Only in a federal bankruptcy court can a person file a bankruptcy action. State courts have no jurisdiction in bankruptcy cases. General jurisdiction means that a court has the ability to hear and decide a wide range of cases. Unless a law or constitutional provision denies them jurisdiction, courts of general jurisdiction have authority to handle any kind of case. The California superior courts are general jurisdiction courts.
Limited jurisdiction means that a court has restrictions on the types of cases it decides.
Venue Venue frequently is confused with jurisdiction. While jurisdiction asks whether a court system has authority to hear a case, venue asks which court within a jurisdiction should hear and decide a case. In California, a case usually is brought in the county in which the claim originates or where one or more defendants reside. Change of venue can be requested by either of the parties. For example, a corporate defendant in San Diego might request a change of venue to Oakland because adverse publicity in San Diego makes it impossible for the corporation to get a fair trial in San Diego or because most of its files are located in Oakland.