conflict of laws handout -- js annotated

1、CONFLICT OF LAWSPROFESSOR SAM JORDANCopyright 2016 by BARBRI, Inc.Copyright 2016, BARBRI, Inc.INTRODUCTORY POINTSLook for Conflicts issues when the facts include connection to multiple states.Look for Conflicts issues to be combined with other subjects, especially family law, federal procedure, or t

2、orts. and contractsThere are two important but distinct testing areas for Conflicts:1. Recognition of judgments2. Choice of LawWe will also discuss Domicile, a legal concept that has applications in Conflicts.CONFLICT OF LAWSOUTLINE AND HYPOTHETICALSProfessor Sam JordanSaint Louis University School

3、of Law2. CONFLICT OF LAWSTESTING AREA ONE: RECOGNITION OF JUDGMENTSTHE BASICSA recognition of judgments question may arise when two conditions are satisfied:1. A judgment has been issued by a court in one jdx.2. A party is seeking to have that judgment recognized in a second/ different court. .Termi

4、nology Tip: You should refer to the place where the judgment was originally entered as the rendering jdx., and the place where reco,gnition is being sought as the recognizing jdx. .Core Question: Will the recognizing court recognize the judgment issued by the rendering court?Why might a party seek r

5、ecognition of an existing judgment?1. A sord: will most often seek recognition in order access enforcement mechanisms in the recognizing state. e.g., if the asset of the is not located in the rendering stateExample: Cindy sues Derek in an Ohio court. Derek fails to respond, and the court enters a de

6、fault judgment in the amount of $75,000. Derek lives in Springfield, Illinois, and has no assets in Ohio. Cindy may seek to have the Ohio judgment recognized and enforced by an Illinois court so that she can reach Dereks assets.2. Shield: will most often seek recognition to prevent a plaintiff from

7、relitigating a claim or an issue. issue preclusionExample: Cindy sues Derek in an Ohio court. After two years of litigation, ajury returns a verdict in Dereks favor. The next week, Cindy files an identical complaint against Derek in an Illinois court. Derek may seek to have the Ohio judgment recogni

8、zed by an Illinois court so that he can bar Cindy from relitigating the same claim.CONFLICT OF LAWS3.I. Is the rendering jurisdiction a sister state or a foreign country? There is no analysis here! It will simply be provided to you in the facts. On the bar exam, the answer here will almost always be

9、 the sister state.If the rendering court is a court in a sister state, then the source of the obligation to recognize thejudgment is Qnal the Full Faith and Credit Clause in Art. 4.Full faith and credit principles also apply to the recognition of judgments between fed ct. and state ct.II.A SISTER ST

10、ATE JUDGMENTSI. IS THE RENDERING JURISDICTION A SISTER STATE OR A FOREIGN COUNTRY?II.BIf foreign country:any other country outside the U.S. Is the foreign judgment entitled to comity?It will be provide to you in the examII.AIf sister state:any other states in the U.S.1. Are the requirements of full

11、faith and credit satisfied?2. Are there are any valid defenses?Recognition is required when the answer to question #1 is YESand the answer to question #2 is NO.ANALYSIS OVERVIEW4.CONFLICT OF LAWS Requirement #1: Jurisdiction.Rule: The rendering state must have had jurisdiction over the parties andth

12、e subject matter.Hypothetical: Cindy sues Derek in state court in Ohio, even though Derek has never been to Ohio and even though all of the facts relating to the claim asserted took place in Illinois. Derek fails to respond, and the court enters a default judgment. Cindy then sues in Illinois and se

13、eks recognition and enforcement of the Ohio judgment. May Derek resist recognition on the grounds that the Ohio court lacked personal jurisdiction?& Yes. He may collaterally attack the judgment. Derek may argue that the OH court did not have the PJ over him, and the judgment is therefore, not entitl

