IA Bar flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Complete Diversity

A requirement for federal diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332 that no plaintiff share state citizenship with any defendant; the amount in controversy must exceed $75,000.

Supplemental Jurisdiction

Federal jurisdiction over a claim that shares a common nucleus of operative fact with a claim that has original jurisdiction, subject to the discretionary and mandatory limits of 28 U.S.C. § 1367.

Erie Doctrine

In diversity cases, federal courts apply state substantive law and federal procedural law; if federal law conflicts with state law, federal law applies unless it abridges a substantive right.

Claim Preclusion

Bars relitigation of the same claim between the same parties or their privies after a final judgment on the merits, including claims that could have been raised in the prior action.

Standing Elements

A plaintiff must show injury in fact that is concrete and particularized, causation traceable to the defendant, and redressability by a favorable court decision.

Strict Scrutiny

The most demanding equal protection standard, applied to racial classifications and fundamental rights; the law must be narrowly tailored to a compelling government interest.

Commerce Clause Power

Congress may regulate channels of interstate commerce, instrumentalities, and activities that substantially affect interstate commerce, including economic activity aggregated under Wickard.

State Action Doctrine

Constitutional protections generally apply only to government conduct; private conduct is exempt unless there is significant state involvement, a public function, or entwinement.

UCC 2-207

A UCC provision governing additional or different terms in an acceptance between merchants; additional terms become part of the contract unless they materially alter it or are objected to.

Statute of Frauds

A writing requirement for certain contracts, including those that cannot be performed within one year, land sales, suretyship, and goods sales of $500 or more.

Anticipatory Repudiation

A clear statement or act indicating a party will not perform, giving the non-breaching party an immediate right to sue or await performance, subject to retraction.

Expectation Damages

Damages that put the non-breaching party in the position it would have occupied had the contract been fully performed, including lost profits and incidental losses.

Felony Murder Rule

A killing during the commission of an inherently dangerous felony is murder, even without intent to kill; the underlying felony merges with the homicide.

Miranda Warnings

Before custodial interrogation, police must advise a suspect of the right to remain silent, that statements may be used against them, and the right to counsel.

Exclusionary Rule

Evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment is generally inadmissible at trial, subject to exceptions such as good faith, inevitable discovery, and independent source.

Strickland Standard

Ineffective assistance of counsel requires proof of deficient performance and a reasonable probability that the outcome would have differed but for the deficiency.

Hearsay Definition

An out-of-court statement offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted; it is inadmissible unless an exclusion or exception applies under the rules.

Rule 403 Balancing

A court may exclude relevant evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion, misleading the jury, or waste of time.

Best Evidence Rule

Requires the original document, recording, or photograph to prove its contents, with exceptions for duplicates, voluminous records, and absence of the original.

Daubert Standard

Expert testimony is admissible if the witness is qualified and the testimony rests on sufficient facts, reliable methods, and a reliable application of those methods.

Rule Against Perpetuities

No interest is valid unless it must vest, if at all, no later than 21 years after the death of a life in being at the time the interest was created.

Joint Tenancy

A concurrent estate with right of survivorship that requires the four unities of time, title, interest, and possession; severance converts it to a tenancy in common.

Adverse Possession

Acquisition of title by actual, exclusive, continuous, open and notorious, and hostile possession of land for the statutory period, sometimes requiring color of title.

Recording Acts

Race, notice, and race-notice statutes determine priority among competing interests; a bona fide purchaser for value without notice prevails under notice and race-notice statutes.

Negligence Elements

A plaintiff must prove duty, breach of the standard of care, actual and proximate causation, and damages to recover for negligence.

Premises Liability

A landowner owes invitees a duty to inspect and warn of dangers, licensees a duty to warn of known dangers, and trespassers only a duty against willful misconduct.

Actual Malice

In defamation, a public figure must prove the defendant published a false statement with knowledge of its falsity or reckless disregard for the truth.

Strict Products Liability

A seller is liable for a defective product that causes harm without proof of negligence; theories include manufacturing defect, design defect, and failure to warn.

IRAC Method

A legal analysis structure that states the Issue, the governing Rule, the Application of facts to the rule, and a Conclusion answering the question.

Holding Versus Dicta

The holding is the court's answer to the issue and is binding; dicta is non-essential commentary and is not binding precedent.

Bluebook Case Citation

A case citation includes the party names, volume, reporter abbreviation, page, court, and year, such as Brown v. Board, 347 U.S. 483 (1954).

Rule Synthesis

Combining holdings from multiple cases into a single rule statement, noting majority and minority rules and jurisdictional variations.