1. Organization

2. Issuance of Stock

3. Directors and Officers

4. Sharholders

5. Fundamental Corporate Changes

Tort Liability

Contract Liability

Duties Agent Owes to Principal

Relevance

Character Evidence

Opinion

Judicial Notice

Documentary Evidence

Hearsay

Privileges

4th Amendment

5th Amendment

6th Amendment

Guilty Pleas

Exclusion

Pre Marriage

Marriage

Termination of Marriage

Parental Autonomy

Adoption

General Elements

Accomplice Liability

Inchoate offenses

Crimes Against the person

Crimes Against Property

Crimes Involving Judicial Procedures

Defenses

Marriage Requirements

Termination of the Community

Characterization of Property

Mixed Property

Division of Community Porperty

Civil Procedures (7 topics)

Personal Jurisdiction

Subject matter Jurisdiction

Venue

Service of Process

Pleadings

 Joinder of Parties

Discovery

1. Does PJ satisfy a long-arm statute, or the party has consented, or party is present in the forum

AND

2. Does the personal jurisdiction satisfy the Constitution(due process?

My Parents Frequently Forget to Read Child Story

Minimum Contacts: Purposeful availment, Foreseeability

Fair play and substantial justice: relatedness of contact and claim, convenience, state's interest

Subject Matter Jurisdiction

Three ways to establish

and 2 bonus issues

Diversity of Citizenship

Federal Questions

Supplemental Jurisdiction

Removal

Erir Doctrine

(1) state where incorporated; AND (2) state of principle place of business

2.  amount in controversy

Federal Question

2 points

1.  Well-pleaded complain rule: means that plaintiff’s claim,

properly pleaded,

must be based on federal law

2.  Citizenship is irrelevant; no amount in controversy is required

1.  The test:  the claim we want to get into federal court must share a

“common nucleus of operative fact” with the claim that invoked federal SM

 jurisdiction.  Test is met by claims that arise from the same transaction

or occurrence (T/O)

2.  Exception: not allowed if (1) asserted by a P; (2) in a diversity

(not FQ) case; AND (3) violates complete diversity

Removal

3 points

allows defendants (not plaintiff) to have case that was filed in

state court removed to federal court

1.  general test:  removable if case could have

been heard in federal court (federal subject matter jurisdiction)

2.  timing:  must remove no later than 30 days after

service of first removable document

3.  all defendants must agree (special rule:  no removal if any defendant is

a citizen of the forum)

in diversity cases, federal court must apply state substantive law. 

Established substantive issues (state law rules): 

statutes of limit.; rules for tolling statutes of limit.; choice of law rules

3.  If no Federal law on point, and the issue is one of

 substantive law, court must apply state law.  Test for substantive:

a.  outcome determinative:  applying or ignoring the state rule

would affect the outcome of the case

b.  balance of interests:  either federal or state system has a

strong interest that its rule be applied

c.  avoid forum shopping

Venue tells us exactly which Federal Court the case should be in

In any case, (diversity or Fed. Question), plaintiff may lay venue in any district where all defendants reside or a substantial part of the claim arose.

if venue in original forum is proper,

may transfer to another federal district court. 

Factors:  convenience of parties/witnesses and “interest of justice.” 

Court where case is transferred applies choice of law

rules of original court.

(process is the summons and a copy of the complaint) 

Look at

Timing And Service

Personal Service

Substitute Service

Waiver of Service

documents setting forth claims and defenses. 

Generally, pleadings are only required to convey enough of one’s contentions to put others on notice (notice pleadings) and to allow a meaningful response.

Rule 11

Complaint

Defendant's response

Counterclaims

Cross-claims

Amending pleading

Proper defendants and plaintiffs

Nececessary and indispensable parties

Impleader

Class Action

1.  Initial disclosures:  must identify persons and documents

 “likely to have discoverable information that the disclosing party

may use to support its claims or defenses.”

2.  experts:  must identify experts “who may be used at trial”

and produce written report containing opinions, data used,

qualifications, compensation for study, etc.

3.  Pretrial:  no later than 30 days before trial, must give

detailed information about trial evidence

Discovery Tools

(5)

Depositions

Interrogatories

Request to produce

Physical or Mental Examinations

Request for admission

Scope of Discovery

3 points

Must be Relevant

Not Privileged

Not Work Product

2 types of Pretrial Adjudication

case ends before the trial begins if

1. Move to dismiss for failure to state a claim (court does not look at evidence, just the pleadings)

2.  Sumary Judgment; Court looks at evidence most favaroble in the nonmoving party (there can not be a material issue of fact)

Interest in Real property (poss/nonposs)

Limitations on the interest

Conveyancing

Security Interest in Real Property

Ownership/Possessory Interest

6 types

Present Possessory Estates

Future Interest

Concurrent Estate

Landlord-Tenant

Adverse Possession

Nonpossessory Interests

6 types

Easement

License

Profit

Covenant Running with the land

Equitable Servitude

Lateral and Subjacent Support

Limitations on the interest in real

property

2 types

1.  Restrictive Covenants

2. Public Land Use

Conveyancing

two step approach, look at

1. The contract of sale

2. At closing the deed

Contracts for the sale of land

Look at (3 topics)

Statute of Frauds (must be in writting descriping the property, the parties, and the price

Time between signing and closing: Risk of Loss, Death of either party, Marketable Title, Time of performance

Remedies for breach: Damages and Specific Performance

Transfers title to an interest in real property must be

In writing, signed by the grantor AND reasonably identifies the Parties and the Land

