Scheerer, a licensed real estate agent, and Fisher, a manager of commercial real estate, worked together on past real estate deals and knew each other from their business relationship. Scheerer gave Fisher a tip that some commercial real estate was on the market that Fisher might be interested in purchasing. Fisher made an offer to buy the properties and, with this offer, orally contracted for a 2 percent commission for Scheerer from the seller and another 2 percent commission from himself. Unfortunately, that deal fell apart. Shortly thereafter, however, Fisher formed another company that purchased real estate and bought the very same property. Scheerer was not paid a commission on the deal and sued, contending that he was an agent for Fisher and that an implied contract for his services had been breached. Fisher argued that no formal contract in writing regarding the commission or Scheerer’s agency relationship was ever created. Did the authority of the agent in this case need to be in writing to be legally binding? Does the fact that there was no separate, written agency contract between Fisher and Scheerer mean that an agency relationship did not exist
> How does the contract clause affect state regulation?
> What is the purpose of the contract clause?
> How can both Sue and Sam be correct when Sue claims the commerce clause increases government’s power and Sam claims the commerce clause reduces government’s power?
> The city of Toledo, Ohio, passed the Clean Indoor Air Ordinance, which, among other provisions, required smoking to be prohibited in bars and restaurants except in separate smoking lounges that met very specific criteria. The lounge could not constitute
> Greenwood, an OSHA inspector, was driving by a construction site and thought that perhaps the site was unsafe. He got out of his car and videotaped the site, causing the foreman to ask him to leave. Greenwood also took measurements at the site and ultima
> List the three categories of agencies.
> Nicastro, the plaintiff, was using a metal-shearing machine in New Jersey when he hurt his hand. The machine was produced by J. McIntyre Machinery, Ltd., which manufactured the machine in England, where the company is based. However, Nicastro brought the
> The respondent, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, was created as part of a series of accounting reforms in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The board is composed of five members appointed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It wa
> What are the three main powers given to agencies?
> What are the limits on agency power?
> Titan Distribution, Inc., had subcontracted with a company that provided employees, but Titan later decided to hire its own employees and end the subcontracting contract. Robert Chalfant worked for the subcontracted company, and when Titan made this chan
> Six conservation organizations filed a petition in Thurston County Superior Court, asking that court to hold, pursuant to a provision in the Administrative Procedures Act (APA), that the Washington Forest Practices Board, the Washington Department of Eco
> What is the need for a special area of law for administrative agencies? Why would not the law as it applies to businesses apply just as well to administrative agencies?
> Tyco International, a manufacturing company, sued its former CEO, Dennis Kozlowski, in regard to his receipt of unauthorized bonuses from the company profits. Among his other wrongdoings, Kozlowski awarded unauthorized special bonuses to himself and more
> Appendix 1A provides guidance for becoming a better critical thinker. A recent Forbes poll of business leaders found that the most important skill business leaders are seeking in their employees is critical thinking. As you study the appendix, why do yo
> What is enabling legislation?
> Presidential elections are partially about who will be able to select Supreme Court judges. As you look at the various alternative ways to interpret and apply the law, which of those methods of interpretation would you hope is held by your favorite candi
> The Robinsons, residents of New York, bought a new Audi car from Seaway Volkswagen Corp., a retailer that was incorporated in New York and had its principal place of business there. World-Wide Volkswagen, a company incorporated in New York and doing busi
> How do business ethics and business law interact with each other?
> What is the relationship between business behavior that is legal and business decisions that are ethical?
> What is the difference between private law and public law?
