Supreme Court Rejects Expansive "Stream of Commerce" Theory of Personal Jurisdiction
This week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued two opinions clarifying the criteria that must be satisfied before a court may constitutionally exercise personal jurisdiction over a defendant—J. McIntyre Machinery, Ltd. v. Nicastro and Goodyear Dunlop Tires Operations, S.A. v. Brown. Both decisions involved product liability suits asserted against non-U.S. manufacturers, but both have relevance as well for domestic corporations defending lawsuits under any liability theory. The decisions were highly anticipated because the cases, J. McIntyre in particular, were expected to resolve a decades-old debate about the contours of the so-called “stream of commerce” theory of personal jurisdiction. The Court delivered.
To read the full alert by Reed Smith Appellate team members Kim M. Watterson and Paige H. Forster, click here.
