Indiana Court of Appeals Tackles “Something More” in Personal Jurisdiction in Talc Litigation
Case Background In August 2021, Ronald McBride was diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma. In October, he and his wife filed suit in Marion County (Indiana) Superior Court, alleging Ronald’s disease was the direct and proximate result of asbestos-containing talcum powder products he used from 1970 through 2021, including in Indiana. After Ronald’s death in November […]
The Validity of Personal Jurisdiction Defenses: Two Different Cases, Two Different Conclusions by Illinois Appellate Courts
Background Daimler AG v. Bauman, 134 S. Ct. 746, 761-62 (2014) was a tectonic event in analysis of the personal jurisdiction defense. The opinions of the U.S. Supreme Court and subsequent Illinois appellate courts’ decisions regarding personal jurisdiction that followed represent aftershocks that continue to shape and change personal jurisdiction analysis in Illinois. Two recent […]
U.S. Supreme Court Rules Corporations Can Be Properly Sued in State Courts Wherever Registration Statutes Provide Jurisdiction
Under a new ruling of the Supreme Court, corporations can now be required to consent to personal jurisdiction if they want to do any business within a state. This is no matter how small the business within the state may be and even if that small business had nothing to do with the plaintiff’s claim […]
Seventh Circuit Releases Two New Personal Jurisdiction Cases
Our product liability clients are often faced with the question of whether an Illinois court has the power to exercise personal jurisdiction over them. Often, these clients are incorporated outside of Illinois and do not have principal places of business in Illinois, yet they’re being named as defendants in lawsuits filed in Illinois that have […]
Appellate Court Finds Lack of Jury Trial Insufficient Reason to Set Aside Judgment Due to Untimely Challenge
On March 25, 2022, Illinois’ First District Appellate Court issued an opinion in Casteel v. Jiminezaffirming the dismissal of a petition (filed pursuant to 735 ILCS 5/2-1401) to set aside the judgment against the Defendant. The opinion contains an interesting analysis of the timeliness of filing a motion under 735 ILCS 5/2-1401 based on particular defenses. […]
Missouri Court Refuses to Extend Personal Jurisdiction to Truck Driver Driving for Missouri Company
In Babb v. Bartlett, ED 109479, 2021 WL 5894626 (Mo.App. E.D. Dec. 14, 2021), the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Eastern District of Missouri recently affirmed a trial court’s dismissal of an action for lack of personal jurisdiction. Case Background This case involved a commercial truck driver. The defendant, Oklahoma resident Tiffany Bartlett, was driving […]
Challenging a Court’s Exercise of Personal Jurisdiction in Indiana
HeplerBroom’s Indiana office recently secured the dismissal of a long-standing lawsuit against its client, a product defendant in an asbestos case, on the basis that the Court lacked personal jurisdiction over the client. Notably, HeplerBroom was able to overcome the plaintiff’s various tactics for attempting to prove jurisdiction over the client, including an attempt to […]
Responding to Personal Jurisdiction Discovery after Daimler
Are you at home in the jurisdiction where you are being sued? Did the cause of action arise from your contacts in that jurisdiction? If you are a corporate defendant in a lawsuit and neither applies to your company, you should probably at least raise an objection to Personal Jurisdiction in your initial response to preserve it, […]
Illinois Supreme Court Analyzes Circumstances Where Illinois Courts May Obtain Jurisdiction Over Foreign Corporations
In a landmark decision, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that a French company, SNFA, could be held liable in Illinois despite having no physical presence in the state. This case, stemming from a tragic helicopter crash, raises critical questions about jurisdiction and the “stream of commerce” doctrine. The court’s analysis reveals a split in legal interpretations, with implications for how foreign corporations engage in U.S. markets. As the majority affirms jurisdiction based on business relationships, dissenting opinions warn of potential overreach. Discover the nuances of this pivotal ruling and its impact on corporate accountability.