company does not have to be physically present in a state in order for that state to have jurisdiction over him, as long as he or it has enough “minimum contacts” with the state so that the exercise of jurisdiction is “consistent with fair play and substantial justice.”
b. Now, if a company has minimal, systematic contact with a state, then that state can hold them to the state’s jurisdiction.
i. There is no hard-nosed rule about what exactly constituted minimum contacts; consistent with fair play and substantial justice.
Two kinds of jurisdiction:
1. Specific Jurisdiction (what person did in state is what they’re being sued)
o Contacts are continuous