14、ed to full faith and credit.Exception: When the issue of jurisdiction has been fully and fairly litigated then the jurisdictional determination is itself entitled to full faith and credit.(A party may challenge the jdx. on, ce, and once that question is raised and decided,it cannot be relitigated.)H

15、ypothetical: Cindy sues Derek in state court in Ohio. Derek has never been to Ohio, but did send emails to Cindy in Ohio that form part of the basis for the lawsuit. Derek appears in the Ohio court and files a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, but his motion is denied by the court

16、. The case proceeds and eventually a jury finds in Cindys favor. Cindy then files an action in Illinois court and seeks to have the Ohio judgment recognized and enforced. May Derek resist recognition on the grounds that the Ohio court lacked personal jurisdiction?& No, on the basis of the exception

17、that the issue of PJ is fully and fairly litigated by the OH court. Therefore, the requirement of jdx. has been satisfied, and the judgment is entitled to full faith and credit.STEP 1: ARE THE REQUIREMENTS OF FULL FAITH AND CREDIT SATISFIED?CONFLICT OF LAWS 5. Requirement #2: Merits.Rule: The judgme

18、nt entered by the rendering state must have been on the merits.Hypothetical: Roger sues Jesse in state court in Nevada. The court dismisses the action after finding that the statute of limitations had run. Roger then files a similar complaint against Jesse in a Missouri state court. Can Jesse seek r

19、ecognition of the Nevada judgment to bar Rogers claim in Missouri?& No, b/c the NV judgment was based on a time bar, and therefore, was not on the merits. As a result, the NV judgment is not entitled to a full faith and credit.Other examples of judgments not on the merits include dismissals based on

20、:1. Lack of JDX.2. Misjoinder.3. Improper Venue.4. Failure to state a claim sometimes (is it on the merits or isnt it, is it w/ prejudice or not w/ prejudice)But be careful Hypothetical: Roger sues Jesse in state court in Nevada based on a car accident in Las Vegas. Jesse fails to appear and the cou

21、rt enters a default judgment.Roger now sues in Jesses home state of Missouri and seeks recognition and enforcement of the Nevada judgment. Does Jesse have an argument to resist recognition?& No, a default judgment treats all factual allegations as admitted, and is therefore, on the merits for purpos

22、es of recognition.H Consent judgments entered after settlement are also considered on the merits for purposes of recognition.6.CONFLICT OF LAWS Requirement #3: Finality.Rule: The judgment entered by the rendering court must be a final judgment.Most common application here is a judgment on appeal in

23、the rendering jurisdiction, which is not final.Tricky hypothetical: Laura sues George for divorce in Pennsylvania, and the court there enters a divorce decree that includes $1,000 in modifiable alimony payments. George then moves to California, and Laura files a suit there and seeks to have the Penn

24、sylvania decree recognized and enforced. What result?& The Pennsylvania decree is final as to past payments, but not final as to future payments. Applicable Law: These three requirements are evaluated using the law of the rendering state.Example: Roger obtains a default judgment against Jesse in a N

25、evada state court. He then attempts to enforce the judgment in Missouri. Personaljurisdiction is supported by Nevadas long-arm statute, but not by Missouris long-arm statute. Can Jesse resist enforcement of the Nevada judgment using requirement #1? No, because jurisdiction was proper according to th

26、e law of the rendering state. VALID DEFENSESValid defense #1: Penal judgmentsRule: A penal judgment is not entitled to full faith and credit.Definition: A penal judgment is one that punishes an offense against the public.Application: In practice, this means that the plaintiff in the suit that led to

27、 thejudgment was the state. that judgment will not be recognized and enforcedby another state.STEP 2: ARE THERE ANY VALID DEFENSES TO FULL FAITH AND CREDIT?CONFLICT OF LAWS 7.Tricky hypothetical: Roger sues Jesse in state court in Nevada. After a lengthy trial, the jury awarded Roger $50,000 in comp

