Constitutional Law
1. Standing – injury, causation, redressability
2. Jurisdiction – subject matter (FQ or complete diversity+$75k+,
supplemental for added claim w/CNF), personal (long-arm), opportunity to
be heard, service, venue (all Ds reside, event, FNC), removal (orig. file-able,
30 days, all Ds, not P, not own state), 11th Amend Sovereign Immunity
3. Ripeness & mootness
4. State Action
5. Commerce powers – Dormant Commerce (federal statute, discrimination,
undue burden), Privileges and Immunities
6. Standard of review – strict (fundamental – travel/vote/privacy/1st Amend,
suspect - race/alien/NO), intermediate (quasi-suspect - sex, legitimacy),
rational basis (age, mental disability, poor)
7. Equal Protection – intent to discriminate
8. 1st Amend
a.
Speech – heightened; content/conduct – time, place (public/limited/
non-public), manner; overbroad; V for V; unfettered, scope/not speak
b. Unprotected – CPD, fighting words, obscenity, libel, comm’l (heightnd)
c.
Religion – Free Exercise (law of general applicability), Establishment
(secular prp, neither advance nor inhibit rel, no excess entanglement)
9. 4th Amend – privacy expectation, exceptions (IPCASAE-incident arrest, plain
view, consent, auto, stop & frisk, administrative inspection, emergency)
10. 5th Amend – life/liberty/property right; procedural/substantitve
11. Taking – gov’t use and legit purpose, balancing (economically viable use)
12. Admissible FPT (GTIII) – GF belief in valid warrant, no longer tainted,
independent source, inevitable discovery, impeach D
Civil Procedure
1. Jurisdiction, ripeness & mootness, in personam (min. contacts, subst. just.)
2. Motions (DPSJRR) – dismissal, pleadings, summary J, JML, RJML (requires
JML motion), relief from J (mistake, new evidence, fraud, J void, J satisfied)
3. Appeals – no interlocutory (except CISCC – collateral, immediate harm,
statutory, class certification, contempt)
4. Class action (NCTRA) – numerosity, commonality, typicality, rep. adequate
Community Property
1. Married – legal, putative, QCP, QMP, separation
2. Source - CP presumed, SP, onerous (stock options, severance), gift/devise,
tracing (direct, exhaustion), credit, PI damages
a.
Pensions, disability, Terminable Interest Doctrine
3. Actions – commingling, value enhanced (business – Perreira/Van Camp,
realty), transmutation
4. Presumptions (JGHPB) – joint form, gift (pre-1984, 1984-87, post-1987),
H&W, pre-1975 MW, bank accounts
5. Dispute resolution – creditors, management rts
Contracts
1. Formation – mutual assent, consideration, no defenses
2. Defenses (MUFDUIS) – mutual mistake, unilateral mistake, fraud, duress,
unconscionability, illegality, SoF (MYLEGS)
a.
UCC SoF (SWAP) – specially made, 10 day writing, admit, performance
3. Discharge of obligations (PIIF MR MANL) – substantial performance,
impossibility, impracticability, frustration, mutual recission, release,
modification, accord and satisfaction, novation, lapse
a.
Goods acceptance (NFI) – notify seller, fail to reject, act inconsistent
b. Warranties (TEMF) – title, express, merchantability, fitness of
purpose; disclaimers
4. Excuse of conditions (PIIF+FAAPDEW) – failure to cooperate, actual breach,
anticipatory repudiation, prospective inability, divisibility, estoppel, waiver
5. Breach – material, minor
6. Remedies
a.
Damages (GCIPNLEC) – general, consequential, incidental, punitive,
nominal, liquidated, emotional, collateral sources
b. Restitution (4 Rs) – reliance, recission, reformation, restitution (unjust
enrichment, quasi-contract, benefit is value; constructive
trust/equitable lien)
c.
Equity
i. Torts injunction – IPFBD
ii. Contract specific performance - DFMFD
Corporations
1. Security laws – 10(b)5 insider trading, 16(b) six month trading
2. Board - Fiduciary, diligence, recs to shareholders
3. Corporate opportunity doctrine
4. Business Judgment Rule
5. Defenses – board, shareholder approval
6.
Agency (AAIRE) – actual, apparent, inherent, ratification, estoppel; ABC –
assent, benefit, control; frolic vs. detour
Criminal Law
1. Crime – mental state, physical act, intent (GSIT - gen., spec., inf., trans.)
a.
Liability exclusions (PNW) – protected class, necessary, withdrawal
b. Conspiracy (WWLCH) – withdr, Wharton, liab co-con, chain/hub-spoke
2. Searches
a.
Reasonable expectation of privacy
b. Incidental to arrest – passenger compartment
3. Defenses (SLIVENIDDA) – self-defense, legal impossibility, invol.
intoxication, vol. intoxication/specific intent, entrapment, necessity,
insanity (MIDM-M’n, irresistible impulse, Durham, MPC), double jeopardy,
duress, abandonment (of attempt)
a.
Heat of passion (RPTC) – reasonable person would be provoked,
provoked, no time to cool off, did not cool off
b. Felony murder (GDFS) – guilty of felony, distinct, foreseeable, safety
c.
