ABSTRACT
In any toxic tort claim, the court must have a proper jurisdictional basis for exercising judicial power over the parties. Jurisdictional disputes most commonly arise over whether the court of one state can require a defendant to defend a toxic tort claim brought in that state. A court that asserts in personam jurisdiction improperly over a nonresident defendant denies due process of law and renders any proceedings or judgment invalid. Many states have enacted so-called "long-arm" statutes that define circumstances in which jurisdiction may be validly asserted over a nonresident defendant. Even where personal jurisdiction may be validly exercised over a nonresident defendant, the court is not compelled to proceed. Defendant may claim that the forum is so inconvenient, and poses such burdens upon it, the witnesses, and the judicial process, that in fairness the trial should be conducted in another jurisdiction.
