Citation350 F. 2d 445 (D.C. Cir 1965) Brief Fact Summary. Furniture burdened by a cross-collateral clause was sold by Walker-Thomas (P) to Williams (D) and subsequent to Williams’s default, sought to replevin all goods bought by Williams (D). Synopsis of Rule of Law. It is within the court’s power to refuse enforcement of contracts found to be unconscionable. ...
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E.C. Styberg Engineering Co. v. Eaton Corp.
Citation492 F. 3d 912 (7th Cir. 2007) Brief Fact Summary. Where parties’ communications evidence ongoing negotiations with no agreement reached as to key terms, such as price, quantity and monthly production volume, the Uniform Commercial Code (U.C.C) states that such a contract for the sale of goods have not been formed. ...
Marshall Durbin Food Corp v Baker
CitationMiss. Ct. App., 909 So. 2d 1267 (2005) Brief Fact Summary. A contract that intended to pay Baker (P), a former employee of Marshall Durbin (D), his salary for five years upon the happening of certain triggering events was argued against by Marshall Durbin (D) because the contract lacked consideration. Synopsis of Rule of Law. Sufficient consideration to create an enforceable contract where one party has made an illusory promise and the second party has made a promise of a unilateral contract that is contingent on the first party’s performance where the first party has performed ...
Pennsy Supply, Inc. v. American Ash Recycling Corp. of Pennsylvania
CitationPa. Super. Ct., 895 A.2d 595 (2006) Brief Fact Summary. Pennsy Supply, Inc. had received without charge, a hazardous material from American Ash Recycling Corp. of Pennsylvania (American Ash) (D). Pennsy’s Supply (P) argument is that, disposing of this hazardous material gives enough grounds to result in consideration which is necessary to support various breach of contract, warranty and merchantability claims Synopsis of Rule of Law. Grounding contracts and warranty claims brought by the disposer, constitutes sufficient ground for relief of a manufacturer’s legal obligat ...
Feldman v. Google, Inc
Citation513 F. Supp. 2d 229 [E.D. Pa 2007] Brief Fact Summary. Feldman (P) argued that since he did not have notice of and assent to the terms of agreement with Google, Inc (D), there was no “meeting of minds” and so the online agreement which he must have clicked on before he could place internet ads on Google, Inc (D) was not binding. He also argued that because the agreement lacked definite essential terms as to price, it was unenforceable. Synopsis of Rule of Law. When an online user has been given reasonable notice of the agreement’s term and it is clear that once the ...
Allen v. Bissinger & Co
CitationUtah Sup. Ct., 62 Utah 226, 219 P. 539 (1923) Brief Fact Summary. Allen (P) who was the official reporter for the Interstate Commerce Commission (Commission) alleged that a contacted was formed between him and Bissinger & Co (D) when Bissinger (D) accepted his offer for copies of the Commission’s official hearing reports relating to freight. This was however refuted by Bissinger (D) on the ground that there was no mutual assent between the two of them and therefore, there was no contract. Synopsis of Rule of Law. By applying a reasonable standard, a contract exists where an acce ...
Inmates of Attica Correctional Facility v. Rockefeller
Citation477 F.2d 375 (2nd Cir. 1973) Brief Fact Summary. A civil suit was filed against New York State officials and the local U.S. Attorney by a mother of a deceased former inmate and several other inmates of the New York’s Attica Correctional Facility, after the inmate uprising at the prison in 1971. Synopsis of Rule of Law. Prosecutors cannot be compelled by the courts to investigate and initiate criminal prosecutions. ...
United States v. McDermott
Citation245 F.3d 133 (2d Cir. 2001) Brief Fact Summary. the President of an investment bank stock recommendation was passed by his mistress to another man she was having an affair with. Synopsis of Rule of Law. passing insider information on agreement to all members of a conspiracy is an essential element of the conspiracy. ...
United States v. Guidant LLC
Citation708 F Supp. 2d 903 (D. Minn. 2010) Brief Fact Summary. two models of implantable defibrillators, manufactured by Guidant LLC (D), for people suffering from fast heart rhythms were defective and could result in sudden cardiac arrest. Synopsis of Rule of Law. to serve public interest and to ensure accountability by the corporation by forcing it to implement internal compliance and ethics programs, a term of probation for a corporation may be appropriate. ...
Commonwealth v. Roebuck
CitationPa. Sup. Ct. 32 A.3d 613 (2011) Brief Fact Summary. Roebuck (D) was found guilty of luring the victim to an apartment complex where the victim was shot and killed by another person. Synopsis of Rule of Law. A person is an accomplice if he/she acts with the level of culpability that equals the level required to support criminal liability by the principal actor in a situation whereby a particular result is caused as an element of an offense. ...
Atkins v. Virginia
Citation536 U.S 304 (2002) Brief Fact Summary. Atkins contention was that the execution of a mentally retarded criminal is a cruel and unusual punishment which contravenes the Eighth Amendment. He made this contention when he was sentenced to death for committing murder. Atkins (D) had an IQ 0f 59 at the time of his conviction. Synopsis of Rule of Law. Under the Eighth Amendment, the capital punishment of a mentally retarded convict is cruel and unusual. ...
