Venue – Federal Actions
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Because federal law is applied nationally, when an action arises under federal law, one important question is: in which district court should the action be brought? This is not a question to be taken lightly, for a case filed in the wrong venue may be subject to dismissal, even if the court has subject matter jurisdiction and jurisdiction over the parties or things. See Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(3).
In certain instances, the proper venue may depend on the type of federal action brought. While general venue rules are codified at 28 U.S.C. § 1391, other sections are more specific. For example, actions concerning copyrights may be brought in any district in which the defendant (or his agent) resides, or any district in which the defendant (or his agent) may be found. See
EXAMPLE: Jake, a resident of California, has created a comic strip called “Dopie” and has copyrighted the Dopie character. A few years later, Doug, a resident of the federal district of Western Nevada, has created his own comic strip called “Mopie”. The Mopie character is exactly the same as the Dopie character. Jake wants to bring an action against Doug in federal court for copyright infringement. Assuming all jurisdictional requirements are met, Jake may bring his action in Western Nevada, as that is where Doug resides.
Like copyright actions, actions for patent infringement may be brought in the district where the defendant resides. Unlike copyright actions, patent infringement actions may also be brought where the defendant committed the acts of infringement and has a regular and established place of business. See
EXAMPLE: Jake, a resident of California, has developed a new miracle weight loss drug that he has patented with the appropriate federal agency. A few years later, Doug, a resident of the federal district of Western Nevada who maintains his office in the federal district of Northern Arizona, while working in his office, takes Jake’s formula and begins marketing his own weight loss drug. Assuming all jurisdictional requirements are met, Jake may bring a patent infringement action against Doug in the federal district of either Western Nevada or Northern Arizona.
If a holder of stock in a corporation wishes to bring an action on behalf of his corporation, he may bring the action in any judicial district where the corporation could have sued the same defendants. In other words, if the corporation itself would be able to sue the defendants in the Northern District of New York, so may the corporation’s stockholders. See
It is essential to note that in addition to proper venue, the court must still have jurisdiction over the parties or things and jurisdiction over the subject matter of the case. Venue and personal jurisdiction are entirely different issues – just because a case is filed in the correct venue does not mean that the court necessarily has jurisdiction over the persons or subject matter.
As explained earlier, some states have more than one federal district, whereas some states have only one federal district. In addition, there may be more than one courthouse within each district. Within the Southern District of New York, for example, federal district courts exist in both Manhattan and White Plains. In which specific court the case should be filed depends on the rules of the local court, which should be researched when needed.
As in the realm of personal jurisdiction, a party's residence is usually controlled by his or her domicile, so that a person, for the purposes of venue, can have only one residence. Keep in mind, however, that different jurisdictions may not agree on this point.
Also like personal jurisdictions, and unlike subject matter jurisdiction, most jurisdictions hold that one may consent to venue. Again, however, some jurisdictions disagree. Some jurisdictions hold that a defendant who consents to personal jurisdiction also consents to venue. If a defendant does not object to improper venue, the objection is waived.
As stated earlier, a defendant may move to dismiss the case for improper venue pursuant to FRCP 12(b)(3). Even if the court decides that venue is proper, it may choose to transfer the case to another venue for the convenience of parties and witnesses and/or in the interest of justice. The court to which the case will be transferred must have been able to hear the case in the first place, however (the transferee court must have jurisdiction and be a proper venue). When such a transfer occurs, the plaintiff is not penalized for the delay. Because the case is merely transferred, and not dismissed, the statute of limitations will not run during transfer. The court’s discretion to make such a transfer is quite broad.
Federal civil actions not specifically governed by specific venue statutes have their own venue rules that are slightly less strict than the others.
Some federal civil actions are based only on diversity of citizenship. If all defendants reside in the same state, the action may be brought in a district where any of the defendants reside. Another option is to bring the action in the district in which the main events on which the claim is based occurred. In an action where the subject is property, the action may be brought in the district in which a substantial part of the property is located. If all of the defendants are not from the same state, or there is not one state in which the substantial events occurred or in which the main part of the property is located, the action may be brought in a district in which any defendant is subject to personal jurisdiction at the time the action is brought. See 28 U.S.C. § 1391(a). For example:
EXAMPLE (1): John, a citizen of Montana, wants to file an action in federal court against Mark, a citizen of South Dakota, for injuries John sustained during an automobile collision. John seeks to recover $100,000. The proper venue is federal district court in South Dakota (assuming there is only one federal courthouse in South Dakota; otherwise, local rules apply regarding which division of the particular district court should host the action).
