Personal jurisdiction means a court’s power over a person (including business entities). Personal jurisdiction in the United States is a bit tricky because courts located within one state will not always have power over a person located outside the state.
To assert personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state defendant, the defendant must have sufficient contact with the state where the court is located (the “forum state”). Also,. defendant’s contacts with the state should be related to the nature of the lawsuit in the forum state.
Synonyms:
minimum contacts