United States v. Deegan
Citation605 F. 3d 625 (8th Cir. 2010) Brief Fact Summary. Deegan (D), a Native American, abandoned the baby boy she had given birth to for two weeks in her home. The child however died before she returned to the house. Synopsis of Rule of Law. Appeals courts should accord a sentence imposed by a federal district court with a presumption of reasonableness in a situation whereby a federal district court imposes the sentence within the applicable range of the advisory federal sentencing guidelines. ...
People v. Burton
CitationCal. Sup. Ct., 491 P.2d 793 (1971) Brief Fact Summary. A person was killed during a robbery by the armed robber. Synopsis of Rule of Law. Armed robbery cannot serve as the predicate felony for felony murder because it is not included within the offense of murder. ...
Hines v. State
CitationGa. Sup. Ct., 578 S.E. 2d 868 (2003) Brief Fact Summary. A man mistook his friend for a turkey when he shot and killed him while they were hunting. Synopsis of Rule of Law. A convicted felon possession of a firearm can be inherently dangerous felony that serves as the predicate felony for felony murder. ...
Commonwealth v. Welansky
CitationMass. Sup. Jud. Ct., 316 Mass. 383. 55 N.E.2d 902 (1944) Brief Fact Summary. Before the deadly blaze which erupted in the night, Welansky (D), owner of a nightclub failed to proffer solutions to curtail the serious fire hazards which existed. ...
Commonwealth v. Carroll
CitationPa. Sup. Ct., 412 Pa. 525, 194 A.2d 911 (1963) Brief Fact Summary. Following a violent argument he had with his wife, Carroll (D) shot her at the back of her head. Synopsis of Rule of Law. A defendant words or conduct or the attendant circumstances, together with all reasonable inferences therefrom, the intentional use of a deadly weapon on a vital part of another person, which represents the specific intent to kill, are necessary in proving a first-degree murder. ...
M.C. v Bulgaria
CitationEur. Ct. H.R., 39272/98 (2003) Brief Fact Summary. A girl who was almost 15 years old and a citizen of Bulgaria claimed that two men had raped her in Bulgaria. When the Bulgarian officers could not find sufficient proof to show that she was physically forced to have sex with the men, they closed their investigation. Synopsis of Rule of Law. When a member state closes a rape investigation on the premise of insufficient proof of physical force without also considering whether the victim was subjected to forceful circumstances, that member state has not met its obligations under t ...
B (A Minor) v. Director of Public Prosecutions
CitationHouse of Lords. 1 All. Eng. Rep. 833 (2000) Brief Fact Summary. A common law presumption of an objective standard no longer governs the mental state requirement for criminal statutes in a situation where Parliament fails to specify a mens rea requirement. ...
Graham v. Florida
Citation130 S. Ct. 2011 (2010) Brief Fact Summary. Graham (D), a 17 years old was arrested for a home invasion and attempted robbery while he was on probation for attempted robbery. He was sentenced to life imprison without the possibility of parole after he was found guilty. Synopsis of Rule of Law. A sentence of life imprisonment without parole, meted out on a minor for a non-homicidal offense is unconstitutional ...
United States v. Dauray
Citation215 F. 3d 257 (2nd Cr. 2000) Brief Fact Summary. The possession of individual, unbound depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct was the reason for the apprehension of a man in a state park. Synopsis of Rule of Law. Within the meaning of the federal Protection of Children Against Sexual Exploitation Act, individual pictures are not “other matter which contain any visual depiction”. ...
McBoyle v. United States
Citation283 U.S. 25 Brief Fact Summary. the defendant was convicted of violating the National Motor Vehicle theft Act because he intentionally conveyed a stolen airplane from Illinois to Oklahoma. Synopsis of Rule of Law. An airplane is not defined as a ‘vehicle” within the meaning of the National Motor Vehicle Theft Act. ...
United States v. Bernard L. Madoff
CitationUnited States District Courts, S.D.N.Y. (June 29, 2009) Brief Fact Summary. Relating to his orchestration of a Ponzi scheme allegedly resulting in the loss of $65 billion dollars of client funds, Madoff (D) plead guilty to 11 counts of fraud, money laundering, theft and perjury. Synopsis of Rule of Law. Symbolism plays an important role in both the retribution and deterrence contexts when choosing a proper criminal sentence. ...
In re Winship
CitationU.S. 358 (1970) Brief Fact Summary. A preponderance of evidence found that Winship (D), a 12-year old boy, committed an act that if committed by an adult would have been a crime, thus justifying the juvenile delinquency he was charged with. Winship (D) contended that a finding such as this had to be based on proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Synopsis of Rule of Law. Among the essentials of due process and fair treatment required during the adjudicatory stage when a juvenile is charged with an act that would constitute a crime if committed by an adult is proof beyond a reasonable ...