EXAMPLE (2): John, a citizen of New Jersey, wants to file an action in federal court against Mark and Mike, citizens of New York, for injuries John sustained during an automobile collision; John seeks to recover $100,000 from each defendant. Mark lives in Buffalo, New York, which is within the Western District of New York, and Mike lives in Scarsdale, New York, which is in the Southern District of New York. John may file his action in either the United States District Court for the Western District of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
In the case above, if the collision had occurred in Hempstead, New York, John could also have brought his action in federal district court for the Eastern District of New York, because that is where the substantial part of the events giving rise to the claim occurred.
Where all defendants do not reside in the same state, and there is no district in which the substantial events occurred or in which the main property is located, the action may be brought in a district in which any defendant is subject to personal jurisdiction at the time the action is brought. Personal jurisdiction, in this situation, is not determined by the state in which the defendant is a citizen, but rather by the boundaries of the federal judicial district. For example:
John, a citizen of New Jersey, wants to file an action in federal court against Mark, a citizen of New York (who resides in the southern district), and Paul, a citizen of Connecticut, for some matters that arose in Canada. 28 U.S.C. § 1391(a)(1) does not apply, nor does 28 U.S.C. § 1391(a)(2). Therefore, 28 U.S.C. § 1391(a)(3) applies, and the action may be brought in either the district court in Connecticut or in the Southern District in New York. Remember, of course, that personal jurisdiction must still be satisfied with regard to each defendant.
Many federal civil actions are not based only on diversity of citizenship. Some actions, for example, qualify for diversity of citizenship but also concern a federal question, while some federal actions are allowable in federal court simply in the basis of federal question jurisdiction. In these cases, like actions based only on diversity of citizenship, if all defendants reside in the same state, the action may be brought in a district where any of the defendants reside. Also like actions based only on diversity of citizenship, another option is to bring the action in the district in which the main events on which the claim is based occurred. In an action where the subject is property, the action may be brought in the district in which the substantial part of the property is located. If all of the defendants are not from the same state, or there is not one state in which the substantial events occurred or in which the main property is located, the action may be brought in a district in which any defendant may be found. This last option differs substantially from the venue options for actions based only on diversity of citizenship. See 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b).
Where a defendant is a corporation, the corporation resides in any district in which it is subject to personal jurisdiction at the time the action is brought. This means that a corporation may reside, for venue purposes, in more than one judicial district. See 28 U.S.C. § 1391(c). If the state has more than one district for the federal district court (e.g., New York), the corporation can reside in any district in the state with which it has minimum contacts, as if that district were a separate state. For example:
John, a citizen of New Jersey, wants to file an action in federal court against ABC Corp., whose business is only conducted in the Southern District of New York, and has absolutely no contact with anyone or anything within any of the other districts in New York. Therefore, John may only file his action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
If, however, ABC Corp. conducted business throughout the entire state of New York, but not enough to have the requisite minimum contacts needed for personal jurisdiction, the corporation’s residence is the district in which it has the most significant contacts, which is a determination to be made by the court. Recall that jurisdiction for a corporation is based on its citizenship. However, the proper venue for an action against a corporation depends on the corporation’s residence. While citizenship of a corporation is based upon the state where the corporation is incorporated and its principal place of business, the corporation's residence depends on where the corporation does business, which may be numerous districts.
Proper venue for actions against unincorporated associations (e.g., partnerships) is determined in the same manner as with corporations.
Some federal civil actions include an officer or employee of the United States or a United States agency as a defendant. Such an action may be brought in any judicial district in which a defendant in the action resides, any district in which a substantial part of the events on which the action is based occurred, or any district in which a substantial part of the property on which the action is based is located. If no real property is involved in the action, the action may also be brought in any judicial district in which the plaintiff resides. Remember, however, that venue for non-government defendants must still satisfy the venue requirements discussed above.
Furthermore, the courts have personal jurisdiction over the federal employee or agency (or the United States) within the boundaries of the United States, even if the employee or agency is not within the actual district over which the court has jurisdiction. To obtain personal jurisdiction over such a defendant, the summons and complaint may be served by certified mail.