New web sites for La. 4th and La. 5th circuits

The La. 4th and La. 5th Circuits have recently revamped their respective web sites. If you haven't seen them lately, check them out.

Personal jurisdiction and the Web

In Quality Design & Construction, Inc. v. Tuff Coat Manufacturing, Inc., 2005-1712 (La. App. 1 Cir. 7/12/06), the First Circuit addressed "the res nova issue of the exercise of personal jurisdiction by Louisiana over a nonresident defendant based on that defendant's contact with Louisiana through its Internet website." In resolving the issue, the court adopted the "sliding scale" approach, originally formulated in Zippo Manufacturing Co. v. Zippo Dot Com, Inc., 952 F. Supp. 1119 (W.D. Pa. 1997). Finding the defendant's web site to be "more closely aligned to the 'passive' end of the spectrum," the court affirmed judgment sustaining the defendant's declinatory exception of lack of personal jurisdiction.

Highlights of the recent legislative session

In this age of legal blogs, Frank Maraist's Civil Law Newsletter remains a valuable resource. He reads everything you need to know and sums it up in one- or two-sentence blurbs—just enough information to inform you whether you need to read the entire decision or legislative act. The most recent issue points out the following significant developments (among many, many others):

Act 621 (text here) creates the 41st JDC, consolidating the various courts of Orleans Parish. It also consolidates several of the ancillary offices of those courts (e.g. sheriff, clerk, etc.)

Act 644 (text here) requires the Louisiana Supreme Court and Courts of Appeal to post their unpublished decisions on their respective web sites, and authorizes citation of the unpublished decisions as authorities.