OH Bar cheat sheet

Personal jurisdiction requires minimum contacts plus fair play and substantial justice; a defendant who purposefully avails itself of the forum's benefits may be sued there on claims arising from those contacts.

Subject-matter jurisdiction cannot be waived; a federal court must dismiss sua sponte if it lacks it, but a party may waive personal jurisdiction by failing to raise it in the first response.

Diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. §1332 requires complete diversity plus an amount in controversy exceeding $75,000, exclusive of interest and costs.

A corporation is a citizen of its state of incorporation and its principal place of business (nerve center); an LLC takes the citizenship of every member.

Venue under §1391 lies where any defendant resides, where a substantial part of the events occurred, or, if none, where any defendant is subject to personal jurisdiction.

Erie doctrine: federal courts apply state substantive law and federal procedural law; Hanna analysis asks whether a Federal Rule directly conflicts with state law and is valid under the Rules Enabling Act.

A defendant must respond within 21 days of service (60 days if service waived under Rule 4(d)); the answer must raise compulsory counterclaims and Rule 12(b) defenses or they are waived.

Summary judgment under Rule 56 requires no genuine dispute of material fact, viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmovant; the movant must show entitlement to judgment as a matter of law.

Claim preclusion requires a final judgment on the merits, same parties or privies, and the same claim; issue preclusion requires actual litigation and determination of the issue.

Standing requires injury in fact, causation, and redressability; taxpayer standing is barred except for Establishment Clause challenges to congressional appropriations under the spending power.

Strict scrutiny applies to suspect classifications (race, national origin, alienage in some contexts) and fundamental rights; the law must be necessary to a compelling interest and narrowly tailored.

Intermediate scrutiny applies to sex and illegitimacy classifications; the law must be substantially related to an important governmental interest with an exceedingly persuasive justification.

Rational basis review applies to age, wealth, disability, and sexual orientation (currently, per prevailing doctrine), upholding the law if it is rationally related to a legitimate interest.

The Commerce Clause permits regulation of channels, instrumentalities, and activities substantially affecting interstate commerce; Lopez limits regulation of noneconomic intrastate activity.

Under the Dormant Commerce Clause, discriminatory state laws face strict scrutiny and are invalid absent a legitimate local purpose that cannot be served by nondiscriminatory means.

The Establishment Clause (Lemon) requires a secular purpose, primary effect neither advancing nor inhibiting religion, and no excessive entanglement; coercion is the core concern.

Due process requires notice and a meaningful opportunity to be heard; procedural protection is measured by the Mathews v. Eldridge balancing of private interest, risk of error, and government burden.

The Eleventh Amendment bars suits against states in federal court; Ex parte Young permits prospective injunctive relief against state officers for ongoing federal violations.

A contract requires offer, acceptance, consideration, and no valid defense; a promise is consideration if bargained for and inducing the return promise (or performance).

Under UCC §2-207, additional or different terms in a definite and seasonable expression of acceptance become part of the contract unless objected to, materially alter, or the offer expressly limits acceptance.

The Statute of Frauds requires a writing for marriage, year-plus, land, executor, surety, and goods over $500; the merchant confirmation exception applies between merchants.

Expectation damages place the nonbreaching party in the position of performance; consequential damages require foreseeability at contract formation (Hadley v. Baxendale).

A liquidated damages clause is enforceable if damages were difficult to estimate at formation and the amount is a reasonable forecast, not a penalty.

The perfect tender rule (UCC) allows rejection of goods unless cured within the contract time; common law requires substantial performance for material breach.

Anticipatory repudiation discharges the nonbreaching party if the obligor clearly indicates it will not perform; the obligee may await performance or seek damages.

The parol evidence rule bars prior or contemporaneous oral statements contradicting a fully integrated writing but allows evidence of ambiguity, fraud, and conditions precedent.

Third-party beneficiaries can enforce if the parties intended to benefit them; intended beneficiaries' rights vest when they materially change position, sue, or assent.

Common law murder requires malice aforethought (intent to kill, intent to cause serious harm, reckless indifference, or felony murder); first-degree murder requires premeditation.

Voluntary intoxication can negate specific intent crimes but not malice; involuntary intoxication is a defense if it renders the defendant unable to form the requisite mens rea.

Self-defense requires reasonable belief in imminent unlawful force; deadly force requires reasonable belief of imminent death or serious bodily harm, with no duty to retreat in most states.

The exclusionary rule bars evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment; the good-faith exception applies to objectively reasonable reliance on a warrant.

Miranda warnings are required before custodial interrogation; the suspect must invoke the right to remain silent or counsel unambiguously to stop questioning.

The Fourth Amendment requires probable cause for arrests and warrants; Terry stops require reasonable suspicion of criminal activity.

