Ghosts Have Rights Too! A New Era in Contractual Rights: Third-Party Invocation in Forum Selection Clauses

Authors

Monika L. Woodard

First Page

467

Document Type

Comment

Abstract

In the wake of non-party adhesion becoming an increasingly large problem for the federal and state courts, this comment proposes a modification to the test set forth by Judge Posner in Raintree. This comment also makes a call to the Supreme Court for action in determining a ceiling standard for non-party invocation of forum selection clauses. Part II of this comment considers the direction of the Supreme Court in past decisions on forum selection clauses in general and the implications of these decisions on the future of the clauses. Part III discusses the relatively new question surrounding forum selection clauses with respect to non-party invocation of the clause and the issues it creates in general. Part IV discusses the test created by Judge Posner and the Raintree court, which suggests a compartmentalized approach to the issue. Part V further considers the Raintree test as a portion of a more cumulative test that breaks the analysis down to consider parties that have a relationship to the actual contract itself versus those with a relationship to the signatory parties of the contract. Part VI provides final conclusive thoughts and a call to the Supreme Court to take action and create a ceiling standard for nonparty invocation that may be followed by the lower courts.

Recommended Citation

Monika L. Woodard, Ghosts Have Rights Too! A New Era in Contractual Rights: Third-Party Invocation in Forum Selection Clauses, 26 St. Thomas L. Rev. 467 (2014).
Available at: https://scholarship.stu.edu/stlr/vol26/iss4/6