Section 600.745 - “State” defined; agreement of parties as basis for jurisdiction; conditions.
REVISED JUDICATURE ACT OF 1961 (EXCERPT)
Act 236 of 1961
600.745 “State” defined; agreement of parties as basis for jurisdiction; conditions.
Sec. 745.
(1) As used in this section, “state” means any foreign nation, and any state, district, commonwealth, territory, or insular possession of the United States.
(2) If the parties agreed in writing that an action on a controversy may be brought in this state and the agreement provides the only basis for the exercise of jurisdiction, a court of this state shall entertain the action if all the following occur:
(a) The court has power under the law of this state to entertain the action.
(b) This state is a reasonably convenient place for the trial of the action.
(c) The agreement as to the place of the action is not obtained by misrepresentation, duress, the abuse of economic power, or other unconscionable means.
(d) The defendant is served with process as provided by court rules.
(3) If the parties agreed in writing that an action on a controversy shall be brought only in another state and it is brought in a court of this state, the court shall dismiss or stay the action, as appropriate, unless any of the following occur:
(a) The court is required by statute to entertain the action.
(b) The plaintiff cannot secure effective relief in the other state for reasons other than delay in bringing the action.
(c) The other state would be a substantially less convenient place for the trial of the action than this state.
(d) The agreement as to the place of the action is obtained by misrepresentation, duress, the abuse of economic power, or other unconscionable means.
(e) It would for some other reason be unfair or unreasonable to enforce the agreement.
History: Add. 1974, Act 88, Eff. Apr. 1, 1975
Compiler's Notes: Section 2 of Act 88 of 1974 provides: “This 1974 amendatory act shall apply to actions commenced after its effective date, even if the cause of action arose prior thereto. Actions commenced prior to the effective date of this act shall not be affected thereby.”