Proximate cause – year and a day, superseding intervening acts
Evidence
1. Witness competency- oath, knowledge, remember, communicate
2. Relevance
3. Character – no propensity but MIMIC allowed (civil: DICK)
4. Policy exclusions – settlement, insurance, remedial measures
5. Hearsay
a.
Other purpose – verbal acts, effect on hearer, state of mind e.g. intent
b. Non-hearsay – prior inconsistent statements under oath, prior
consistent statements to rebut, identification, admission (silence,
agent, co-conspirator
c.
Exception, unavailable (privilege, memory loss, refusal)(TSDHU) –
former testimony, statement against interest (criminal/exculpatory –
corroborating circumstances), dying declaration, personal or family
history, statement against person procuring unavailability
d. Exception, availability immaterial – present state of mind, excited
utterance, present sense impression, present bodily condition, past
bodily condition for treatment, recorded recollection, business
records, public records, judgments, ancient documents, property
documents, learned treatises, reputation, family records, market rpts
6. Foundation
7. Authentication – unique, made unique, chain of custody; self-authenticate
8. Best Evidence Rule
9. Impeachment – PIS, bias, bad character, prior criminal convictions,
unprosecuted bad acts, contradiction shown via evidence
10. Objections – Amb, Arg, AA, AFNE, Compound, Har, Narr, Spec
Real Property
1. Adverse possession – mental, physical, time
2. General (special) warranty deed – seisin, right to convey, no encumbrances,
quiet enjoyment, warranty to defend, further assurances; reqts (PIDS)
3. Recording – types, BFP, notice (actual, inquiry, constructive)
4. IWMT – flaw in chain, encumbrances, events (eminent domain, adv poss)
5. Easement – types (appurtenant, in gross), estates, creation (IENP),
destruction (EDMAS)
6. Covenants/servitudes – writing (SoF), run w/land (TINP, benefit no N or HP)
7. Rent defenses – failure to deliver, eviction (act/constr), surrender, destruct
8. Estates – FS, FSD (while, PoR), FSCS (but if, RoE), FSSEI (but if…then to), RAP
9. Joint ownership – TIC, JTWROS (4 unities ITTP), Entirety, CP
Remedies
1. Damages
a.
General – foreseeable, reasonably certain, obligation to mitigate
b. Types – compensatory, nominal, punitive (excessiveness)
c.
Torts – chattel trespass (destruction, injury, conversion), land trespass
(severance, encroachment, destruction, waste – voluntary,
permissive, ameliorative, nuisance), personal injury, defamation,
privacy, fraud, inducing contract breach, tortious interference, libel
d. Contracts – direct, consequential, liquidated, punitive, attorneys’ fees;
types (land sale, construction, personal services)
2. Restitution
a.
Avoid unjust enrichment/quasi-contract – D pays P benefit obtained,
quantum meruit
b. Non-cash – replevin, ejectment
3. Equitable (constructive trust, equitable lien, injunction – TRO, preliminary,
permanent – encroachments, nuisance)
a.
Requirements for torts
i. I – speculative, irreparable harm, suit multiplicity, ongoing tort)
ii. Property right
b.
iii. Feasibility – mandatory, negative injunctions; states
iv. Balance hardships
v. D – unclean hands, laches, sale to BFP
Contracts – specific performance
i. Definite and performed
ii. F Mutuality of performance B
iii. D – unclean hands, laches, SoF, hardship (sharp practices,
disproportionate)
iv. Rescission – legal, equitable; mutual mistake, fraud, etc.; sue
first for this then damages
v. Reformation
vi. Realty – time of essence, abatement, equitable conversion
Torts
1. Types – intentional, fraud, privacy invasion (CM, I to S, FL, PDPF),
defamation (slander per se)
2. Negligence – duty, breach, cause (but for), proximate cause (foreseeable), D
3. Product liability – product liability, warranties, negligence, battery
4. Defenses – consent, risk assumption, contributory, failure to mitigate
Trusts
1. Trust requirements – intent, settlor, res, trustee, beneficiary, legal P, RAP
2. Trustee – qualifications, removal, resignation, powers (express/implied)
a.
Duties – care, loyalty, impartiality (adjustment power), perform
personally, no commingling, defend, preserve, make productive
3. Special types – spendthrift, discretionary, support
a.
Resulting – purchase money, failed express, excess corpus
b. Constructive – theft, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, homicide, NOT
breach of promise (except conf relationship, decedent received svcs,
heir took for 3rd party, buyer at foreclosure)
4. Doctrine of Changed Circumstances
5. Will substitutes – revocable trusts, pour-over gifts, life ins trust, Totten
Wills
1. Validity – age, mental capacity (insane delusion), intent, execution
w/witnesses or holographic, defenses (undue influence, presumed
w/confidential relationship, lawyer beneficiary unless related, fraud)
2. Revocation
3. Intestacy
4. Statutory devises – pretermitted heirs, anti-lapse (class gifts), RAP
5. Devises – types (general, specific, demonstrative, residual), ademption,
satisfaction, accretion, no exoneration
6. Administration – fiduciary duties