VIRGINIA CONFLICT OF LAWS PROFESSOR DAVID L. FRANKLIN DEPAUL UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION; DOMICILE; CHOICE OF LAW A. Introduction B. Domicile This lecture will cover three principal topics: 1) 2) 3) Exam Tip 1: How this area tends to be tested: Since 1997, Conflicts has been tested four times on the Virginia Bar Exam. Sometimes it has had a question all to itself and other times it has been blended with another subject like jurisdiction. Conflicts issues are not going to be hidden. You will easily be able to recognize a conflicts issue because the question will often involve facts from multiple states. The Bar Examiners will tell you that the law of State A is different from the law of State B and will ask you which law applies. Sometimes the question will tell you that one person has obtained a judgment from a court in one state and wants to have that judgment recognized and enforced in another state. Domicile is the most important way in which the law connects a with a. The most important rule about domicile is that a person has domicile at all times. o So even if you are a multi-millionaire and have lots of homes in lots of different states or foreign countries, you still only have. Even if you are homeless, you still have only one legal domicile. Even if you are a corporation and do business in all 50 states, you still have one domicile. Domicile can be acquired in one of two ways: 1) or 2).
a. Domicile by choice In general, to acquire a domicile by choice, a person has to her previous domicile and then establish a new one by doing two things: i) in the new domicile; and ii) Manifest an there indefinitely. Exam Tip 2: Remember: Your mind plus your behind = Domicile by choice. Intent (your mind) is shown by a person s taken as a whole. Example 1: The fact that you own real estate, pay taxes, vote, set up a bank account, register your car, or receive mail in the jurisdiction. All of those facts can be relevant to a finding of intent, though none by itself is conclusive. Physical presence (your behind) - a person has to have a physical presence in the jurisdiction. There is that a person has to spend in a jurisdiction in order to establish the physical presence component, so long as the physical presence is coupled with the intent to remain. Example 2: A farmer decides to move from West Virginia to Pennsylvania. He is going to live on a family farm, most of which is back in West Virginia but the small farmhouse on the farm where he plans to live is in Pennsylvania. He arrives at the small farmhouse in Pennsylvania and unloads his goods and livestock there. He subsequently becomes ill and returns to the large farmhouse in West Virginia to recuperate. While he is there, he dies. What was the farmer s domicile at the time of his death? Answer:. The farmer acquired a Pennsylvania domicile by, even though it was for a brief period of time, at the small farmhouse and taking actions there that manifested his there indefinitely; unloading his goods and livestock. While he did return to West Virginia, that return was not accompanied by any actions or statements manifesting an intent to remain there indefinitely. b. Domicile by law - Some people do not have to choose their own domicile so the law chooses it for them. Children: Under Virginia law, a child takes the domicile of if her parents were at the time she was born. 2 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
C. Choice of Law If the parents were, then the child takes the domicile of. If the parents are, then the child has the domicile of the. As soon as the child is old enough to have or if she is, then she acquires the ability to exercise domicile by choice. Corporations: The domicile of a corporation for purposes of choice of law (see below) is generally the state where the corporation. A choice-of- law issue exists whenever the laws of arguably apply to the. The state in which the lawsuit is brought is called the. The law of that state is called. Exam Tip 3: Don t confuse choice of law with jurisdiction. Jurisdiction is whether the court can decide a case (subject matter jurisdiction, personal jurisdiction, and venue). Choice of law is which state s law is used to resolve the issues. Each of the 50 states follows its own set of choice-of-law rules unless the or some dictates the rule that should apply. When a choice-of-law issue arises in Virginia state court, the court is going to look to forum law,, in order to decide the choiceof-law issue in the case. 1. Traditional Approach o Virginia follows an approach to choice of law that is sometimes called the. It is also called the or the. o Under the traditional approach, which Virginia courts follow, each state gets to determine the legal effects of all those events, but only those events, that occur. o As soon as a occurs, a springs into being. At that moment, the right becomes under the law of the state where the legally significant event occurred. VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 3
