midterm quiz practice Flashcards
(44 cards)
Builder negligently misread the address of his work order and installed a new underground sprinkler system on the wrong commercial property. He pulled out a flower bed, which will cost $1,500 to replace. The value of the new sprinkler system is $2,500. When the property owner files suit, seeking damages, which rule best supports Builder’s argument that the court should dismiss the case?
a. the credit for benefit rule
b. the collateral source rule
c. the pure economic loss rule
d. the rule of avoidable consequences
a. the credit for benefit rule
Road Crew negligently cut through a water main, which flooded the streets surrounding Rita’s neighborhood. Rita was stuck in her house for a full week before she was rescued and lost $700 in wages. What is the best basis for Road Crew’s argument that it is not liable to pay damages for the lost wages?
- The collateral source rule.
- The pure economic loss rule.
- The rule of avoidable consequences.
- The rule that plaintiff must prove damages with sufficient certainty to recover.
- the pure economic loss rule
A teenager walked across a corner of a landowner’s yard repeatedly on his way home from school. One day the landowner saw the teenager and asked him not to enter the property again. The teenager said he did not realize that the landowner owned that corner of land and agreed not to enter the property again. Not believing that the teenager will stop, the landowner has now threatened a lawsuit alleging trespass against the teenager. Which of the following is true of the damages the landowner may possibly obtain?
- The landowner will not receive any damages because the teenager did not know that he was trespassing.
- The landowner will not receive any damages unless she can prove that the teenager’s entry onto the property caused actual damage to it.
- The landowner will receive both nominal damages and punitive damages.
- The landowner will not receive punitive damages because the teenager’s conduct does not meet the standard.
- The landowner will not receive punitive damages because the teenager’s conduct does not meet the standard.
Plaintiff recovered $5,000 in compensatory damages and $20,000 in punitive damages from Defendant for willfully and repeatedly riding his bike over her fragile wetlands property. State and federal agencies impose fines from $5,000 up to $50,000 for similar conduct. Assume the compensatory damages award is supported by the evidence, will the appeals court uphold the punitive damages award?
- Likely yes.
- Likely no, because the U.S. Supreme Court’s “reprehensibility” factor is not met.
- Likely no, because the U.S. Supreme Court’s “ratio” factor is not met.
- Likely no, because the U.S. Supreme Court’s “comparable sanctions” factor is not met.
- Likely yes.
Which of the following types of damages must a jury reduce to present value?
- Pain and suffering.
- Medical expenses incurred up to the trial date.
- Wages lost because the tort caused a temporary injury that is cured by the trial date.
- Wages lost because the tort caused a permanent disability.
- Wages lost because the tort caused a permanent disability.
Kate camped on John’s property, built a fire and left hastily in the morning, without extinguishing her campfire. John’s ski cabin burned down, with all his ski clothes in it. The jury has found Kate to have been negligent and will award damages for the cabin and the destroyed clothing. John has introduced evidence that the replacement value new of his brand name ski clothes is $10,000 and that they were approximately two years old. Kate has introduced evidence that the cost a used clothing store would have to pay to acquire clothes of the same type and condition as John’s is $400, and that the cost John would have to pay to replace ski clothes like his own (brand name but two years old) is $1,000.
What is the likely amount of damages that a jury will award?
- $ 400 (the cost a used clothing store would have to pay to acquire similar ski clothes in the same condition as they were when they were destroyed).
- $1,000 (the cost John would have to pay to replace similar ski clothes in the same condition as they were when they were destroyed).
- $10,000 (the cost to replace similar ski clothes new).
- Some amount between $1,000 and $10,000, which the jury determines to represent the actual value to John of the ski clothes at the time they were destroyed.
- Some amount between $1,000 and $10,000, which the jury determines to represent the actual value to John of the ski clothes at the time they were destroyed.
Defendant negligently destroyed a car that belonged to Plaintiff. The damaged car has no salvage value. Plaintiff purchased the car for $13,000 eight years ago. At the time that it was destroyed, the car’s market value had depreciated to $5,000. A new car which is similar will cost $25,000 today. What is the damages recovery that Plaintiff is most likely to receive?
- The original cost of the damaged car ($13,000).
- The depreciated value of the old car at the time of its destruction ($5,000).
- The cost of a new car ($25,000) less the depreciated value of the old machine at the time of its destruction ($5,000), for a recovery of $20,000.
