Home > West's Encyclopedia of American Law > Quasi in Rem Jurisdiction

The power of a court to hear a case and enforce a judgment against a party, even if the party is not personally before the court, solely because the party has an interest in real property or PERSONAL PROPERTY within the geographical limits of the court.

Quasi in rem is a type of PERSONAL JURISDICTION exercised by a court over a party who owns property within the jurisdictional boundaries of the court. A court must have personal jurisdiction over the parties to a case before it can bind them with its decision. A court can gain personal jurisdiction over a party who resides in the court's home state; a court can also gain jurisdiction over an out-of-state party who has made some contact with the state or who owns property within the court's geographical limits....