E-Commerce and Personal Jurisdiction: Are Participating Businesses Subject to Suit in Foreign Courts? (CRS Report for Congress)
| Release Date |
June 25, 2002 |
| Report Number |
RS21248 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Christopher Alan Jennings, American Law Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
Electronic commerce enables companies to access markets with which they have few physical,
legal,
or traditional connections. An important question for a company deciding whether to engage in e-
commerce is whether establishing an Internet presence will subject it to litigation in foreign
jurisdictions. While the Constitution's due process rights protect a company's liberty interests in
being subject to suits only in those forums with which it has meaningful "contacts, ties, or relations,"
it is not clear to what extent electronic connections with a state are sufficient to warrant jurisdiction
in a state or federal court. This report reviews due process limitations on assertions of personal
jurisdiction by state and federal courts, and examines how lower courts have applied that law to
claims involving the Internet. This report will be updated.
