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Law 11

Law 11. Introduction. Sources of American Law. Constitutions – federal plus every state; everyone in U.S. subject to federal constitution plus one state constitution at all times; creates government powers/structure and guarantees individual rights.

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Law 11

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  1. Law 11 Introduction

  2. Sources of American Law • Constitutions – federal plus every state; everyone in U.S. subject to federal constitution plus one state constitution at all times; creates government powers/structure and guarantees individual rights. • Statutes – federal, state and local; also called ordinances, regulations and codes. • Common or case law – decisions by judges, who interpret constitutions, statutes and/or prior cases (“precedent”) to make decision of current dispute; stare decisis ordinarily requires judges to follow past decisions, which creates predictability and stability in legal and business matters. • Administrative law – decisions and rules of federal, state and local administrative entities (e.g., IRS, DMV); important since many laws require a hearing by an administrative agency before being able to file a case in court (note that courts often give great deference to administrative agency’s decision).

  3. The American Court System • “Dual” court system in the United States – federal court system plus each state has its own court system. • Cases generally filed/commenced in trial courts – District Court in the federal court system; Superior Court in California. • Appeal by right from trial courts to intermediate appellate courts – Court of Appeals (federal – 13 circuits); Court of Appeal (California – 6 districts). • Appeal from intermediate appellate courts to supreme courts per discretion – United States Supreme Court and California Supreme Court. • Appeal from California Supreme Court to United States Supreme Court per only discretion and if case involves federal question.

  4. Chart re: the American Court System

  5. Boundaries of U.S. Courts of Appeal

  6. Case Precedents and Case Reporters • Precedents are judicial decisions that give rise to legal principles that can be applied in future cases based upon similar facts. • Precedents and other forms of law, such as statutes, constitutions, and regulations are referred to as binding authorities and must be followed. • Today, cases are published or ‘reported’ in books called reporters

  7. Categories of Law • Substantive and procedural – substantive law defines legal rights/limitations; procedural law provides the methods for seeking or defending legal rights/limitations. • Public and private – public law involves matters of public interest; private law pertains to the parties to a dispute only. • Civil and criminal – civil law relates to duties between individuals, businesses and/or government; criminal law relates to wrongs against society and is investigated, prosecuted and administered by government. • Law and equity – actions at law involve money; actions in equity involve non-monetary relief (e.g., injunction, specific performance); jury trial available in actions at law only.

  8. Stare Decisis and Legal Reasoning • Method used by judges to reach a decision. • Many courts and attorneys frame decisions and briefs using the IRAC format: Issue, Rule, Application (Analysis) and Conclusion. • What are the key facts and issues? • What rules or laws apply? • How do the rules of law apply to these facts?

  9. How to Read & Understand Case Law • Legal cases are identified by a “legal citation” (or a “cite”) as the example below: D.A.B.E., Inc. v. City of Toledo, 393 F.3d 692 (6th Cir. 2005). Title: First Party is Plaintiff, second party is Defendant. The parties are either italicized or underlined.

  10. How to Read & Understand Case Law • Legal cases are identified by a “legal citation” (or a “cite”) as the example below: D.A.B.E., Inc. v. City of Toledo,393 F.3d 692 (6th Cir. 2005). Citation: Case is found in Federal Supplement 3rd, Volume 393, page 692.

  11. How to Read & Understand Case Law • Legal cases are identified by a “legal citation” (or a “cite”) as the example below: D.A.B.E., Inc. v. City of Toledo, 393 F.3d 692 (6th Cir. 2005). Case was decided by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, 2005.

  12. Stages of Litigation • Informal Negotiations. • Pleadings. • Service of Process. • Defendant’s Response. • Discovery. • Pre-Trial. • Trial. • Post-Trial.

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