Due Process Archives

Mar 30, 2021

United States Supreme Court Unanimously Rejects a Causal Link Requirement in Specific Jurisdiction Inquiry

A unanimous U.S. Supreme Court held in Ford Motor Co. v. Montana Eighth Judicial District Court that the connection between Ford’s activities in a forum state and products liability claims was “close enough” to support specific jurisdiction. The 8-0 decision (Justice Barrett not participating) rejected Ford’s arguments that the state courts lacked jurisdiction because Ford had not designed, manufactured, or sold the particular vehicles involved in the car accidents. The Montana Eighth Judicial District Court case was consolidated with Ford Motor Co. v. Bandemer. Montana Eighth Judicial District Court case involved a Ford Explorer that had originally been purchased in Washington that through subsequent repurchases… Read more

Jun 1, 2020

Georgia (For Now) Resists The Latest Trend in Personal Jurisdiction

In recent years, the United States Supreme Court has taken steps to limit the jurisdictional reach of state courts. For now, the Georgia courts are resisting that trend. In several recent cases, the United States Supreme Court has limited the reach of “general” personal jurisdiction. Daimler AG v. Bauman, 134 S.Ct. 746 (2014); Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court, 137 S.Ct. 1773 (2017). Specific personal jurisdiction exists when an out-of-state defendant purposefully directs activities towards an in-state resident and those activities give rise to the claims at issue in the lawsuit. General personal jurisdiction exists when an out-of-state defendant has… Read more

Mar 9, 2020

Coronavirus: Can Georgia Government Officials Order An Individual Quarantined for Public Health Reasons?

At the end of February 2020, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp issued an executive order establishing a Coronavirus Task Force, comprised of subject-matter experts from the private and public sectors, to assess Georgia’s procedures for preventing, identifying, and addressing cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19). A few days later, in early March 2020, Governor Kemp confirmed that there were two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Fulton County, Georgia. These cases involve two individuals who reside in the same household, one of which recently returned from Italy. In a press conference held on March 9, 2020, Governor Kemp stated there were six confirmed… Read more

Oct 21, 2013

Mississippi’s Stop Payment Notice Statute Found Unconstitutional

Authored By: Darren Rowles and Scott Cahalan In several states, including Mississippi, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Washington, subcontractors and suppliers are used to filing a “stop notice” or “stop payment notice” when they are not paid for work performed at a project. See also North Carolina (lien on funds). However, the recent holding in Noatex Corp. v. King Constr. of Houston, LLC, 2013 U.S. App. LEXIS 20656, 14-15 (5th Cir. Oct. 10, 2013), calls into question the constitutionality of stop notice statutes and the remedies they provide to lower-tier contractors and suppliers. A stop notice is a notice to… Read more