28、ensatory damages and $250,000 in punitive damages. Roger then files a suit seeking recognition and enforcement in Jesses home state of Missouri. What result? (this looks penal, but is a private person)& The NV is entitled to recognition.Valid defense #2: Extrinsic fraudRule: A judgment obtained by e

29、xtrinsic fraud is not entitled to full faith and credit.Definition: Extrinsic fraud is fraud that could not be corrected regular course of proceedings leading to the judgment. e.g., bribery of a judge O However, a perjury of W is different. There are things that you can do in the case, and therefore

30、, does not trigger the exception to recognition. ATTRACTIVE BUT INVALID DEFENSES tested more oftenThese are actually tested much more frequently on the bar exam.Attractive but invalid defense #1: Public policy.Hypothetical: Roger sues Jesse in state court in Nevada after Jesse fails to pay on a gamb

31、ling contract. After a trial, the Nevada court enters a judgment forRoger. Roger then seeks recognition and enforcement of the judgment in Jesses home state of Missouri. Under Missouri law, gambling contracts are unenforceable. Can Jesse resist enforcement of the Nevada judgment?& No, b/c its not a

32、valid defense to full faith and credit. Even though MI disapproves gambling K, thats not enough to avoid full faith and credit, the NV judgment must be recognized. “There is no roving public policy exception to the full faith and credit.” Justice Ginsburg8. CONFLICT OF LAWSAttractive but invalid def

33、ense #2: Mistakes. Hypothetical: Roger sues Jesse in Nevada after Jesse fails to pay on a gambling contract. The Nevada court decides to apply Missouri law, and enters a judgment for Roger even though Missouri considers gambling contracts unenforceable. Roger then seeks recognition and enforcement o

34、f the judgment in Jesses home state of Missouri. Can Jesse resist enforcement of the Nevada judgment?& No, even though NV misapplies MI law. Its judgment is entitled to full faith and credit.Rationale: (this is a channeling clause) If mistakes were made, they should have been challenged through an a

35、ppeal in the rendering state. to promote national unity, to promote harmony the origin of full faith and credit clauseIf the rendering court is a court in a foreign country, then the source of the obligation torecognize the judgment is comity or treaty.Rule: Under principles of comity, a recognizing

36、 court will exercise discretion to decide whether the foreign judgment should be recognized. (not Qnal, but discretionary)Many of the same principles as full faith and credit will be considered to guide the courts discretion (e.g., is the foreign judgment final? was the foreign judgment on the merit

37、s?). But there are two additional questions that a recognizing court may ask here:1. Did the foreign court have jurisdiction?Example: Alice is sued in a Venezuelan court, even though she has never had any contact with that country. She hires a lawyer to argue that the court lacks jurisdiction, but t

38、he court rejects that argument and enters a judgment against her. Despite the fact that jurisdiction has already been litigated, an Americancourt. (b/c it hasnt beenlitigated in a U.S. court)2. Were the procedures in the foreign court fair?Example: Edgar is sued in an Iranian court based on some con

39、tract work he performed there. He returns to Iran to defend the claim, but is not permitted to call witnesses or challenge the admissibility of the plaintiffs evidence. An American court may conclude that the foreign judgment was tainted by sham procedures and is therefore not entitled to recognitio

40、n. T B/c these are procedures we deemed to be patently inconsistent w/ the basic notions of DP.may decline to recognize the Venezuelan judgmentII.B FOREIGN JUDGMENTSCONFLICT OF LAWS 9.TESTING AREA TWO: CHOICE OF LAWTHE BASICSA choice of law question may arise when two conditions are satisfied:1. The

41、 lawsuit involves factual connections with multiple states.2. The multiple states will have different lawsleading to different results.Core Question: Which states law will govern?Core Answer: The governing law is the law selected by the forumcourt according to its choice of law approach(assuming no