> Hewlett-Packard, a U.S.-based company, is famous for its reliable laptop computers and printers. Wilson purchased an HP Pavilion Notebook computer in the summer of 2004 for approximately $1,500. In the fall of 2006, over two years after its purchase and
> Until 2002, the City of Bethlehem contractually retained the private law firm of Portnoff Law Associates, Ltd. (PLA) to collect payment for overdue water and sewer obligations. The city notified PLA of delinquent water and sewer assessments, and PLA then
> Anthony Romeo was an openly gay student at Seton Hall, a Catholic university. He claimed that he elected to attend Seton Hall in part because of its published antidiscrimination policy. In 2003, he applied to the Seton Hall University Department of Stude
> Occupational exposure to lead entails health risks, including the risk of harm to any fetus carried by a woman subjected to such exposure. Eight employees of an employer, in whose battery manufacturing process lead was a primary ingredient, became pregna
> Cynthia Anderson worked for the city of Columbus, Georgia, answering telephone calls from citizens. Anderson knew that calls from citizens were recorded, but she was unaware that due to a glitch, the telephone system continued to record her statements th
> Exxon maintained a corporate policy that prohibited its pilots from flying corporate aircraft after they reached the age of 60 and forced such pilots to retire involuntarily at age 60. This rule mirrored a rule the Federal Aviation Administration applied
> Cheryl Hall maintains that she was fired by Nalco Company for taking time off from work to undergo in vitro fertilization after being diagnosed with infertility. She filed suit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended by the Pregnancy
> The citizens of each state elect state court judges. The president, on the other hand, appoints federal court judges for lifetime positions. Why might this difference lead to different rulings on similar cases? Which method—election or appointment—do you
> Vania Santiero (plaintiff) was hired as a server at a Denny’s Restaurant on August 29, 2009, and she was employed there until she voluntarily left her position on December 9, 2009. Defendant Den-Forest LLP (Den-Forest) owns the store, and Assad A. Shorro
> Investors brought a class action lawsuit against managers of a corporation, claiming that the managers made misleading statements that caused them to overpay for the corporation’s stocks. An expert concluded that the fraud-on-the-market doctrine was appl
> From October 2003 to February 2004, James Siracusano purchased thousands of Matrixx Initiatives, Inc., shares. After purchasing the shares, Siracusano argued that the company had violated the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 when it sold shares during
> 28 USC § 1658 stipulates that claims of “fraud, deceit, manipulation or contrivance” under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 may be made “[two] years after the discovery of the facts constituting the violation,” or “[five] years after such violation,”
> Plaintiff Simmonds alleged that the defendant investment banks violated Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act by engaging in short-swing transactions with 54 defendant issuing companies. Simmonds asserted that the companies “engaged in improper re
> Why are certain securities transactions exempt from the registration process?
> Explain the process of registering securities
> The Ray Griffith Company, Inc. (RGC) began in the 1950s in Columbia, Mississippi, when Ray Griffith purchased the rights to a patent to manufacture a pecan picker. In 1992, RGC was devised to Ray’s two sons, Tom and Harry Griffith. Tom was given direct o
> Peter Smejkal was a corporate officer and director of J.A. Morrissey, Inc. (JAM), a construction company. While employed at JAM, Smejkal had his own excavation business and secretly performed excavation work on JAM projects on his own behalf. On one occa
> Compare and contrast common stock and preferred stock.
> Explain the three threshold requirements a plaintiff must meet before he or she can file a lawsuit.
> Harvey Pierce was a work-release inmate from the local county jail who worked at an Arby’s franchise restaurant owned by Dennis Rasmussen, Inc. (DRI). One day in June 1999, Pierce walked off the job without permission and crossed the street to wait for h
> Margaret Miller operated an H&R Block tax- preparation franchise for 15 years. She hired William Hehlen as an income tax return preparer for five years, from 1997 to 2001. Each year, Miller and Hehlen signed an employment agreement drawn up by H&R Block.
> Chic Miller operated a General Motors (GM) franchise car dealership. His written franchise agreement with GM stipulated that Miller had to maintain a floor-plan financing agreement with a lender to enable him to buy new cars from GM. Initially, Miller ma
> 1-800-Got Junk? is a junk removal franchise business headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. In late 2003, Got Junk entered a franchise agreement with Millenium Asset Recovery, Inc. The agreement stated that the franchisee, Millennium, woul
> Suppose you were asked to review and assess a franchise agreement. What responsibilities would you expect to be included in that agreement?
> Explain why a cooperative could not claim to be a syndicate.
> What is the distinction between a general partnership and a limited partnership?
> Nu-Look Design, Inc., operated as a residential home improvement company. During calendar years 1996, 1997, and 1998, Ronald A. Stark not only was Nu-Look’s sole shareholder and president but also managed the company. He solicited business, performed nec
> In 2000, Loretta Henry was pregnant and experiencing pain in her abdomen. After visiting a clinic, she was referred to Flagstaff Medical Hospital. Once there, she was examined and treated by Dr. Kraig Knoll, a physician with a physician’s group providing
> Identify and define the alternative tools of discovery.
> Explain how the doctrine of respondeat superior affects agency relationships.
