A contractual relationship between parties wherein they establish a certain place or location to try all their disagreements related to the contract they have entered into. A clause designating a particular court or tribunal to resolve any dispute concerning the contract.
A 'forum selection provision in a written contract is prima facie valid and enforceable unless the opposing party shows that enforcement would be unreasonable.' Kevlin Services, Inc. v. Lexington State Bank, 46 F.3d 13, 15 (5th Cir.1995).
In The Bremen v. Zapata Off-Shore Co., 407 U.S. 1 (1972) the Court addressed the enforceability of a forum selection clause in a contract between two business corporations. An American corporation, Zapata, made a contract with Unterweser, a German corporation, for the towage of Zapata's ocean-going drilling rig from Louisiana to a point in the Adriatic Sea off the coast of Italy. The agreement provided that any dispute arising under the contract was to be resolved in the London Court of Justice. After a storm in the Gulf of Mexico seriously damaged the rig, Zapata ordered Unterweser's ship to tow the rig to Tampa, Fla., the nearest point of refuge. Thereafter, Zapata sued Unterweser in admiralty ...