Atlantic Marine Constr. Co. v. United States Dist. Court for Western Dist. of Tex.

Atlantic Marine, a Virginia subcontractor, had a forum-selection clause in its contract requiring disputes to be handled in Virginia. When the Texas contractor sued in Texas instead, Atlantic Marine asked the court to dismiss or transfer the case. The Supreme Court ruled that forum-selection clauses in construction contracts must be enforced and given controlling weight, except in rare situations. Courts must use transfer motions (not dismissals) to honor these clauses, and the party trying to ignore the clause bears the burden of proving an exception applies.