Suing a Company After Agreeing to Sue in a Different Venue
My question involves a consumer law issue in the State of: New York
So I tried a few sites that allow you to make money online (or at least recoup money from shopping similar to credit card rewards). It actually worked and I made money from several different sites, but one site is refusing to pay and from what I can find online, they have a habit of refusing to pay the money their users earn.
So I figured I'd sue them in small claims court, since I know they have the income to pay a judgement with.
The one catch is that buried in their terms of service (which are posted on their site but don't need to be clicked through to join), they have a prohibition on class action suits against them and a clause that any action brought against them must be filed in Delaware.
So, does New York (or the federal government) have any consumer protection laws that preempt choice of venue clauses in the event of outright fraud? Is it possible to file suit in Delaware without having to physically travel there (or hire a lawyer there)? Can I file it in New York and figure they probably won't show up anyway?
Re: Suing a Company After Agreeing to Sue in a Different Venue
From what you've shared, this is a business-to-business matter, not consumer law. If you sue in the wrong venue they could do anything from moving to dismiss, or ignoring you but objecting to any attempt to register or enforce the judgment in another state based upon lack of jurisdiction and improper venue.
You cannot complete a lawsuit in any state without presenting witnesses and evidence at trial. You can file and hope for a default, having verified that you don't need to appear to prove your damages. In small claims court you normally have to appear and wait until the end of the session of court before a default will issue. Check procedure with the court in which you hope to file.