Jurisdiction and Venue Flashcards
(20 cards)
Federal Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Federal Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Federal courts are tribunals with limited subject matter jurisdiction in civil cases. Generally, state and federal courts have subject matter jurisdiction concurrently unless the federal court has exclusive jursidiction as designated by statute or the constitution. The two main bases of subject matter jurisdiction are federal question and diversity cases. Federal courts can also have supplemental jurisdiction over a state law claim that would not satisfy the diversity requirements.
Federal Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Federal Question
The lawsuit must arise directly under federal law. The federal issues must be on the face of a well-plead complaint.
IF AN AMENDED COMPLAINT ASSERTS A CLAIM UNDER FEDERAL LAW, FEDERAL QUESTION IS SATISFIED.
Federal Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Diversity Jurisdiction
There must be complete diversity at the time the case is filed and the amount in controversy must exceed $75,000. State citizenship for individuals is determined by their domicile – the true, fixed, permanent home to which the individual intends to return to when absent.
In deciding a motion to dismiss on jurisdictional grounds, the court will take a claim for relief at face value with respect to the amount in controversy unless it appears to a legal certainty that the claim is really for less than the jurisdictional amount.
Federal Subject Matter Jurisdiction: Diversity Jurisdiction
Aggregation
There are three scenarios that come up with aggregation, which is the act of adding up claims to exceed the amount in controversy of $75,000. First, if there is a single plaintiff against a single defendant, the plaintiff may add up all of their claims, even if they are unrelated, to exceed the $75,000 threshold. Second, a single plaintiff cannot aggregate their claims to meet the threshold against multiple defendants unless they are jointly and severally liable to the plaintiff, meaning the plaintiff may go after any defendant for the full amount. Finally, two or more plaintiffs cannot aggregate their claims unless they are seeking to enforce a right to which they have a common interest – if one plaintiff’s claim fails, the other plaintiff will collect a larger share.
Federal Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Supplemental Jurisdiction
A state claim may be brought in federal court if it arises out of the same common nucleus of operative fact as the intial claim.
A COURT MAY, NOT MUST, HEAR A STATE LAW CLAIM IF IT SO RELATED TO A FEDERAL CLAIM THAT THEY FORM PART OF THE SAME CASE OR CONTROVERSY.
Federal Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Removal
A defendant may remove an action to federal court within 30 days after being put on notice that the case is removable (but not over a year in diversity cases, unless the plaintiff has acted in bad faith. A defendant cannot remove on diversity grounds if any defendant is a citizen of the state in which he is being used. Further, a defendant only has one venue option: it may remove to a federal court which geographically embraces the state court where the suit was originally filed.
Federal Subject Matter Jurisdiction
Remand
If a party wishes to file a motion to remand to state court for failure to comply with procedural requirements of this rule, it may do so within 30 days after removal.
Personal Jursidiction
General Jursidiction (Automatic: Domicile, Physcial Presence, Waiver, Consent).
The plaintiff can sue the defendant for anything generally. Look for consent (express or implied due to failure to properly object), physical presence (continuous and systematic contacts with the state or presence in the state when served), and domicile.
General jurisdiction (also called “all-purpose” jurisdiction) permits a court to exercise jurisdiction over any claim against a defendant if the defendant has extensive connections with the forum.
Personal Jurisdiction
General Jurisdiction Continued
General (all-purpose) jurisdiction is proper over a corporation only when the continuous corporate operations within a state are so substantial and of such a nature as to justify suit on causes of action arising from dealings entirely distinct from those activities. The proper test is not whether the activities are “continuous and systematic,” it is whether the business’ affiliations with the State are so continous and systematic as to render it essentially at home in the forum state.
There are only a limited set of affiliations with a forum state that will jusitfy concluding that the corporation is “essentially at home” with the state: the affiliations are place of incorporation and principal place of business.
Personal Jursidiction
Domicile
An individual is domiciled in the place where they permanently reside or intend to remain definitely, a corporation is domiciled in the state where it is incorporated or where its principal place of business is located, and a partnership or LLC is domiciled where its members or partners are citizens.
