The Process in Rhode Island for serving a defendant by publication

Directions: Describe, in detail, the process in Rhode Island for serving a defendant by publication. (Include when it is allowed and the steps leading up to service by publication.) Describe the process for obtaining a default judgment according to either your state or the federal rules of civil procedure.

 

A State Senator in your state

Situation: You are a member of the staff of a State Senator in your state. There are many lakes and ponds on private land throughout the state. From time to time, children or adults are injured or killed when they fish or swim in such lakes or ponds after having entered without the landowner’s permission. In some such instances, the injured person or the family of the deceased person brings tort suit in state court, claiming that the land owner’s failure to take steps to prevent people from entering the land to fish or swim was a failure of care, entitling the plaintiff to recover damages for the injury or death. The decisions of the courts have been highly inconsistent.

Some courts have held for the plaintiffs. Others have held for the land owners on the ground that the injured or deceased person caused the problem by trespassing onto the property. Your Senator feels strongly about this issue and has asked you to draft a bill (which the Senator will then introduce) to deal with this matter. The bill should prescribe a clear rule to govern future lawsuits of this nature.

 

Draft the bill. Submit a short memorandum to your Senator explaining the choices you made in your drafting of the bill.

Review Tenuto v. Lederle, Safer v. Estate of Pack, and Molloy v. Meier

Review Tenuto v. Lederle, Safer v. Estate of Pack, and Molloy v. Meier and answer the following questions. At least 700 words  1) Identify at least four primary sources and four secondary  sources of law that the courts in those cases relied upon in
making their decisions (a total of at least eight sources for
this question, not eight sources from each case). Explain
the court’s reason for relying on each of these sources. In
addition, identify whether the court in each primary source
is federal or state, and the specific level of each court (i.e.
trial, intermediate appellate, or final appellate).

2) Explain what policy you believe is underlying the courts’
decisions in these cases. Is the policy consistent in all
three cases?

Developing a Supersonic business jet

Supersonic Technologies, Inc. (“SuperTech”) is developing a supersonic business jet, and the first flight test aircraft is nearing completion. SuperTech wants to operate its flight test program out of the Grant County International Airport near Moses Lake, Washington, and needs a high-altitude supersonic flight corridor in the nearby airspace to enable safe flight testing without risk to other air traffic.

How should the company go about obtaining the needed airspace designation?

A Risk management consultant

Assume that you are a risk management consultant. You have been hired by two businesses: A commercial bank with branches and operations in the United States, Europe, Asia, and Africa. A public utility company operating coal-powered and nuclear-powered power plants in Florida, California, and Alaska. You have been asked to make a presentation to the board of directors of both companies, as they begin the process of setting their risk appetite for the next 3 years.

At each presentation one recalcitrant board member asks you:

“Why should our company care about this whole risk appetite thing?” What would you say? For each, please make sure that you refer to: Industry-specific risks; and Potential company-specific risks (based e.g., on their location of operations, etc.).

Reading The Fine Art of Baloney

After reading The Fine Art of Baloney, discuss three examples of the fallacies listed by Sagan that you have seen in your work. If not in your work, discuss three examples you’ve seen in your life experience. For each example, what was the result? For at least one of the examples, explain how the tools that were discussed in either the lecture or the reading might have been utilized.

After reading pp. 67-71 of Dark Data, briefly explain two of the following concepts and why they are important for data analytics: Availability Bias Base Rate Fallacy Conjunction Fallacy Confirmation Bias

The Delaware River

The Delaware River is a major river running through five U.S. states—New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware. Starting in New York State’s Catskill Mountains, the river flows 419 miles into Delaware Bay where its waters enter the Atlantic Ocean near Cape May in New Jersey and Cape Henlopen in Delaware.

The Clean River Enjoyment Workforce (“CREW”) is an organization headquartered in New York, with members in the five states through which the River runs.  Its members (1) advocate for policies designed to maintain the beauty of the River and to prevent its pollution; (2) engage in clean-up activities; and (3) fish, swim, canoe, and generally recreate along and in the River.

