INITIAL ASSIGNMENTS
Property § 1
Winter Semester 2016
Prof. Freyermuth
Note that the first class meeting will be Tuesday, January 19, 2016.
A.
Assignment prior to first class: Please write a note (about a page in length) giving me
some biographical information about yourself, including: (1) where you’re from, (2) your
background, (3) why you came to law school, (4) the most important thing you think you learned
last semester; (5) your outside interests, and (6) any other information that will help me get to
know you better. Submit this to me by e-mail at freyermuthr@missouri.edu no later than
Saturday, January 16.
B.
Assignment for Classes #1 and 2, Tuesday, January 19 and Wednesday, January 20.
Read pages v-vii in the Preface of the casebook and pages 1-11 (including the excerpt from the
Calabresi and Melamed article Property Rules, Liability Rules, and Inalienability: One View of
the Cathedral).
For the first two classes, I have included a set of hypothetical situations below. Is the concept of
“property” relevant in the resolution of these situations? If so, what is the “property” and why
should the law protect it as “property”? If not, why not? If you were asked as a judge or an
arbitrator to “decide” the dispute, how would you rule and why?
1.
Last week, Steve’s computer suffered a catastrophic failure. He went into the library and
took the laptop sitting in Jamie’s study carrel. When Jamie confronted Steve and demanded
the return of the laptop, Steve refused. Jamie wants to know if she can recover the laptop
from Steve, although she admits that she does not like the computer, was about to replace
it, can’t remember where she purchased it, and no longer has a receipt that proves she
purchased it.
2.
John Jenkins has been employed at the State’s Department of Natural Resources for fifteen
years. Last month he was fired because of a personality clash with his supervisor. He has
come to you, an expert in all matters pertaining to property, to seek advice.
3.
Sheldon and Penny were sitting on a park bench when a piece of trash blew by. Sheldon
got up to retrieve the trash and properly dispose of it. When Sheldon got up, Leonard sat
down on the bench next to Penny and refused to get up when Sheldon returned.
4.
Donald decided to build a new home. He commissioned a renowned architect to design it
and spent $50 million building it. The home is a work of art, and its large front yard
overlooks a public park. Crowds gather in the park to view the home and take pictures,
much as they would a painting in a museum. Donald has decided that people should help
contribute to the expense of maintaining the home if they are going to enjoy looking at it,
and he wants to charge a fee to take pictures of the home.
5.
Donald’s home (the same home as in Question 4) is so spectacular that the local board of
tourism and development plans to place a picture of the home on the cover of its 2015
tourism brochure. Donald believes that the local board of tourism and development should
not be able to use a picture of his home unless they pay him the $200,000 he has demanded
for his consent.
6.
For the last twenty years, Phil has always slept on the right side of the bed, nearest the light
and the bathroom. His wife Claire wants to begin sleeping on the right side of the bed, but
Phil refuses to move.
7.
Dave has owned a successful restaurant for 30 years. In a frame behind the counter, he
displayed the first $20 bill he received from his first customer. Earlier today, a thief took
the $20 bill, and used it to buy liquor later that day at Walt’s Liquor Store. The thief was
caught an hour later and confessed. The police found the $20 bill in the cash register at
Walt’s Liquor Store. [There is no question of identification; Dave had a photograph of the
bill, and the serial number of the bill matches the picture.] Dave wants the bill returned,
but Walt’s refuses.