Legal System cumulative final

venue

place where case is heard

motion to dismiss, motion for more specific leaning

two preliminary objections that can be made by the party that sued

substantive law

creates and defines laws for rights of people and other entities

implied in law, quantum meruit

contract that is created to avoid unjust enrichment

motion for nonsuit/Rule 50 motion

name of motion that is filed by defense at the conclusion of plaintiffs case in civil matter

voidable contract

one or either party are given the option to void or leave it as is

promissory estoppel

concept when promise may be enforced without the existence of consideration

voir dire

pre-trial examination of prospective jurors

delegated from Congress

Where does the authority of administrative agencies to enact regulations come from? (ie. IRS)

Answer: Statute

Which has more weight when in conflict, common law or statute?

stare decisis

Involves a court having to follow precedent handed down from a higher court (courts of equal level are not bound)

Answer: No

Is summons a tool of discovery?

$75,000

the monetary minimum amount that must be alleged in a diversity of citizenship case

Uniform Commercial Code

name of model code adopted by most states for goods and business transactions

civil complaint

pleading that commences a civil action

procedural law

consists of the set of rules that govern the judicial process for exercising one’s substantive rights

examples of procedural law

notified of being served, civil complaint, discovery, entitled to trial

example of substantive law

law by statute or state authority, bartender who knowingly serves and intoxicated person is liable for any harm that results in such service of intoxicating beverages

the Constitution

number one source of American law

legislative powers

Article 1 of the Constitution

executive powers

Article 2 of the Constitution

judiciary powers

Article 3 of the Constitution

treason, piracy, counterfeiting

three specific crimes mentioned in the Constitution, all else are statutory

statutes

the most common source of American law

state laws

signed into effect by the governor

Administrative regulations and agencies

second source of American law (ex. IRS, Federal Trade Commission)

case law

third source of American law

case law definition

judicial precedent established by judges through decisions in court cases when the wording is vague/ambiguous, as opposed to statutes

inferior courts + magisterial district judge

hears summary offenses, traffic and nontraffic for criminal cases; full hearing with a judge; preliminary hearings for misdemeanors and felonies, minor judiciary

Court of Original Jurisdiction/trial court

family, probate (wills and trusts), civil, criminal, Court of Record (everything is documented)

trial de novo

new trial - whatever happened at the lower courts doesn’t matter even as an appeal

Intermediate Appeals Court, circuit court for appeals (fed level)

PA is in Third Circuit with Delaware, NJ, and Virgin Islands, called the Superior Court; is a Court of Review - Job is to review lower court proceedings to determine if any harmful errors could have affected the outcome of the case, no juries, no trial

Supreme Court

Appellant applies for Writ of Certiorari, petition for judicial review, may or may not grant oral argument to both attorneys

subject matter jurisdiction

The court’s legal authority to hear a specific type of case, ensures courts only preside over subject matter they are constitutionally empowered to hear, some courts have special jurisdiction like juvenile

example of subject matter jurisdiction

monetary limit of $12,000 when fender bender costs $20,000, it is out of Judge’s jurisdiction and must go higher to Court of Common Pleas

federal court smj

civil matters involving diversity of citizenship, if claim is based on federal law

diversity of citizenship

parties to the lawsuit (plaintiff and defendant) have to be from different states/nations, monetary amount must exceed $75,000, IF plaintiff initiates lawsuit, if the plaintiff decides to stay in state court the defendant can take the court in the federal court (removing case from state to federal)

Erie Doctrine

Erie v. Tompkins 1938: federal court applies the law of the forum state (state where the federal district court is located), must apply state substantive law and federal procedural law

jurisdiction in personam

occurs when the plaintiff files civil complaint, act gives court jurisdiction; service of process when defendant must be given a summons via personal service, process servers, newspaper, certified email

jurisdiction in rem

states have inherent authority to decide property rights, when a dispute over rightful ownership occurs the mere fact that this property is located within a state means that state’s courts have the jurisdiction to decide who is the rightful claimant to that property

International Shoe v. Washington 1945

held that (1) long arm statutes are constitutional, provided that the defendant had minimum contact with the forum state, (2) defendant from other state does not need to own or reside in forum state but needs to conduct some type of business enumerated in the statute

long arm statute

state law that allows local courts to exercise personal jurisdiction over non-resident defendants who do business, own property, or commit a tort in the state. part of due process

forum not convenience/non conveniens

common law doctrine permitting the court to dismiss a case if it is seriously inconvenient and a more convenient alternative exists

example of forum non conveniens

Witnesses in Phil, accident in Phil., EMS in Phil., plaintiff in Pitt.

service of process

defendant being located must be given a summons (due process) through personal service, process servers, newspaper, certified email

summons

notice and complaint, after this motion for more specific plea and m. to dismiss may be filed

preliminary objections

respondent raises question which it contends should be dealt with separately before any other issue is examined

motion for more specific pleading

rare, filed when a complaint or answer is so vague that a party cannot reasonably frame a response

motion to dismiss (demurrer)

common, asks court to throw out lawsuit because it is legally flawed, lacks jurisdiction, or improper venue

answer

must be filed by defendant within 20 days, addressed to specific objections, in writing, and reference memorandum of law, judge usually allows plaintiff to file amended complaint

new matter

separate part of the complaint, sets strong precedence, ex. pleading or patent application

counterclaim

Defendant is bringing a lawsuit against a Plaintiff

crossclaim

lawsuit filed by a party on a co-party in the same civil case, ex. defendant suing another defendant

discovery

procedure designed to prevent surprise at trial by enabling each side to discover information in the opponents possession, except for gov witnesses in criminal cases for safety reasons

protective order

If one of the other party believes the other is seeking bad info/info included in exceptions they must file a motion before trial called

exceptions

communications between doctor and patient, testimony where special privilege exists

written interrogatories

tool of discovery, only exchanged between parties, questions to answer and return within a certain period of time in written format

depositions

tool of discovery, taken before trial and taken from anybody who has information, sworn testimony, either recorded or transcript, critical to civil case, substitute for testimony, may be used for impeachment

motion to compel discovery

If a party seeks discovery and the other party is unwilling to provide it then they file ___

motion for sanctions

will be filed when party is not providing information when asked, punishment for failure to comply

motion for summary judgement

pretrial request asking court to rule that all or part of a case should be ruled in favor of the moving party due to no disputes between material facts, common in civil cases, happens to at least half

