BLAW Exam 1 Flashcards
1
Q
Federal Government
A
Applies to all states
2
Q
State Government
A
Applies to that one state
3
Q
Local Government
A
Applies to that city or county
4
Q
U.S. Constitution
A
Supreme law of the land
5
Q
Bill of Rights
A
The first 10 amendments, also limits government interference
6
Q
1st Amendment
A
Right to free speech and religion
7
Q
2nd Amendment
A
Right to bare arms
8
Q
4th Amendment
A
Protects from search and seizure
9
Q
5th Amendment
A
The right to remain silent
10
Q
6th Amendment
A
The right to a fair trial
11
Q
What does the constitution only do?
A
Regulates the government, does not regulate private employers / entities
12
Q
What do State Constitutions do?
A
Governs state entities, each state has one
13
Q
What is sovereign immunity?
A
You cannot sue the state in her own courts
14
Q
What are Statutes?
A
Laws passed by legislative bodies
15
Q
Example of Federal Statutes
A
Congress, Title VII
16
Q
State legislative
A
Only applies to that state
17
Q
Administrative Law
A
Regulations passed by agencies- these agencies were created by legislative bodies
18
Q
What is an example Federal agencies
A
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
19
Q
What is an example of State level agencies?
A
Arkansas Game and Fish (AGFC)
20
Q
Common Law
A
One common and uniform law, judges began to write down decisions, those decisions followed later similar cases
21
Q
Civil VS Criminal Law
A
Violation against society as a whole
22
Q
Criminal charges
A
Can only be filed by the government, through the prosecutor
23
Q
The prosecutor
A
Has unlimited discretion on which, if any, criminal charges will be filed
24
Q
Criminal case
A
The burden of proof is on prosecution to prove defendant (the accused) is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
25
During a criminal case, how many jurors have to agree?
12/12, unanimous
26
Civil Law
Regulates interactions between individuals, assesses fault or liability, the burden of proof is on the plaintiff (person bringing the lawsuit)
27
During a civil case, how many jurors have to agree?
51% sure, as few as 9/12 jurors can reach a verdict
28
Who is the plaintiff?
The person who is bringing the lawsuit
29
Who is the defendant?
The person who is being sued
30
What is ethics?
Something that can be legal, but not necessarily ethical
31
What are the rules of the Standard Corporate Ethics?
No conflicts of interest. No Nepotism. No kickbacks. Do not misuse confidential information.
32
What are the ethical tools?
Religion, Kantian ethics, and utilitarianism
33
What does Kantian ethics intel?
"What if everyone acted this way?"
34
What does Utiliarianism intel?
What does the greatest good for the greatest number of people?
35
Abandoned property
Property that the owner has intentionally thrown away, belongs to the finder
36
Lost property
Property that has accidentally been misplaced, involuntarily parted with, belongs to the finder against the whole world, except the true owner
37
Misplaced property
Property that was intentionally placed and then forgotten, belongs to the finder of the property against the whole world except the true owner.
38
Treasure
Items of antiquity, gold, silver, jewels. Belongs to the finder against the whole world except for the true owner
39
Torts
French word for "wrong", defendant has been harmed by plaintiff and seeks money damages in court
40
What are the two types of damage claims?
Compensatory damages and Punitive damages
41
Compensatory damages
Pain and suffering, medical bills, lost wages > past, present, and future
42
Punitive damages
To punish the defendant, has 3 types of tort
43
What are the 3 types of torts
Intentional, negligence, strict liability
44
What are the intentional torts?
Assault, battery, false imprisonment, and defamation
45
What is assault?
Fear of harmful contact
46
What is battery?
Harmful or offensive contact
47
What is false imprisonment?
The intentional confinement or restraint of another person's activities without justification
48
What is defamation?
A false statement made by one person to another and heard by a third party. Ex) Libel -> written word | Slander -> spoken word
49
When is it not defamation?
When it's an opinion
50
What can you not do with defamation?
Defame the dead
51
3 defenses to a claim of defamation
Truth, absolute privilege, qualified privilege
52
What is an absolute defense?