o In some cases, it may not be obvious where the legally significant event occurred. Where or when does a legal right vest? Under the traditional approach, a legal right vests when takes place that is necessary to give the plaintiff a. Example 3: Imagine that David and Victoria are a married couple who live in Virginia. One day they are driving in the state of West Carolina. David negligently drives into a ditch and Victoria is injured. She sues David for negligence in Virginia circuit court. West Carolina law contains a rule of spousal immunity in tort. Virginia law, by contrast, has no such rule. Under the traditional approach to choice of law, followed by Virginia courts, should David be able to assert a defense of spousal immunity? Answer:. Virginia follows the traditional approach to choice of law, so its courts will apply the tort law of the place where the occurred that gave rise to the tort. Here, the entire tort took place in West Carolina, which has spousal immunity. David can apply that rule, providing a complete defense to his wife Victoria s suit. Exam Tip 4: Virginia applies the traditional approach. It is conceivable that a question on the exam could ask about another state s approach, however, so you should be familiar with the two other major approaches to choice of law discussed below. 2. Two Other Competing Approaches to Choice of Law: a. Governmental Interest Analysis The law of a state applies to a set of facts if applying the law to those facts would promote that gave rise to the law in the first place. If the law of a state applies to a case, that state is said to be in the case. If you determine that, that is called a, and the court should apply the law of the. If, on the other hand, the court determines that are interested or that is interested, then under the classic version of governmental interests analysis, the court should simply apply the law of (the state where the lawsuit was brought). 4 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
b. Most Significant Relationship Approach This is also known as the. It calls on courts to apply the law of the state with the to the issue in question. In determining which state has the most significant relationship to the issue, a court considers many factors, including: i) The place where the cause of action arose; ii) The place where the ; and iii) The that underlie the law of the forum and the law of any interested states. CHAPTER 2: CHOICE OF LAW: RECURRING ISSUES; TORTS AND CONTRACTS A. Two Recurring Issues in Choice- of- Law Cases Depeçage o Depeçage means the application of different states laws to different issues. o Under the traditional approach, courts are not supposed to use depeçage. o Virginia, even though it has adopted the traditional approach, also its courts to perform depeçage. Renvoi o When a court applies the law of some other state, it applies of that other state, including that other state s. o If a court decides to do this, that court is said to accept the renvoi. If a court decides not to do it, the court is said to reject the renvoi. o Accepting the renvoi could lead courts into an infinite regress. Because of this risk, the traditional approach to choice of law, followed by Virginia, the renvoi. One Important Exception For issues involving, courts in Virginia, applying the traditional approach, will the renvoi. B. Virginia Choice-of-Law Rules for Particular Areas Exam Tip 5: The examiners like to test on the prior question of whether an issue is a torts issue or a contracts issue or something else for choice of law purposes. Remember that under the technique known as depeçage, Virginia s courts could apply a different state s laws to different issues in a single case. So the first step in any choice- of-law case is a step called characterization. The VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 5
1. Torts Issues court must characterize the issue before it as a contracts issue, torts issue, property issue, etc. Virginia courts use Virginia law to characterize the issues. o Under the traditional approach, applied in Virginia, a tort case will be governed by the law of the place. Where does a tort occur? 2. Contracts Issues Remember the general rule: a legal right vests under the law of the place where the occurred that is necessary to give the plaintiff a cause of action. In torts, a cause of action requires duty, breach, causation, and injury. So the last act necessary to give rise to the tort is. o Courts using the traditional approach will apply the law of the place where the. Example 4: A car is defectively manufactured in Michigan. It is then negligently repaired in North Carolina. Eventually, it breaks down in Virginia, causing injury to the plaintiff there. As a result of his injuries, the plaintiff misses out on a lucrative business opportunity in California. He sues the Michigan manufacturer and the North Carolina repair shop in Virginia state court. Which state s tort law should apply to this action? Answer:. Under Virginia s choiceof-law rules for torts cases, the law of the place where the injury occurred will be applied to all of the tort law issues in the case. o What if the contract contains a clause? The general rule, followed in Virginia, is that the parties