Chapter 1Law and Legal Reasoning/Sources of American LawI. Sources of American Lawa. Primary vs Secondary Sources of Lawi. Primary1. US Constitution & State Constitutions2. Statutory law3. Regulations4. Case Law/Common Lawii. Secondary1. Legal Encyclopedias2. Legal Treatises3. Law Review articles4. Compilations (Restatements of the Law)b. Constitutional Law: federal government and states have separate written constitutions that set forth the general organization, powers and limits of their respective governmentsi. United States Constitution is the Supreme Law of the Landii. 10th Amendment: all powers not granted to the federal government are reserved for the statesiii. State Constitutions are supreme within the state’s borders unless it conflicts with the US Constitution or other federal lawc. Statutory Law: laws enacted by legislative bodies at any level of governmenti. Federal and state codesii. Local ordinancesiii. Federal laws apply to all 50 states and prevails when in conflict with state lawiv. State laws apply only to that state and often vary from state to state1. Uniform Laws: state may adopt or reject2. Uniform Commercial Code: adopted in all 50 states, DC & Virgin Islandsd. Administrative Law: rules, orders and decisions of administrative agenciesi. Administrative Agency: a federal, state or local government agency established to perform a specific functionii. Federal Agencies1. Executive agencies: based on cabinet departments, includesFDA, HHS, etc. 2. Independent Regulatory agencies: includes SEC, FCC, etc.iii. State and Local Agencies: commonly parallel federal agenciese. Case Law and Common Law Doctrines: the rules of law announced in court decisionsII. The Common Law Traditiona. Early English Courts: US Legal system based on early English systemi. Courts of Law & Remedies at Law: a court of law is limited to awarding payments of money or property as compensationii. Courts of Equity and Remedies at Equity: Equity is a branch of unwritten law, which was founded in justice and fair dealing, and seeks to supply a fairer and more adequate remedy than a remedy at law; can order specific performance, an injunction or rescission b. Legal and Equitable Remedies Today: a plaintiff may request both legal and equitable remedies in the same action and trial court judges may grant either or both forms of reliefc. The Doctrine of Stare Decisis i. Case Precedents and Case Reporters: the common law system involves the application, in current cases, of principles applied in earlier cases with similar factsii. Stare Decisis and the Common Law Tradition: the use of precedentforms the basis for the doctrine of stare decisisiii. The Importance of Precedents in Judicial Decision Making: A court’s application of a specific principle to a certain set of facts is binding on that court and lower courts, which must then apply it in future casesiv. Stare Decisis and Legal Stability: this doctrine permits a predictable, quick and fair resolution of cases, which makesthe application of law more stablev. Departures from Precedent: a judge may decide that a precedent is incorrect, however, if there may have been changes in technology, business practices or society’s attitudesvi. When There is No Precedent: judges may examine prior case law, the principles and policies behind the decisions and their historical settingsd. Stare Decisis and Legal Reasoningi. Basic Steps in Legal Reasoning: Issue-Rule-Apply-Concludeii. Forms of Legal Reasoning: 1. Deductive reasoning2. Linear reasoning3. Reason by analogye. THERE IS NO ONE RIGHT ANSWERi. The law is grey, not black and whiteii. Answer depends on what judge and/or jury is hearing the casef. The Common Law Todayi. Courts Interpret Statutes: common law governs all areas NOT covered by statutory or administrative law, as well as interpretations of the application of statutes and rulesii. Restatements of the Law Clarify and Illustrate the Common Law: important secondary sources on which judges often relyIII. Schools of Jurisprudential Thoughta. The Natural Law School: government and the legal system should reflect universal moral and ethical principles that are inherent in the nature of human lifeb. The Positivist School: there is no higher law than a nation’s positive law (the law created by a particular society at a particular point in time)c. The Historical School: emphasizes legal principles that were applied in thepastd. Legal Realism: judges are influenced by their unique individual beliefs and attitudes, that the application of precedent should be tempered by eachcase’s specific circumstances, and that extra-legal sources should be considered in making decisionsIV. Classifications of Lawa. Substantive vs. Procedural Lawi. Substantive: defines, describes, regulates, and creates rights and dutiesii. Procedural: rules for enforcing rightsb. Civil vs. Criminal Lawi. Civil: regulates relationships between persons and their governments and the relief available when those rights are violated1. Plaintiff & Defendant2. Liability3. Money or equitable remedyii. Criminal: regulates relationships between individuals and society and prescribes punishment for proscribed acts1. Government (federal, state or local) and Defendant2. Guilt or Innocence3. LibertyV. How to Find Primary Sources of Lawa. The United States Codeb. State Codesc. Administrative Rulesd. State and Federal Court decisionsVI. Reading and Understanding Case Lawa. Case Titles and Terminologyi. Case title lists parties to lawsuit1. Plaintiff/petitioner: party who initiates the proceedings2. Defendant/respondent: the one who is accused of wronging the plaintiff in some way3. Appellant: the party (who may have been the plaintiff or defendant originally) appealing a case to a higher court4. Appellee: party (who may have been the plaintiff or defendant originally) against whom an appeal is takenii. ‘v.’ is short for ‘versus’b. Decisions and Opinions: courts explain their rulings in written decisions oropinionsi. Unanimous: when all judges/justices assigned to a case (if there is more than one) agree on a decision and the reasoning behind the decisionii. Majority: when there is not a unanimous decisioniii. Concurring: a judge who agrees with the result but for different reasons than the majorityiv. Dissenting: a judge or judges who disagree with both the result andreasoning of the