- The cost of a new car ($25,000).
- The depreciated value of the old car at the time of its destruction ($5,000).
A man drives his own car for a rideshare company and is paid an average of $200 per day. A motorist hit the car while it was parked, causing damages that took two weeks to repair. In addition to the cost of repair, what damages is the man most likely to obtain from the motorist for the time he did not have his car because it was being repaired?
- The cost of renting a similar car.
- The cost of renting a similar car and $200 per day in lost pay.
- Nothing because it is pure economic loss.
- Two weeks of interest calculated by the average treasury bond rate multiplied by the value of his car.
- The cost of renting a similar car.
A number of federal circuits, including the Ninth Circuit, use both the traditional and sliding scale tests to determine whether to issue a short-term injunction. Which party would most benefit from a court’s use of the sliding scale test at a temporary restraining order hearing?
- A party with a slam-dunk case on the merits.
- A party whose deed is ambiguous as to the boundary line of her property, but whose home located on the disputed part of the property will be destroyed by a construction crew before the end of the next week absent a TRO.
- A party that will have to spend a great deal of money to replace a shipment of automobile parts absent a TRO.
- A party who can show that the defendant’s conduct may cause great personal injury, but who cannot show that the great injury is likely to occur, absent the TRO.
- A party whose deed is ambiguous as to the boundary line of her property, but whose home located on the disputed part of the property will be destroyed by a construction crew before the end of the next week absent a TRO.
Veiga and Rorf make money by selling appliances at highly inflated prices to senior citizens. Veiga makes the initial calls, and once the senior citizens “takes the bait,” Rorf seals the deal and collects the payment. Veiga has now discovered that Rorf has been delivering only 30% of the proceeds, and pocketing 70% for himself in violation of the 50/50 split set out in their partnership agreement. Veiga has filed suit against Rorf, seeking a preliminary injunction to prohibit Rorf from breaching the terms of the partnership agreement. If the court denies the preliminary injunction, what is the most likely reason?
- Veiga has not come into court with clean hands.
- Veiga is unable to show a substantial likelihood of success on the merits.
- Veiga is estopped from claiming a violation of the partnership agreement because he chose to go into business with Rorf.
- Because Veiga works closely with Rorf, he should have known about the violation and is barred from obtaining a preliminary injunction because he should have filed suit sooner.
- Veiga has not come into court with clean hands.
Zac gets a preliminary injunction, which Walter must obey. Walter introduces credible evidence that he will suffer $20,000 per month in damages because of the injunction. The court sets the permanent injunction hearing for six months later, and sets the bond at $100,000. At the permanent injunction hearing, Walter prevails and the court dismisses Zac’s claim. When Walter looks back through his records, he realizes that he only incurred $60,000 in damages due to the injunction. How much can Walter recover from the bond?
- Nothing, because the amount of bond exceeds his losses.
- $60,000, so long as he can produce evidence proving this amount of loss at a bond hearing.
- $100,000, so long as he can prove that he suffered actual losses due to the injunction.
- $100,000, without a hearing because the bond amount determines the amount of recovery.
- $60,000, so long as he can produce evidence proving this amount of loss at a bond hearing.
In which situation is a federal court most likely to find a TRO appealable?
- It has lasted for more than a month without the restrained party’s consent.
- The plaintiff cannot show a substantial likelihood of succeeding on the merits of the case.
- The TRO imposes great hardship on the defendant when the hardship the plaintiff would suffer absent the TRO is very little.
- The public interest weighs in favor of lifting the TRO.
- It has lasted for more than a month without the restrained party’s consent.
Which of the following is true of a stay pending appeal?
- A party may fail to obtain a preliminary injunction, because it cannot show sufficient irreparable injury, but nevertheless be able to show sufficient irreparable injury to cause a court to grant an injunction pending appeal.
- Only a district court may grant a stay pending appeal.
- Only an appellate court may grant a stay pending appeal.
- The moving party need not show irreparable injury to obtain a stay pending appeal.
- A party may fail to obtain a preliminary injunction, because it cannot show sufficient irreparable injury, but nevertheless be able to show sufficient irreparable injury to cause a court to grant an injunction pending appeal.
