Buisness Law Quiz 2

4 primary purposes of our criminal justice system

1. protect society

2. punish wrongdoers/provide justice

3. deterrence

4. rehabilitation

burden of proof

how much a plaintiff must win by in court

In a civil case, you must win by..

must win by a preponderance of evidence (just more than the other side) (51%)

In a criminal case you must win by…

beyond a reasonable doubt (51%-100%)

Crime

any act or omission forbidden by law to protect society, punishable by the government in court

wayts we punish people who commit crimes

1. death penalty

2. jail/prison

3. community service

4. fines

5. probation/parole

6. home confirment

7. mandatory rehabilitation

8. revocation of rights

for something to be a crime there must be ______ and _______

a bad act and a bad intent

3 mental states for crimes

1. purposeful

2. knowing

3. recklessly

purposeful crime

where the goal of the action is to achieve a specific result

knowing crime

where the actor knows that his or her confuct is likely to cause harm

reckless crime

where the actor acts in a way that ignores the risk of harm

larcenary

trespassory taking and carrying away the property of another with the intent to permanantly deprive the victim of the property

embezzlement

wrongfully taking money or property while in lawful possession of it

false pretences

obtaining money or property by making false statements with the intent to defraud

robbery

same thing as larceny, but with force or the threat of force

burglary

breaking and entering into a building with the intent to commit a felony inside the building

extortion

(blackmail) using threats to obtain money or property

bribery

offering or giving something of value to a public official to influence that official’s decision

forgery

making or giving a false document with the intent to defraud

when do we determine intent?

at the time of the crime

3 objectives of our tort system

1. provide compensation to the injured

2. require the wrongdoer to pay the compensation

3. prevent future harms losses

for an intention to be a tort there must be 4 things:

1. duty

2. breach

3. causation

4. damages

punitive damages

compensation in addition to compensatory damages, intended to punish the wrongdoer for their evil and wicked conduct (only available in tort cases)

compensatory damages

1. medical bills

2. physical therapy

3. lost wages

4. pain and suffering

intentional torts that can affect buisnesses:

1. battery

2. assault

3. false imprisonment

4. infliction of emotional distress

5. defamation

6. invasion of privacy

7. trespassing

8. nuisance

battery

intentional infliction of harmful or offensive bodily contact

false imprisonment

intentionally confining someone against their will and they are either aware or harmed by it

assault

conduct that puts someone in fear of battery

infliction of emotional distress

to sucessfully sue someone for infliction of emotional distress, you need to present symptomology

defamation

a false and bad statement about someone that is told to a third party

• libel: written

• slander: spoken

invasion of privacy

1. misusing a person’s name or likeness

2. intruding onto the seclusion of another

3. unreasonable public disclosure of private

tresspassing

1. entering property without permission

2. remaining on property when permission has expired

3. failing to remove something from property that you are obligated to remove

nuisance

similar to trespassing, but involving things like noise, smell, smoke, lights, vibration

negligence

failure to excersise reasonable care, under the circumstance, for the safety of another person or property, and which causes injury, damage, or loss

strict liability

(automatic responsibility) if you injure someone or cause damage while you are engaging in an inherently dangerous activity, you will be help automatically liable no matter how careful you were

how to we calculate wether a risk is reasonable?

if the probability of harm x the gravity/severity of harm> the burden of taking precautions to avoid the harm, then the risk is unreasonable

P x G > B

Children

comapre their behavior to what a resonable child of a similar age would have done in that situation

physical disabilities

compare their actions to what a reasonable person with that disability at the same level of progression would have done

mental disabilities

compare their actions to what a non-mentally disabled person would have done in that situation

people with superior skills and knowledge

compare their actions to others in their profession

defenses to negligence

1. assumption of the risk

2. contributory negligence

3. comparative negligence

assumption of the risk

the plaintiff knowingly exposed themselves to danger

contributory negligence

if the plaintiff contributed to his injuries at all, he cannot sue the defendant

comparitive negligence

we allocate fault proportionally between the parties

sale

the transfer of the title of property in exchnage for payment

lease

the temporary transfer of possession to property in exchnage for payment

contracts

a binding agreement that a court would enforce

uniform commercial code

standardized trade rules

2 ways a party can breach a contract

1. perform imperfectly under the contract

2. fail to perform at all

golden rule of contracts

 the goal of contract law is to put the nonbreaching party in the same position they would have been in had the contract been performed

2 things the nonbreaching party can do when the other party breaches the contract

1. sue

2. stop performing the contract

equitable remedies

sometimes, the nonbreaching party does not want money- instead, all they want is what is fair

effiicient breach

 sometimes it makes economic sense to break a contract

4 requirments of a valid contract

1. mutual assent/agreement

2. consideration/value

3. legality of object

4. capacity

mutual assent/agreement

the parties must have a “meeting of the minds” on the key terms of the contract

consideration/value

each party must give something of value to the other under the contract

legality of the object

the purpose of the contract must be legal

capacity

18 and over, competent

implied contracts

where we can infer, from the parties’ conduct, that they have a contract (ex. ordering at a restaurant)

express contracts

where the parties’ words and statements make clear they have a contract

void

empy, null, cancelled

voidable

capable of being voided

contractual capacity: intoxicated persons

Rule: contracts entered into by intoxicated people are voidable by them if the other party knew or should have known of the intoxication

contractual capacity: incompetent persons

contracts are voidable at their or their parents option at a reasonable time after the contract is made

every contract has _____ and ______

rights (benefits) and duties (burden)

3 ways a contract can impact third parties

1. A party assigns their rights under the contract to the third party

2. A party delegates their duties under the contract to a third party

3. Contract is entered into for the benefit of a third party

parital assignment

Sometimes, parties can assign just come contract rights. They don't need to assign all of them.

where contracts are not assignable

1. Where the contract prohibits any assignment

2. Where the contract involves highly personal contract rights

3. Where the assignment would materially increase the risk or burden on the other party