{"id":893487,"date":"2018-01-17T15:16:20","date_gmt":"2018-01-17T22:16:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?p=893487"},"modified":"2018-01-11T15:22:29","modified_gmt":"2018-01-11T22:22:29","slug":"use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/","title":{"rendered":"Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kristopher Berr | Pepper Hamilton LLP<\/a> | January 4, 2018<\/p>\n

Pritchett Controls, Inc. v. Hartford Accident & Indemnity Co., 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 192182, 2017 WL 5591872\u00a0<\/em>(D. Md. Nov. 21, 2017)<\/strong><\/p>\n

James W. Ancel, Inc. (\u201cJWA\u201d) was the prime contractor on a project for the Maryland Transit Authority in Baltimore. JWA subcontracted a portion of the work to Pritchett Controls, Inc. (\u201cPritchett\u201d). The subcontract contained a forum selection clause requiring any disputes to be \u201cbrought in the District or County where Contractor\u2019s principal office is located\u2026.\u201d JWA\u2019s principal office is located in Towson, Maryland, which sits in Baltimore County.<\/p>\n

As required by Maryland\u2019s Little Miller Act, JWA, as principal, executed a payment bond with Hartford Accident & Indemnity Co. (\u201cHartford\u201d), as surety. This case involves Pritchett\u2019s claim against Hartford for payment under the bond.<\/p>\n

While performing its work on the project, Pritchett submitted twelve (12) payment applications to JWA totaling $744,799. It completed its work on March 16, 2017 but never received any payment for its work. On May 11, 2017, Pritchett submitted a notice of claim to Hartford. When that claim remained unpaid by July 25, 2017, Pritchett filed this action against Hartford in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland.<\/p>\n

Hartford moved to dismiss on\u00a0forum non conveniens<\/em>\u00a0grounds. It argued that the subcontract\u2019s forum selection clause required Pritchett to bring its action only in Baltimore County and that, because there is no federal courthouse in Baltimore County, the only proper forum was the Circuit Court for Baltimore County. Consequently, it argued that Pritchett\u2019s suit must be dismissed. The District Court denied the motion. It assumed, without deciding, that the subcontract\u2019s forum selection clause applied to suits brought under the bond. Even assuming the forum selection clause applied, however, the Court held that venue in the District Court for the District of Maryland was proper.<\/p>\n

According to the Court, the subcontract\u2019s use of the word \u201cin\u201d rather than \u201cof\u201d was dispositive. Citing to\u00a0FindWhere Holdings, Inc. v. Systems Environment Optimization, LLC<\/em>, 625 F.3d 752 (4th Cir. 2010), the Court reasoned that forum selection clauses limiting venue to the courts \u201cin [a location]\u201d are merely geographic restrictions, while clauses using the phrase \u201cof [a location]\u201d indicate a jurisdictional restriction to the state court of the named state. Because the subcontract provided for venue \u201cin<\/em>\u00a0the District or County\u201d where JWA\u2019s office is located, venue was proper within the geographic limits of that \u201cDistrict or County\u201d and was not jurisdictionally limited to the state courts of Maryland.<\/p>\n

Hartford also argued that the phrase \u201cDistrict or County\u201d was intended to restrict venue within \u201cstate-level geographic boundaries,\u201d thus requiring that any lawsuit to be filed in a courthouse located within Baltimore County. Put differently, Hartford argued that \u201cDistrict\u201d was meant as the functional equivalent of \u201cCounty.\u201d Pritchett countered that \u201cDistrict\u201d in this context was intended to refer to federal district courts, while \u201cCounty\u201d was intended to refer to state courts. The District Court agreed with Pritchett that the subcontract contemplated proper venue in either federal or state courts.<\/p>\n