are that will govern their transaction. This is known as the. It means that choice- of-law clauses in contracts are. Exam Tip 6: The above rule has been recently tested on the Virginia bar exam. Example 5: Imagine that a movie producer and a movie director are on location in Utah discussing their upcoming Wild West movie. They decide to make the movie together and execute a contract in Utah. The contract states that the director shall do all shooting in person. Because the parties and their lawyers are most familiar with the ways of Hollywood, they also insert a clause in their contract stating that it shall be interpreted according to the rules of California contract law. During the filming of the climactic shoot-out scene, the 6 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
producer insists that the director fire the guns himself. The director protests, saying that the phrase all shooting in the contract referred to shooting with a camera and not with a gun. The producer sues the director for breach of contract. Which state s law should the court apply? Answer: There is one very important exception to the general rule of party autonomy: The of a contract be resolved solely by reference to the parties choice of law. Virginia law provides that the parties choice of law will still govern, even on issues of validity, unless that law is: i) ; or ii) There is between the transaction and the chosen state; or iii) There was,, or mistake and therefore true consent was not given. Example 6: Jimmy the Greek and Timmy the Geek are both citizens of Virginia and want to bet $10,000 on the Super Bowl. Gambling contracts are unenforceable in Virginia, so the two men specify by contract that their agreement shall be governed by the law of Nevada, where such agreements are enforceable. They then make their bet in Virginia. Timmy picks the Detroit Lions to win. He loses the bet, but refuses to pay. Jimmy sues him for breach of contract in Virginia state court. Which law should the court apply? Answer:. Enforceability is clearly an issue of and therefore cannot be resolved solely by reference to the parties choice of law. Nevada probably does not have a reasonable relation to the transaction, unless you think that having a well-developed body of gambling law is enough (likely not). Since judicial enforcement of gambling contracts is contrary to Virginia s, the parties choice of Nevada law would probably be rejected. o What if there is no choice-of-law clause or no valid choice- of- law clause in the contract? Under the traditional approach, which is followed in Virginia, the law of is going to govern all issues of contract formation, interpretation, and validity. What is the place of contracting? We ask, what is the last act that is necessary to give the plaintiff a cause of action. A contract requires an offer and an acceptance. The VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 7
acceptance comes last. So the law of the governs. Example 7: Dave Matthews is a musician who lives in Virginia. Miles Mavis is a trumpet player who specializes in interminable noodling solos and who lives in New York. Matthews calls Mavis on the telephone and says Hey, I ve been looking for a trumpeter who plays endless, pointless solos to join my band for our next tour, which will last for more than a year. Mavis says O.K., but you have to pay me a dollar per note. Matthews says It s a deal, but later decides it was a stupid deal and refuses to honor the contract. Mavis then sues him for breach of contract in Virginia state court. Under Virginia law, contracts like this one must be in writing and signed by the parties in order to be valid. Imagine that under New York law, this kind of oral contract would be valid. Who should win? Answer:. When he said It s a deal, that was an acceptance. Because he spoke those words into the telephone in Virginia, Virginia is the place of acceptance and its law will govern the contract issues. o Exception to Place of Contracting Test Exam Tip 7: The exception below has been recently tested on the Virginia bar exam. Under Virginia s choice-of-law rules, issues relating to the of a contract will be governed by the law of the place where or where performance is. CHAPTER 3: CHOICE OF LAW: PROPERTY, CORPORATIONS, AND FAMILY LAW A. Property Issues There are two kinds of property for choice-of-law issues: i) and ii). Immovables include and in land, including leasehold interests. Movables are everything else. 1. Immovables o All issues are governed by the law of the place where the immovable. That place is known as. 8 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