Felony murder requires the killing occur during the commission of an inherently dangerous felony; the merger doctrine bars felony murder based on the killing itself.

Conspiracy requires agreement plus intent to achieve the objective and, in most jurisdictions, an overt act; withdrawal requires notice and is ineffective against the conspiracy itself.

Double jeopardy bars retrial after acquittal or conviction but not after a mistrial for manifest necessity; it does not bar separate sovereign prosecutions.

Relevance requires that evidence have a tendency to make a fact of consequence more or less probable; relevant evidence may be excluded under Rule 403 if its probative value is substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice.

Character evidence is generally inadmissible to prove conduct, but exceptions include the accused's character trait, victim's character in self-defense, and character in issue (defamation, negligent entrustment).

Prior consistent statements are admissible to rehabilitate when there is an express or implied charge of recent fabrication or improper influence.

Hearsay is an out-of-court statement offered for its truth; nonhearsay uses include effect on the listener and verbal acts with independent legal significance.

Excited utterance requires a startling event and a statement made while the declarant was under the stress of excitement; present sense impression requires contemporaneous description.

The business records exception requires a record made in the regular course of business, at or near the time by someone with knowledge, unless the source or circumstances indicate lack of trustworthiness.

A witness may be impeached by prior inconsistent statements, bias, sensory deficiency, and character for truthfulness (felony convictions under Rule 609, subject to Rule 403).

Under Daubert, expert testimony must rest on sufficient facts, reliable methods, and be reliably applied; the jury weighs credibility, not admissibility.

Privilege includes attorney-client (confidential communication for legal advice, survives the relationship), physician-patient, and spousal privileges; waiver requires voluntary disclosure.

Fee simple absolute is the most complete estate, devisable and descendable; a life estate ends at death and is subject to waste liability.

A future interest in the grantor is reversion or possibility of reverter; in a third party it is remainder (vested or contingent) or executory interest.

The Rule Against Perpetuities voids interests that may vest more than 21 years after a life in being; contingent remainders and executory interests are subject to it.

A deed requires identification of parties, words of grant, description of land, and signature of the grantor; delivery with intent controls, not recording.

Recording acts: race, notice, and race-notice; a subsequent bona fide purchaser without notice prevails under notice and race-notice statutes.

Adverse possession requires actual, open and notorious, exclusive, continuous possession that is hostile for the statutory period (typically 10–21 years by state).

A mortgage requires a writing and recording to perfect against subsequent purchasers; foreclosure extinguishes junior liens but not senior liens.

A landlord may evict for nonpayment after notice; the implied warranty of habitability requires the premises be fit for human habitation, and retaliation is prohibited.

Easements may be created by express grant, implication, necessity, or prescription; they are terminated by release, merger, abandonment, or prescription.

Negligence requires duty, breach, causation (actual and proximate), and damages; the standard is the reasonable person unless a special standard applies (children, professionals).

Res ipsa loquitur permits an inference of negligence when the accident is of a kind that ordinarily does not occur without negligence and the instrumentality was in the defendant's exclusive control.

Proximate cause requires foreseeability; intervening causes supersede unless foreseeable, and the eggshell plaintiff rule holds the defendant liable for unforeseeable extent of harm.

Strict liability applies to abnormally dangerous activities and wild animals; products liability requires a defective condition unreasonably dangerous at the time of sale.

Products liability theories include negligence, strict liability, and breach of warranty; defenses include misuse, assumption of risk, and comparative fault.

Defamation requires a defamatory statement of fact, publication, fault, and damages; public officials must prove actual malice (New York Times v. Sullivan).

Invasion of privacy torts include appropriation, intrusion, public disclosure of private facts, and false light; newsworthiness is a defense.

Trespass requires intentional entry onto land; nuisance requires substantial and unreasonable interference with use and enjoyment, balancing utility and harm.

Comparative negligence reduces recovery by the plaintiff's share; contributory negligence is a complete bar in a minority of jurisdictions.

A general partnership forms by conduct, not filing; each partner is an agent of the partnership and jointly and severally liable for partnership obligations.

A limited partnership requires at least one general partner and one limited partner; limited partners are liable only to the extent of their investment unless they participate in control.

An LLC provides limited liability for members and pass-through taxation; management may be member-managed or manager-managed, per the operating agreement.

Corporate formation requires articles of incorporation filed with the state; the board of directors manages the corporation and owes duties of care and loyalty.

The business judgment rule presumes directors act on an informed basis, in good faith, and in the best interests of the corporation; it is rebuttable.

Piercing the corporate veil requires abuse of the corporate form, such as commingling or undercapitalization, plus injustice or fraud.