> What are the different types of authority an agent might have, and why is it important to identify the type of an agent’s authority?
> Egebjerg filed a voluntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition in 2006. He had been employed for 27 years, earned a gross income of $6,115.56 per month, and had unsecured consumer debt of around $31,000. About two years earlier, he took a loan from his 401(k),
> Andres Soza and his spouse transferred $30,000 into an annuity fund on October 13, 2005. The Sozas filed a Chapter 7 petition for bankruptcy the following day. The Sozas claimed the annuity was exempt from inclusion in the bankruptcy estate. The money to
> Nancy Polleys was a single mother living in Wyoming. She obtained federally guaranteed student loans totaling $51,000 to attend college. She ultimately obtained an accounting degree and worked for a short time in the field before losing her job. Polleys
> Dr. Jeffrey Hall performed a colonoscopy on Hellen Nash during which he discovered a cancerous mass. Three days later, Hall performed surgery to remove the mass. However, Hall allegedly failed to remove all of the cancerous tissue, and Nash developed com
> Gergely, an obstetrician, performed an amniocentesis on Jordan Lee-Brenner’s mother during her pregnancy. As a result of problems with the procedure, Jordan Lee-Brenner was blinded in one eye. After his birth, and through his guardian, Lee-Brenner brough
> Ford Motor Credit Corporation (FMCC) hired Traciers & Associates (Traciers) to repossess a white 2002 Ford Expedition owned by Marissa Chapa, who was in default on the associated promissory note. Traciers assigned the job to its field manager, Paul Chamb
> On April 27, 1992, Darro and Tracy Long purchased a 1980 Ford Escort for $2,795 from Auto Credit, Inc. They made a cash down payment of $300 and financed the balance of the purchase price. The terms of the financing required the Longs to pay $38.84 a wee
> Under what circumstances would Chapter 11 be used rather than Chapter 7?
> Explain the differences between trial courts and appellate courts.
> Michelle Campbell worked for Luiz Simmons as his secretary. After Campbell was hired, she formed an acquaintanceship with Simmons’s outside bookkeeper, Denise Evans. Campbell began to forge Simmons’s name to checks drawn on several of her employer’s acco
> In this strange case, Albertson has already been convicted of passing checks that were ultimately dishonored because of insufficient funds in Albertson’s checking account. Both Albertson and a witness claim that the person to whom the checks were issued
> Daniel DeMarais is the former chief financial officer (CFO) of Apex IT. Through a Minnesota Department of Revenue investigation, it came to light that DeMarais had embezzled well over $400,000 from the company. DeMarais embezzled funds from Apex in part
> In this bankruptcy case, the court had to determine whether an LLC should have been considered a purchaser of instruments or a holder in due course under the UCC. Yale, the company that purchased the instruments through bankruptcy, did not establish that
> What are the similarities and differences between transfer and presentment warranties?
> What are the requirements of holder-in-due-course status?
> Explain the rationale for the following statement: “The purpose of holder-in-due-course status is to encourage parties to engage in financial transactions.”
> Casey Anthony, a Florida resident, has recently gained fame in the murder trial of her daughter, Kaylee. Among the charges brought against Anthony in court were check fraud and murder. The check fraud charge came about after an investigation revealed tha
> The plaintiff, U.S. Bank, filed a complaint to foreclose the defendant’s mortgage because the defendant had failed to pay the monthly installments on the mortgage. However, the defendant purported to tender payment for the entire balance of the mortgage
> In October 2006, America’s Wholesale Lender (AWL) agreed to loan John Horvath $650,000. The loan was stated in an interest-only, fixed-rate note and was secured by a deed of trust on Horvath’s home. In exchange for the $650,000, Horvath agreed to repay A
> Explain the two types of jurisdiction that a court must have to hear a case and render a binding decision over the parties.
> Stacy and Michael Russell are residents in Harrah, Oklahoma, who live in a trailer. Oklahoma Farm Bureau Mututal Insurance Company was the insurer on the home. Within the policy the Russells held with the insurance company, a section on loss stated: Okl
> Dr. Rodrigue is an obstetrician-gynecologist, who in 1989 opened her own practice. The financial support to open her new practice came from North County Women’s Health Care Services P.C., who provided her with start-up and relocation assistance and a pra
> Who are the three parties involved in the transfer of money through a check?
