BLAW 2013 1st EditionExam# 1 Study Guide Lectures: 1 - 10Lecture 1 (January 12th)Introduction to Law- Common Law system: English law, or judge-made lawo Stare decisis: rule that requires that the trial judges follow the rules of law that have been established by the higher courtso Case known as precedent if it has been appealed- Burden of proof in criminal case: “beyond a reasonable doubt”- Burden of proof in a civil case: a preponderance of the evidence- Sources of law: from the constitutiono Double jeopardy: criminal concept; mentioned in the 5th amendment. States that the government cannot prosecute you twice for the same crime Applies to the state… NOT sister states or federal governmento Judicial review: Marbury vs. Madison Establishes role of the courts in the federal system: to interpret the constitution, determine if the other branches of the government are acting in accordance of the constitution, and to interpret the lawLecture 2 (January 14th) Trial Court- First act of court: selection of a lawyero Contingent fee: contract with the lawyer to pay a percentage of what the lawyer can recover for you Must be seeking a monetary recovery in the case- Roleso Jury: resolve questions of facto Judge: resolve questions of law- Jurisdiction of the court is dependent on residencyo Can ALWAYS sue someone in the state in which they liveo Can also sue someone who resides in another state ONLY if the person has minimum contacts: Defendant has done something in the state that would make it fair to go to trial in that state Accident, employment, office in state, solicit business in the stateLecture 3(January 16th)Federal court- Federal cases: must have jurisdiction over the person and the subject matter- Three cases heard in federal court:o Federal cases: cases in which the USA is a party, bankruptcy, copyrights, or patentso Diversity of citizenship: plaintiffs reside in two different states, over $75,000 mustbe involved (concurrent jurisdiction case)o Federal question cases: involve an interpretation of federal law (concurrent jurisdiction case)- Order of the courts:o Trial court: district court system; the losing party can appealo Court of appeals (Appellate court): in Arkansas, the 8th circuit of appeals in St. Louiso Supreme courtLecture 4(January 21st)Civil Cases- Steps of a civil case:o File a complainto Service of process – VERY IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER Official notification to the defendant that they have been suedo Answer is filedo Discovery phase Deposition: opportunity to ask questions of witnesses in order to prepare for courto Trial Jury selection: preemptory challenges to eliminate people from jury- Cannot use challenges to purge jury on the basis of race or sex Jury hears each case Jury comes back with a verdict and a judgment is entered If the defendant does not have the money to give judgment, the government CANNOT put him/her in jail- Can, however seize their property and their work checko Judge rights: Summary judgment: before trial, the judge can end the process by granting a summary judgment after he reads the fileLecture 5(January 23rd)Alternatives to the Litigation System- Arbitration: bindingo No judge will require you to go through arbitration. o Decision is not precedent – each case is handled individually- Mediation: never bindingo Many judges require mediation before the case is set for trialo Decision is not precedentoLecture 6(January 26th)Constitution- Federalism: central government is created with three separate but equal branches:o Executive brancho Legislative brancho Judicial brancho Branches can check and balance the powers of other branches- Article 1: powers of the people- Congress has the right to regulate interstate commerceo Gibbons vs. Ogdeno WWII case (Wickland case): the government set a quota on the amount of wheat that could be grown during the war years A farmer says he is using his wheat and not selling it. Believes the government cannot regulate it. Court rules that is affects the national cost of the grain, thus affecting interstate commerce- Article 2: executive powers (president)o President has the power to nominate judges, and judges must be approved by congress. Once approved they may sit for lifeo Federal judges have a lifetime tenureLecture 7(January 28th)Freedoms- Article 3: full faith and credit clauseo Official acts of one state must be accepted by another- Bill of rights established freedoms that the government cannot take awayo A case involving rights must involve the government: federal, state, or local. This DOES NOT include private establishments- Speecho Commercial speech: advertisements; not much protectiono Noncommercial speech: political speech; much greater protection than advertisingo NO PROTECTION over obscenity Miller vs. California: recognizes the three aspects of the test to define obscenity- Would the average person find that the work appeals to the prurient interest? (is it sexually arousing?)- Does the work depict sexual conduct in a patently offensive way?- Does the work lack serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value?Lecture 8(January 30th)Important amendments- Fourth amendment: unreasonable searches and seizures – NEED:o Consento Search warranto Search incident to a valid arrest Pat-down/search within arms reach to be sure the person does not have access to a weapono Exclusionary rule- Fifth amendment: gives criminal defendant rights against self incriminationo Must be told 5th amendment rights against self incrimination when being arrested and taken into custody for questioningo If the person is not read their rights before being taken into custody, their words (and confessions) must be thrown out and cannot be used in court against the defendant- Fourteenth amendment: incorporation doctrineo Interpretation of the due process clause: no state can deprive anyone of their life, liberty, or property without due process of lawo Everyone is entitled to a fair trialLecture 9(February 2nd)Administrative Law- Administrative agencies are created by an enabling acto Can pass regulationso However, must give the public 30 days notice to comment before they can pass a regulationo An agency has the right to adjudicate the regulations through the court system If one wishes to appeal, they must appeal all the way up to a full commission before they can appeal outside of the administrative agencyo Public accountability: freedom of information