{"id":2307,"date":"2020-10-09T18:03:38","date_gmt":"2020-10-09T18:03:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/live-cornell-law-review.pantheonsite.io\/?p=2307"},"modified":"2020-10-09T18:03:38","modified_gmt":"2020-10-09T18:03:38","slug":"fords-hidden-fairness-defect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/2020\/10\/09\/fords-hidden-fairness-defect\/","title":{"rendered":"Ford&#8217;s Hidden Fairness Defect"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A consumer saves up to buy a used car. Unbeknownst to him, the vehicle has a design defect\u2014and in a crash, the airbag fails to deploy, leaving his passenger severely injured. Under state law, the injured party has a right to sue the vehicle manufacturer: but where? The obvious forum is the plaintiff\u2019s&nbsp;home forum\u2014it\u2019s where the owner purchased the car, the&nbsp;accident happened, the injured party was hospitalized, and the plaintiff is able to interview local attorneys with experience in local courts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But there\u2019s a problem\u2014the car manufacturer didn\u2019t sell&nbsp;the car in-state. It sold the car elsewhere, and the used car dealer, or an earlier owner, brought the car into the forum state where it was purchased by its current owner. Of course, the car manufacturer conducted other extensive in-state activities\u2014it advertised its vehicles and marketed its brand, it serviced its vehicles (new and used), and it sold similar models in-state. But is that enough for personal jurisdiction? That question of whether strict causation is needed for personal jurisdiction is scheduled for argument before the United States Supreme Court this month in consolidated cases involving Ford Motor Company.<sup class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_2307_1('footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_1');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_2307_1('footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_1');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_1\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">1<\/sup><\/a><cite class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><span class=\"footnote-inner\">1. See&nbsp;Docket Sheet, Ford Motor Co. v. Mont. Eighth Judicial Dist. Ct., 140 S. Ct. 917 (2020) (No. 19-368), https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/search.aspx?filename=docket\/docketfiles\/html&nbsp;&#x2026; <span class=\"footnote_tooltip_continue\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_2307_1('footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_1');\">Continue reading<\/span><\/span><\/cite><\/sup><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2307_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;The Court\u2019s resolution of this issue will&nbsp;significantly affect future litigation.<sup class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_2307_1('footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_2');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_2307_1('footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_2');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_2\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">2<\/sup><\/a><cite class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><span class=\"footnote-inner\">2. <em>See&nbsp;<\/em>Charles W.&nbsp;\u201cRocky\u201d&nbsp;Rhodes, Cassandra Burke Robertson &amp; Linda Sandstrom Simard, Ford<em>\u2019s Jurisdictional Crossroads<\/em>, 109 GEO. L.J. Online 102, 103 (2020).<\/span><\/cite><\/sup><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2307_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script>&nbsp;Most immediately, the case will determine whether injured plaintiffs can access a convenient forum in products liability cases. In the long run, however, the case may have a broader and less obvious impact. Specifically, even a seemingly narrow win for Ford could result in an analytical short circuit that cuts off inquiry into the factors that the Supreme Court once held to be primary guarantors of&nbsp;\u201cfair play and substantial justice.\u201d<sup class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_2307_1('footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_3');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_2307_1('footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_3');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_3\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">3<\/sup><\/a><cite class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><span class=\"footnote-inner\">3. World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson, 444 U.S. 286, 292 (1980).<\/span><\/cite><\/sup><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_2307_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>To read more, click here: <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/live-cornell-law-review.pantheonsite.io\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Simard-et-al.-online-essay-final-version.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Ford&#8217;s Hidden Fairness Defect<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"speaker-mute footnotes_reference_container\"> <div class=\"footnote_container_prepare\"><p><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_label pointer\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_2307_1();\">References<\/span><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button\" style=\"display: none;\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_2307_1();\">[<a id=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_2307_1\">+<\/a>]<\/span><\/p><\/div> <div id=\"footnote_references_container_2307_1\" style=\"\"><table class=\"footnotes_table footnote-reference-container\"><caption class=\"accessibility\">References<\/caption> <tbody> \r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_2307_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_1');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_1\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>1<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><em>See&nbsp;<\/em>Docket Sheet, Ford Motor Co. v. Mont. Eighth Judicial Dist. Ct., 140 S. Ct. 917 (2020) (No. 19-368), <span class=\"footnote_url_wrap\">https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/search.aspx?filename=docket\/docketfiles\/html<\/span> \/public\/19-368.html [<a href=\"https:\/\/perma.cc\/7D9M-M3LC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><span class=\"footnote_url_wrap\">https:\/\/perma.cc\/7D9M-M3LC<\/span><\/a>].<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_2307_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_2');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_2\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>2<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><em>See&nbsp;<\/em>Charles W.&nbsp;\u201cRocky\u201d&nbsp;Rhodes, Cassandra Burke Robertson &amp; Linda Sandstrom Simard, Ford<em>\u2019s Jurisdictional Crossroads<\/em>, 109 GEO. L.J. Online 102, 103 (2020).<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_2307_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_2307_1_3');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_2307_1_3\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>3<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">World-Wide Volkswagen Corp. v. Woodson, 444 U.S. 286, 292 (1980).<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n <\/tbody> <\/table> <\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> function footnote_expand_reference_container_2307_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_2307_1').show(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_2307_1').text('\u2212'); } function footnote_collapse_reference_container_2307_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_2307_1').hide(); jQuery('#footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_2307_1').text('+'); } function footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_2307_1() { if (jQuery('#footnote_references_container_2307_1').is(':hidden')) { footnote_expand_reference_container_2307_1(); } else { footnote_collapse_reference_container_2307_1(); } } function footnote_moveToReference_2307_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_2307_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); if (l_obj_Target.length) { jQuery( 'html, body' ).delay( 0 ); jQuery('html, body').animate({ scrollTop: l_obj_Target.offset().top - window.innerHeight * 0.2 }, 380); } } function footnote_moveToAnchor_2307_1(p_str_TargetID) { footnote_expand_reference_container_2307_1(); var l_obj_Target = jQuery('#' + p_str_TargetID); if (l_obj_Target.length) { jQuery( 'html, body' ).delay( 0 ); jQuery('html, body').animate({ scrollTop: l_obj_Target.offset().top - window.innerHeight * 0.2 }, 380); } }<\/script>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A consumer saves up to buy a used car. Unbeknownst to him, the vehicle has a design defect\u2014and in a crash, the airbag fails to deploy, leaving his passenger severely injured. Under state law, the injured party has a right to sue the vehicle manufacturer: but where? The obvious forum is the plaintiff\u2019s&nbsp;home forum\u2014it\u2019s where&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[309,339,442,507,530,626],"class_list":["post-2307","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-online","tag-fair-play","tag-forum","tag-litigation","tag-plaintiffs","tag-product-liability","tag-substantial-justice"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2307","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2307"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2307\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2307"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2307"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publications.lawschool.cornell.edu\/lawreview\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2307"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}