terms-of-service
How to tell which state governs the &quot;Terms and Conditions&quot; of my website?
<p>In the "Terms and Conditions" page of my website, I have this paragraph:</p>

<p><code>These Terms will be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of XXXXX, and you submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in XXXXX for the resolution of any disputes.</code></p>

<p>I personally live outside of the United States.</p>

<p>If the web-hosting server of my website is located in Texas, and I use a Oregon physical address which I got from a mail-forwarding service (similar to PO box) as my contact information in my email newsletter, should I replace the <code>XXXXX</code> in the aforementioned paragraph with "Texas" or "Oregon"? Or should I replace it with the name of the country where I live instead?</p>

<p>You may want to select a state where you have some sort of presence.  According to <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/subject_matter_jurisdiction" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this article</a>, personal jurisdiction can be waived, but subject matter jurisdiction can not, and "for pragmatic reasons some states deny subject-matter jurisdiction to specific claims, such as those arising in other states".  In other words, if nothing about you, the other party, or the case has any relation to the state, the court doesn't necessarily have to listen to the case.  And if that happens, the provision about them submitting to the jurisdiction is worthless.</p>

<p>Beyond that, are you OK with going to court in the location you select?  Do you know whether all your terms and conditions are valid in that location?  Do you know whether one place or another has more favorable interpretations of the laws, or more favorable local rules, when it comes to the types of disputes you are likely to have?</p>

<p>You probably want a lawyer to help you decide.</p>
