Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co.

Robert Mallory, a former Norfolk Southern Railway employee, sued the Virginia-based company in Pennsylvania state court, alleging that workplace exposure to carcinogens caused his cancer. Norfolk Southern was registered to do business in Pennsylvania but the alleged exposure occurred in Ohio and Virginia. Pennsylvania law required foreign corporations to consent to general personal jurisdiction as a condition of registration. The company argued that subjecting it to suit in Pennsylvania for claims unrelated to its in-state activities violated due process. The U.S. Supreme Court granted review after the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled against jurisdiction.

The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, held that Pennsylvania's registration-based consent statute does not violate due process, allowing the lawsuit to proceed in Pennsylvania state court. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion, joined by Justices Thomas, Alito, Sotomayor, and Jackson. Justice Amy Coney Barrett dissented, joined by Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Kagan and Kavanaugh.

Whether a state may require an out-of-state corporation to consent to general personal jurisdiction as a condition of registering to do business in that state, consistent with the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

The decision reaffirms the constitutionality of state laws that treat foreign corporation registration as consent to general jurisdiction, potentially exposing corporations to lawsuits in states where they are registered but have no connection to the claim. This may lead to increased forum shopping and burdens on interstate businesses, while preserving state regulatory authority over out-of-state companies.