o This is that rare area where courts will, as discussed above. 2. Movables o These can be subdivided into (like a painting, a piece of furniture, or a boat) and (stock, bond, legal cause of action). Most issues concerning an interest in tangible, movable property are governed by the. The UCC allows the parties to choose the applicable law. If the UCC does not apply, then Virginia Courts will apply the. o For tangible, movable property, the traditional approach tells us to apply the law of the state where at the time of the transaction. For intangible movables, like a stock or a bond, there is no physical location of the property. Virginia applies the law of the state in which the intangible property. 3. Inheritance of Property a. Succession to immovables The will control, including choice- of- law rules. Different states laws could be applied to different tracts of land that a decedent owned at the time of death, even if conveyed by the same will or trust. b. Succession to movables In Virginia, these issues are governed by the law of the at the time of death. This includes even questions of validity. B. Corporations Issues We can divide corporate law issues into two categories: and. 1. Internal affairs o Internal affairs concern the rights and duties of the various participants in the corporate venture (officers, directors, shareholders, etc.). o The internal affairs of a corporation are governed by the law of the state in which the. VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 9
2. External affairs o External affairs involve transactions between the corporation and who are outsiders to the corporate venture. o The corporation is treated like any other natural person. Its torts and contracts with respect to third parties are governed by for torts and contracts discussed above. C. Family Law Issues 1. Marriage o The general rule is that the validity of a marriage is governed by the law of the place where the marriage. Thus, a marriage that was invalid under the law of the place where it was celebrated is invalid everywhere. More importantly, it means that a marriage that was valid where celebrated is valid everywhere. o Public policy exception to general rule If a marriage violates a particularly of the domicile of either party, the courts of that domicile to recognize the marriage. A strong public policy of a forum will typically be codified in the form of a statute or state constitutional provision. In Virginia, this could include any statute that outlaws some form of marriage, like marriage or marriage or marriage below a certain age. This exception applies particularly strongly if the parties travel to another state to get married there to take advantage of the more lax rules of that state and then come back to the more restrictive domicile. o There is also a distinction between the validity of a marriage and of a marriage (rights that flow from the marital status, like intestate succession): The incidents of a valid marriage are determined by the law of the place where the incident is. A state may choose to recognize some incidents of marriage and not others. Example 8: In one old case, the California courts decided to enforce a will that distributed the property of a foreign decedent to his multiple wives, even though California did not recognize the polygamous marriages that formed the basis for those gifts. 10 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
2. Marital property o Marital property is any interest in property that one spouse obtains in the property of the other spouse other than. o For marital interests in property, no matter where or when the property was acquired, the usual still applies (see above). o For marital interests in property, only such property acquired is at stake. Such interests are generally governed by the law of the state where the married couple at the time that the property was. If marital funds or property are used by one spouse to acquire property in another state, the property that is acquired has the as the funds or property used to acquire it. Example 9: A wife in a community property state purchases a house in a separate property state using community funds, the house will be community property and not separate property. CHAPTER 4: DEFENSES AGAINST APPLICATION OF FOREIGN LAW A. Pleading Bringing Foreign Law into a Lawsuit In the old days, out-of-state law had to be like any other fact. Nowadays, Virginia courts take of the laws of other states and also of the content of federal law. Thus, they treat them as law, rather than as fact. Judicial notice also means that the issue is for, not, and that the usual rules of pleading and evidence do not apply. B. Defenses 1. Generally If a party wants to keep sister state law out of the case, what defenses can they raise? 1) 2) 3) 2. Penal law exception o A court enforce the penal laws of another state. VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 11
