1. Barb sues John for negligence. The jury decides that John is a jerk but he wasn't negligence so they award Barb $0 in compensatory damages and $1,000,000 in punitive damages. Will Barb be able to collect?
A. Yes, a court will never overrule a jury verdict.
B. Yes, punitive damages are designed to punish bad behavior like John's.
C. No, Barb cannot collect.
D. Yes, juries are allowed to award up to $5,000,000 before a judge reviews their decision.
2. John carelessly bumps into Sally, knocking her to the ground. John has committed the tort of negligence
A. only if Sally is injured
B. only if Sally is not injured
C. whether or not Sally is injured
D. under no circumstances
3. Martha owns a demolition company. If a passerby is injured during a demolition by Martha's crew, under the theory of negligence Martha must pay for the injury
A. only if the crew intended to injure the passerby
B. only if the crew knew the person was there
C. only if the injury was reasonably foreseeable
D. whether or not the crew was at fault
4. Al tells Barb that he will buy her textbooks from the previous semester for $75. Barb agrees. Al and Barb have
A. an unilateral contract
B. a bilateral contract
C. an implied-in-law contract
D. no contract
5. Usually, quasi contracts are imposed
A. on parties who do not know how to read and write
B. to avoid the unjust enrichment of one party at the expense of another
C. by a court when the amount of money at issue is less than $100
D. quasi contracts are never imposed
6. When ambiguities appear in a contract, they will be construed against
A. the party with the greater bargaining power
B. the promisor
C. the promisee
D. the party who drafted the contract
7. Keith offers to sell his business to Debbie for $125,000. Debbie replies, "Your price is too high. I will buy your business for $100,000." Debbie's response is
A. a counteroffer
B. a rejection of the original offer only
C. the creation of a new offer only
D. none of the above
8. Bo offers to sell a laser printer to Ike, but it is lost in a fire before Ike accepts. Bo
A. must obtain a similar printer for Ike, if he notifies Bo that he accepts the offer
B. must obtain a similar printer for Ike, if Ike offers to pay Bo before delivery
C. is not required to obtain a similar printer for Ike, because it could take an unreasonable period of time to obtain a replacement
D. is not required to obtain a similar printer for Ike, because the destruction of the original printer automatically terminates the offer
9. Agatha promises to pay Betty, her niece, $5,000 if she will complete her college education. Betty eventually completes her education. Agatha is
A. not required to pay because the promise induced conduct that ultimately benefited Betty
B. not required to pay because Betty had indicated that she was considering attending college
C. required to pay because Betty's completion of college entitles her to payment
D. required to pay because Betty studied hard and got good grades.
10. Ned Contractors, Inc. begins construction of a mall for Van Development Corporation and after six months demands an extra $100,000. Van agrees to pay. Imagine that Ned offered no reason for the extra $100,000, but said only that it would stop working if Van did not agree to pay. The agreement is
A. enforceable because the parties executed an accord and satisfaction
B. enforceable because of the unforeseen difficulties
C. unenforceable due to the preexisting duty rule
D. unenforceable because the contract is for an amount greater than $5,000
11. Susie sues ABC Corporation, DEF Corporation and GHI Corporation. She wins a judgment of $1,000,000. The jury finds that while the defendants were liable, Susie was also at fault and assigns her 70% of the liability and each defendant 10%. If Susie lived in state with "pure" comparative negligence she could recover:
A. $700,000
B. $300,000
C. $900,000
D. $0 she may not recover anything
12. Referring to Question 11, if Susie lived in a state with regular comparative negligence she could recover:
A. $700,000
B. $300,000
C. $900,000
D. $0 she may not recover anything
13. Kathy and Larry enter into an oral contract under which Larry agrees to work for Kathy's construction firm for eighteen months. Later Larry changes his mind and decides to work for someone else. Can Kathy sue for breach of contract?
A. No, because employment contracts are never enforceable
B. No, because the contract would be barred by the Statute of Frauds
C. Yes, because all employment contracts are enforceable
D. Yes, because the contract could be enforced under the Statute of Frauds
14. Eve contracts to repair a computer for National Distributors, Inc. Eve knows that without the computer, National will lose a sale. Eve does not perform as promised. National files a suit against Eve. As consequential damages, National can recover
A. the cost of a new computer
B. the difference between Eve's price and the actual cost of repair
C. the loss of profit from the lost sale
D. nothing
15. Tina and Melvin enter into a contract by which Melvin agrees to cut Tina's grass once a week for $30. Melvin dies two weeks later. His estate
A. must find another person to cut Tina's lawn for $30 once a week
B. is discharged from any further obligations under the contract
C. is discharged from any further obligations under the contract only if Tina knew it was unlikely that Melvin would live to complete the contract
D. must refund Tina any money she paid him while she was alive
16. Jay signs a contract to provide lawn-mowing services to Michael. Jay owes Bobby $500 so he assigns the money he is to receive from Michael to Bobby until Bobby is paid off. Can Jay assign the money