42、applicableconstitutional or statutory restrictions). Forum states will not necessary apply its own law, but it will apply its choice of law approach. In most states it is a set a rules created by the judges of the state through a common law approach, though a few states codified it by statutes.Excep

43、tions:1. Diversity cases in federal court.A fed. court sitting in diversity, applies the choice of law approach of the state in which it sits. fed. court do not have their own choice of law approach Klaxon, SCOTUS found choice of law .are substantive2. Transferred diversity cases. Under 1404Rule: Wh

44、en a diversity case is transferred within the federal system, the federal court applies the choice of law approach of the initial fed. court/ transferorcourt See Van Dusen v. Barrack: in which the SCOTUS decided that the. transferree court is going to apply the choice of law approach of the state in

45、which the case was originally filed.Restrictions that occasionally limit the forum courts choice of law:1. Constitutional: Due Process and Full Faith and CreditRule: The constitution imposes a limit only if a states law is chosen that has no significant contact with and/or legitimate interest in the

46、 litigation. (in practice, its quite relevant, because no state will actually do so.)2. StatutoryRule: If the forum state has a statute that directs a choice of law, then the forum courtshould apply that statute instead of the usual choice of law approach.Example: Borrowing statute.10. CONFLICT OF L

47、AWSPARAGRAPH 1: Describe choice of law question.“The issue presented is which states law will govern the outcome of this litigation. The governing law will be selected by the forum court using the (fill in applicable choice of law approach).” that applicable choice of law approach will be provided t

48、o you.This is the “I understand choice of law” paragraph, and it is always the same.PARAGRAPH 2: Describe the choice of law approachHere, you will plug in a stock paragraph depending on which of the three tested approaches is being applied. these three are the ones to be testedApproach #1:Vested Rig

49、hts (First Restatement)Approach #2:Interest AnalysisApproach #3:Most Significant Relationship (Second Restatement) PARAGRAPH 3: apply the choice of law approachHere, you will consider the facts presented, apply the approach, and provide a conclusion.(Important: This conclusion should include both th

50、e governing law and the result who wins ) Stock Language for Paragraph 2 a location based approach WHERE?“Under this approach the court will apply the law of that state mandated by the APPLICABLE VESTING RULE. That rule is selected according to the relevant substantive area of law.”APPROACH #1: VEST

51、ED RIGHTS (FIRST RESTATEMENT)STRUCTURE OF A CHOICE OF LAW ANSWERCONFLICT OF LAWS 11.Structure of Paragraph 3Sentence #1: Categorize the substantive area of lawSentence #2:Sentence #3:Sentence #4:State the applicable vesting ruleApply the vesting rule to determine the governing law. Apply the governi

52、ng law to determine the result. Sample Paragraph 3“This is a torts case. Therefore, the applicable vesting rule is the place of injury. Here, the injury occurred in Michigan and thus Michigan law applies. Under Michigan law, a non-paying passenger cannot recover against the driver, and so the claim

53、is barred.” Stock Language for Paragraph 2“Under this approach the court will consider which states have a legitimate interest in the outcome of the litigation. The forum court will apply its own law as long as it has a legitimate interest. If the forum state has no legitimate interest, it will appl

54、y the law of another interested state.” Structure of Paragraph 3Step 1: Discuss which states have legitimate interests.Step 2: Characterize the type of conflict.False conflict: Only one state has a legitimate interest.True conflict: Two (or more) states have a legitimate interest. (often)Step 3: Cho

55、ose based on type of conflict.False conflict: Apply the law of the interested state.True conflict: If the forum is interested, apply forum law.Step 4: Apply the governing law to determineAPPROACH #2: INTEREST ANALYSIS12.CONFLICT OF LAWS Sample Paragraph 3“In this case, only Illinois has a legitimate interest. It is interested in permitting recovery to compensate its injured resident (the plaintiff). Michigan is not interested in applying its restriction against recovery simply because the accident occurred there. Rather, it would be interested in applying its restriction