Agency relationships arise by consent, and the principal is liable for the agent's torts committed within the scope of employment (respondeat superior).

Securities under the 1933 Act require registration unless an exemption applies; Rule 10b-5 requires a material misrepresentation, scienter, reliance, and damages.

A director with a conflict must disclose and recuse; self-dealing transactions are voidable unless fair to the corporation or approved by disinterested directors.

Compensatory damages aim to restore the plaintiff to the position before the wrong; they must be proven with reasonable certainty and cannot be speculative.

Punitive damages require egregious conduct and are limited by due process (State Farm v. Campbell) to a single-digit ratio to compensatory damages in most cases.

Specific performance is available when damages are inadequate (unique goods, land) and the contract terms are definite, fair, and enforceable.

Injunctive relief requires irreparable harm, inadequacy of legal remedies, balance of hardships, and public interest; preliminary relief also requires likelihood of success on the merits.

Rescission restores the parties to their pre-contract positions; it requires material breach or fraud and prompt notice.

Restitution prevents unjust enrichment; the plaintiff may recover the reasonable value of benefits conferred even absent an enforceable contract.

Tracing allows a plaintiff to recover property or its identifiable proceeds from a wrongdoer; commingled funds require the lowest intermediate balance rule.

Constructive trusts and equitable liens are imposed to prevent unjust enrichment; they attach to specific property rather than imposing personal liability.

Nominal damages vindicate a legal right without proof of actual harm; they are available for trespass and breach of contract without damage.

The MPT presents a closed universe of facts and law; candidates must rely only on the provided library and file, not outside knowledge.

Task memoranda specify the deliverable (memo, brief, letter, contract provision); the format and audience dictate tone and structure.

Time allocation is typically 90 minutes per task; reading the task memo first frames what to extract from the library.

The library contains statutes, cases, and rules; the file contains client facts, transcripts, and correspondence; both must be synthesized.

Legal analysis must apply the provided authorities to the file facts, distinguishing adverse authority and analogizing favorable precedent.

Fact statements must be accurate and complete; omitting unfavorable facts weakens credibility and loses points.

Objective tasks (memos, opinion letters) predict outcomes; persuasive tasks (briefs, motions) advocate a position with authority.

Formatting matters: headings, citations to the provided library, and clear organization earn points; citations should follow the provided citation format.

Managing time requires outlining before writing and reserving time to proofread and check that every task instruction was addressed.

The MBE consists of 200 multiple-choice questions across seven subjects, scored on a scaled basis; each question has one best answer.

Civil Procedure questions test jurisdiction, venue, pleadings, joinder, discovery, trial, and preclusion under the Federal Rules.

Constitutional Law questions emphasize judicial review, federalism, due process, equal protection, and First Amendment freedoms.

Contracts questions test formation, defenses, performance, breach, and remedies under common law and UCC Article 2.

Criminal Law questions test elements, defenses, and constitutional criminal procedure, including Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendment issues.

Evidence questions test relevance, hearsay and exceptions, character evidence, impeachment, privilege, and expert testimony.

Real Property questions test estates, future interests, landlord-tenant, conveyancing, recording, and mortgages.

Torts questions test negligence, intentional torts, strict liability, products liability, defamation, and privacy.

Answer choices often turn on a single element; eliminating choices that misstate the rule is a reliable strategy.

Ohio follows a modified comparative negligence rule under R.C. 2315.33: a plaintiff may recover only if the plaintiff's fault is 50% or less, with damages reduced proportionally.

Ohio's statute of limitations for personal injury is two years (R.C. 2305.10); for written contracts it is eight years (R.C. 2305.06), and oral contracts six years.

Ohio's Rules of Civil Procedure largely track the Federal Rules; Civ. R. 12(B) defenses must be raised in the answer or by motion within the response time.

Ohio requires a certificate of merit in medical malpractice actions (Civ. R. 10(D)(2)) and an affidavit of merit in certain professional negligence cases.

Ohio's statute of frauds (R.C. 1335.05) requires a writing for land sales, leases over one year, and promises to answer for another's debt.

Ohio uses a contributory negligence bar only in a few contexts; joint and several liability is limited under R.C. 2307.22 to specified circumstances.

Ohio's criminal code defines murder (R.C. 2903.02) and voluntary manslaughter (R.C. 2903.03); self-defense requires a reasonable belief in imminent harm.

Ohio's Rules of Evidence track the Federal Rules; hearsay exceptions are codified in Evid. R. 803 and 804, with Ohio-specific provisions for learned treatises.

Ohio's Rules of Professional Conduct (Prof. Cond. R.) govern attorney conduct, including confidentiality, conflicts, and fee agreements, and are enforced by the Ohio Supreme Court.