If you are involved in a motorcycle wreck while visiting Texas, you may have questions about whether the laws of your home state have any bearing on an ensuing civil case. This may indeed be the case, but only under specific circumstances, and with a few key legal caveats.
Choice of Law Between States
Choice of law issues can occur when there are actions that can be brought in multiple states. It depends on whether the law is considered a substantive or procedural law, and that line is not clear. One of the first things lawyers learn in law school is a doctrine called the Erie doctrine, which is about which state laws apply in which situations. When there are people from different states, a tort may be in a third state, and the case may even be tried in a different state. Sometimes, the jurisdiction and venue options are different.
There are specific occasions that different state laws will apply. Most traffic laws are considered substantive laws, and that means the law of the place where the injury occurred is going to probably control the case. There are other situations in which this is considered procedural and not substantive, though. When different laws are considered procedural, the procedures of the state in which the motorcycle case is tried will hold precedence over the procedures of Texas, even if that would result in a radically different verdict.
