Supreme Court Reaffirms Registering To Do Business May Subject You to Lawsuits

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Last week the US Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutionality of state laws requiring businesses to consent to lawsuits in the state after registering with state authorities to conduct business there. In Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co.,[1] the Court resolved conflicting authority and held that such laws do not violate the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. According to the Court, this type of statutory scheme is permissible even if the business is not at home in the forum state and the lawsuit is based on conduct that occurred elsewhere.