Can a foreign national be sued in US Court?
104067
Yes, if the US court has "personal jurisdiction" over that person or their assets.  If the person entered a contract in the US or injured someone in the US, a US court would likely have jurisdiction.  Sometimes a US court does not have jurisdiction over a foreign national.  If the foreign national does not live in the US and has no "minimum contacts" with the US, the court will find that it does NOT have jurisdiction.  \n\nSpecial rules to jurisdiction apply in antitrust cases (the effect on the US economy is part of the test for jurisdiction).
11195
Maybe - it's tricky.  The Supreme Court has mostly struck down many laws forbidding loss of United States citizenship, but the Department of State still strongly discourages voluntary dual citizenship.\n\nGenerally, it's ill-advised, unless you have someone in this area who can help you very specifically to avoid the loss of citizenship.  The State Department notes, "A person who acquires a foreign citizenship by applying for it may lose U.S. citizenship. In order to lose U.S. citizenship, the law requires that the person must apply for the foreign citizenship voluntarily, by free choice, and with the intention to give up U.S. citizenship. Intent can be shown by the person's statements or conduct.The U.S. Government recognizes that dual nationality exists but does not encourage it as a matter of policy because of the problems it may cause. Claims of other countries on dual national U.S. citizens may conflict with U.S. law, and dual nationality may limit U.S. Government efforts to assist citizens abroad."
27261
Go to the closest American Embassy or Consulate and ask for a list of English speaking attorneys.  \n\nEmbassies do not have an obligation to help you pay for an attorney, but they have an obligation to direct you towards possible attorneys.
1102693
Technically, you can be sued for anything, valid or not.  Legally, I think there's not a jury in the land that would hold you accountable.
314093
Sure ,  you can. But you have to pay non-resident fee.
506093
Yes, by current law in America, anyone not the child of a diplomatic representative is an American citizen upon birth in America.
1099494
Defamation law in the United States is much less plaintiff-friendly than its counterparts in European and the Commonwealth countries.\n\nThis is because the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States gives strong protection to freedom of expression, which arose from the tradition of dissent in the American Revolution. One very important distinction today is that European and Commonwealth jurisdictions adhere to a theory that every publication of a defamation gives rise to a separate claim, so that a defamation on the Internet could be sued on in any country in which it was read, while American law only allows one claim for the primary publication.\n\nIn the United States, about 75 percent of defamation lawsuits are filed in state courts, and the remaining 25 percent in federal courts. A comprehensive discussion of what is and is not libel or slander is difficult, because each state's definition differs. Some states codify what constitutes slander and libel together into the same set of laws. Some states have criminal libel laws on the books, though these are old laws which are very infrequently prosecuted.\n\nMost defendants in libel lawsuits are newspapers, which are involved in about twice as many lawsuits as are television stations. Most plaintiffs are corporations, businesspeople, entertainers and other public figures, and people involved in criminal cases, usually defendants or convicts but sometimes victims as well. Almost all states do not allow defamation lawsuits to be filed if the allegedly defamed person is deceased. No state allows the plaintiff to be a group of people.\n\nIn the various states, whether by case law or actual legislation, there are generally several "privileges" that can get a defamation case dismissed without proceeding to trial. These include the allegedly defamatory statement being one of opinion rather than fact; or being "fair comment and criticism", as it is important to society that everyone be able to comment on matters of public interest. In addition, it is generally accepted in the United States that a sufficiently public figure is "fair game" for all but the grossest libels.\n\nDefences to claims of defamation include:\n\n    * Truth is an absolute defence in the United States because of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. In some other countries, such as Canada, it is also necessary to show a benefit to the public good in having the information brought to light.\n    * Statements made in a good faith and reasonable belief that they were true are generally treated the same as true statements; however, the court may inquire into the reasonableness of the belief. The degree of care expected will vary with the nature of the defendant: an ordinary person might safely rely on a single newspaper report, while the newspaper would be expected to carefully check multiple sources.\n    * Privilege is a defence when witness testimony, attorneys' arguments, and judges' decisions, rulings, and statements made in court, or statements by legislators on the floor of the legislature, are the cause for the claim. These statements are said to be privileged and cannot be cause for a defamation claim.\n    * Opinion is a defence is recognized in nearly every jurisdiction. If the person makes a statement of opinion rather than a statement of fact, defamation claims usually cannot be brought because opinions are inherently not falsifiable. Some jurisdictions have eliminated the distinction between fact and opinion, and allow any statements suggesting a factual basis to support a defamation claim.\n    * Fair comment on a matter of public interest, statements made with an honest belief in their truth on a matter of public interest (official acts) are defenses to a defamation claim, even if such arguments are logically unsound; if a reasonable person could honestly entertain such an opinion, the statement is protected.\n    * Consent is an
736428
They put foreigners to death all the time. Sometimes without bothering to tell the consul of the foreign country -- and that's a violation of international law: the US Supreme Court said it's OK; the World Court (International Court of Justice) said it's a violation of treaties, against international law.\n\nBut the USA only supports international law when international law supports its secret plans and clever tricks.
