Jurisdiction the Law Expresses Itself Through the

Jurisdiction The law expresses itself through the means of the court and its officers. The procedures and rules that accompany the various legal systems of these courts is essential knowledge for those wishing to gain a deeper understanding of the law and how it works. The purpose of this essay is to discuss and compare the differences jurisdictional issues within the United States court system. This paper will first define these terms before examining some of the requirements for each type of issue.

This essay will also discuss the two types of cases federal courts may hear. Subject vs.

Personal Jurisdiction According to the Legal Dictionary personal jurisdiction is the "The power of a court to hear and determine a lawsuit involving a defendant by virtue of the defendant's having some contact with the place where the court is located." According to the legal dictionary subject matter jurisdiction is " The power of a court to hear and determine cases of the general class to which the proceedings in question belong." Personal jurisdiction is the constitutional requirement that a defendant have certain minimum contacts with the forum in which the court sits so that the court may exercise power over the defendant.

Subject-matter jurisdiction is the requirement that the court have power to hear the specific kind of claim that is brought to that court. While the parties may waive personal jurisdiction and submit to the authority of the court, the parties may not waive subject-matter jurisdiction. In fact, the court may dismiss the case sua sponte -- or, on its own -- for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. Most state courts are courts of general jurisdiction.

That is, state courts are presumed to have power to hear virtually any claim arising under federal or state law, except those falling under the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal courts. However, some states deny subject matter jurisdiction to specific claims, such as those arising in other states. In addition to courts of general jurisdiction, most states also maintain specialized courts of limited subject-matter jurisdiction. Examples of these types of courts include probate courts, traffic courts, juvenile courts, and small claims courts.

Personal jurisdiction comes with a special responsibility from the courts. Historically, personal jurisdiction law has changed over time reflecting changes of a more mobile society. Initially, personal jurisdiction would only be found if the party was physically present in the forum state. The U.S. Supreme Court later reformulated this approach to allow jurisdiction over non-resident individuals and entities based on the "minimum contacts" of the out-of-state party.

Determining that a court has personal jurisdiction over a particular defendant is simple when you file the suit in the state in which the defendant resides or does business. The nearly universal rule is that the courts in a state have personal jurisdiction over all people or businesses that are citizens of or do business in that state. Personal jurisdiction rules can be more confusing when you file the suit in a state other than the one in which the defendant is a citizen or does business.

One can't just sue someone in a home state if the defendant doesn't live in that state, has never been in that state, and doesn't do business in that state. Every state has personal jurisdiction over persons within its territory. Conversely, no state can exercise personal jurisdiction and authority over persons outside its territory unless the persons have manifested some contact with the state. The authority of the court to issue orders to persons present within the territory comes from the sovereign power of the government.

The court's authority allows it to reach all residents of a state, including those who are outside the state for a short period and out-of-state residents who enter the state even briefly. When a person wishes to challenge personal jurisdiction, he or she must take care in appearing before the court in the forum state. If the defendant makes a general appearance, the court will take this to be an unqualified submission to the personal jurisdiction of the court. The defendant waives the right to raise any jurisdictional defects.

In general, federal courts may decide cases that involve the United States government, the United States Constitution or federal laws, or controversies between states or between the United States and foreign governments. A case that raises such a "federal question" may be filed in federal court. Examples of such cases might include a claim by an individual for entitlement to money under a federal government program such as Social Security, a claim by the government.