Conflicts of Law

The state where the tort occured is the law that will apply

Law of the place where the tort was committed

Where the last act/event that cause the injury occured

GR: Apply the state law where the contract is made
If regrads to performans then apply law of place of performance

Apply state law where the property is located

The law of the place of domicile applies

A person is domicile in the state which they reside with the intent to remain there indefintely

1. Court has to categorize the type of action based on subject matter
2. Then apply the rule that governs the catergory of case

a. stability
b. certainty and predictability
c. ease of application/efficiency

a. arbitrary
b. turns on characterization
c. state interest ?

law of the forum

Step One: Determine the Approach to Choice of Law:
• Vested Rights/ First Restatement (Bright Line)
• Government Interest Analysis
• Choice Influencing –Better Law
• Second Restatement/ Most Significant Relationship
• Lex Fori
Step Two: Apply the Approach

• Characterization
• Substance v. Procedure
• Public Policy
• Renvoi

• Figuring out how to identify the subject under consideration
• Courts can characterize the event/suit as either contract, tort, property, or domicile and would result in a more favorable outcome, or apply the law the court wanted

1. Substantive: laws that affect things, people, or conduct out of court (choice of law) (ex: battery)
2. Procedural: laws that affect things, people, or conduct in court (law of forum) (ex: rules of evidence)

i. Other state’s law violates the public policy of the forum court, then the forum court can refuse to apply the other state’s law.
ii. Narrow escape device: mere difference of law is not enough, need a clear showing that it would offend a sense of justice or would be a menace to society.
iii. Only applies when other state’s law would contravene forums strong public policy (must be a fundamental public policy difference)

• Internal Law—Substantive Law
• Whole Law—Substantive law + choice of law
• Asks what law other court would apply
• Not terribly common

Only one state has interest in having it’s law applied to the case when doing the interest analysis. Apply the law of the state that has the interest

Step One—Identify Policies/ Purposes behind state laws to determine government interest
Step Two—Determine whether application of law would further state’s purpose
a. If no for either state—False Conflict
b. if yes for both states—True Conflict = evaluate state interest to determine which state has strongest interest (significant state interest)

• All parties and car from same state—that state’s law governs (Babcock)
• Acts in own domicile:
o Drive injuries out of state passenger in their own domicile—law of domicile applies
o Out of state driver injures passenger in passenger’s domicile—law of passenger’s domicile applies
•Driver & Passenger are from Different states: law of place injury normally applies
o unless displacing that law will advance the relative substantive purpose of another state

• Needs of interstate and international system
• Relevant policies of the forum
• Relevant policies of other interested states
• Protection of justified expectations
• Basis policies underlying field of law
• Certainty, predictability, and uniformity of result
• Ease in application of law

• Where the injury occurred
• Where conduct causing the injury occurred
• Domicile of parties
• Parties’ relationship centered

• local law of the state where the injury occurred determines the rights and liabilities of parties
o unless some other state has a more significant relationship

The applicable law will usually be the local law of the state where the injury occurs

“In the absence of unusual circumstances” the state with the “most significant relationship” is the place where the tort occurred”

a. Needs of interest and international systems
i. Need of the party to understand the laws of different states and the remedies for injuries.
b. Relevant policies of the forum
c. Relevant policies of other interested states and relative interests of those states
d. Protection of justified expectations
e. Basic policies underlying a particular field
i. Ex: tort = compensation/damages
f. Certainty, predictability, and uniformity of result
i. Which law is more predictable and certain
g. Ease in determination and application of law to be applied
i. What law is easier to apply

reduced by Plaintiffs share of fault; if modified, if plaintiff’s fault is greater bar of recovery

Any negligence on the plaintiff bars recovery-trend away from contributory negligence

bar not liable to 3rd party plaintiffs

allowed recovery from bars who served visibly intoxicated patrons, some states impose anti-dram shop laws removing liability

Place of injury is not always the same as place of conduct (ex injured in CA but product made in OH<--OH is the conduct)

applies when worker(s) are injured on the job
-statutory
- employer pays into workers comp fund
- administered by the state

Workers' interest in economic recovery
Employer's interest in limited liability

then apply the law of the forum

Apply Choice of Law + Substantive Law of foreign state
(rare)

Procedure = law of forum state
Substantive = choise of law analysis

Procedural so apply forum state law (unless borrowing)
- So apply forum state law regarding SOL

Forum has a statute that provides that in certain circumstances, forum applies SOL of a different state

Default apply forum state SOL
Unless: the forum state has no significant interest and the other state has a significant interest
- To see who has SI ask what are the contacts with the forum state?
- Then, look at the most significant innterest/ relation factors of section 6

Most Significant Relationship
Section 188: rule is the place that has the most significant relationship with the contract is the law that will apply
To determine look at the relative contacts
o place of contracting
o location of subject matter
o place of negotiation
o place of performance
o domicile of parties
• then look at the section 6 factors to determine most significant relationship (evaluate contacts)

It is inconsistent with public policy

• law of state chosen by parties will apply if covered by explicit provision in the contract
• law of state chosen by parties will apply if not covered by explicit provision unless
o chosen state has no substantial relationship and there is no reasonable basis for the choice
o application of chosen state would violate fundamental policy of state “which has a materially greater interest” than the chose state in determining the particular issue

When it violates some fundamental principle of justice, some prevalent conception of good morals, some dee-rooted traction of common weal

• Land: Law of Situs
o place where real property is located
• Personal Property: Law of Decedent’s Domicile
• Alternative Reference (look for law under which will is valid)

• Land: Law of situs
• Personal Property: Law of Decedent’s Domicile
• Validity of Trust: Alternative references (valid under any applicable law)

• Status = “legal relationship”
• Rule for Status= determine by law of location where relationship was created • “Incident of status = consequence of relationship
o governed by the law of the place of domicile when the lawsuit was filed

GR = marriage valid where it took place then valid everywhere
marriage invalid where it took place then invalid everywhere

Validty will be determined by the local law of the state with the most significant relationship with respect to the particular issue
o General validity rule (law of state where marriage is contracted governs)

Local law of the domiciliary state in which action will be brought determines the right to divorce
(law of the state where the couple is filing for divorce applies (law of forum))

Age, incest, polygamy, bigamy

Status of legitimacy is created by the law of the domicille of the parent whos relationship to the child(ren) is in question