Business law exam 2

civil law

pertains to the duties that exist between persons or between persons and their governments

conveyance

transfer of real property creates a life estate.

criminal law

a wrong against society proclaimed in a statute and punishable by society through fines/imprisonment

beyond a reasonable doubt

standard set by the jury member to determine the guilt or innocence of a person criminally charged

felony

crime that carries the most severe sanctions, usually ranging from a year to forfeiture of one’s life

Misdemeanor

A lesser crime than felony, punishable by a fine or imprisonment for up to one year in other than a state or federal penitentiary

petty offense

the least serious kind of criminal offense. Traffic or building code violation

actus rea

performance of prohibited act

mens rea

specified state of mind or intent on the part of the actor

Actus reus and mens rea

what need to exist simultaneously for a person to be convicted of a crime

actus reus

guilty prohibited act. must cause some harm to a person or property.

recklessness

conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk

criminal negligence

involves the mental state in which the defendant takes an unjustified, substantial, and foreseeable risk that results in harm.

duel sovereignty

you can be prosecuted in federal and state court for the same crime

federal crimes

4000 listed and many do not require intent. strict liability crimes are common in environmental laws (laws combatting drugs, public health, safety, and welfare)

state crimes

can also have laws that punish behavior without intent

burglary

unlawful entry into a building with intent to commit a felony. aggravated when with a gun

Larceny

Wrongful taking and carrying away of another person’s personal property with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of the property. Does no require force or fear, so different from burgalary.

recieving stolen goods

it is a crime to receive goods that a person knows or should have known were stolen or illegally obtained

forgery

the fraudulent making or altering of any writing in a way that chanages the legal rights and liabilities of another

public order crimes

try to keep society orderly and put guardrails on human behavior. Ex. public drunkedness

white-collar crime

nonviolent crime committed by individuals or corporations to obtain a personal or business advantage

embezzlement

fraudulent appropriation of money or other property by a person to whom the money or property has been entrusted.

mail and wire fraud

federal crime to devise any scheme that uses US mail, commercial carriers, or wire with the intent to defraud the public

money laundering

falsely reporting income that has been obtained through criminal activity as income obtained through a legitimate business enterprise

examples of organized crime

gambling, prostitution, illegal narcotics, counterfeiting, loan sharking

Racheteer influenced and corrupt organization act (rico)

makes it a federal crime to use income obtailed fron racketeering activity to purchase any interest in an enterprise, aquire or maintain an interest in an inter

racketeering

people organized to commit crimes

prosecution didn’t meet burden of proof, lack required mental state, self defense, necessity, insanity,

defenses to criminal liability

Duress

Unlawful threat to someone causing them to perform an act that person would not otherwise have performed

entrapment

without the behavior of the police, the crime wouldn’t have happened.

statute of limitations

after something has been discovered, there is a limited amount of time for the plaintiff to report it

self incrimination

giving testimony

what criminal procedures are designed for

protect the constitutional rights of individuals and prevent the arbitrary use of power on the part of the government. Fourth amendment- protects from unreasonable search and seizures, fifth- due process, miranda rights, sixth- speedy trial with jury, 8th- prohibits excessive and unusual punishment

fixture

permanently attached to the land or the identity of the land. ex. statue

trade fixtures

has been installed or affixed for a business purpose. Can be removed but any damage to the property caused by removed must be repaired

fee simple absolute

owner has greatest aggregation of rights, privileges, and power. Can use it however they like during their lifetimes.

life estate

person has right to stay there as long as they are alive. Life tenant. Cannot be used in a way that wastes the property or destroys it.

concurrent ownership

community property. four types- tenancy in common, joint tenancy, tenancy by the entirety, community property

tenancy in common

joint ownership where each party owns an undivided interest that passes to their heirs at death

joint tenancy

each co-owner owes an undivided portion of the property and when they die the other person gets all of it (does not pass on to heirs)

tenancy by the entirety

by married couple. neither can transfer ownership without the other’s consent.

community property

each spouse technically owns an undivided one-half interest in the property. This type of ownership applies to most property acquired by the husband or the wife during the course of the marriage

leasehold estate

tenant has qualified right to possess/use property for a limited time under a lease, cannot injure the land (wear and tear is fine).