Batson Motion

Batson v. Kentucky 1986: procedural objection raised during jury selection claiming that opposing party was using preemptory strikes to exclude potential jurors on the basis of race, ethnicity, or sex

motion for directed verdict

before jury deliberates but all evidence is in, made by defense asking judge to rule in their favor as no reasonable jury could find for the opposing party due to insufficient evidence, if favorable judge will tell jury to assess damages

motion for judgement n.o.v.

notwithstanding the verdict, motion that party that loses motion for directed verdict files; post-trial request asking judge to overturn because it is not supported by evidence or law

elements of a contract

two or more competent parties, offer, acceptance, consideration, mutual consent, proper subject matter

implied-in-fact contract

intent of parties are manifested by conduct rather than words, based upon conduct, nonverbal, ex. ordering food, taking a taxi

implied-in-law contract

refusing for a party to be unjustly enriched (quantum meruit), law favors this one, does not require mutual consent, remedy as opposed to a true contract

illusory contract/agreement

so vague it doesn’t count as a legal obligation, past consideration, lacks mutual obligation

unilateral contract

promise for performance, one-sided with performance based acceptance

example of unilateral contract

painting a house, contract is not formed until the paint job is substantial

bilateral contract

formed when the promise is accepted by promisee and and promisee accepts to terms, most common

void contract

law does not recognize such a contract due to its involvement of illegal subject matter, lacking essential elements, involves parties lacking legal capacity

consideration

to have a binding contract each side has to have a benefit and a detriment

State of Frauds/statute

legal doctrine requiring certain types of contracts to be in writing and signed by the party for whom enforcement is legally binding

Statute of Frauds acronym

M(arriage, prenups), Y(ear, contracts that cannot be performed within a year), L(and, sale or transfer of real estate), E(state agreements), G(oods, $500 or more under UCC), S(urety, guaranteeing another person’s debt)

intentional torts

civil wrong occurring when an individual deliberately acts to cause harm or loss to another person and their property, private disputes

defamation

person says or writes something that is false about another person that causes them harm

negligence

unintentional breach of duty of care that is owed to another that causes harm

four elements of negligence

duty, breach of duty, harm, causation

strict liability

legal doctrine that places the cost of doing certain business including harm to others on the party that is benefitting from their activity, based upon defendant’s activity not their conduct (modern invention)

res ipsa loquitur

the thing speaks for itself, doctrine allows plaintiff to establish a presumption of negligence without direct evidence, ie. when an accident cannot normally happen without negligence

res ipsa loquitur example

elevator, push button to go to specific floor and then elevator drops to the ground floor, injuring the person inside

assumption of the risk

legal defense in personal injury cases where defendant cannot be liable for plaintiff’s injuries if plaintiff voluntarily and knowingly exposed themself to danger

contributory negligence

legal defense where plaintiff’s own failure to exercise reasonable care for their safety contributed to their injuries, used to be a total defense where plaintiff would receive 0 compensation

Loving v. Virginia

Challenged laws prohibiting miscegenation, or marriage or interbreeding among individuals of different races, ACLU took on the case and SCOTUS found that the Virginia law prohibiting interracial marriage to violate the fourteenth amendment and unconstitutional

involuntary termination of parental rights

occurs when a court serves the parent-child relationship against a parent’s wishes based on evidence of abuse, neglect, abandonment, or incapacity

compensatory damages (general)

for tort cases: pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, disfigurement, embaressment

compensatory damages (special)

for tort cases: damages that can be calculated numerically (medical bills, lost wages including past and future)

reason for compensatory damages other than tort

loss of bargain, breach of contract

remedies of law/equity

If a parties remedies are inadequate, none of the remedies at law can address the harm that the harm the party is confronted with, they may file an action in equity (courts in equity are among the most powerful)

legal remedies

usually monetary damages for loss

equitable remedies

non-monetary, discretionary actions based on fairness

punitive damages

parties may sue for these, court may decide that theres not enough evidence for this or if jury finds defense conduct outrageous, punish defendant for conduct and deter others from engaging in similar conduct, basic negligence 

liquidated damages

damages set forth in party’s breach of contract, ex. Provision in contract that says for every day that the project is incomplete by a certain date, for every day the contractor is delayed there is a specified damage

replevin

plaintiff is seeking return of title to personal property (tangible things, lawsuits over jewelry, paintings, books)

ejectment

Similar to replevin but deals with real estate where party is seeking title and return of certain real estate 

injunctions/TRO

to order a party to do smth or refrain, Temporary Restraining Order (status quo)

preliminary injunctions

within weeks or months judge grants limited discovery and court conducts hearing and determines whether or not PI; what is likelihood that plaintiff will prevail during full hearing

specific performance

plaintiff is seeking the court to order the defendant to fulfill the terms of the contract

unique property example

case involves dispute among men who are neighbors who should have ownership over baseball equipment outfit that has been dissolved, babe ruth bat (unique item)