Ruth Ann Roberts lives in Frenchtown NJ and is a member of CREW.  Her family has owned and operated Roberts River Adventures for 50 years, a company that runs activities such as tubing trips, fishing trips and riverside parties, along the River.  Matt Denn is the Lieutenant Governor of Delaware and has deep concerns about the River’s vitality.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to build a dam along the River, in New Jersey.  The Corps believes the dam will ultimately help harness the power of the water and turn it into electricity.  The dam is also designed to allow for a greater ability to prevent and clean pollutants.  The Environmental Policy Act requires Environmental Impact Statements (“EIS”) to be filed before building such projects.  No EIS has yet been filed.

Construction on the dam would begin in one month, and it would take an estimated five years to complete.  The members of CREW believe that the dam will drastically change the River’s aesthetics as well as its suitability for recreational activities.

They do not believe that the EIS would provide a basis to stop the project from going forward, but they think it is essential to learn more.  While understanding that some environmental benefits are possible from the dam, they contend that burdens are far worse than the benefits.

ASSIGNMENT: You have been contacted by a friend who knows all the above-mentioned individuals and groups.  She has asked you to make a memo to advise on a legal strategy to challenge, in court, the Corps’ failure to file an EIS.  Who would be best positioned to bring such a challenge in court, and how do they meet the basic standing requiremen

The Penitentiary as a Model of Ideal Society,” from The Prison and the Factory

Massimo Pavarini, “The Penitentiary as a Model of Ideal Society,” from The Prison and the Factory. Answer the following questions in 250-400 of your own words, using complete sentences.

1. What is a proletarian? How is a proletarian different from a peasant? Be specific.

2. How does the creation of the proletarian relate to social dislocation, and the Industrial Takeoff?

3. What does it mean that “prison is a factory of men”? How does this process work? What is it’s product? (Describe the product, don’t just name it.) What do you think about this claim?

4. How, according to Pavarini, does the invention of the penitentiary relate to capitalism? What do you think of this argument?

Eighteenth Century Punishment” from Michael Ignatieff’s A Just Measure of Pain

“Eighteenth Century Punishment” from Michael Ignatieff’s A Just Measure of Pain. Answer the following questions in 300-400 of your own words, using complete sentences

1. Define the “merciful compromise” and “pious perjury,” and explain their purpose

A short Summary of a legal opinion

Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961)   Instructions: A case brief is a short summary of a legal opinion. It contains a written summary of the basic components of that decision. It is a method of studying case law. It helps students identify the key points of a legal opinion. Most case briefs contain similar information, but the headings and their sequence may be different. For this assignment you are required to follow the general format as set forth below:

  1. Case Name: Include the full citation and including the date of the opinion. The citation of the case is usually next to the case name in the legal opinion.

 

  1. Procedural History: The procedural history is the disposition of the case in the lower court(s) that explains how the case got to the court whose opinion you are reading. The procedural history must include: (1) The lower court who heard the decision; and (2) Who appealed that decision.

 

  1. Statement of Facts: Include only the facts that were relevant to the court’ decision. You are unlikely to know what these are until you have read the entire opinion. Many cases may include procedural facts that are relevant to the decision in addition to the facts that happened before litigation.

 

  1. Issue: The question the court had to decide in this case. It usually includes specific facts as well as a legal question. It may be expressed or implied in the decision. Cases may have more than one issue.

 

  1. Holding/Decision: The legal answer to the issue. If the issue is clearly written, then the holding can be expressed a “yes” or “no.”

 

  1. Rule of Law: The general legal principles relevant to the factual situation presented in the case.

 

  1. Reasoning: The logical steps the court takes to arrive at the holding. This is the court’s analysis of the issues and the heart of the case brief. It can be straightforward and obvious, or you may have to extrapolate it from the holding. The reasoning states why the court made that decision. It should be the longest section in the brief.

 

  1. Judgment/Disposition: The judgment is the court’s final decision as to the rights of the parties, the court’s response to a party’s request or relief. Generally, the appellate court will either affirm, reverse, or reverse with instructions. The judgment is usually found at the end of the opinion.