On Fri, Jun 11, 2004 at 02:20:54PM +0100, Edmund GRIMLEY EVANS wrote: > Nathanael Nerode <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>: > > Yes, but you could then tell them and the court that they had to move the > > suit to where you lived. With this clause, you couldn't (unless the clause > > was ruled to be unenforcable). > > This is circular. A court has to decide from the facts of the case > whether the clause is "enforceable". Which court decides that? That > depends on whether the clause is "enforceable". So where do we start?
I would imagine that the plaintiff would argue in their local court that the clause was enforceable, and the defendant would argue in their local court that it wasn't. If both won in their respective juristictions, you would appeal the decisions to a higher court, one with juristiction over both lower courts. Alternately, the plaintiff's court would rule on enforcability, and you (or your legal representative) would be required to be present at that hearing. There are also some pretty arcane rules about who has juristiction in all sorts of cases, so I might be totally off-base. I'm pretty sure though, that absent a decision from a higher court, a court can choose to hear any case it wants to -- if that court decides to hear your case, either you appear or you're toast. Different courts just have different rules about what constitutes a valid case for them. - Matt