o Penal means. 3. Public policy exception o A court may refuse to apply the law of another state or country if that law violates a and public policy of the forum state. o Courts should not use the public policy exception unless enforcing the other state s law would violate the forum s fundamental understanding of or some deep-rooted. o If the public policy exception is successful, the result should be the of the plaintiff s cause of action. o The public policy exception should never be used to deny the defendant a defense under foreign law; it should only be used to deny. 4. Substance versus procedure distinction a. Generally o Forum law always governs. Example 10: The plaintiff is suing on a Mississippi contract in an Alabama court. Alabama requires briefs to be stapled, but Mississippi allows paper clips. Alabama follows the First Restatement approach to conflict of laws. Must the briefs be stapled? Answer:. Alabama s requirement of stapling is a procedural requirement rule and it must be followed in Alabama courts. The fact that Alabama follows the First Restatement approach is a red herring. The issue is a procedural one and procedural issues are governed by forum law. o Working definition of the distinction between substance and procedure: Substantive laws regulate people s behavior. Procedural rules, by contrast, regulate what people do once they are already. b. The parol evidence rule This rule says that oral evidence of contracts shall not be admitted. This is a rule. Thus, questions regarding the application of the parol evidence rule are considered substantive and controlled by the law of the state that governs the validity of the contract. 12 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
c. Evidentiary privileges Under the First Restatement approach, which Virginia courts follow, the existence and validity of a privilege are considered and are governed by. d. Damages caps These are typically considered. The type and measure of damages in tort cases are treated as substantive issues under the First Restatement. Thus, they are decided by the law of the. But, the First Restatement also says that on damages are. So if a limit has been codified by statute, courts should apply their own state s (the forum s) statutory damage caps. e. Statutes of limitations Under the First Restatement, followed in Virginia, statutes of limitations are considered and the law of controls. There is an exception if the court determines that the statute of limitations is and bound up with the substantive statutory right so that the right itself is conditional upon on being sued upon within a particular period of time. Then, that period of limitations will be considered substantive and it will apply. Example 11: If the wrongful death statute of the state of Florida contains a limitation period, that limitation period, because it is bound up with the statutory right, is treated as substantive, and it will travel with that right and apply even in Virginia court, once the Virginia court determines that the Florida wrongful death statute applies. f. Borrowing statute Virginia has enacted a borrowing statute. Exam Tip 8: The bar examiners like to test this issue! The Virginia borrowing statute bars suits on if the suit would be under Virginia s statute of limitations or the statute of limitations of the state whose law governs the contract itself, whichever is. Note 1: YOU BORROW IN ORDER TO BAR. VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 13
Key Point: The Virginia borrowing statute applies to only! 5. Constitutional limitations on choice of law o Under the U.S. Constitution, a state s substantive law may be applied to an issue only if the state has or significant aggregation of contacts with the issue such that the application of the state s law would be neither nor fundamentally. o Note that this only applies to substantive law. As far as the U.S. Constitution is concerned, a state may always apply its procedural law to any issue that is traditionally viewed as procedural. CHAPTER 5: OPERATION OF STATE LAW IN FEDERAL COURT A. The Erie Doctrine The Supremacy Clause of the U.S Constitution makes federal law the and any state law that conflicts with federal law is - this is called. Federal courts have subject matter jurisdiction over cases arising under federal law. This is called jurisdiction and a court exercising federal question jurisdiction will apply. Diversity jurisdiction allows federal courts to decide cases between citizens of or between citizens of. The Erie Doctrine holds that federal district courts exercising diversity jurisdiction must apply the, as that law has been interpreted by that state s highest court. Example 12: Imagine that Ginny from Virginia sues Mary from Maryland to recover for an alleged tort that took place in Maryland. She sues Mary in the federal district court for the Northern District of Virginia under federal diversity jurisdiction. What substantive law should the court apply? Answer: What if the state substantive law is unclear and has not been interpreted by the state s highest court? o In that case, the federal court just has to do the best it can. It can look at the decisions of lower state courts. In the end, maybe the federal court will have to as to what they think the state supreme court 14 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
