Deck 1: The American Legal System

Question 1

The common law is derived from:

A)acts of Congress.
B)acts of state legislatures.
C)court decisions.
D)rulings by federal agencies.
E)rulings by arbitrators.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

In the 2009 case of Caperton v.Massey Coal,the Supreme Court addressed the issue of:

A)damages.
B)judicial recusal.
C)actual malice.
D)jury verdicts.
E)discovery.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

During most lawsuits,each side is allowed to ask questions of the opposing side before trial.This process is called:

A)discovery.
B)inquiry.
C)inquisition.
D)rejoinder.
E)remittitur.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The U.S.Supreme Court in 2003 declared that very large punitive damage awards (i.e.those exceeding 10 times the provable monetary losses)are usually improper.The case:

A)Plessy v.Ferguson.
B)New York Times v.Sullivan.
C)State Farm v.Campbell.
D)Virginia v.Black.
E)Young v.New Haven Advocate.

Question 5

Which of these courts hears appeals of decisions by federal regulatory agencies such as the Federal Communications Commission?

A)Court of Claims.
B)District Court.
C)Court of Regulatory Appeals.
D)Circuit Court of Appeals.
E)Supreme Court.

Question 6

In legal terminology,a code is:

A)an indexed collection of court decisions.
B)an organized body of statutory law.
C)a list of constitutional amendments.
D)a collection of executive orders.
E)a secret message from one judge to others.

Question 7

The rules and regulations adopted by the Federal Trade Commission are examples of:

A)statutory law.
B)common law.
C)constitutional law.
D)administrative law.
E)none of these.

Question 8

The Supreme Court will hear cases where one state sues another as part of its:

A)original jurisdiction.
B)appellate jurisdiction.
C)rule of four.
D)stare decisis.
E)voir dire.

Question 9

Some lawsuits are tried in federal rather than state courts for two main reasons.Some cases involve federal questions (legal issues governed by federal law).Others go to federal court primarily because of:

A)a criminal defendant's claim that no state court would provide a fair trial.
B)the cost or complexity of a particular lawsuit.
C)diversity of citizenship.
D)a civil litigant's claim that no state court could be fair.
E)none of these.

Question 10

Products liability,medical malpractice,battery,invasion of privacy,trespass,wrongful death and libel all fall within a field of civil law known as:

A)torts.
B)contracts.
C)stare decisis.
D)negligence.
E)certiorari.

Question 11

When an appellate court distinguishes a previous decision,that means:

A)the court ranks it as very important and agrees with it.
B)the court follows it as a precedent.
C)the court declines to follow it as a precedent,citing differences between its facts and those of the current case.
D)none of these.

Question 12

In a court of equity,an aggrieved party may secure:

A)only monetary compensation for his/her injuries.
B)monetary compensation for injuries plus additional money for "pain and suffering."
C)non-monetary remedies such as injunctions,restraining orders,and orders of specific performance.
D)none of these.

Question 13

Legal precedents are normally established by decisions of all of these except:

A)a state's highest court.
B)the U.S.Supreme Court.
C)U.S.Circuit Courts of Appeals.
D)jury verdicts in trial courts.
E)a state's intermediate appellate courts.

Question 14

Here's a legal citation: 419 U.S.245 (1974).What does "U.S." tell you about the case?

A)absolutely nothing.
B)that it is a U.S.Supreme Court decision.
C)that it is a U.S.District Court case.
D)that it is a criminal case,not a civil case.
E)that the U.S.government lost the case in 1974.

Question 15

The term stare decisis refers to:

A)miscellaneous civil wrongs.
B)decisions of the infamous English court of the star chamber.
C)extraordinary relief granted by a court of equity.
D)rulings of early common law courts that were later reversed.
E)the principle that courts normally follow judicial precedents.

Question 16

Decisions of a U.S.District Court are normally appealed to the:

A)Court of Claims.
B)District Court of Appeal.
C)Court of Regulatory Appeals.
D)U.S.Circuit Court of Appeals.
E)U.S.Supreme Court.

Question 17

A U.S.Supreme Court decision interpreting the meaning of an act of Congress (for example,the Copyright Act)may be overruled by:

A)a ruling by a federal regulatory agency.
B)a subsequent act of Congress.
C)a treaty with a foreign nation.
D)a presidential executive order.
E)all of these.

Question 18

Lexis-Nexis is:

A)a brand of car.
B)a law library in Washington,D.C. .
C)an index of legal terms.
D)a computer data base containing legal materials and news articles.
E)all of these.

Question 19

How could a U.S.Supreme Court decision interpreting the meaning of the Constitution be overturned?

A)by a Constitutional amendment.
B)by an act of Congress.
C)by a later Supreme Court decision.
D)by a presidential proclamation.
E)both choices A and C.

Question 20

When an appellate court remands a case,that means:

A)the verdict is affirmed.
B)the verdict is reversed and the case is terminated.
C)the verdict is affirmed in part and reversed in part.
D)a lower court is directed to reconsider the case in light of the appellate court's opinion.
E)the verdict is set aside and the case is automatically sent to the next-higher court for a further appeal.

Question 21

The largest circuit in the country is the _______.

A)First.
B)Third.
C)Eighth.
D)Ninth.
E)Federal.