Opinion ID: 1887619
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 10

Heading: Choice-of-Law Provision

Text: Additionally, it is undisputed that defendants agreed to a choice-of-law clause in the contract, which requires that the contract would be governed by and enforced in accordance with Minnesota law. The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, applying Minnesota law, previously has held that choice-of-law clauses are an important factor in determining whether nonresidents avail themselves to the jurisdiction of the forum state. Wessels, Arnold, & Henderson v. National Medical Waste, Inc., 65 F.3d 1427, 1434 (8th Cir.1995); see also Burger King Corp. v. Rudzewicz, 471 U.S. 462, 482, 105 S.Ct. 2174, 85 L.Ed.2d 528 (1985) (recognizing that there is no reason to ignore the defendant's consent to choice-of-law provisions when deciding proper jurisdiction). In Wessels, the Eighth Circuit held that the freely negotiated choice-of-law law provision, combined with the nonresident defendant's mail and telephone contacts into Minnesota, were both relevant and significant in the court's determination that Minnesota properly asserted personal jurisdiction over the nonresident defendant. Wessels, 65 F.3d at 1434. In the case at bar, defendants acknowledged and signed a contract that clearly states that Minnesota law governs and controls the contract that is the subject of this dispute. Although standing alone, this provision could not confer jurisdiction on the Minnesota courts, the choice-of-law clause taken together with defendants' emails, telephone calls, and letters with a Minnesota plaintiff, weigh in favor of Minnesota asserting personal jurisdiction over the nonresident defendants.