Liberian Bar Exam cheat sheet

Article 2 declares the Constitution the supreme and binding law of the land; any statute, treaty, custom, or executive act inconsistent with it is void to the extent of the inconsistency.

Article 11 secures natural, inherent rights - life, liberty, security of the person, property - and bars deprivation except by hearing judgment consistent with due process of law.

Article 14 requires that an arrested person be informed of the cause of arrest and brought before a judicial officer within 48 hours; habeas corpus tests the lawfulness of detention.

Chapter III bars torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment, double jeopardy, and compelled self-incrimination, and guarantees counsel, a speedy public trial, and jury trial.

Treason is the constitutionally defined crime requiring either two witnesses to the same overt act or a confession in open court for conviction.

Article 27(b) confines citizenship by birth or naturalization to persons who are Negroes or of Negro descent.

The Legislature is bicameral: 30 senators (two per county, nine-year terms) and 73 representatives (six-year terms); the President serves six years and is limited to two terms.

Judicial power rests in the Supreme Court - Chief Justice plus four Associate Justices - and in inferior courts created by statute; justices are nominated by the President with Senate confirmation.

Amendments require a two-thirds proposal in each house and ratification by two-thirds of the votes cast in a referendum.

Liberian Penal Law grades culpability as purposeful, knowing, reckless, or negligent; the required mental state must attach to each material element of the offense.

Criminal homicide is graded: murder requires purpose or knowledge, manslaughter covers reckless killing, and negligent homicide is a lesser offense.

A capital or infamous crime must be prosecuted by grand jury indictment; lesser offenses proceed by information filed by the prosecutor.

A confession is admissible only if voluntary; the judge determines voluntariness at a hearing outside the jury's presence, and force, threats, or promises render it inadmissible.

Trial by jury is guaranteed in criminal cases; the accused enjoys the presumption of innocence, proof beyond a reasonable doubt, and the privilege against self-incrimination.

Bail is a matter of right in non-capital cases; excessive bail is prohibited, and a capital charge may be held non-bailable by the court.

Autrefois acquit and autrefois convict bar retrial for the same offense after acquittal or conviction.

The M'Naghten test governs the insanity defense, and the defendant bears the burden of establishing it by a preponderance of the evidence.

Criminal appeals lie to the Supreme Court and are perfected by announcing the appeal and filing a bill of exceptions within the statutory period.

A civil action commences on filing a complaint with the clerk of the circuit court; the summons and complaint are then served on the defendant by a method authorized by the Civil Procedure Law.

Pleadings comprise the complaint, the answer (including affirmative defenses), and any reply ordered by the court; counterclaims and cross-claims are pleaded in the answer.

Failure to appear or plead after proper service permits entry of default judgment, which may be set aside for good cause or excusable neglect on timely motion.

Civil actions at law are triable to a jury on demand; equitable claims and defenses are tried by the judge.

Summary judgment is granted where the pleadings, affidavits, and discovery show no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

Appeals are perfected by announcing the appeal in open court at rendition of judgment and filing a bill of exceptions assigning the errors relied on; failure forfeits review.

Process against the Republic is served on the Ministry of Justice; suits against the government require compliance with statutory notice and limitation conditions.

Judgments are enforced by writs of execution, attachment, and garnishment; a judgment creditor may examine the debtor's assets in aid of execution.

Contract formation requires mutual assent (offer and acceptance), consideration, capacity, and a lawful object; Liberian courts apply common-law doctrines of offer, acceptance, and consideration.

The Statute of Frauds requires a writing for land transfers, promises to answer for another's debt, contracts not performable within one year, and promises in consideration of marriage.

Conveyances of land must be by written deed, acknowledged or probated, and registered in the Deeds Registry before they bind third parties.

A material breach discharges the injured party's remaining duties and supports damages; a minor breach supports damages only.

Anticipatory repudiation permits the non-breaching party to sue immediately or await performance, but awaiting performance may waive the repudiation.

Expectation damages place the claimant in the position performance would have produced; consequential damages must be foreseeable at contracting, and the claimant must mitigate.

Liquidated damages clauses are enforced unless the sum is a penalty disproportionate to the anticipated loss.

Specific performance is available for unique subject matter, notably land, where damages are inadequate.

Corporations formed under Liberia's business corporation statute have separate legal personality, limited shareholder liability, and must maintain a registered agent and office in Liberia.

Negligence requires duty, breach, actual causation, proximate causation, and damages; the standard is the conduct of a reasonable person of ordinary prudence.

Res ipsa loquitur allows an inference of negligence where the injuring instrumentality was in the defendant's exclusive control and the event would not ordinarily occur absent negligence.

Battery requires intentional harmful or offensive contact; assault requires intentional creation of apprehension of immediate contact.

False imprisonment requires intentional confinement without lawful justification; trespass to land requires unauthorized entry, and conversion requires substantial interference with chattels.

Defamation splits into libel (written or permanent form) and slander (spoken); truth is a complete defense, and public figures must prove actual malice.

Consent, self-defense, defense of property, necessity, and statutory or common-law privilege defeat intentional tort claims.

An employer is vicariously liable for torts of employees committed within the scope of employment; an independent contractor's negligence is generally not imputed.

Damages include compensatory, nominal, and punitive awards; punitive damages require wanton, willful, or malicious conduct.

Estates recognized include fee simple absolute, life estates, and leaseholds; future interests may be created in grantors and third parties.

A deed must identify the parties, contain words of grant, describe the land with reasonable certainty (metes and bounds or survey reference), and be signed by the grantor.

Deeds take effect against third parties only after acknowledgment or probate and registration in the Deeds Registry; unregistered instruments yield to later registered ones.

Co-tenants hold as tenants in common absent words of survivorship; joint tenancy requires unity of time, title, interest, and possession.

