Property
Who has superior claim over land?
1st possessor
BONUS: POSSESSOR HAS THE RIGHT TO possess, exclude, use, dispose, or transfer property
What is the source of Personal Jurisdiction?
Fourteenth Amendment
(1) Source of individual rights since 1868
(2) Due process clause
(a) Substantive due process rights
(i) Right to enter into contracts, marry a partner
of choice, right to counsel, right to privacy
(b) Procedural due process rights
(i) Right to notice before being deprived of
property through legal judgment
(ii) Right against a court’s jurisdictional
overreaching
What is the formula for criminal liability?
Actus Reus (Guilty Act) + Mens Rea (Guilty Mind) + Causation
What are 2 ways to argue ambiguity?
(1) absurd result or
(2) that judges should be faithful servants to legislature and this application is not what congress would have wanted
Alex intentionally drives a car while intoxicated on a public road. No accident occurs, and no one is injured. Alex is charged under a state statute that makes it a crime to “operate a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.”
Is Alex criminally liable even though no harm resulted?
Yes. This is a conduct crime, meaning the statute criminalizes the act itself, not a harmful result. Alex committed a voluntary act by choosing to drive while intoxicated, satisfying the actus reus requirement, and the absence of injury does not preclude criminal liability.
Wrongful exercise of ownership rights over the personal property of another
Explain O'Conner plurality.
(i) D must PURPOSEFULLY DIRECT activity at the
forum showing an intent to serve the forum
market
(a) Targeted designs or ads tailored to
the forum OR
(b) Channels for customer communication
in the forum OR
(c) Marketing through a sales agent within
the forum
What are results of criminal sanctions?
deterrence, incapacitation (stop criminals), retribution, rehabilitation
When trying to determine congress' meaning of a work, what is the default rule?
The default rule is to use ordinary meaning (what common people think).
Jordan, who has a well-documented history of epileptic seizures triggered by alcohol, spends the evening drinking heavily at a bar. While driving home, Jordan suffers a seizure, loses control of the car, and strikes a pedestrian, causing the pedestrian’s death. Jordan is charged with homicide under a state statute that does not adopt the MPC but follows common-law principles.
Does Jordan satisfy the actus reus requirement for criminal liability?
Yes. Although the physical act that caused the death occurred during an involuntary seizure, courts focus on whether there was a prior voluntary act sufficient to support liability. Here, Jordan’s voluntary decision to drink alcohol and then drive, despite knowing the risk of seizures, constitutes a voluntary act that is sufficiently vicious to satisfy due process. Because homicide is a result crime, the prosecution need only show that Jordan’s conduct caused the prohibited result—death—regardless of the precise mechanics of how the harm occurred, making criminal liability appropriate under cases like Decina.
Under acquisition of property by find, explain the difference between lost, mislaid, + abandoned property.
BONUS: Replevin is when there's a lawsuit to have goods returned, rather than monetary damages.
Under Conversion (Trover), damages are measured by the value of the item before the conversion or the value of Ps interest.
Under World Wide Volkswagen, explain the Three-step minimum contacts test.
(1) Contacts (ie purposeful availment): D’s contacts with the state must be substantial enough so that D could reasonably foresee being sued there
(2) Relationship (ie nexus) : P’s injury arises out of D’s contacts with the state (a) If 1 and 2 are met, there is a presumption of jurisdiction
(3) Fairness: the state’s exercise of PJ cannot be fundamentally unfair to D (a) Fairness cannot CREATE jurisdiction, it can only knock it out
BONUS: This case added the idea of reasonable foreseeability to purposeful availment.
What are the 3 source of law?
When is legislative history used for ambiguous terms?
It's only helpful if you think legislative intent is the purpose of the statute.
TechGear Inc., a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in California, manufactures smart watches that it sells nationwide through an independent distributor. TechGear has no offices or employees in Georgia, but it ships thousands of watches annually knowing they are marketed and sold to Georgia consumers. A Georgia resident is injured when her TechGear watch overheats and sues TechGear in Georgia state court. TechGear moves to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction.
Does the Georgia court have personal jurisdiction over TechGear?
