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PA Bar: Civil Procedure (Federal Rules)

PA Bar · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.

All guide sections

Civil Procedure (Federal Rules)

The MBE tests federal civil procedure under the FRCP: jurisdiction, venue, pleadings, discovery, dispositive motions, trial, and preclusion. PA-specific essays may test Pennsylvania civil procedure separately; do not mix them.

Jurisdiction and venue

  • Subject-matter: federal question (28 U.S.C. § 1331) or diversity (§ 1332) with complete diversity and amount > $75,000. Supplemental jurisdiction (§ 1367) for related claims.
  • Personal: minimum contacts, purposeful availment, relatedness, fairness. General if 'at home'; specific if claim arises from contacts.
  • Venue: § 1391 - defendant's residence, events, or property. Transfer under § 1404(a).

Pleadings and motions

  • Complaint: short and plain statement; plausibility under Twombly/Iqbal. Rule 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim; 12(c) judgment on pleadings.
  • Discovery: mandatory disclosures; relevance and proportionality; privileged and work-product protections.
  • Summary judgment: no genuine dispute of material fact; movant entitled to judgment as matter of law.

Worked example

A PA plaintiff sues a California corporation in E.D. Pa. for breach of contract. The corporation has no PA offices or employees but sells 2% of its products to PA residents via a national website. The claim arises from a PA contract. Personal jurisdiction? Specific jurisdiction likely exists: purposeful availment (targeting PA market), relatedness (claim arises from PA contract), and fairness is not offended. General jurisdiction is absent because the corporation is not 'at home' in PA. Venue is proper because events occurred in PA. A 12(b)(2) motion should be denied.

Traps

  • Confusing FRCP with Pa.R.C.P.; PA essays require Pennsylvania rules.
  • Diversity requires complete diversity and the amount in controversy; do not aggregate claims for amount except one plaintiff v. one defendant.
  • Summary judgment: nonmovant gets all reasonable inferences; movant must show absence of genuine dispute.
  • Claim preclusion bars claims that could have been raised, not just those litigated.