Test 1 Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the structure of the US government

A

Constitution
Legislative (congress, house of rep and senate, bills)
Executive (president, vice, agencies)
Judicial (Supreme Court)

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2
Q

4 primary sources of law

A

Us constitution
Statutory law
Regulatory law
Case law (common law)

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3
Q

US constitution

A

Supreme law of the land; Pennsylvania constitution

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4
Q

Statutory law

A

Laws made by the lawmakers; NEPA, CAA

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5
Q

Regulatory law

A

Laws made by government agencies; pollutant regulation

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6
Q

Case law

A

Common law, precedent from other judges; torts

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7
Q

Vertical separation of power

A

Federalism; national, state, local

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8
Q

Horizontal separation of power

A

Executive legislative judicial

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9
Q

Commerce clause

A

Regulates commerce with foreign nations and among states/Indian tribes, often basis for environmental law, national

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10
Q

supremacy clause

A

national law trumps state law

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11
Q

three types of environmental law ethics

A

humankind, nations, generations

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12
Q

differentiate between statutory and common law

A

statutory law is law made by lawmakers, common law is the precedent set by judges in previous cases

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13
Q

common law causes of action relevant to environmental law

A

negligence, strict liability for abnormally dangerous activities, public nuisance, trespass, nuisance, products

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14
Q

in what situations would negligence apply to environmental law

A

dumping toxic waste or trash, polluting with big trucks, etc

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15
Q

in what situations would strict liability for abnormally dangerous activities apply to environmental law

A

if you are transporting something dangerous and it leaks you are responsible for the damage even if it was an accident

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16
Q

in what situations would public nuisance apply to environmental law

A

if the public is complaining that the air isn’t clean

17
Q

in what situations would trespass apply to environmental law

A

if someone is doing something environmentally harmful on your property

18
Q

in what situations would nuisance apply to environmental law

A

if someone is messing with your personal enjoyment such as manure smell from a neighboring farm

19
Q

in what situations would products apply to environmental law

A

if products are defective they could be harmful to the environment

20
Q

explain what constitutes a tort claim

A

there must be some form of breach of duty to the defendant, some form of injury to the plaintiff and causation

21
Q

explain how the burden of proof in a tort case is different than that of a criminal case

A

in a criminal case the proof has to outweigh everything, in a tort it merely has to tip the scale

22
Q

explain the remedies that might be rewarded to a plaintiff in a tort case

A

compensatory damages ($$), injunctive relief (make them stop what they’re doing), punitive damages (punishment for conduct)

23
Q

explain who has standing

A

whoever is directly affected has the right to sue

24
Q

explain the most common types of evidence in toxic torts and their challenges

A

general causation (x can cause y), specific causation (a did cause y), scientific uncertainty (can’t wait for research), medical complexity (what % of x caused y) and latency (time lag in reconstructing dates)

25
Q

rule-making process for agencies

A

public notice, comment period, publication in federal register

26
Q

judicial review

A

scrutiny of court by agencies actions