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22 Okla. City U. L. Rev. 337 (1997)
Three Paradigms of Presence: A Solution for Personal Jurisdiction on the Internet

handle is hein.journals/okcu22 and id is 347 raw text is: OKLAHOMA CITY UNIVERSITY
LAW REVIEW
VOLUME 22              SPRING 1997             NUMBER 1
NOTES
THREE PARADIGMS OF PRESENCE: A SOLUTION FOR
PERSONAL JURISDICTION ON THE INTERNET
Over the course of the twentieth century, several
doctrines of law have adapted to the emergence of new
technology. One of the most dynamic evolutions is in
progress today, as the Internet continues to expand
into the daily lives of millions of people. The threshold
legal question of personal jurisdiction is being mud-
died by the uniquely trans-territorial nature of modern
computer-driven communication. Meanwhile, judges
are struggling to find an appropriate analogy to fit the
new technology into the 50-year old rules that decide
whether a court will or will not allow a case to proceed
against a distant defendant. Whether the stream of
Internet commerce will give rise to open floodgates of
litigation will be determined by how broad, narrow, or
issue-specific the courts approach this complex issue.
The author explains the development and nature of
both personal jurisdiction doctrine and the world of the
Internet, and analyzes the conflicts between the two in
the context of three possible interpretations of how the
Internet works. Current cases are compared to the