## Facts

- Gator.com Corp., based in California, provided software that stored user purchasing data and displayed pop-up ads and coupons, including ads for L.L. Bean competitors when users visited llbean.com.
- L.L. Bean, incorporated and headquartered in Maine, operated physical stores outside California and sold products nationwide through catalogs, telephone ordering, and a transactional website.
- L.L. Bean sent Gator cease-and-desist letters asserting trademark infringement, unfair competition, and related violations arising from Gator’s pop-up advertising practices.
- Gator filed a declaratory judgment action in federal court in California seeking declarations of noninfringement and no liability.
- L.L. Bean had no California office, registered agent, or state tax payments, and was not authorized to do business in California.
- L.L. Bean nevertheless made millions of dollars in annual sales to California customers (about 6% of total sales) through catalog, telephone, and online channels; mailed substantial catalogs and shipments into California; sent direct email solicitations to California residents; and maintained substantial online customer accounts for Californians.
- The district court dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction; Gator appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether L.L. Bean’s California sales and solicitations were sufficiently continuous and systematic to permit general personal jurisdiction consistent with due process.
2. Whether, alternatively, L.L. Bean’s cease-and-desist letters into California could support specific personal jurisdiction.

## Decision

- The Ninth Circuit reversed the dismissal and remanded.
- The court held that L.L. Bean’s contacts with California supported general personal jurisdiction.
- Because general jurisdiction existed, the court did not decide whether the cease-and-desist letters independently established specific jurisdiction.

## Legal Principles

- General personal jurisdiction exists when a defendant’s forum contacts are so substantial, continuous, and systematic that the defendant may be sued there on claims unrelated to the forum contacts.
- In evaluating general jurisdiction, relevant considerations include the longevity and continuity of the defendant’s forum-directed business, the volume and economic impact of forum sales, and the degree of integration into the forum’s commercial market.
- A defendant need not have offices or other traditional physical infrastructure in the forum if it systematically exploits the forum market through channels such as catalogs, toll-free ordering, and an interactive, transactional website.
- Due process permits jurisdiction where the defendant derives substantial economic benefits from the forum and defending there is not so gravely difficult and inconvenient as to be unfair.

## Conclusion

The court held that L.L. Bean’s sustained and sizable California commerce—combining significant sales, repeated targeted solicitations, and ongoing online customer relationships—approximated physical presence and justified general personal jurisdiction in California, requiring reversal of the jurisdictional dismissal and remand for further proceedings.


Gator.com Corp. v. L.L. Bean, Inc., 341 F.3d 1072 (9th Cir. 2003)