Forum selection – on the one hand . . . but on the other . . .

The Fifth Court reviewed one of “the seemingly endless variations of forum-selection clauses” in Target Strike Inc. v. Strasburger & Price LLP:

“This Contract shall be interpreted, construed, and governed by the laws of the State of Texas. The parties hereby submit to the jurisdiction of courts located in, and venue is hereby stipulated in, Bexar County, Texas.”

On the one hand, “[c]lauses in which parties merely ‘consent’ or ‘submit’ to jurisdiction of a particular forum, without further language indicating the parties’ intent to make jurisdiction exclusive, are permissive.” But on the other, while few cases involve “stipulations” as to venue, the general definition “indicate[s] that when a party stipulates to something,it is an express demand of a specified and essential condition of the contract.” As a result, this clause was mandatory. No. 05-18-00434-CV (Nov. 19, 2018) (mem. op.)