Purdue LS185 Unit 6 Discussion Latest 2019 April

LS185 Introduction to American Jurisprudence

Unit 6 Discussion

Topic: Jurisdictional Selection

Jurisdiction can create significant issues for businesses that have business dealings in various places. Defending lawsuits in some jurisdictions can be very unfavorable for companies because of a loss of “home field advantage” and cost. A written contract may allow a business to demand that disputes be litigated in a jurisdiction (“forum”) that they choose at the time the contract was executed. These forum-selection clauses are often a point of litigation.

Here is the definition of a forum selection clause:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/legal/forum%20selection%20clause

Read the following articles and then discuss the questions below:

U.S. Supreme Court Reaffirms that Forum-Selection Clauses Are Presumptively Enforceable

What's Left to Litigate about Forum Selection Clauses?

Dufee, D., Forrester, J. P., Lawlor, J. F., Katskee, R. B., & Tierney, J. F. (n.d.). U.S. Supreme Court Reaffirms that Forum-Selection Clauses Are Presumptively Enforceable. Business Law Today. Retrieved from https://www.americanbar.org/groups/business_law/publications/blt/2014/01/keeping_current_duffee/

Why would the court choose to enforce a forum-selection clause? What are some reasons that a court would not choose to enforce a forum-selection clause? Do you think forum-selection clauses are fair to plaintiffs? Can you locate a case in your jurisdiction where the court enforced a forum-selection clause and transferred a case to the selected forum?

Be sure to support your discussion points with examples and authoritative sources.