Personal Jurisdiction Lacking in Out-Of-State Essure Claims, Ill. High Court Rules

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois courts may not exercise specific personal jurisdiction over Bayer Essure personal injury claims filed by out-of-state plaintiffs who did not undergo implantation of the birth control device in Illinois, the state high court has ruled.

In a June 4 opinion, the Illinois Supreme Court held that the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. v. Superior Court of California forecloses plaintiffs’ theory of personal jurisdiction because the nonresident plaintiffs’ claims do not “arise out of, or relate to” Bayer’s in-state activities “in any meaningful sense.”

On July 25, 2016, 95 women, 87 of whom …