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The Law of Remedies

The Law of Remedies. In Hatahley , destruction of the horses was a legal wrong. Utah law tells us that this was a trespass on the horse owner’s property How do the owners right this wrong? The law of remedies is relevant here.

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The Law of Remedies

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  1. The Law of Remedies • In Hatahley, destruction of the horses was a legal wrong. • Utah law tells us that this was a trespass on the horse owner’s property • How do the owners right this wrong? The law of remedies is relevant here. • Remedies do not determine whether a law/right was violated. Rather, remedies are the means by which substantive rights are given their effect. • This class involves the law of remedies. • We will not focus on substantive law issues (i.e., was there a violation) but on the remedies available for that violation • Asking what remedies are available has both a legal AND a practical side

  2. Classification of Available Remedies • Compensatory Remedies - e.g. damages • Compensate for P’s loss • Substitutionary/Legal • Coercive Remedies – e.g., Injunctions • Force D to do or refrain from doing something • Specific/Equitable • Declaratory Remedies – e.g., declaratory judgments • Restitutionary Remedies – e.g., rescission, constructive trust • Force D to disgorge unjust gain • Both specific/subsitutionary & legal/equitable • Punitive Remedies - e.g. punitive damages • Legal • Ancillary Remedies - e.g. contempt, garnishment, execution • Aid in the enforcement of other remedies

  3. What is the is the fundamental purpose of compensatory damages according to Hatahley?

  4. What will the Hatahley district court have to do differently on remand? • What the DCT did: • Set value of destroyed horses - $395 (based on P’s personal testimony & trade value w/ other livestock among Navajo) • Loss of use of horses – valued livestock, then gave ½ total diminution of livestock herds from 1952-57, applied to all Ps • $3500 pain & suffering to each P • What it will have to do: • Ascertain the market/sale value of like horses with similar training • Measure loss of cattle by lost profits, which requires showing of proximate cause & proof with reasonable certainty • Calculate P&S for each individual P – no such thing as community suffering

  5. Why should courts go to all this trouble? • Why isnt a reasonably good faith approximation of damages enough under the rightful position rule? • For that matter why can’t a court intentionally award more than what plaintiff’s lost? • Example: Why can’t the Hatahley judge award $395 even if he knows the value of the plaintiffs’ horses is $300?

  6. Corollary to Rightful Position Rule • Assume the Hatahley Ps had a contract allowing them to graze cattle on federal land. If the round-up had occurred without notice, plaintiffs could have sued for breach of contract in addition to trespass. • Assume Ps did sue for breach of contract. If Ps were fully compensated for their losses after suing for breach of contract, could they later file a lawsuit seeking damages under a trespass theory?

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