Business Law 12th Edition by Roger LeRoy Miller ,Frank Cross

Exercise 7

Stan Garner resides in Illinois and promotes boxing matches for SuperSports, Inc., an Illinois corporation. Garner created the concept of "Ages" promotion-a three-fi ght series of boxing matches pitting an older fighter (George Foreman) against a younger fi ghter. The concept had titles for each of the three fights, including "Battle of the Ages." Garner contacted Foreman and his manager, who both reside in Texas, to sell the idea, and they arranged a meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada. During the negotiations, Foreman's manager signed a nondisclosure agreement prohibiting him from disclosing Garner's promotional concepts unless the parties signed a contract. Nevertheless, after negotiations fell through, Foreman used Garner's "Battle of the Ages" concept to promote a subsequent fi ght. Garner fi led a suit against Foreman and his manager in a federal district court located in Illinois, alleging breach of contract. Using the information presented in the chapter, answer the following questions.
Suppose that Garner had fi led his action in an Illinois state court. Could an Illinois state court exercise personal jurisdiction over Foreman or his manager? Why or why not?
DEBATE THIS: In this age of the Internet, when people communicate via e-mail, instant text messaging, tweeting, Facebook, and MySpace, is the concept of jurisdiction losing its meaning? Explain your answer.