Blaw Exam 1

Front 1

Civil law

Back 1

Spells out the rights and duties that exist between persons and between persons and their government, as well as the relief available when a persons rights are violated

Front 2

Criminal law

Back 2

Wrongs committed against the public as a whole

Front 3

Stare decisis

Back 3

"to stand on decided cases." Deciding new cases with reference to former decisions

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Binding authority

Back 4

A case precedent, or statute, or other source of law that a court must follow when deciding a case

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Substantive law/
Procedural law

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Consists of all laws that define, describe, regulate, and create legal rights and obligations

consists of all laws that delineate the methods of enforcing the rights established by substantive law

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Statute of limitations

Back 6

After the time allowed under a statute of limitations has expired, no action (lawsuit) can be brought, no matter how strong the case was originally

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Precedent

Back 7

A decision that furnished an example or authority for deciding subsequent cases involving similar legal principles or facts

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Judicial review

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The judiciary branch of government can decide, among other things, whether the laws or actions of the other two branches are constitutional

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long arm statute

Back 9

A court can exercise personal jurisdiction over certain out of state defendants based on activities that took place within the state.

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Personal jurisdiction

Back 10

A particular court can exercise personal jurisdiction over any person or business that resides in a certain geographic area

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Venue

Back 11

The most appropriate location for a trial

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Subject matter jurisdiction

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Refers to the limitations on the types of cases a court can hear. Certain courts are empowered to hear certain kinds of disputes

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Standing to sue

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In order to bring a lawsuit before a court, a party must have sufficient "stake" in a matter to justify seeking relief through the court system

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Alternate dispute mechanisms

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Avoiding costly court system, by negotiating and attempting to work out differences

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Diversity jurisdiction/federal question jurisdiction

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Federal question: Any lawsuit involving a federal question comes under the judicial authority of the federal courts and can originate in the federal court

Diversity of citizenship: Whenever a federal court has jurisdiction over a case that does not involve a federal question. Two requirements:
1. the plaintiff and defendant must be residents of different states
2. the dollar amount must exceed $75,000

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"Minimum contacts" to assert jurisdiction

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(Business lawsuit example). The minimum contacts requirement is usually met if the corporation advertises or sells its products within the state, or places its goods "within the stream of commerce." In other words, there needs to be justification to hold a lawsuit under a certain state

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State court system

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1. Local trial courts of limited jurisdiction
2. state trial courts of general jurisdiction
3. State courts of appeals
4. The states highest court (often called the states supreme court)

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Federal court system

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1. US district courts (trial courts of general jurisdiction
2. US courts of appeals (intermediate courts of appeals)
3. US supreme court

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Litigation process

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Pretrial, trial, posttrial

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Pretrial procedures

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Pleadings: Inform each party of the other's claims and specify the issues (disputed questions) involved in the case
Complaint: Lawyer files a complaint with the clerk of the appropriate court
Service of process: Formally notifying the defendant of a lawsuit
Summons: A notice requiring the defendant to appear in court
Discovery: Includes gaining access to witnesses, documents, records, and other types of evidence

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Pretrial motions

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Include the motion to dismiss, the motion for judgment on the pleadings, and the motion for summary judgement

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Voir dire

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(Jury selections). Attorneys for the plaintiff and defendant ask prospective jurors questions to determine if their is any bias or any connection with one of the parties.

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Jury trial

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7th amendment guarantees the right for cases at law in federal courts when the amount in controversy exceeds $20. The right to a trial by a jury need not be exercised, in most states and federal courts one of the parties must request a jury

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ADR: Negotiation, mediation, arbitration

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Alternative dispute resolution
Negotiation: A process in which the parties attempt to settle disputes informally
Mediation: A neutral third party acts as a mediator and works with both sides in the dispute to facilitate a resolution
Arbitration: An arbitrator (neutral third party or panel of experts) hears a dispute and imposes a resolution on the parties

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Due process clause

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No person shall be deprived "of life, liberty, or property, without the due process of the law." The due process clause of these constitutional amendments has two aspects- procedural and substantive

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Equal protection clause

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The government cannot enact laws that treat similarly situated individuals differently

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Checks and balances

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Allows each branch to limit the actions of the other two branches

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Commerce clause

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National government has the power to regulate interstate commerce, extensive regulation of state and local affairs

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Police powers

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State regulatory powers

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Burbank V. Lockheed

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1960's. Airport controversy. Federal law determines that transportation>local airplane noise

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Heart of Atlanta motel v. US

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Segregation plays big role,The owner of the motel argued that the act (to stop segregation) violated his Fifth Amendment rights to choose customers and operate his business as he wished and resulted in unjust deprivation of his property without due process of law and just compensation.
The District court ruled in favor of the United States and issued a permanent injunction requiring the Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc. to refrain from using racial discrimination in terms of the goods or services that it offered to guests or the general public upon its premises.

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Wickard v. Filburn

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Great depression. Roosevelt limits amount of wheat to be produced, in order to increase price. Filburn was a farmer who produced wheat in excess of the amount permitted. Filburn however, argued that because the excess wheat was produced for his private consumption on his own farm, it never entered commerce at all. The Supreme Court rejected this argument, reasoning that if Filburn had not used home-grown wheat he would have had to buy wheat on the open market.

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Brown V. Board of Education of Topeka

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landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court, which overturned earlier rulings going back to Plessy v. Ferguson in 1896, by declaring that state laws that established separate public schools for black and white students denied black children equal educational opportunities. Handed down on May 17, 1954, the Warren Court's unanimous (9–0) decision stated that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." As a result, de jure racial segregation was ruled a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. This victory paved the way for integration and the civil rights movement.[2]

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US v. Lopez

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Alfonso lopez brings a gun to school, violating Gun-free school zone act. Lopez moved to dismiss the indictment on the ground that §922(q) of the Act was "unconstitutional as it is beyond the power of Congress to legislate control over our public schools." The trial court denied the motion, ruling that §922(q) was "a constitutional exercise of Congress' well defined power to regulate activities in and affecting commerce, and the `business' of elementary, middle and high schools . . . affects interstate commerce." The Government's principal argument was that the possession of a firearm in an educational environment would most likely lead to a violent crime, which in turn would affect the general economic condition in one of two ways: first, because violent crime causes damage and creates expense, it raises insurance costs, which are spread throughout the economy; and second, by limiting the willingness to travel in the area perceived to be unsafe. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals. It held that while Congress had broad lawmaking authority under the Commerce Clause, the power was limited