Forum non conveniens is a judge-made doctrine that permits a court to decline to hear a case on the understanding that it would be more appropriately resolved by a different sovereign’s courts. The doctrine is used by both state and federal courts in the United States to dismiss cases with transnational elements, particularly those brought by non-U.S. plaintiffs.
A Primer on Forum Non Conveniens
Under the doctrine of forum non conveniens, a judge may dismiss a case on the understanding that the case would be better heard in another sovereign’s court. It is a judge-made discretionary doctrine that can be invoked even if the court otherwise has proper jurisdiction over the case. This primer describes the current federal doctrine…
Continue ReadingTransnational Employment Disputes and Forum Non Conveniens
When a company headquartered in the United States enters into an employment contract with an individual working abroad, both parties generally expect the relationship to be mutually beneficial. In most cases, these expectations are realized. In a small number of cases, however, the relationship collapses into acrimony. When this occurs, the U.S. employer may bring…
Continue ReadingThe Many Uses of the Choice-of-Law Clause
In prior posts, I have written about the things that a forum selection clause can and cannot do. In this post, I do the same for choice-of-law clauses. Among other things, a choice-of-law clause may be invoked to: Select a law to govern the contract and claims related to the contract; Provide support for the…
Continue ReadingNew Paper on Forum Non Conveniens and Foreign Sovereigns
When a foreign sovereign files a lawsuit in the United States, is it ever appropriate for the court to dismiss on the grounds that it would be more appropriate for the suit to be litigated in that sovereign’s own courts? This is the question that Eunsun Cho set out to answer in a student note…
Continue ReadingJohn F. Coyle, Dangerous Foreign Courts, 100 Tulane L. Rev. 77 (2025) (SSRN)
William S. Dodge, Maggie Gardner, & Christopher A. Whytock, The Many State Doctrines of Forum Non Conveniens, 72 Duke L.J. 1163 (2023) (SSRN)
Maggie Gardner, Retiring Forum Non Conveniens, 92 N.Y.U. L. Rev. 390 (2017) (SSRN)
Peter B. Rutledge, With Apologies to Paxton Blair, 45 N.Y.U. J. Int’l L. & Pol. 1063 (2013) (Georgia)
Thomas O. Main, Toward a Law of “Lovely Parting Gifts”: Conditioning Forum Non Conveniens Dismissals, 18 Sw. J. Int’l L. 425 (2012) (UNLV)
Christopher A. Whytock, The Evolving Forum Shopping System, 96 Cornell L. Rev. 390 (2011) (SSRN)
Ronald A. Brand & Scott R. Jablonski, Forum Non Conveniens: History, Global Practice, and Future under the Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements (2007)
Elizabeth T. Lear, National Interests, Foreign Injuries, and Federal Forum Non Conveniens, 41 U.C. Davis L. Rev. 559 (2007) (Florida)
Martin Davies, Time to Change the Forum Non Conveniens Analysis, 77 Tulane L. Rev. 309 (2002)
Allan R. Stein, Forum Non Conveniens and the Redundancy of Court Access Doctrine, 133 U. Pa. L. Rev. 781 (1985)