1.Following the murder of his wife, OJ Simpson was tried for murder of his wife and also was sued for her wrongful death. The results of those proceedings were that he was found not guilty of the criminal charges and was found liable for damages for wrongful death.

a.Explain how, under our legal system, that result could occur.

b.Under our legal system, would it have been possible for him to have been found guilty of the criminal charges and not liable for the damages?

2.In class, we discussed the fact that the New York Yankees have announced that they are going to make a move to keep their fans safe. After a one-year old girl was injured by a foul ball at Yankee Stadium, the team says it plans to expand protective netting at its home ballpark and at its spring training complex next year. The team announced that it plans to add more netting to better protect fans.

What effect, if any, will this decision by the Yankees have on other baseball teams and the baseball parks in which they play? Explain.

3.During class, on several occasions, you were told the two most important lessons to be learned in this course.What are they? Please discuss.

4.What are the rules of law that were discussed in class as the basis for the decision in Penzoil vs. Texaco? Why is this case important to our understanding of the law of contracts?

5.We discussed in class the result in the California case of Reed vs. King.

a.What was the rule of law that was involved in that case and the significance of the factual issues as they related to that rule of law?

b.If the case of Reed vs. King were tried today, would you expect the same result? Explain.

6.In April 2003, Larry Lewis submitted an offer to Joyce Pride which was an offer to purchase her house for $255,000.The first contract offered by Mr. Lewis required owner financing.This offer was rejected by Joyce Pride and Mr. Lewis then presented a second contract.This second contract specified that conventional bank financing would be used.Mr. Lewis signed the contract on April 9, 2003.Joyce Pride signed the real estate contract on April 11, 2003.The contract provided by Mr. Lewis had a closing date of May 15, 2003.Joyce Pride changed this date by hand to June 1, 2003 and initialed this change, but it was not initialed by Mr. Lewis.In May, Joyce Pride became aware of problems with the closing on the property and attempted to reach Mr. Lewis but he did not respond to phone calls or other communication.Mr. Lewis did not close on the purchase and in July 2003, Joyce Pride filed suit for breach of contract.

a.What is the result?

b.Would the result be different if this were a contract for the sale of tangible goods and merchandise, rather than real estate?

7.In class we discussed the case in which a 2 year old child was injured in an automobile accident when the car driven by his mother was struck in the side at an intersection. The child was properly strapped into a child restraint seat, identified as a Costco high back booster. As a result of the automobile accident, the child suffered severe brain and other bodily injuries. The parents brought a lawsuit against the manufacturer of the Costco high back booster for strict liability in tort.

a.Of the different theories upon which a strict liability and tort claim may be based, which would be the basis for use by these parents for the recovery?

b.What are the essential requirements that the parents must prove to establish strict liability and tort?

c.What guidance is given to the jury by the trial judge on how to make the determination as to whether the product was "unreasonably dangerous"?

8.a. Ralph and Mary had been looking for many months for a home that they could afford in a specific neighborhood.One Sunday afternoon they spotted a For Sale by Owner open house.They toured the house and quickly determined that it was exactly what they were looking for.

The Seller, a nice young man about 30 years of age said that he bought the house about 5 years ago and had recently got an unexpected job opportunity out-of-town and needed to sell the house quickly.His asking price was $250,000.00 and Ralph and Mary felt that was a very reasonable price for the house.The Seller had a purchase contract form and he and Ralph and Mary filled that out.He asked them to give him an earnest money deposit of $20,000.00.Although that seemed like a large amount, Ralph and Mary clearly wanted to purchase this house and therefore signed the contract that day and wrote a check to the Seller in the amount of $20,000.00.

The next day they applied for a loan in order to complete the purchase and approximately one week later stopped by the house to discuss the status of the closing with the Seller.The shades were drawn and the neighbor said that a moving van had been at the house several days earlier.

Ralph and Mary's check for $20,000.00 had been cashed at their bank and the Seller apparently had left town.Legal title to the house was in a name different than the Seller.What did Ralph and Mary do wrong?

b. Kevin and Julie had been looking for many months for a home that they could afford to buy in a specific neighborhood.One Sunday they saw a realtor sign for an Open House and toured the house in question.

They agreed that the asking price was reasonable and agreed with the real estate agent to submit an offer to buy the house.That offer was submitted in a form of a complete real estate contract setting out all of the terms for the purchase of that residence and described the property as:

"Real estate property and residence at 6407 Forsyth, Clayton, Missouri, legal description determined by title company to govern.

Subject to easements, conditions and restrictions of record, if any".

The Seller accepted their offer.What have Kevin and Julie done wrong in the preparation of this purchase contract?