Also known as: general personal jurisdictions · general jurisdiction
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A form of personal jurisdiction that permits a court to adjudicate any claim against a defendant regardless of where the claim arose. For a corporation the doctrine requires affiliations so continuous and systematic as to render the entity essentially at home in the forum. Absent exceptional circumstances that standard is satisfied only in the corporation's state of incorporation and its principal place of business.
Genesis Pharmaceuticals is incorporated in State L2 and headquartered in State M2. Olivia, a resident of State O2, sues Genesis in State N2 after suffering injuries from a drug tested and prescribed in O2. Genesis maintains a large packaging plant and regional sales office in N2. The court dismisses the suit for lack of general personal jurisdiction because Genesis is not at home in N2.
TrendWorks is incorporated in State P and headquartered in State Q. Alex, a shopper from State S, sues TrendWorks in State R for deceptive online advertising. TrendWorks operates more than forty stores and warehouses in R. The court grants the motion to dismiss because TrendWorks is not at home in R despite its extensive operations there.
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Crest Cars is incorporated and headquartered in Germany. Drivers injured abroad sue Crest Cars in Michigan federal court. Crest Cars maintains a large testing ground and design center in Michigan. The court dismisses for lack of general personal jurisdiction because the Michigan operations do not render Crest Cars at home there.
Gideon Graves, a California resident, is served with process while temporarily in New York on business. The plaintiff seeks to sue Graves in New York for a claim that arose in Florida. The court upholds general personal jurisdiction because service on an individual present in the forum supplies an independent basis for all-purpose jurisdiction.
Golden Gate Logistics is incorporated in Delaware with its principal place of business in California. It registers to do business in Ohio and designates an agent for service. A plaintiff injured in Texas sues Golden Gate Logistics in Ohio for the unrelated accident. The court must decide whether the registration alone supports general personal jurisdiction over all claims.
Helicopteros Nacionales is a Colombian corporation. Its representatives travel to Texas to negotiate and purchase helicopters and to attend training sessions. Survivors of a crash in Peru sue the corporation in Texas. The court holds that the purchases and training visits do not create general personal jurisdiction over claims unrelated to Texas.
A corporation is at home, and therefore subject to general personal jurisdiction, in its state of incorporation and its principal place of business. These are the paradigm forums recognized by the Supreme Court.
No. Substantial or even continuous business activity in a state is insufficient by itself. The corporation must be essentially at home, a standard not met by extensive but non-paradigmatic operations.
Only in exceptional cases where the corporation's contacts are so constant and pervasive that the forum is effectively a second home. The Supreme Court has emphasized that such cases are rare.
General jurisdiction allows suit on any claim regardless of connection to the forum. Specific jurisdiction requires that the claim arise out of or relate to the defendant's contacts with the forum.
…under the attachment laws of Ohio, and laid down the principle of assuming that all had been rightly done by a court having general jurisdiction of the subject-matter. In Cooper v. Smith , 25 Iowa, 269, it is said, that where no process is served on the defendant, nor property attached, nor garnishee charged, nor appearance…