Exam 3: The Uslegal System and Alternative Dispute Resolution

Sexual Harassment ADR.Jenny is very angry with her supervisor,Sleaze,at the Mexican fast-food restaurant at which she works which is owned by an international company located in Mexico.He has been making inappropriate sexual comments to her and other employees.Jenny decides to sue and retains a lawyer,Brice.Brice talks with the owners of the restaurant and is informed that Jenny signed an agreement to arbitrate any claims.Brice tells Jenny that it is completely up to her and that if she wishes,she can disregard the arbitration agreement and proceed to court.Jenny informed Brice about other employees who had complained about sexual harassment and entered into mediation agreements.Brice promises her that he will get copies of all documents and everything that was taken down by the court reporter at those mediations.He also tells Jenny in response to her question about the possibility of mediation in her case to forget it because mediation is pretty much the same thing as arbitration.Can Brice obtain information from the previous mediators regarding what occurred at the previous mediations?

A court acquires in personam jurisdiction over the plaintiff when:

Mediators are selected on behalf of the parties by the courts.

Adult siblings John,Sam,and Andy are in disagreement over how to split the proceeds of a piece of land left to them by a rich uncle who recently died.The uncle was a resident of Georgia and the land is in Georgia; however,neither John,Sam,nor Andy live there.Which of the following is true regarding jurisdiction over the dispute?

Revenge.Jane,a first-year law student,while walking to school in inclement weather,accidentally slipped on ice knocking down Greg,another first-year law student,breaking his glasses.He was very angry with Jane and let the air out of one of her car tires.Greg also decided to sue Jane for negligence,claiming as damages $300 for his broken glasses.He decided that he already knew all about the law and did not need a lawyer.Greg sued Jane in state court.Jane,in the same lawsuit,brought an action against Greg for letting the air out of her tire.At trial in state court,Jane told the judge that a friend,Susie,told her that she saw Greg let the air out of Jane's tire.The judge disallowed Jane's testimony on that issue.Susie,however,who was in the courtroom also came and testified to that effect.The state court judge ruled in favor of Jane.Greg said that he was not giving up and that he would seek double damages on appeal in federal court.Jane and Greg live in different states when not attending school.After trial,Jane reported Greg's actions in letting the air out of her tire to the police who said that they would proceed with a criminal action against Greg.Was the judge correct in disallowing Jane's testimony regarding what Susie told her about the tire?

Billy knows that he can bring his case against Bob in a state court in Tennessee.He is unsure,however,of which county in which to proceed.Which of the following addresses the proper county?

The justices of the United States Supreme Court serve ten-year terms of appointment,subject to renewal by the advice and consent of the U.S.Senate.

Define the term "in personam" jurisdiction,discuss where corporations are generally subject to that type of jurisdiction,and discuss long-arm jurisdiction.

An arbitrator's decision is called an award,but only if the arbitrator orders the defendant to pay the plaintiff monetary compensation.

Supreme Court.Jim,who is a bit eccentric,says that he is fed up with the way a certain employer in his town treats employees and that he is going to sue that employer in an effort to improve matters.Jim also says that he is going to start his case at the appellate court level,skipping over all those "lesser" judges.Jim says that those justices will surely hear him out and that he will also seek a jury.Although he is not a lawyer,Jim believes that the offenses of the employer are so severe that the justices will appreciate his attempt to make things better for the employees involved.Will an appellate court initially hear Jim's case deciding issues such as whether he has a claim and can act as a plaintiff?

A reply is a formal answer to a motion for summary judgment.

If an appellate judge agrees with the majority's decision but for different reasons,the judge may write a "dissenting" opinion.

ADR gives businesses less control over the resolution of a dispute.

Conditional federal jurisdiction means that both state and federal courts have jurisdiction over a case.

Med-arb is a dispute resolution process in which the parties agree to start out in arbitration and,if the arbitration is unsuccessful on one or more points,to move on to mediation.

Which of the following is required for diversity-of-citizenship?

Sexual Harassment ADR.Jenny is very angry with her supervisor,Sleaze,at the Mexican fast-food restaurant at which she works which is owned by an international company located in Mexico.He has been making inappropriate sexual comments to her and other employees.Jenny decides to sue and retains a lawyer,Brice.Brice talks with the owners of the restaurant and is informed that Jenny signed an agreement to arbitrate any claims.Brice tells Jenny that it is completely up to her and that if she wishes,she can disregard the arbitration agreement and proceed to court.Jenny informed Brice about other employees who had complained about sexual harassment and entered into mediation agreements.Brice promises her that he will get copies of all documents and everything that was taken down by the court reporter at those mediations.He also tells Jenny in response to her question about the possibility of mediation in her case to forget it because mediation is pretty much the same thing as arbitration.Did Brice correctly tell Jenny that mediation is nearly the same as arbitration?

Jackie is hiring Ron to do clean up and maintenance as an independent contractor for her building,which has several tenants.She is aware that Ron has sued some previous building owners.He does a good job,however,and she would like to hire him.Ron has agreed to sign an arbitration agreement.How should Jackie structure the agreement so that it will be enforced?

In order to support the mission of alternative dispute resolution,resolving disputes outside of traditional legal channels,lawyers cannot serve as arbitrators.

Courts generally support the use of ADR methods.