High Court: 'Principal Place of Business' is Where Executives Sit

WASHINGTON, D.C. - A corporation's principal place of business is where its executives work, not where its products are sold, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled, applying the "nerve center" approach adopted by the 7th Circuit. The Hertz Corp. v. Friend, et al., No. 08-1107 (U.S. Sup.).

In a unanimous opinion issued Feb. 23, the high court overturned a 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling holding that Hertz Corp.'s principal place of business was in California because most of its business was done in that state.

'We conclude that the phrase 'principal place of business' refers to the …