Quasi In Rem | Practical Law

Quasi In Rem | Practical Law

Quasi In Rem

Quasi In Rem

Practical Law Glossary Item 9-508-0209 (Approx. 3 pages)

Glossary

Quasi In Rem

Latin for "as if against a thing." A legal term referring to two types of proceedings:
  • Type 1. A proceeding in which a court allocates the rights between particular named persons with respect to property located within the forum state. Examples of this type of proceeding include actions to remove a cloud on title to land or actions that seek to quiet title against a particular rival's claim. A judgment entered in this type of action adjudicates the property rights of the parties only. It does not bind non-parties to the action who may claim an interest in the property.
  • Type 2. A proceeding in which a court obtains personal jurisdiction over a defendant by seizing property (such as stock, bank accounts or land) located within the forum state. This type of action concerns the rights of a particular person in a thing, but is distinguished from a type 1 quasi in rem proceeding because the claim against the person that gives rise to the lawsuit is not related to the property (also referred to as the "res") that provides jurisdiction in the forum state. In other words, the plaintiff does not dispute the property rights of the owner of the res, but seeks to obtain the res in satisfaction of some separate claim.
In Shaffer v. Heitner, 433 U.S. 186 (1977), the Supreme Court limited a state's ability to exercise quasi in rem jurisdiction over an out-of-state defendant by applying the "minimum contacts" analysis of International Shoe Co. v. Washington, 326 U.S. 310 (1945), to type 2 quasi in-rem cases. The minimum contacts analysis essentially asks whether an out-of-state defendant's contacts with the forum are such that it would be fair for the forum state's courts to exercise personal jurisdiction over the defendant. As a result, an out-of-state defendant is normally subject to a state's quasi in rem jurisdiction only where there is a sufficient connection between the defendant, its property and the litigation.