Yada just ran into Cole in the elevator of the building in which they both work. Cole represents a chain of fast food restaurants that Yada’s clients, a group of animal rights advocates, have been boycotting for the last three months because of how the chicken used in its meals are treated. Recently, the consumer group has been posting videos on social media allegedly showing cruel chicken treatment practices by the fast food chain’s suppliers. In the elevator, Cole said, “We are going to file for a preliminary injunction to stop your clients’ lies!” Yada has weekend plans and needs to know how fast she will need to respond to the filing. What kind of notice is required before a preliminary injunction hearing?
- No notice.
- Informal notice.
- Formal statutory notice.
- Published notice to anyone who might be bound.
- Formal statutory notice.
Harry has successfully obtained a temporary restraining order from a federal district court that prohibits Elsa from beginning construction on the parking lot for her shopping mall until she completes the environmental impact form required by federal statute. Elsa estimates that she will lost $1,000 per day that she is unable to follow through with her construction plans. Which of the following is true of Elsa’s options?
- She may appeal it immediately so long as she can prove that $1,000 is a great hardship.
- She may disobey it if it was issued ex parte.
- She may not move to amend the terms of the TRO because it lasts for such a short time.
- Unless she consents, the TRO may last for a maximum of 28 days.
- She may appeal it immediately so long as she can prove that $1,000 is a great hardship.
Assume Akhil gets a preliminary injunction, which Brynn must obey. Brynn introduces credible evidence that he will suffer $10,000 per month in damages because of the injunction. The court sets the permanent injunction hearing for six months later, and sets the bond at $30,000. The court of appeals affirms the preliminary injunction. After three months, on Brynn’s motion, the trial court increases the bond amount to $45,000. Brynn wins at trial. He introduces evidence showing that he in fact incurred the $60,000 in damages, just as he had anticipated. In jurisdictions that follow the majority rule, how much can he recover from the bond?
- None
- $30,000
- $45,000
- $60,000
- $45,000
KiKi owns vacation property and plans to build her dream home on it some day. She knows her neighbor Meena by sight and a hand wave. Two months ago, on one of her infrequent visits, KiKi noticed Meena eyeing an area along of the boundary of the two properties. A man with a clipboard was at her side. The truck parked in the dirt drive said Mark’s Construction. KiKi made a mental note to ask Meena about her plans, but left the property and forgot. One month ago, Kiki drove by the property and noticed a cement truck in Meena’s driveway. A day ago, Kiki arrived at her property and discovered construction ongoing to build a tennis court that will extend 8 feet onto her property. KiKi wants to halt the building immediately. Which of the following is true of her remedies?
- Because the property is for vacation only, Kiki will not be able to show a sufficiently important interest to obtain a temporary restraining order.
- If Kiki does not file an application for a temporary restraining order immediately, she may lose the ability to obtain a remedy to remove the tennis court from her property.
- Kiki has lost the ability to obtain a remedy that will remove the tennis court from her property because she did not seek one immediately after seeking the construction truck.
- Because of the notice requirement, Kiki can obtain a preliminary injunction but not a temporary restraining order to stop the building.
- If Kiki does not file an application for a temporary restraining order immediately, she may lose the ability to obtain a remedy to remove the tennis court from her property.
Pickleball Pros just filed a complaint in a California court seeking $50,000, which represents the extra cost it had to pay for pickleballs after its usual supplier breached and did not deliver the summer shipment of pickleballs. Assume Pickleball Pros’ gets a verdict for that amount at trial, which of the following is most likely true of any further adjustments to the damages award?
- The damages award must be reduced to present value.
- The damages award should be supplemented with an award of prejudgment interest and post-judgment interest.
- The damages award should be supplemented with an award of post-judgment interest only because the amount of damages was not sufficiently certain, prior to judgment.
- The damages award should not be supplemented
- The damages award should be supplemented with an award of prejudgment interest and post-judgment interest.
The Waves soccer team operated in the City of Seafront for forty years. Ten years ago Seafront built Waves Stadium, where the soccer team plays all its home games. The Waves are a noticeable source of civic pride among Seafront residents, and draw tourists from around the state. Income from season tickets and concession licensing brings in significant revenue to Seafront, which does not have a large business tax base. Two years ago, Seafront finalized a ten-year lease with the Waves to play in the stadium. Recently, Marcos, the Waves’ owner, announced that the team would be moving to Northshore, a slightly larger city in the same state. Seafront’s city council, anticipating adverse reputational and economic effects from the departure, has filed a breach of contract action against the Waves, seeking short-term injunctions to prevent the Waves from moving and specific performance of the lease agreement. Is a court likely to grant specific performance of the lease to Seafront?
