Preclusion

Question 1

Claim Preclusion (Res Judicata)

Answer 1

A person only gets to sue on a claim once. Reqs:

1) Case 1 and case 2 were brought by the same claimant against the same defendant
2) Case 2 ended in a valid judgment on the merits (jdx, venue, indispensable parties is NOT on the merits)
3) Case 1 and case 2 asserted the same “claim.” Majority view: a claim is any right to relief arising from a T/O. Minority view: there are separate claims for property damage and for personal injuries because those are different primary rights.

Question 2

Issue Preclusion (Collateral Estoppel)

Answer 2

Narrower than claim preclusion. An issue was litigated in Case 1. The same issue comes up in Case 2. Reqs:

1) Case 1 ended in a valid, final judgment on the mertis
2) The same issue was actually litigated and determined in Case 1
3) The issue was essential to the judgment in Case 1. The finding on this issue is the basis for the judgment
4) Issue preclusion can ONLY be asserted against somebody who was a party to, or represented by a party in Case 1
5) Issue Preclusion can be asserted by someone who was a party to Case 1.

Question 3

Nonmutual Issue Preclusion

Answer 3

When someone who was not a party to Case 1 tries to use issue preclusion in Case 2. Comes up in two ways:

1) Nonmutal defensive issue preclusion (the one using it was not a party to Case 1 and is D in Case 2)
2) Nonmutual offensive issue preclusion (the one using it was not a party to Case 1 and is P in Case 2). Under majority rule, this cannot be done. But a clear trend in the law will allow it if it is not unfair.