A lease conveys a possessory estate for a term; the landlord owes the covenant of quiet enjoyment, and rent obligations survive absent constructive eviction.

Easements may arise by express grant, implication, necessity, or prescription, and bind successors who take with notice.

Private nuisance protects use and enjoyment of land, while trespass protects the right to exclusive possession.

Land tenure is dual: deeded (statutory) land held under registered deeds, and customary land held by communities under customary law.

The Land Rights Law of 2018 recognizes community ownership of customary land and requires formal documentation and registration of community boundaries.

Community land is governed by a Community Land Development and Management Committee elected by the community assembly, with mandated representation of women and youth.

Community land may not be sold outright; long-term leases require community consent through the CLDMC and assembly processes.

Fee title to real property is reserved to Liberian citizens; non-citizens may hold only leases and other limited interests for a term of years.

State land is conveyed by Public Land Sale Deed after survey and Lands Authority approval; the deed must be probated and registered to perfect title.

The Lands Authority administers public land, surveys, and deeds registration alongside the Deeds Registry.

Expropriation for public use requires due process and just compensation; boundary and title disputes are litigated in the circuit courts with appeal to the Supreme Court.

The Monthly and Probate Courts have original jurisdiction over probate of wills and administration of estates in each county.

A written will must be signed by the testator or by another at the testator's direction and attested by witnesses in the manner the probate statutes require.

Testamentary capacity requires that the testator be of the age of majority and of sound mind at execution; fraud, duress, or undue influence vitiates the will.

A will may be revoked by a later will or codicil, by a physical act done with intent to revoke, or by operation of law.

Letters testamentary issue to the named executor; letters of administration issue to a qualified administrator when the decedent died intestate.

The personal representative must file an inventory, give notice to creditors, pay lawful debts and taxes, and account to the court before distribution.

Intestate succession is governed by the Domestic Relations Law: the surviving spouse takes a statutory share and the children share the residue equally.

A caveat contests probate, and the proponent bears the burden of proving due execution and testamentary capacity.

Relevant evidence is admissible unless excluded by the Constitution, a statute, or a rule of privilege or policy; irrelevant evidence is excluded.

The prosecution must prove every element beyond a reasonable doubt; civil claims require proof by a preponderance of the evidence.

Hearsay is an out-of-court statement offered for its truth and is inadmissible unless an exception applies, such as dying declaration, excited utterance, business records, or admission.

The best evidence rule requires production of the original writing, recording, or photograph to prove its contents, absent a recognized excuse.

Character evidence is generally inadmissible to prove conduct, except where character is in issue or for impeachment by reputation or prior conviction.

Privileged communications include attorney-client, spousal, clergy-penitent, and physician-patient; the holder may waive the privilege.

Real and demonstrative evidence must be authenticated and shown to have an unbroken chain of custody from seizure to trial.

Expert testimony is admissible where the witness's specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact and the witness is qualified by knowledge, skill, or experience.

Liberian courts administer law and equity together; equitable remedies are discretionary and tried by the judge, not the jury.

Maxims applied include clean hands, he who seeks equity must do equity, equity follows the law, and delay defeats equity through laches.

Specific performance compels performance of a contract for unique subject matter, typically land, where damages are inadequate.

Injunctions issue on a showing of likelihood of success, irreparable harm, favorable balance of hardships, and consistency with the public interest.

Rescission restores the parties to their pre-contract positions for fraud, mistake, or material breach; restitution prevents unjust enrichment.

Reformation corrects a written instrument that fails to express the parties' agreement because of mutual mistake.

Equitable estoppel bars a party whose representations or silence induced another's detrimental reliance.

Prerogative writs - mandamus, prohibition, certiorari, quo warranto, and habeas corpus - are extraordinary remedies granted when no adequate legal remedy exists.

Liberia's legal system is a hybrid of Anglo-American common law, statutory codes, and customary law; courts apply common law and equity where no statute governs.

The Liberian Code of Laws Revised organizes statutes by title - Title 1 Civil Procedure Law, Title 2 Criminal Procedure Law, Title 3 Domestic Relations Law - and later acts amend and supplement those titles.

Judicial hierarchy: Supreme Court, circuit courts organized in judicial circuits, Monthly and Probate Courts, magistrate courts, and justices of the peace.

Supreme Court decisions bind all inferior courts, and the Court may overrule its own precedent when convinced of error.

The Supreme Court reviews a trial court's findings of fact only for clear error but decides questions of law de novo.

Canons applied include plain meaning, avoidance of absurdity, later statute repeals earlier inconsistent statute, and specific provisions control general ones.

Reported decisions appear in the Liberian Law Reports (LLR); unreported opinions are cited by case name and date.

The President nominates and the Senate confirms justices and judges; judicial officers hold office during good behavior and are removable by impeachment.

Admission to the bar is controlled by the Supreme Court, which sets qualifications: citizenship and residence, good moral character, approved legal education, bar examination, and admission ceremony.

The profession is tiered: attorneys-at-law practice in the lower courts, while counsellors-at-law are admitted to practice before the Supreme Court.

Duties to clients include competence, diligence, communication, confidentiality, avoidance of conflicts of interest, and reasonable fees.

Client funds must be held in a separate trust account, never commingled with the lawyer's own funds, and accounted for promptly.

A lawyer must not knowingly make false statements of fact or law to a tribunal and must disclose adverse controlling authority.

Withdrawal requires good cause and, where litigation is pending, leave of court; the lawyer must protect the client's interests during withdrawal.

Sanctions include private reprimand, public censure, suspension, and disbarment, imposed through disciplinary proceedings supervised by the Supreme Court.

The Liberian National Bar Association is the professional body through which the Supreme Court regulates practice standards and discipline.