Business Law Text Notes
Chapter 2 – Courts and Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Essential role of the judiciary system is to interpret and apply the laws to specific situations
- Judicial review: judiciary can decide whether laws or actions of the other two branches are constitutional (checks and balances)
- Judicial review not explicitly mentioned in Constitution, but established in case of Marbury vs. Madison
- Judicial review exercised by both state and federal courts
- Jurisdiction: “the power to speak the law”; before any court can hear a case, it must have jurisdiction over the entity against whom the suit is brought or over the property involved in the suit as well as the subject matter of the dispute
- Generally, court can exercise in personam jurisdiction (personal jurisdiction) over any person or business that resides in a certain geographic area
- In rem jurisdiction (jurisdiction over the thing): jurisdiction over property that is located within court’s boundaries
- Long arm statute: court can exercise personal jurisdiction over certain out-of-state defendants based on activities that took place within the state; first must be demonstrated that defendant had sufficient or minimum contacts with the state to justify the jurisdiction (for corporations as well)
- Minimum-contacts requirement for corporations usually met if corporation advertises or sells its products within the state or places its goods into the “stream of commerce” with intent that goods be sold in the state
- Subject matter jurisdiction: limitations on the types of cases a co ...