Conflict of Laws

Conflict of Laws is a course in advanced civil procedure, but it also involves issues of federalism, foreign affairs, and international law. The course covers three major topics.  The first is jurisdiction — not just personal jurisdiction (or at least the international aspects of it, building on the domestic materials in Civil Procedure) but also the “prescriptive” jurisdiction of a state or nation to regulate conduct.  The second topic is the important and difficult question of choice of law: for cases in which the facts involve more than one state or country, whose law will be applied to resolve the case? The third topic is the enforceability of judgments rendered in another state’s or nation’s courts.  We will analyze cases and materials primarily from U.S. sources but with an eye toward international issues as well.   The grade will be based on a final examination.

This course is typically offered every other year.