Civil Procedure Keyed to Yeazell
Burnham v. Superior Court of California
ProfessorTodd Berman
CaseCast™ – "What you need to know"
Facts
Dennis Burnham (P) and his wife, both residents of New Jersey, decided to separate. Mrs. Burnham moved to California with the children and there filed for divorce. While visiting his children in January 1988, he was served with a summons to a California court and a copy of the divorce petition filed by his wife. He moved the California Superior Court (D) to declare the service of the court summons and legal petition on him void. His ground was that the Court (D) did not have personal jurisdiction over him as he had no systematic contact with the state, save brief visits to his children or for business purposes. This was rejected by the court (D), and he failed to obtain mandamus relief from the California Court of Appeals, which held the physical presence of Mr. Burnham (P) in the state and his being physically served with the summons as sufficient ground for personal jurisdiction. The U.S. Supreme Court granted an order for judicial review or certiorari.
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