TWO NOTES: FIRST, IF THE QUESTION SAYS THE LOCATION OF THE CORPORATION’S PRINCIPAL PLACE OF BUSINESS IS DEFINED AS THE CORPORATION’S “HEADQUARTERS,” THIS IS RIGHT. SECOND, A CORPORATION IS A CITIZEN OF BOTH ITS PRINCIPAL PLACE OF BUSINESS AND ITS STATE OF INCORPORATION (SO REMEMBER THIS FOR DIVERSITY PURPOSES).
Personal Jurisdiction
Waiver
If a party does not respond in their answer challenging personal jurisdiction, they are deemed to have waived the defense. Amending an answer right after the party filed it, however, may revive the personal jurisdiction challenge and defeat waiver.
Parties can raise their PJ challenges for the first time in an amended answer (21 days after filing the original complaint).
Personal Jursidiction
Specific Jursidiction (Constitutional Analysis)
The lawsuit must arise out of the specific contacts with the state (a tort committed in the state or a contract or business transaction arising out of the specific contacts with the state). It must be both constitutional under the state constitution (a long-arm statute) and under the Due Process Clause of the United States (there must be minimum contacts so as to not offend the traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice).
If the accident happened in the state, that is sufficient minimum contacts for the non-resident defendant of that state.
In a specific jurisdiction analysis, two critical questions are whether the quality and nature of a parties’ contacts with the jurisdiction are such that it can reasonably anticipate being haled into court there and whether those contacts are such that it is reasonable to expect the party to defend the action in the state.
For specific jurisdiction to be proper, there must be an “affiliation between the forum and the underlying controversy principally, activity or an occurrence that takes place in the forum State and is therefore subject to the State’s regulation.
Service of Process and Notice
Service of Process
The plaintiff has 90 days to serve the defendant with a summons and a copy of the complaint (and the defendant has 21 days to respond). The process server must be at least 18 years old and not a party to the case. The plaintiff may use any of the following methods to serve the defendant: the plaintiff may follow the state law methods where the federal court is located or where service is made, the plaintiff may deliver a copy of the summons and a copy of the complaint to an agent appointed by the defendant or by law, the plaintiff may deliver a copy of the summons and a copy of the complaint to the individual personally, or the plaintiff may leave a summons and a copy of the complaint at the individual’s dwelling or usual place of abode with someone of suitable age and discretion who resides there.
Service of Process and Notice
Waiver of Formal Service of Process
A plaintiff may ask a defendant to waive formal service of process by sending the complaint, two copies of a waiver form, and a prepaid means for returning the form via first-class mail or other reliable means. If the defendant waives formal service, it has 60 days to answer the complaint (rather than 21). If defendant does not, it must pay for formal service.
If a defendant does not waive the service timely, the plaintiff must formally serve the defendant before the defendant would have an obligation to respond. A defendant is not obligated to respond to a waiver request.
Service of Process and Notice
Serving a Corporation
To serve a corporation, a plaintiff may use the state law methods where the district court is located or where service is made, it may serve an officer, it may serve a general or managing agent authorized, or any other agent appointed to receive service.
Venue, Forum Non Conveniens, and Transfer
Venue
Venue is proper where any defendant resides if all defendants reside in the same state or where a substantial part of the events or omissions giving rise to the claim occurred. For venue purposes, a corporation resides in all districts where that corporation is subejct to personal jurisdiction. A court may transfer a case to a different venue in certain circumstances.
Venue, Forum Non Conveniens, and Transfer
Transfer to Proper Venue
A transfer to a proper venue occurs when the case is simply filed in the wrong venue. The law of the transferee court applies.
Venue, Forum Non Conveniens, and Transfer
Transfer to More Appropriate Forum
A transfer to a more appropriate forum occurs when there is a more appropriate forum available to hear the case. The court may transfer it in the interests of justice. The law of the transferor court applies.
Venue, Forum Non Conveniens, and Transfer
Forum Non Conveniens
If a case should be litigated in a different forum, such as a different country or a state court, the court may dismiss the case to allow so.
Venue, Forum Non Conveniens, and Transfer
Forum Selection Clause
A forum selection clause allows parties to agree to litigate in a certain venue. If someone files in the wrong forum that is not specified in the clause, the proper remedy is transfer, not a dismissal.
