It has been a little over two years since the Supreme Court issued its decision in Bauman v. AG Daimler, and, from our perspective, its impact has been significant, even earth shaking (no pun intended, and we have a San Francisco office and certainly would not make light of earthquakes). We previously discussed Bauman’s impact on the analysis of personal jurisdiction on several occasions, in the context of notable decisions, good and bad (thank you, California), and in the hotly contested area of consent through registration to do business in a state, here.
Our breaking news is one of the biggest post-Bauman mass tort jurisdictional wins. The Second Circuit held – in the context of asbestos mass tort litigation – that a company with “continuous and systematic” business in a state (Connecticut) can’t be sued by out-of-state litigation tourist plaintiffs over out-of-state asbestos exposure. Brown v. Lockheed-Martin Corp., 814 F.3d 619, No. 14‐4083, slip op. (2d Cir. Feb. 18, 2016). Having a major facility in the jurisdiction, and acquisition of a major in-state operating subsidiary, along with “significant” revenue wasn’t enough for the defendant to be “at home.” Id. at 18-25. Compared to the defendant’s total activities, there was nothing “exceptional.” Id.Continue Reading Breaking News – Bauman Trumps Jurisdiction By Consent in Second Circuit – and New Post-Bauman Cheat Sheet on General Personal Jurisdiction