1. Serena walked into Ava's used bookstore in Staten Island, NY. While browsing in the fiction section, Serena found an original first edition copy of the classic novel Catch 22 by Joseph Heller priced at $25. She opened the book and noticed that it had been signed on the inside cover by Heller himself. Knowing that signed books are often very valuable collector's items, Serena decided to buy the book. Ava had intended to keep the book in her private collection and not offer it for sale, but because of a clerk's error, the book was placed in the fiction section at the price of $25. Serena then bought the book for $25. A week later, Serena put the book up for auction on Ebay with a minimum asking price of $300. After seeing the book for sale on Ebay, Ava sued Serena, attempting to rescind the contract on the grounds of mistake. Who wins? Explain.

2.

In July 2022, Barry decided to sell his house, located at 83 Sumac Street, Jamestown, New York. He placed an advertisement in the local newspaper inviting potential buyers to come to an "open house" event on July 1 during which they could visit the house and speak directly with Barry. Kai-Lai was looking to buy a house in Jamestown and attended the event. He took a walk around the house, visiting every room. Kai-Lai then had a short talk with Barry. During the visit on July 1, Barry made the following 3 comments to Kai-Lai:

a. "This is a lovely and quiet neighborhood."

b. "I've lived here since 1998 and have loved every minute of it."

c. "A great thing about the house is that it is zoned for the Elana Kagan Elementary School, the top-rated elementary school in Jamestown."

Kai-Lai replied to Barry "I think that my wife and kids and I will like living here." They exchanged no other words on the 3 subjects mentioned by Barry. Based on his visit of July 1, Kai-Lai decided to buy the house. After paying for the house, Kai-Lai moved in on August 1. He later discovered that: 1. The house was located less than 200 yards from a fire station and that fire trucks frequently drove past it in the middle of the night with their sirens blasting; 2. In fact, Barry moved into the house in 1996; and 3. The house was not zoned for the Elana Kagan Elementary School but rather for a school that ranked second-to-last in Jamestown. The information about the school was easily accessible public information at the website of the Jamestown Unified School District.

Kai-Lai sues Barry to rescind the contract for the sale of the house. Judgment for whom? Explain, discussing all 3 comments (labeled a,b and c) made by Barry on July 1.

3.

On March 1, 2022, Jamie, a seller of office supplies, telephoned Martina, owner of a office supply store. Jamie said to Martina, "I offer to sell you 10 boxes of printer paper for $37 per box. I guarantee that I will keep this offer open until September 22nd, of this year." On July 20th, Jamie decided to raise the price of the paper and called Martina on the phone and said, "Hi Martina: I know I promised to keep the offer for paper open to you at $37 per box, but I have to revoke it now." On September 5th, Martina called Jamie and said that she was accepting Jamie's March 1 offer and expected delivery of the paper at $37 per box. Jamie refuses to deliver.

a. Martina sues Jamie for breach of contract. Judgment for whom?

b. Instead of the original facts, assume that Jamie made the offer to Martina in a signed writing. Judgment for whom?

c. Instead of the original facts assume both that Jamie made the offer to Martina in a signed writing and that neither Jamie nor Martina were professionally involved in the office supply business. Judgment for whom?

4.

Shankly, a painter, woke up in the morning and started to load his van with paint, paint thinner (which is extremely poisonous), and other equipment for his work that day. While he was finishing loading the van, Shankly's cell phone rang and he answered the call and continued closing the doors to the van. Distracted by the phone call, Shankly carelessly failed to close the back doors completely. While he was driving to his first destination, Shankly drove up a steep hill and, as a result of his carelessness, the back doors of the van flew wide open. An empty metal bucket and a can of paint thinner fell out of the back of the van and on to the road. The bucket bounced on the road and up again and crashed into the windshield of a car driven by Yetta who was driving safely and legally behind Shankly's van. The bucket completely smashed the windshield and gave Yetta a terrible fright. While a few pieces of broken glass landed on Yetta, she was not struck by the bucket and was uninjured. Most of the paint thinner spilled onto the street, but approximately 25% of it remained in the can as the can came to a rest on the sidewalk thirty feet from where the van's doors had opened. A few minutes later, Giselle walked by with her dog Bailey. Attracted by the smell of the paint thinner, Bailey stuck out his tongue and took several large licks of the paint thinner. Bailey suffered a severe reaction to the paint thinner and had to be rushed to an animal emergency room for treatment.

a. May Yetta recover from Shankly for the damage to her Subaru's windshield? Explain.

b. Did Shankly commit assault or battery (or both) against Yetta? Explain.

c. May Giselle recover from Shankly for Bailey's injuries? Explain.

5.

Seymour owns a business selling beef wholesale. Linda owns a small neighborhood butcher's shop. Seymour sends a fax to Linda that reads, "Hi Linda: I offer to sell you 20 pounds of grade A, sirloin steak cut into one-pound pieces, for $9 per pound, delivery tomorrow morning at 6am. (signed) Seymour." Linda faxes a reply to Seymour that reads, "Hi Seymour. I accept your offer, 6am is fine, please place each pound of beef in a separate Styrofoam container with a block of dry ice to keep it cold. (signed) Linda." (hint: this question is about "Battle of the Forms")

a. If Seymour does not reply to Linda's fax, is there a contract? Explain.

b. If there is a contract, does it require Seymour to place each one pound of beef in a separate Styrofoam container with a block of dry ice to keep it cold? Explain.