Snap-On Inc. v. Robert Bosch, LLC, No. 09 C 06914, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Sept. 26, 2013) (Kocoras, J.).
Judge Kocoras denied defendant Beissbarth’s Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(2) motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction in this patent infringement case involving patents relating to an optical wheel alignment system. Plaintiff asserted jurisdiction over Beissbarth was proper pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 4(k)(2) that establishes jurisdiction if: (1) the plaintiff’s claim arises under federal law: (2) the defendant is not subject to jurisdiction in any state’s court of general jurisdiction; and (3) the exercise of jurisdiction comports with due process. The first requirement was uncontested. The second requirement was satisfied because Beissbarth refused to identify another forum where jurisdiction would be proper. Under the Federal Circuit’s burden shifting approach, if a defendant asserts that it cannot be sued in the form state and refuses to identify any other state where suit is possible, Rule 4(k)(2) may be used to establish jurisdiction. The third requirement of Rule 4(k)(2) was satisfied under the Federal Circuit’s three-part test to determine if personal jurisdiction over a foreign defendant comports with due process: Beissbarth purposefully directed its activities at residents of the United States; the claims against Beissbarth “arise out of” and “relate to” Beissbarth’s activities in the United States; and, exercising jurisdiction would be reasonable and fair.