Fixed-term tenancy (or tenancy for years)

property is leased for a specified period of time.

tenancy at will

landlord of tenant can terminate without notice (rare nowadays)

tenancy at sufferance

arises when tenant wrongfully continues to occupy leased property after lease has terminated

nonpossessory interest

interst involves right to use land but not possess it. includes easements, profits, and licenses

easement

nonpossessory right established by express or implied agreement to make implied use of another’s property without removing anything from the property

easement or profit appurtenant

owner has right to go onto or remove something from an adjacent piece of land owned by another

easement or profit in gross

right to take something from someone’s land (does not own an adjacent tract of land)

license

revocable right or privilege to come onto a property

sale, gift, inheritance, adverse possession, eminent domain

real estate property can be transferred by

deed

document by which title to real property is passed

warranty deed

transfers property ownership while guaranteeing that the seller holds a clear, unencumbered title. You’re getting this property cleanly. No hidden claims. No surprise liens. And if a problem comes up, I’m responsible for it.

special warranty deed

I don’t know if past owners had bad title, but I at the moment have good title. Used in big cities. Can’t guarantee that previous owners had no defects of title

quitclaim deed

a legal document that transfers whatever interest a property owner (the grantor) has in a piece of real estate to a recipient (the grantee) without offering any guarantees or warranties about the title

grant deed

adverse possession

you can own property wrongfully, but if the original rightful owner doesn’t do anything about it they relinquish their right to it

zoning laws

laws for what you can and can’t do with realty

nuisance and environmental laws

restrict certain types of activities

eminent domain

government has power to take land if it’s compensated for public interest

restrictive covenant

private restriction on use of land

Tort

- a civil wrong not arising from a breach of contract; a breach of legal duty that approximately causes harm or injury to another.

wrongs and compensation

Two notions to tort

Duty, breach, compensation, injury.

Elements of negligence

Damages

- monetary award sought as a remedy for a breach of contract or a tortious act.

Compensatory damages

- a money award equivalent to the actual value of injuries or damages sustained by the aggrieved party

Special damages

- an amount awarded to compensate the plaintiff for quantifiable monetary losses (medical expenses, property damage, lost wages, benefits)

General damages

- amount for pain and suffering

Punitive damages

- money damages that may be awarded to a plaintiff to punish the defendant and deter future similar conduct for when the defendant’s conduct was particularly egregious or reprehensible. Subject to limitations under the us constitution’s due process clause

Gross negligence

a severe lack of care that shows an extreme departure from what a reasonable person would do and a reckless disregard for the safety of others.

Two classifications of torts

- intentional and nonintentional

Intentional tort

- result from the knowing violation of person or property. Fault plus intent

Tortfeasor

- one who commits a tort

Assault

any word or action intended to make another person fearful of immediate physical harm; a reasonably believable threat

Battery

- actual touching.

False imprisonment

- holding a person against their will without justification. Use of physical barriers, physical restraint, force

Outrageous conduct

- Must exceed the bounds of decency accepted by society. annoyance or indignity alone are not sufficient.

Intentional infliction of emotional distress

- doesn’t really happen anymore bcs of the internet, but it says you have the right to be left alone.

Defenses to emotional distress

- corporations do not experience it so they can’t sue, consent, normal under the circumstances, public figures

Defamation

- published or publicly outspoken false statement that causes injury to another’s good name, reputation, or character. Need to prove it was a statement of fact (not opinion), was about the plaintiff and was meant to be harmful, published to at least one other person, if the plaintiff is a public figure, must prove malice.

Libel

- defamation that’s written or digital. Has some kind of purpose

Slander

defamation orally. Now there needs to be special damage proof (monetary damages caused by the slander)

Slander per se

- actionable with no proof of special damages required. Ex. a person has an STI, has committed professional improprieties, criminal past, sexual misconduct.

Defenses to defamation

- it’s the truth, speech is privileged, or public figure.

Privilege

- ability to act contrary to another person’s right without that person’s having legal redress for such acts.

Absolute Privilege

legal immunity from defamation claims, meaning a person cannot be sued for a statement even if it was false, damaging, or spoken with malice. is only granted in judicial proceedings and certain government proceedings

Qualified Privilege

- generally, if the statements are made in good faith and the publication is limited to those who have a legitimate interest in the communication, the statements fall within this

Actionable

- capable of being pursued legally

Invasion of privacy

- Public disclosure of private facts, invading someone's property, false light (falsely attributing opinions to someone), public disclosure of private facts, misappropriation of identity (ex. for a commercial), fraudulent misrepresentation (omission of fact), more than just puffery

puffery

- a salesperson's exaggerated claim

tort law-

recognizes people have a right not to be sued without reason

malicious prosecution

- party initiates a lawsuit out of malice and without legitimate legal reason and then loses

abuse of process

- any person using the legal process against another in an improper manner or in a way the process wasn't designed for

wrongful interference with a contractual relationship

- contract must exist, other party must know it exists, intentionally induces other to break contract

Defenses to wrongful interference-

i wasn’t being malicious, i was being competitive

intentional torts against property

- wrongful actions, interfere with individuals' legally recognized rights to property ex. trespassing

real property

- land and things permanently attached to the land

personal property

loose items unattached to land