OR Bar Civil Procedure 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A plaintiff sues a foreign corporation in Oregon federal court based on diversity jurisdiction. The corporation has a registered agent in Oregon but conducts no other business there. Which basis of personal jurisdiction applies?
- General jurisdiction based on principal place of business
- Specific jurisdiction based on minimum contacts
- Consent jurisdiction based on registered agent designation (Correct answer)
- Tag jurisdiction based on physical presence
Correct answer: Consent jurisdiction based on registered agent designation
Appointing a registered agent in a state constitutes consent to personal jurisdiction in that state for service of process purposes.
Question 2: Under Oregon's long-arm statute (ORCP 4), which of the following contacts would most clearly support personal jurisdiction over a non-resident defendant?
- Defendant mailed a letter to an Oregon plaintiff
- Defendant manufactured goods in California that injured plaintiff in Oregon (Correct answer)
- Defendant visited Oregon on a personal vacation unrelated to the lawsuit
- Defendant has family members residing in Oregon
Correct answer: Defendant manufactured goods in California that injured plaintiff in Oregon
ORCP 4(a)(3) extends jurisdiction to defendants who cause tortious injury in Oregon through acts or omissions outside the state.
Question 3: A federal court sitting in Oregon has diversity jurisdiction over a case. The plaintiff is injured by a defective product. Under the Erie doctrine, which law applies to the statute of limitations?
- Federal common law because limitations periods are procedural
- Oregon state law because limitations periods are substantive in the Erie context (Correct answer)
- The law of the state where the product was manufactured
- Federal Rules of Civil Procedure because they govern federal proceedings
Correct answer: Oregon state law because limitations periods are substantive in the Erie context
Under Erie and Guaranty Trust v. York, statutes of limitations are treated as substantive for Erie purposes and state law applies.
Question 4: Defendant is served with process while passing through Oregon as a witness in an unrelated trial. Defendant argues the service is invalid. How should the court rule?
- Valid; physical presence in a state always confers personal jurisdiction
- Invalid; witness immunity shields defendants from service while attending court (Correct answer)
- Valid; Oregon recognizes tag jurisdiction for any in-state service
- Invalid; service on a transient violates due process minimum contacts
Correct answer: Invalid; witness immunity shields defendants from service while attending court
The witness immunity rule protects non-resident witnesses from civil service of process while attending court proceedings in another state.
Question 5: Plaintiff files a diversity action in Oregon federal court. Defendant timely moves to transfer venue to the District of Nevada under 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). The court must weigh which primary factors?
- Plaintiff's choice of forum, defendant's financial resources, and case complexity
- Convenience of parties and witnesses, and the interest of justice (Correct answer)
- Amount in controversy, nature of claims, and parties' citizenship
- Filing fees, docket congestion only in transferee court, and plaintiff's convenience
Correct answer: Convenience of parties and witnesses, and the interest of justice
Section 1404(a) permits transfer for convenience of parties and witnesses, and in the interest of justice, with plaintiff's choice of forum given significant weight.
Question 6: A defendant removes a state court case to federal court. Plaintiff moves to remand, arguing removal was untimely. When must a defendant file a notice of removal based on diversity jurisdiction?
- Within 20 days of service of the complaint
- Within 30 days of service of the initial pleading or amended pleading making the case removable (Correct answer)
- Within 60 days of service of the complaint
- Any time before trial if jurisdiction existed at filing
Correct answer: Within 30 days of service of the initial pleading or amended pleading making the case removable
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1446(b), a defendant must remove within 30 days of receiving the initial pleading or a later pleading that first makes the case removable.
Question 7: In an in rem action, a court's power to adjudicate is based on what?
- Personal service on the property owner within the state
- The court's power over property located within its territorial jurisdiction (Correct answer)
- The defendant's domicile within the forum state
- A contractual forum selection clause referencing the forum
Correct answer: The court's power over property located within its territorial jurisdiction
In rem jurisdiction allows a court to adjudicate rights in property located within the forum state, regardless of where the parties are located.
OR Bar Civil Procedure 2
A plaintiff sues a foreign corporation in Oregon federal court based on diversity jurisdiction.
The corporation has a registered agent in Oregon but conducts no other business there.
Which basis of personal jurisdiction applies?