Truth
53
Absolute privilege
Statements made in court / legislature
54
Qualified privilege
Statements made in the course of employment
Ex) employee evaluation
55
Invasion of right to privacy
Violation of a persons right to live without undesired publicity
56
What are some examples of invasion of privacy?
Intruding into private affairs, placing a person into a false light, appropriation of identity, public disclosure of private facts
57
What is Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress?
Acts that are so extreme they cannot be tolerated in a civilized society
58
What is another name for the tort of Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress?
Tort of Outrage
59
What is fraud?
Lying to people, a false statement made by the defendant to the plaintiff, knowing it was false, and plaintiff reasonably believed
60
2 types of property
Real and personal
61
Real property
Land and everything permanently attached to it
62
Personal property
Possessions such as jewelry, furniture, and boats
63
What does trespass to land mean?
Interference without a landowners right to exclusive possession, no harm necessary
64
What is conversion?
Stealing personal property
65
What is negligence?
Accidental harm, failure to act like a reasonable prudent person would or doing something a reasonable prudent person wouldn't do. Ex) speeding in a school zone (bad) Ex) putting up a wet floor sign (good)
66
4 elements of negligence case that defendant must prove
a) defendant owed a duty of care
b) defendant breached duty of care
c) defendant's act caused plaintiff harm
d) plaintiff is injured
67
What are the 3 types of landowner visitors?
Trespassers, licensee, invitee
68
Trespassers
No duty of care owed, there are 2 exceptions, no man traps, attractive nuisance doctrine
69
Example of the Attractive Nuisance Doctrine
Putting up a fence around a pool so a child won't drown
70
Licensee
A person on property for their own purposes, but with the owner's permission
Ex) sales person
(owe a duty of care to not willfully injure)
71
Invitee
A person invited onto a property for a business purpose
Ex) painters, landscapers, etc
(maintain premises in a safe condition & warn of hidden dangers)
72
What are the defenses to a negligence claim
a) assumption of risk
b) contributary negligence
c) comparative fault
d) modified comparative fault
73
Assumption of risk
A defense against negligence that can be used when the plaintiff was aware of a danger and voluntarily assumed the risk of injury from that danger
a) release / waiver
74
Contributary Negligence
Defendant's recovery is reduced by plaintiffs % of fault
Ex) $100,000 in damages
and 95% at fault
Defendant keeps %5,000
75
Modified Comparative Fault
Defendant's fault must be less than 50% to recover, if defendant's 50% or more at fault, defendant recovers nothing.
Ex) assume defendant is injured costs $100,000 if defendant is 50% or more at fault, defendant gets nothing.
If defendant is 50% at fault, defendant gets nothing
If defendant is 49% at fault, defendant recovers $51,000
NEVER SAY YOU'RE SORRY
76
Statute of Limitations
Time within which a lawsuit must be filed or it is barred forever
77
Intentional torts cases must be filed before
One year
78
Medical malpractice cases must be filed before
Two years
79
Negligence cases must be filed before
Three years
80
What are the 4 Special Negligence Doctrines
a) Good Samaritan Rule
b) Social Host Liability
c) Subsequent Remedial Measures
d) Respondent Superior
81
What is the Good Samaritan Rule?
No duty to get involved
Only exceptions, if a family member is involved, or an employee, or is part of the accident
82
What is the Social Host Liability rule?
Host is not liable so long as the person can legally possess alcohol
83
What are the 2 types of people that cannot legally possess alcohol?
Minors and intoxicated people
84
What does the Subsequent Remedial Measures mean?
Evidence of a safety repair after an accident cannot be used to prove negligence cases
85
What does the Respondent Superior Doctrine mean?
The employer is responsible for the negligent acts of the employee
86
What is the Frolic and Detour Rule?
An employer is not responsible for the acts of their employee, if the employee is doing it for the benefit of said employee
87
What is the coming and going rule?
A rule that says an employer is not liable for the injuries caused to their employees while they're on their way to or from work
88
What is an independent contractor?
Not employees, employer is not liable for acts of independent contractors
89
Unforeseen criminal acts of an Unknown 3rd party
General rule is that the landowner is not liable
Ex) You get mugged after walking out of a Pizza Hut
