Pendent-Party Jurisdiction Law and Legal Definition
Pendent-party jurisdiction refers to a court’s jurisdiction to adjudicate a claim against a party who is not otherwise subject to the court’s jurisdiction. Under this jurisdiction, the claim by or against that party arises from the same transaction or occurrence as another claim that is properly before the court.
Pendent-party jurisdiction has been hotly debated subject, and was severely limited by the U.S. Supreme Court in Finley v. United States, 130 S. Ct. 1718 (U.S. 1990). However, pendent-party jurisdiction was codified in the supplemental-jurisdiction statute, and it applies to federal question cases and not to diversity-jurisdiction cases.
