A new decision by the United States Supreme Court has greatly expanded the locations where corporations can be sued. Traditionally, corporations are considered to be citizens of the states in which they are incorporated or...more
A business plan to promote vodka sales in North Carolina, with a particular focus on Duke University sports fans, was key to a North Carolina Business Court decision that GameDay Vodka had sufficient contacts with the state...more
The two most thrilling words to readers of legal blogs must be “personal jurisdiction.” In the term that starts October 2022, the United States Supreme Court will consider a case that will determine the constitutionality of...more
This week, the Ninth Circuit addresses the constitutionality of a school district’s decision to revoke official status for a student group that disapproves of same sex relationships, and the minimum contacts necessary to...more
This week, the Ninth Circuit clarifies personal jurisdiction doctrine in the context of a defamation suit between a nonresident plaintiff and out-of-state defendants. BURRI LAW PA v. SKURLA - The Court vacates the...more
Personal jurisdiction is one of those basic concepts in civil procedure that evokes strong memories in most lawyers, of their first year in law school, cases like International Shoe, Burger King, Helicopteros, and World-Wide...more
A patentee may establish “minimum contacts” in a forum, thus subjecting itself to specific personal jurisdiction, by sending a cease and desist letter to the forum. Precedent concerning this issue has been evolving....more
As commerce has expanded nationally and globally, the Supreme Court of the United States has continuously revisited and tweaked its jurisprudence relating to a court's exercise of personal jurisdiction over non-resident...more
Allied Fitting LP v. Steptoe & Johnson LLP et al., No. 4:20-cv-03447 (S.D. Tex. Jan. 21, 2021) - Brief Summary - A Texas federal district court dismissed a legal malpractice action brought by an international steel...more
This week, the Ninth Circuit explains when courts have personal jurisdiction over foreigners who contract with U.S.-based businesses, and whether severe pain can qualify as a disability under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’...more
R.M. v. Dennis, Jackson, Martin & Fontela, P.A., 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 68115 Brief Summary - Utah's federal district court granted a motion to dismiss filed by a Florida-based law firm and its associate (collectively...more
Business Court examines personal jurisdiction over restoration company CEO- Hurricane Florence made landfall near Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina on September 14, 2018, and its slow-moving chaos brought more than 30...more
Addressing personal jurisdiction in a declaratory judgment action, the US Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit reversed the district court’s bench trial verdict, finding that the district court lacked specific personal...more
Courts across jurisdictions have grappled for years with reconciling the personal jurisdiction “minimum contacts” test with the fact that “the [I]nternet operates ‘in’ every state regardless of where the user is physically...more
A Post-URAA Patent that Issues After but Expires Before a Related Pre-URAA Patent Is Not a Double-Patenting Reference Against the Pre-URAA Patent - In Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. Breckenridge Pharmaceutical Inc.,...more
Assignor Estoppel Does Not Apply in the IPR Context - In Arista Networks, Inc. v. Cisco Systems, Inc., Appeal Nos. 2017-1525, 2017-1577, the Federal Circuit held that the plain language of 35 U.S.C. § 311(a) unambiguously...more
Federal Circuit Summary - Before Newman, Wallach, and Stoll. Appeal from the District Court of the Northern District of Texas. Summary: There is no generalized rule that sending letters alleging patent infringement...more
Federal Circuit Summary - Before Dyk, Reyna, and Hughes. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Summary: In the context of a suit for a declaration of non-infringement and...more
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California recently held that a Hong Kong resident who had made online purchases of wine through a California retailer was subject to personal jurisdiction. See Kasolas...more
Is a foreign online customer of a bankrupt goods supplier subject to personal jurisdiction in the United States, when sued by a bankruptcy trustee for fraudulent transfers? Yes, says the Bankruptcy Court for the Northern...more
On February 9, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal of aiding and abetting claims against UBS AG, AIA LLC, and their affiliated entities and individuals. SPV Osus Ltd. v. UBS...more
The Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York recently held that a foreign counsel cannot be sanctioned for an attempt to assist its client in avoiding discovery orders issued by the court, when personal...more
The U.S. Supreme Court in recent years has been steadfast in cabining the authority of state courts to assert personal jurisdiction over corporate defendants in civil cases. In 2017, the Court has continued this trend on...more
Three years after its decision in Walden v. Fiore, the U.S. Supreme Court issued another decision that continues its trend of limiting the exercise of specific personal jurisdiction over non-resident defendants. In...more
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit agreed with a district court that it lacked personal jurisdiction over a patent owner/declaratory judgment defendant where the defendant’s only contacts with the forum were the...more