Jurisdiction -- 2017



BNSF Ry. Co. v. Tyrrell   (U.S. Supreme Court)

Clarifying "at home" provision of general jurisdiction

The NAM filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to safeguard manufacturers’ due process rights by affirming that a company was not “at-home” for jurisdictional purposes where the company is not incorporated or has not established its principal place of business. The appeal stems from two separate workplace injury claims against BNSF in Montana under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) where the Montana Supreme Court held that the “at home” requirement applies only to foreign (outside the United States) defendants and that FELA’s venue provision supersedes constitutional due process limits on jurisdiction. As manufacturers continue to expand their distribution chains, jurisdiction and venue are important to manufacturers who can become subject to burdensome lawsuits in states where they do not have continuous and systematic contact. The NAM’s brief argued that Montana’s application of jurisdiction violates the “at home standard” and that expanding jurisdiction encourages forum shopping. In a win for manufacturers, the U.S. Supreme Court held that simply transporting trains through a state, without any other connection, is insufficient under the due process clause of the 14th Amendment to allow a court to exercise jurisdiction over a defendant.


Related Documents:
NAM brief  (March 6, 2017)
NAM brief  (October 28, 2016)