would do with the issue. As soon as the state s highest court speaks, the federal court must listen, even if the case is already on appeal and was decided differently below. B. Substantive Laws v. Procedural Laws Erie says that federal courts sitting in diversity must apply state substantive law. What kinds of laws count as? o The Supreme Court has made clear that any law that will be considered substantive law and state substantive law must be applied by a federal court in a diversity action (e.g., elements of a claim, burden of proof). o State law that is applies only in. Federal courts apply their own federal procedural rules. 1. Statutes of limitations o Under the traditional approach to choice of law, statutes of limitations are generally considered. o Under the Erie Doctrine, statutes of limitations are considered. The federal court must apply the statute of limitations of. This prevents plaintiffs from between state and federal court. Example 13: Imagine that Ginny, from the example above, hasn t gotten around to suing Mary yet, and the Virginia statute of limitations has expired. Under the Erie Doctrine, she is out of luck in both Virginia court and federal court! She can t shop around. Statutes of limitations are considered substantive for purposes of the Erie Doctrine because they are in a way that is direct and certain enough to give rise to between state and federal court. Example 14: Imagine that Ginny, from the example above, hasn t gotten around to suing Mary yet, and the Virginia statute of limitations has expired. Under the Erie Doctrine, she is out of luck in both Virginia court and federal court! She can t shop around. 2. Federal Rules o If a, such as a federal rule of civil procedure or a federal rule of evidence applies directly to an issue in question, then a federal court, even in a diversity action, must apply it. VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 15
Example 15: Imagine that Virginia state law requires Ginny to serve Mary with service in person, whereas Rule 4 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure allows service by mail. Ginny files a diversity action against Mary in federal district court in Virginia. Must she serve Mary in person? Answer:. A federal district court in a diversity case must apply the choice- of- law rules of - this is called the. Exam Tip 9: The bar examiners like to test this issue. Example 16: Ginny from Virginia sues Mary from Maryland to recover for an alleged tort that took place in Maryland. She sues Mary in the federal district court for the Northern District of Virginia under federal diversity jurisdiction. Virginia follows the First Restatement of Conflicts, while Maryland has adopted the Second Restatement approach. Which state s tort law should the federal law apply? Answer:. The federal court, sitting in Virginia would apply the choice-of-law rules of the state in which it sits, under the Klaxon rule. The court would apply the tort laws of the place where the injury occurred, which is Maryland. o One key exception to the Klaxon rule: If a diversity case was properly filed in a federal district court in one state, but was then a federal district court in another state, pursuant to the federal venue statute, the choice-of-law rules still apply. Exam Tip 10: This exception has been tested on the bar exam in the past. CHAPTER 6: RECOGNITION OF JUDGMENTS A. Full Faith and Credit The first state, the state where the judgment is rendered, is called the. The state where the judgment is sought to be enforced is called the. In Virginia, you just file a record of the judgment from the rendering state with the clerk of any circuit court. 16 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
1. Sister state judgments o A judgment from another state must be given in the enforcement state that it would be given by the courts of the state that rendered the judgment. This general rule follows from the of the U.S. Constitution. All kinds of judgments are covered by the Full Faith and Credit Clause. o Effect means - the ability to cut off further litigation. 2. Preclusion o Claim preclusion, also known as o Issue preclusion, also known as o For a judgment to have preclusive effect, it must be: i), ii), and iii). o Under our general rule of full faith and credit, preclusion plays out in the second state exactly as it would have. o There is to the general rule of full faith and credit. No matter how contrary a judgment is to a state s public policy, once that proceeding in the first state has been reduced to a valid, final judgment on the merits, it must get the same effect in every other state as it would in the rendering state. Example 17: Virginia law makes it illegal to enter into gambling contracts and makes such contracts void. Two Virginia residents enter into such a contract nonetheless. The winner of the bet then sues the loser on the contract in New Jersey, having somehow obtained personal jurisdiction over the defendant there. The New Jersey court purports to apply Virginia law, but completely overlooks the fact that Virginia law makes such contracts illegal and void and awards a judgment for the plaintiff. The plaintiff brings that judgment back to Virginia for enforcement. Must the Virginia courts enforce that judgment? Answer:. VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 17
