Page 12 - Kattison Avenue Newsletter - Spring 2026 - Issue 16

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product to be shipped to the forum.” Failure to comply with the traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice. See, e.g.,
Order will result in dismissal with prejudice. Liu, 170 F.4th at 1093.

First, to satisfy Federal Rule 20 and permissive joinder under Third, the Order is clear that the court will not allow plaintiffs
the Order, each complaint must consist of a single defendant to deviate from traditional and typical service requirements, as
or group of defendants acting under the same operator, with more lenient courts have allowed in the past. Under the Order,
separate filing fees paid for each separate complaint. a particularized defendant and case-specific showing must be
made before any form of alternate service is authorized by the
Second, the Order requires litigants to plausibly plead personal
court. In other words, personal service is the default, as with
jurisdiction, including contacts with the forum if specific
almost all other cases filed in federal court.
jurisdiction is invoked. As a refresher, general jurisdiction applies
when a defendant is “at home” in the forum state. For a defendant Fourth, the court will not automatically grant ex parte TRO
to be subject to specific jurisdiction under the Due Process motions. Plaintiffs will be required to show, at a minimum, that
Clause, three requirements must be met: (1) the defendant’s personal jurisdiction exists as to each defendant.
contacts with the forum state show the defendant purposefully
Fifth, the court is unlikely to seal any filings, considering the basis
availed themself of the privilege of conducting business in the
for such requests is typically driven by the ex parte TRO motions
forum state or purposefully directed their activities at the state
disfavored by the Order. In the past, Schedule A plaintiffs have
(i.e., made sales in the state); (ii) the plaintiff’s alleged injury
succeeded in sealing the list of defendants, and often even
must have arisen out of the defendant’s forum-related activities;
the entire complaint, citing concern that the defendants will
and (iii) the exercise of personal jurisdiction must comport with
dissipate assets or destroy evidence. The District of New Jersey

12 Kattison Avenue | Spring 2026