882079
Small claims courts are courts of limited jurisdiction. I have not known one in which you could bring an action out of state (or, in England, out of England and Wales).\n\nYou might be able to bring an action against an out-of-state (etc.) firm if it solicits business in your state. There are Supreme Court decisions on what constitutes fairness in jurisdiction (International Shoe and Asahi Metal Industries are the leading cases, you could find them at http://justia.us )\n\nDoing business on eBay almost certainly isn't enough to justify bringing them into court in your state. If you paid by PayPal then your eBay protection is $1,000 (less $25 fee). If you paid by PayPal with an American Express card there is even more protection.\n\nBear in mind that to get help from eBay you have to meet strict deadlines. http://pages.ebay.com/help/tp/using-dispute-console.html \n\nYou can sue the seller in his own state, but the seller may well harass you -- if he's far away -- by seeking delays and postponements if allowed under the rules.
807487
i knew a company in Taiwan that sold some goods to a USA company for about 40k USD. the USA company did not pay. they traveled to north carolina and took that company to court in the USA. the judge threw the case out because he said the Taiwan company did not have a USA office and they had no rights in the USA. but that was that case. yours maybe different.
224893
Anybody can be sued. Remember the families of the victims of PanAm Flight 103 sued Qadaffi over the deaths. If the father is in Mexico, however, collection is quite another matter. THAT will involve cooperation between the United States and Mexico, and well .......
138544
Yes you can (and it would be for libel, which is printed, as compared to slander, which is spoken). It does not matter if the piece is represented as fact or opinion and it does not have to have a financial effect on the person you are talking about. It only has to damage their character and reputation and be done in a public forum (which a blog would qualify as).\n\nThere are different rules for public officials and personalities as compared to regular people.\n\nBut yes, you can be sued for what you put in a blog, just like a newspaper, magazine or radio or television station ... you are putting out information into a public forum. And be careful, because even being found not guilty of charges will cost you lots and lots of money, so don't say anything that could even lead to a suit being filed ... it's why most media outlets spend big bucks on libel insurance and lots of lawyers.
198509
nope, only if you are us citizen
256440
If you are out of the country, you won't get sued because whoever holds the debt won't be able to serve you with process.  Debt collectors are pretty aggressive and do sue, thereby forcing people into bankruptcy.  I am not aware of credit card holders yet trying to sue out of the country (extra-territorially).  \n\nBut if you return, a lot of post-default interest will have accrued and certainly you will find it very difficult to pay this debt.  In that case, bankruptcy would be your only solution unless you could negotiate some sort of lump sum settlement.
456984
Are you a US citizen? I am guess from your language that you are not..   Yes, speak with an attorney.
974869
If you're talking about the U.S. Federal Courts, you must have a basis for jurisdiction, which is either that the right involved is conferred by federal law, or that there is what's known as diversity jurisdiction (which requires that the plaintiff and defendant be in different districts, and the amount in controversy exceed $75,000.00).\n\nIf you pass the jurisdiction test, you can file your action pro se, but it's always better, if you can afford it, to use the services of an attorney.
538862
No. You are confusing any privileges of Congress with diplomatic immunity; diplomats of foreign nations are immune from prosecution.