What if a valid, final judgment is not only inconsistent with the law, but inconsistent with another valid, final judgment? o The judgment is entitled to full faith and credit. o This is called the. Example 18: Imagine in the example above that the winner sues the loser first in Virginia. Naturally, he would lose in Virginia court, as Virginia law makes gambling contracts illegal and void. Now the plaintiff goes to New Jersey and tries again. For some crazy reason, the New Jersey court overlooks the Virginia judgment and awards judgment to the winner. He now goes back to Virginia with that judgment and tries to enforce it in Virginia. Must the Virginia courts enforce the New Jersey judgment? Answer:. a. Valid Do not confuse the word valid with the idea of. Even erroneous judgments must still be given full faith and credit. Valid simply means rendered by a court with. A judgment by a court without jurisdiction, either over the parties or the subject matter, to full faith and credit. o This exception to the general rule of full faith and credit is a narrow one. o It applies only when the issue of jurisdiction was in the original proceeding. There is one other way to show that the rendering court lacked valid jurisdiction - by showing. This is something extremely serious, like - something that prevents the entire proceeding from being considered valid. Judgments that are the result of extrinsic fraud are and to full faith and credit. This exception is a narrow one because mere intrinsic fraud, like perjury or misrepresentation of the evidence, though serious, is not enough. It shows that the judgment is mistaken, but the judgment is still valid and entitled to full faith and credit. 18 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws
b. Final This means no appeals are and that the judgment is under the laws of the rendering state. c. On the merits This means that the substantive issues have been decided by the rendering court. That includes judgments after trial, but also, dismissals on the merits with prejudice, and even default judgments. It excludes dismissals for and dismissals without prejudice. B. Special Categories of Sister State Judgments 1. Workers compensation awards o If an employee who is injured while on the job gets a workers compensation award in State A, he can still get a supplemental award in State B unless the law of State A bars such additional recovery using. 2. Divorce decrees o A divorce is a judgment and courts will apply in determining whether or not to grant a divorce. o For a state court to grant a divorce, it must have over at least one spouse. At least one spouse must be. If a court has personal jurisdiction over both spouses, then the resulting divorce judgment is called a and it is entitled to full faith and credit like any other judgment. o Ex parte divorce A divorce can be sought by one spouse in a proceeding where the court over the absent spouse. This is called. The party seeking the divorce must establish domicile in and most states add a durational residency requirement on top of the domicile requirement. Ex parte divorces to full faith and credit in other states even though there was no personal jurisdiction over the absent spouse. However, there are two special features that reduce the ability of spouses to get an ex parte divorce recognized: VA Conflict of Laws 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC 19
First, the enforcement state does not have to give full faith and credit to the divorcing state s. Second, the rule of full faith and credit with regard to ex parte divorce decrees applies only to. Court orders involving everything else (property, alimony, custody, etc.) are valid and entitled to full faith and credit only if the rendering court had personal jurisdiction over. This is called the doctrine of. 3. Court orders relating to child custody and support o This subject is governed by uniform laws in every state - the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA). o Under the UCCJEA, one state gets to make the initial custody determination if it is the child s, and all other states must give full faith and credit to that determination. o Other states cannot modify these custody decrees unless the original state no longer has a to the child or parents (i.e., neither the child nor the parents resides in that state anymore). It can only be modified by a court that meets the initial test for exclusive jurisdiction. This will usually be a court of the child s new home state. 4. Judgments from foreign countries o Foreign country judgments the U.S. Constitution s Full Faith and Credit Clause. o Usually, foreign judgments will be enforced as a matter of (mutual respect among sovereigns). There are some cases in which American courts have refused to enforce a foreign country judgment because the underlying law from the foreign country is considered truly repugnant to the forum s. o Most states have adopted the Uniform Foreign Money Judgment Recognition Act. Foreign money judgments are generally enforceable in the same manner as sister state judgments. Foreign non-money judgments are not covered by the statute but are usually enforced by states as a matter of comity so long as both parties participated, the foreign court had proper jurisdiction, and the proceeding was fundamentally fair. [END OF HANDOUT] 20 2016 Themis Bar Review, LLC VA Conflict of Laws