- Yes, because Seafront can show a breach of contract, which entitles it to choose specific performance as the remedy.
- Yes, because Seafront has no adequate legal remedy.
- No, because the burden of supervision on the court will be too great.
- No, because there is no mutuality of remedy between Seafront and the team.
- Yes, because Seafront has no adequate legal remedy.
A new stadium is built in Fanville as home to the new Fanville Lions major league football team. It has met all zoning requirements. However, attendance is greater than anticipated. As a result, the noise, garbage and congestion are excessive and burdensome to the local residences. The residents sue on a nuisance theory. Assuming they prevail on liability, what is the most likely appropriate remedy?
- Temporary damages.
- Permanent damages.
- Permanent injunction requiring that the football stadium operators take measures to reduce the noise, garbage and congestion.
- Permanent injunction ordering the football stadium to cease operations.
- Permanent injunction requiring that the football stadium operators take measures to reduce the noise, garbage and congestion.
Andy and Keith are neighbors. Keith’s dog continuously barks throughout the night. The dog’s barking prevents Andy and his family from sleeping at night. Andy has talked with Keith on several occasions about the disturbance. Keith did not take any measures to prevent the dog from barking throughout the night. Andy has sued Keith to enjoin the disturbance. The likely result is that an injunction will be:
- Denied, because there is an adequate remedy at law.
- Denied, because of the difficulty of supervision.
- Granted, in the form of a prohibitory injunction.
- Granted, in the form of a mandatory injunction.
- Granted, in the form of a prohibitory injunction.
Which of the following most likely has a valid unclean hands defense?
- Defendant toothpaste company, in an action against it seeking an injunction against deceptive advertising, shows that Plaintiff toothpaste company is running Google ads that falsely claim the paste kills the flu virus.
- Defendant abortion protester in an action seeking an injunction against his continuing acts of trespass, shows that Plaintiff doctor threw him to the ground when he arrived home to find Defendant and his fellow protesters occupying his lawn.
- Defendant delivery company, in an action seeking specific performance of a contract requiring it to meet timeliness and geograpical scope requirements, shows that Plaintiff newspaper company deliberately inflates its circulation numbers to appeal to advertisers.
- Defendant employer shows that Plaintiff employee, seeking reinstatement under a federal statute, was convicted of income tax evasion.
- Defendant toothpaste company, in an action against it seeking an injunction against deceptive advertising, shows that Plaintiff toothpaste company is running Google ads that falsely claim the paste kills the flu virus.
The pig farm next door to Plaintiff’s house smells so bad that the court finds it to be a nuisance. Which of the following is true of the remedies Plaintiff is likely to receive?
- Plaintiff may receive either an injunction or damages, but not both.
- Plaintiff may not receive an injunction because she has an adequate legal remedy.
- Plaintiff may not receive damages because she has an inadequate legal remedy.
- Plaintiff may receive an injunction that does not require the pig farm to cease operating.
- Plaintiff may receive an injunction that does not require the pig farm to cease operating.
Stuart owns a recording studio. Tyzek lives next door. During the first year of operation, Tyzek called the police ten times to stop late-night recording sessions because the music was disturbing his sleep in violation of a local noise ordinance. Three years ago, Tyzek obtained a court judgment that the loud operation of the studio during nighttime hours was a nuisance. The court granted a permanent injunction prohibiting Stuart from recording between the hours of 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. Stuart, finding that he lost half his business because of the restriction, has invested in state-of-the-art soundproofing, which has almost completely eliminated the noise emanating from the studio. Tyzek, however, has said that he will move to hold Stuart in contempt if he records in violation of the injunction, regardless of the fact that the noise will not disturb him. The city council recently voted to lift the threshold noise level of its local ordinance. Which of the following is true of Stuart’s options?
- His only option is to bargain with Tyzek until they reach a price Tyzek will accept to lift the injunction.
- He will likely convince the court to modify or terminate the injunction based on the change in the city ordinance.
- He will likely convince the court to modify or terminate the injunction based on the change in noise level outside the house due to the soundproofing.
- He will likely convince the court to modify or terminate the injunction so long as he agrees to post a bond to cover the damages Tyzek will suffer because of any noise from the nighttime operation of the studio.
- He will likely convince the court to modify or terminate the injunction based on the change in noise level outside the house due to the soundproofing.