The Court agreed with Pritchett and held that venue was proper in federal district court. According to the Court, if Hartford\u2019s proffered interpretation had been intended, the subcontract would also have used other state-level geographic restrictions, \u201csuch as borough or parish\u201d or other terms referring to \u201cwhatever geographic demarcation term is used by the principal contractor\u2019s state.\u201d Moreover, in the context of forum selection clauses, the word \u201cDistrict\u201d is commonly understood to mean federal judicial districts. Therefore, the District Court held that the plain meaning of the phrase \u2018District or County\u201d in this context \u201cunambiguously provides for an appropriate venue in the District of Maryland\u201d and that dismissal pursuant to\u00a0forum non conveniens<\/em>\u00a0would be improper.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kristopher Berr | Pepper Hamilton LLP | January 4, 2018 Pritchett Controls, Inc. v. Hartford Accident & Indemnity Co., 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 192182, 2017 WL 5591872\u00a0(D. Md. Nov. 21, 2017) James W. Ancel, Inc. (\u201cJWA\u201d) was the prime contractor on a project for the Maryland Transit Authority in Baltimore. JWA subcontracted a portion of… Continue reading Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9],"tags":[9895,72,494,168],"class_list":["post-893487","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-construction-contracts","tag-advise-consult","tag-construction-contracts-2","tag-forum-selection","tag-maryland","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nUse of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty - Advise & Consult, Inc.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"subcontract contained a forum selection clause requiring any disputes to be brought in the District or County where Contractor\u2019s principal office is located\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty - Advise & Consult, Inc.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"subcontract contained a forum selection clause requiring any disputes to be brought in the District or County where Contractor\u2019s principal office is located\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Advise & Consult, Inc.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-01-17T22:16:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@adviseconsult\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@adviseconsult\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7\"},\"headline\":\"Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-01-17T22:16:20+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/\"},\"wordCount\":632,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Advise & Consult\",\"construction contracts\",\"Forum Selection\",\"Maryland\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Construction Contracts\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/\",\"name\":\"Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty - Advise & Consult, Inc.\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2018-01-17T22:16:20+00:00\",\"description\":\"subcontract contained a forum selection clause requiring any disputes to be brought in the District or County where Contractor\u2019s principal office is located\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Advise & Consult, Inc.\",\"description\":\"Construction Expert Witnesses\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Advise & Consult\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png\",\"width\":162,\"height\":75,\"caption\":\"Advise & Consult\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/adviseconsult\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company-beta\/204526\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/MrConstructionExpert\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.expertwitnessinconstruction.com\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty - Advise & Consult, Inc.","description":"subcontract contained a forum selection clause requiring any disputes to be brought in the District or County where Contractor\u2019s principal office is located","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty - Advise & Consult, Inc.","og_description":"subcontract contained a forum selection clause requiring any disputes to be brought in the District or County where Contractor\u2019s principal office is located","og_url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/","og_site_name":"Advise & Consult, Inc.","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/","article_published_time":"2018-01-17T22:16:20+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@adviseconsult","twitter_site":"@adviseconsult","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7"},"headline":"Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty","datePublished":"2018-01-17T22:16:20+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/"},"wordCount":632,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization"},"keywords":["Advise & Consult","construction contracts","Forum Selection","Maryland"],"articleSection":["Construction Contracts"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/","name":"Use of the Word \u201cin\u201d Indicates Geography; Use of the Word \u201cof\u201d Indicates Sovereignty - Advise & Consult, Inc.","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2018-01-17T22:16:20+00:00","description":"subcontract contained a forum selection clause requiring any disputes to be brought in the District or County where Contractor\u2019s principal office is located","inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/use-word-indicates-geography-use-word-indicates-sovereignty\/"]}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/","name":"Advise & Consult, Inc.","description":"Construction Expert Witnesses","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Advise & Consult","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/AC-Red-Logo.png","width":162,"height":75,"caption":"Advise & Consult"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Advise-Consult-Inc-126949043996790\/","https:\/\/x.com\/adviseconsult","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company-beta\/204526\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/MrConstructionExpert"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0a11abe008083d5fb19c2b0feefe7bd7","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b01e71b7acadd7657af782b7ad1a30cc?s=96&d=mm&r=pg","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.expertwitnessinconstruction.com"]}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2ztG6-3Kr5","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/893487","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=893487"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/893487\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":893488,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/893487\/revisions\/893488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=893487"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=893487"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.myconstructionexpert.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=893487"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}