A fee dispute between Thompson Hine and a former client posed a geographical conundrum: if the Florida-based former client didn’t pay the Ohio-based law firm for work in Oregon, and lawyers in Atlanta and the District of Columbia were involved, where should the firm sue?
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said Tuesday that the District of Columbia was not an option. A three-judge panel affirmed a Washington federal trial judge’s dismissal of the case for lack of jurisdiction, finding the firm failed to show the fee dispute had enough ties to the city.