(1) seisen

(2) Right to convey

(3) Against encombrance

(4) quiet enjoyment

(5) warranty

(6)Further assurances

Estate hasn't been conveyed before

No encumbrances

No covenant of title

Conveys only the grantor's interest

Recordings

Name 3

Notice Acts

Race-Notice

Pure-Race Acts

protects subsequent grantees who are BFPs who take without notice and are 1st to record

(Statute says "first recorded" or "recorded first")

1. Mortgages

2. Deed of Trust

3. Installment Land Contract

4. Absolute Deed

5. Sale-leaseback

HELUVA

Hostile

Exclusive

Lasting

Uninterruped

Visible

Actual

Landlord duties

(4)

Duty to deliver possession of property

Quiet enjoyment

implied warranty of habitability

assignments

RIGHT OF SURVIVORSHIP

Fourt unities required: time, title, interst, and possession (identical interest at the same time by the same insturment with the same right to possession)

Always look for remidies in the following order

Damages

Restitution

Injunction

Actual Damages: put the plaintiff where he was before the tort occurred. 

Nominal damages: a small or nominal amount when no actual damage can be proved

Punitive Damages:  Noncompensatory damages that punish and deter.  Must first get actual and nominal damages first.  Intentional, outrageous, or reckless behavior will often be a cause of punitive damages

Determining the amount of Punitive damages in a tort case

(3 factors)

(1) degree of wrongfulness of the conduct

(2) proportionality toward actual damages

(3) rich defendants typically pay more

Tort Restitution

2 types

(1) Legal Remedies

Money, replevin, or ejectment (can not get both money damages and money restitution)

(2) Equitable remedies: using constructive trust or equitable lein

-Either a negative or affirmative

- Five elements to award an Injunction (I Put Five Bucks Down)

Inadequate

Property rights

Feasibility

Balance

Defenses

Laches

Unclean Hands

Freedom of speech "prior restraint"

Criminal Act

Contract remedy: Damages

(4 types)

Torts you look to the past, contract to the fututre.  Put the plaintiff in the position he would have been in. 

(1) Expectation damages

(2) Consequential Damages

(3) Liquidated damages

(4) Punitive damages

General rule is that they do not apply to contracts

Two exceptions

Bad Faith breach of an insurance contract by the insurer

Bad Faith employment contract by the employer

Contract remedy: Restitution

(2 types)

1. Legal remedies

2. equitable remedies

Contract remedy: Restitution

Legal remedies

Seeks to counter benefits to defendant

(1) legal remedies Money(quasi contract/unjust enrichment)

(2) replevin: recovery of specific personal property

(3) ejectment: recovery of specific real property

Contract remedy: Restitution

equitable remedies

(2 types)

Constructive trust

Equitable lien

Contract remedy: Injunction

Requires specific performance of the contract

Mnemonic (I'd Die For MY Dog)

Inadequate

Definite

Feasible

Mutuality

Defenses

Laches (effect of the passage of time)

Unclean Hands (Plaintiffs hands are dirty)

Freedom of speech (usually not a defense in Contract cases)  

Hardship

Rescission: the contract is void or voidable

Reformation: contract valid and enforcable but is written incorrectly.  Reform and enforce.

Conflicts outline

(4)

Jurisdiction

Domicile

Choice of Law

Recognition of Judgments

Conflict: Jurisdiction

Full faith and credit applys if

(3)

For full faith and credit there must be

(1) Proper jurisdiction of endering court

(2) judgment on the merits

(3) Final Judgment

Conflicts: Domicile may arise by

(2 methods)

(1) Domicile by choice: physical presence and intent to be domicile

(2) Domicile by operation of Law: domicile assigned to one who lacks domicile capacity

(infants and mental incompetents assigned domicile of parents)

(1) Vested Rights

(2) Most Significant Relationship Approach

(3) Government Interest Approach

Choice of Law: Vested Rights

4 steps

(1) Note the area of law involved (torts, k, family law)

(2) State the appropriate vesting rule (PISSED)

(3) State which jurisdiction wins where the rights vest

(4) state the results

Choice of Law: Vested Rights

Mnemonic for stating the appropriate vesting Rule

Performance (Contracts, place of performance)

Injury (Torts place of injury)

Situs (real property-place of inter vivos transact)

Situs at time of relevant transaction (personal property - place of relevant transaction governs)

Execution (Contract - place of execution)

Decedent's domicile at date of death (personal property - place decedent dies governs)

Conflicts Choice of Law

Most Significant Relationship Approach

court will apply the law of the state which is most significantly related to the outcome of the litigation.  Look at

(1) the connecting facts: where it occurred and what it was

(2) certain policy principles:  common sense list

Conflicts Choice of Law

Government Interest Approach

Conflicts: Choice of Law

Family Law Issues

Marriage: marriage calid where consummated is valid everywhere

Divorce: No choice of law issues because one of the parties must be domiciled in state to get divorced

Legitimacy:  validity of subsequent acts of legitimation of a child are governed by the law of the father's domicile.

Conflicts Choice of Law

Defenses

Substance/Procedure defense: at issue is whether the statute of limitation is substantive or procedural, for if it is procedural, the forum will apply its own law.

- Statute of limitations issues

Borrowed Statute of Limitation (shortest wins)

General trend (procedure issue use forum)

Modern trend (Substantive, use basic choice of law analysis)

Conflicts:  Recognition of Judgments

Rendering State V. Recognizing State

Types

Sister State Judgments

Foreign Country Judgments

Family Law Judgmenets