> Evaluate the following statement: “Order paper and bearer paper must be delivered to be negotiated.”
> Identify and define each of the elements of negotiability.
> Are negotiable instruments more similar to money or contracts? Explain.
> Explain the reason behind the need for negotiable instruments.
> Shipping terms play an important role in determining when title, risk of loss, and insurable interest pass from seller to buyer. What is the significance of such terms as CIF and FAS in determining such issues? What happens when the contract is clearly C
> A restaurant called The Inn Between entered into a contract to purchase a used restaurant computer system. The contract included installation and training from Remanco Metropolitan, Inc. The contract also required Remanco to keep the computer system in g
> Grimberg sold a famous painting to Cohen for $785,000. Possession of the painting passed to Cohen but payment was never made. Despite various and sundry attempts to resolve the issue, Grimberg never received payment or got the painting back. Cohen was su
> Entertainment Network, Inc. (ENI), a business that provided news, entertainment, and information via the Internet, sued government officials who prohibited the company from filming the execution of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh and selling the foo
> Landrum sold Gappelberg a big-screen television. The television had many defects, some of which Landrum and his service representatives fixed. Three weeks after the sale, the television stopped working altogether, and Gappelberg let Landrum know. Landrum
> Are there limits to the right to cure? Does a breaching party have the right to cure the breach, or can the nonbreaching party proceed directly to a damage claim?
> The buyer contracted with the seller for the purchase of ribs. After delivery, the buyer refused to pay the contract price, claiming that the ribs arrived in an off condition. The seller filed suit for breach of contract. The buyer claimed that when the
> Poor Sarah Jane not only had a short-lived marriage but found out that her supposedly $45,000 ring was worth only half that amount. It seems that the jeweler had misrepresented to her now ex-husband. Sarah Jane now brings an action against the jeweler fo
> Define and differentiate between liquidated, consequential, and punitive damages. Make the argument for why punitive damages should or should not be permitted in intentional breach of contracts.
> Go back in the chapter and look at Webster v. Blue Ship Tearoom. Can you think of other situations today for which this case might serve as legal precedent?
> The plaintiff and the defendant entered into a three year contract in which the defendant would be the sole supplier of steel parts that the plaintiff used in its products. A dispute arose after the defendant sought to surcharge the parts sold to reflect
> The defendant, Nwabuoku, purchased $1,500 worth of furniture from the plaintiff, Y&N Furniture. Through an arrangement with the plaintiff, the defendant financed the purchase through a financing company named Beneficial. On receipt of the furniture, the
> Treibacher, an Austrian vendor of hard-metal powders, agreed to two contracts with the defendant TDY to sell specified quantities of tantalum carbide (TaC), a hard-metal powder, to TDY Industries, Inc., for delivery to consignment. TDY planned to use the
> New furniture is delivered to the buyer, and it is badly damaged. The purchaser notified the furniture store of the damage, and the store sent a representative to the buyer. The representative explained that the furniture could be repaired and restored.
> In Arkansas, methamphetamine (meth) was manufactured primarily in small toxic labs (STLs) located in homes, tents, barns, or hotel rooms. According to the plaintiffs (a number of counties in Arkansas), Arkansas had one of the highest numbers of STLs in t
> SMG was a frozen-poultry wholesaler, and Sanderson was one the suppliers. SMG contracted to sell 24 containers of frozen poultry to KVADRO, a Russian company. The shipping terms were CIF, cost insurance and freight. In connection with the business, SMG c
> Marion Bottling Company bottled soft drink beverages in Marion, Virginia, and shipped them to its warehouse in Galax for storage. The beverages were subsequently delivered from the warehouse to retailers on delivery trucks the bottler owned and operated
> A manufacturer based in Argentina and an importer based in New Jersey entered into an oral agreement under which the importer agreed to sell the manufacturer’s products in the United States. The district court found that the manufacturer’s claim that the
> A company contracts with a marketing firm to construct software and create a business website. A quote is requested and accepted. Sometime later, the business asks for updates and revisions but fails to request a quote. The business subsequently refuses
> A foreclosure case saw creditors going after the business’s real estate. The business was a diner. However, the diner itself was a prefabricated building. The business owner claimed that the building itself was not realty and subject to the creditors’ cl
> Consider the status of being a merchant under the UCC. Should the UCC differentiate between merchants and nonmerchants?