A. No, because it is a personal service
B. Yes if he receives Michael's consent
C. Yes because you do not need Michael's consent to assign the right to payment
D. No, because the contract is for under $5,000.
17. Kidtoys, Inc. sells a toy truck with a dangerous defect. Phil buys the truck for his son but discovers the defect before the child is injured. Phil files a suit against Kidtoys. Kidtoys could ask for dismissal of the suit on the basis that Phil does not have
A. jurisdiction
B. standing
C. sufficient minimum contacts
D. venue
18. Home Delivery Corporation and Interstate Transport, Inc., sign an agree¬ment that provides for the payment of "$1,000 by whichever party commits a material breach of the contract that creates damages difficult to esti¬mate but approximately $1,000." This is
A. a liquidated damages clause
B. a mitigation of damages clause
C. a nominal damages clause
D. a penalty clause
19. Sid files a suit against Tina. Before going to trial, the parties meet, with their attorneys to represent them, to try to resolve their dispute. A third party helps them to reach an agreement. This is
A. arbitration
B. litigation
C. mediation
D. negotiation
20. A contract between Lee and Mary may not be assigned if it
A. does not expressly permit assignment
B. involves a sale of goods
C. involves personal services
D. is oral
21. Alan writes Beth a private letter falsely accusing her of stealing office supplies from their employer, Consolidated Industries, Inc. This is
A. assault
B. libel
C. slander
D. misappropriation
22. Best Products Corporation and International Exports, Inc. enter into a contract for the sale of goods. To be enforceable, the contract must be in writing if the goods are valued at more than
A. $50
B. $500
C. $5,000
D. Any of the above
23. Frank sells Bob a car. Frank knows that Bob has a lot of kids and that one of the biggest features is Satellite radio because he can entertain his kids easily and always have music playing. Frank knows that there is a fee for Satellite radio but tells Bob that the car is fully equipped with that feature and never suggests that it isn't part of the car. Bob is beyond excited that he can finally have peace when he is driving and says great, so long as the car has satellite radio included we have a deal. A few days later Bob discovers it will cost him $40/month for satellite radio so he sues Frank for fraudulent misrepresentation. Can Bob win?
A. Yes, because Frank knowingly made a false statement about a material fact that Bob relied on to his damage
B. No, because Frank didn't know Bob would use the radio right away.
C. No, it was Bob's responsibility to call the radio company before he bought the car to find out how much it would cost
D. No, but he could sue him for misappropriation.
24. In a letter, Smith offers to sell Grant his computer but conditions the sale on Grant ac-cepting the offer by October 1. Smith may revoke the offer
A. before Grant mails a letter of acceptance
B. before receiving a letter from Grant accepting the offer
C. because it is in writing
D. none of the above
25. Harold believes his old baseball bat has little value, but Murray is con¬vinced it is a valu-able collector's item. Harold sells it to Murray for $100 before learning it is worth $1,000. The contract
A. may be rescinded because a mutual mistake was made
B. may serve as the basis for a court order to Murray to return the bat
C. may be rescinded because Murray used superior knowledge about the bat to take advantage of Harold
D. will not be canceled because the mistake relates to the value of the item
26. Greg's agrees to buy Hal's Sports Store on condition that he is approved by First State Bank for the financing. This approval is
A. a concurrent condition
B. a condition precedent
C. a condition subsequent
D. an illegal condition
27. Ron makes a contract with Sue that indirectly benefits Tim, although nei¬ther Ron nor Sue intended that result. Tim is
A. a delegate
B. an assignee
C. an incidental beneficiary
D. an intended beneficiary
28. National Data Corporation files a suit against Associated Services, Inc. to enforce a written contract between the parties. Parole evidence will be admitted to prove
A. a subsequent modification of the written contract
B. contemporaneous negotiations that vary the written contract
C. prior negotiations that vary the written contract
D. parole evidence cannot be used with contracts only in negligence cases
29. Sarah and Mike enter into a contract by which Sarah agrees to pay Mike $100 for a new watch. Mike's transfer of his right to receive payment for the new watch is
A. an assignment
B. a delegation
C. a third party beneficiary contract
D. quasi-duty
30. Pat, a world famous musician and composer, agrees to give ten piano lessons to Quinn in exchange for $1,000. Pat's attempt to delegate his contract to Ruth, an inexperienced pianist, will probably be
A. permitted because contracts may be freely delegated
B. permitted because the contract is concerned with music lessons
C. prohibited because contracts may not be freely delegated
D. prohibited because Pat and Ruth have very different skill levels
Short Answer Questions:
Please answer the following questions in a few sentences. You do NOT need to write multiple paragraphs. Feel free to type your answers or submit written answers on additional sheets of paper.
1. Describe an example, other than one from the book, of proximate cause and how it would be used in a negligence case.
2. Barb, a resident of Wisconsin sues Dennis a resident of Illinois for breach of contract and is seeking $250,000 in damages. Dennis thinks all Wisconsin people are stupid so he would prefer to try the case in Federal Court. Can he do so and, if so, how?
3. Why do courts create quasi-contracts?
4. What is the difference between a patent and a copyright?
Essay Questions:
Please answer the following questions fully. It does not need to be pages upon pages, but you must cover all the elements for each topic. Feel free to type or submit written answers on additional sheets of paper.
1. John owns a UWM Brew Pub. Business has been slow because a competitor opened up down the street and they have better food and drink specials. Instead of trying to compete, John wants out of the bar business. He is at a party with a number of friends and says "I hate the bar business, I might sell if I could get anything over $250,000 for my bar or something decent." Ryan hears it and says "I accept." The next morning Ryan calls John to ask when he can drop off his check for $250,000 and pick up the keys to the UWM Brew Pub. John tells Ryan he's not selling so Ryan sues. Who wins and why? What defenses does John have and what arguments would Ryan need to make to prevail?
2. Holly owns Holly's Health Studio a gym that offers many types of fitness classes. One class that is offered is group weightlifting. One day the 9am class consists of 20 people and is very crowded. Immediately after the 9am class leaves the 10am class comes in. Between the number of people in the 9am and the fact that it is 102 degrees outside the floor in the studio is full of water puddles of sweat. During the 10am class Billy slips on a puddle of sweat and falls into Susan who is his workout partner for that exercise. Billy twisted his ankle and Susan broke her arm when she tried to catch herself during the fall. Who can Billy sue and why? Who can Susan sue and why? What defenses exist for anyone you said could be sued?