Nevada's 2025 legislative session has commenced, and at
least one bill is already raising concerns. Assembly Bill 158 would
expand general jurisdiction in Nevada to an entity that "is
organized, registered or qualified to do business pursuant to the
laws of this State." Simply stated, merely registering to do
business in Nevada would create general jurisdiction over that
entity. This could expose entities to lawsuits in Nevada that have
nothing to do with the state. It could also lead to extreme forum
shopping because of the potential to sue entities anywhere.
AB 158 appears motivated by the United States Supreme Court's
2023 decision in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co., 600 U.S.
___ (2023). Mallory concluded that a
Pennsylvania statute requiring a foreign corporation to consent to
general jurisdiction in Pennsylvania as a condition of doing
business there did not violate due process. However,
Mallory leaves at least one question unanswered. Justice
Alito noted in his concurrence that although the statute might not
violate due process, it might be unconstitutional under the
Commerce Clause. That issue, though, was not before the court in
Mallory. Whether a statute such as AB 158, as proposed, is
constitutional remains unknown.
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