Axiom Foods, Inc. v. Acerchem Int'l, Inc., No. 15-56450 (9th Cir. 2017)
Annotate this CaseFollowing Walden v. Fiore, 134 S. Ct. 1115 (2014), the panel held that while a theory of individualized targeting may remain relevant to the minimum contacts inquiry, it will not, on its own, support the exercise of specific jurisdiction, absent compliance with what Walden requires. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's dismissal of a copyright infringement action based on lack of personal jurisdiction over defendant, a United Kingdom limited company. In this case, the panel applied the "effects" test and held that defendant committed an intentional act, but did not expressly aim its intentional act at the forum state. The panel held that the district court properly declined to exercise jurisdiction over defendant pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(k)(2).
Court Description: Personal Jurisdiction The panel affirmed the dismissal of a copyright infringement action for lack of personal jurisdiction over a defendant United Kingdom limited company. Applying the “effects” test, the panel concluded that the nonresident defendant committed an intentional act by adding plaintiffs’ logos to a newsletter and sending it to a list of recipients. The defendant did not, however, expressly aim its intentional act at the forum state of California. Following Walden v. Fiore, 134 S. Ct. 1115 (2014), the panel held that while a theory of individualized targeting may remain relevant to the minimum contacts inquiry, it will not, on its own, support the exercise of specific jurisdiction. The panel held that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(k)(2) did not permit the district court to exercise personal jurisdiction over the United Kingdom company. The panel concluded that such an exercise of jurisdiction would not AXIOM FOODS V. ACERCHEM UK 3 comport with due process because there were insufficient contacts between the defendant and the United States.
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