Georgia likely has specific personal jurisdiction. Under International Shoe, TechGear has minimum contacts with Georgia because it purposefully availed itself of the forum by placing its products into the stream of commerce with knowledge they would be sold there, satisfying the McGee/Hanson purposeful availment inquiry. The plaintiff’s injury arises out of those contacts because the allegedly defective product was sold and caused injury in Georgia. Finally, exercising jurisdiction is not fundamentally unfair under World-Wide Volkswagen, as Georgia has a strong interest in protecting its residents, and TechGear could reasonably foresee being haled into court there.
What are the elements that must be satisfied to be considered a gift?
All 3 MUST be satisfied for it to be a gift
BONUS: GIFTS ARE IRREVOCABLE ONCE GIVEN
Name 4 ways to constitutionally satisfy In Personam Jurisdiction.
a)D appears in court without following protest procedures
b) D’s domicile (permanent residence) or, if a corporation, its principal place of business, is in the state
c) D is served process in the state
d) D’s state of incorporation is in the state or D has an agent for service of process in the state
Explain (or define) criminalization, enforcement, and adjudication decisions.
Name the 5 tools of statutory interpretation.
ordinary meaning, statutory context, canons of construction, legislative history, and evidence of the way a statute was implemented.
Congress enacts the Fair Employment Access Act (FEAA), making it unlawful for any employer to “knowingly employ any individual who is not legally authorized to work in the United States,” and defining “employer” as any entity that “hires, contracts with, or otherwise engages” an individual to perform labor or services. A nonprofit, Community Hands, uses unpaid volunteers who receive housing stipends and meal vouchers, including two undocumented individuals, and is fined by the Department of Labor. Community Hands challenges the penalty.
Is Community Hands an “employer” under the FEAA for purposes of liability, and how should a court resolve the ambiguity in the phrase “otherwise engages” under textualism, intentionalism, and purposivism?
Under a textualist approach, the phrase “otherwise engages” is ambiguous, but read in context with “hires” and “contracts with,” it most reasonably refers to employment-like relationships involving compensation, making unpaid volunteering outside the statute. An intentionalist would likely look to legislative debates about “shadow labor markets” and conclude Congress intended to reach informal labor arrangements like this, supporting the fine. A purposivist would emphasize the statute’s goal of preventing exploitation of unauthorized workers and may also uphold the penalty to further that purpose, even if volunteers are not traditional employees.
What are the elements of Adverse Possession to Real Property?
ECHOA
Define the 4 types of Personal Jurisdiction?
a) In personam - physical human body or connection to person (in state)
b) In rem - solely based on property; rendered almost non-existent
c) General - when P’s injury has nothing to do with D’s contacts with the forum, but D’s contacts are so significant that its constitutional to sue D there for anything
d) Specific - when P’s injury ‘arises out of’ D’s contacts with the forum; need a connection between D’s contacts with the forum and P’s injury
What is the difference between Conduct Crimes & Result Crimes?
Name and explain the 3 types of approaches to ambiguous terms.
Textualism (#1 approach): How reasonable people would understand the semantic meaning of the language. The only legislative intent is “the words themselves, what they mean in context.” Point is textual meaning is always contextual.
Intentionalism: Reconstruct the likely intent of the legislature and what they specifically intended. Look to legislative history, which provides evidence of legislative intent or purpose
Purposivism: What legislators would have done if they had confronted the precise question at issue.
Olivia tells her niece Maya, “I want you to have my diamond bracelet forever,” and later that day hands Maya a signed note reading, “This bracelet now belongs to Maya,” but keeps the bracelet locked in her bedroom. Olivia dies the next week, and Olivia’s estate claims the bracelet.
Did Olivia make a valid inter vivos gift of the bracelet to Maya?
No. Although Olivia showed donative intent through her oral statement and written note, and acceptance is presumed because Maya did not refuse the gift, there was no delivery, which is required to complete a gift. Because Olivia retained exclusive control over the bracelet and did not manually deliver it, nor provide constructive delivery (such as a key) or symbolic delivery sufficient to transfer possession, the gift was never completed and the bracelet remains part of Olivia’s estate.