LAW 231 Final Exam Study Guide Already Graded A

LAW 231 Final Exam Study Guide Already Graded A Stare Decisis A common law doctrine under which judges are obligated to follow the precedents established in prior decisions Decisions made by a higher court are binding on lower courts A court should not overturn its own precedent unless there is compelling reason to do so Missouri Court System Supreme Court of Missouri -- Court of Appeals -- Circuit Courts (Trial Courts) -- Judicial Selection Federal Court System U.S. Supreme Court -- U.S. courts of appeals (intermediate courts of appeals) -- U.S. district courts (trial courts of general jurisdictions) and various courts of limited jurisdictions writ of certiorari An order by a higher court directing a lower court to send up a case for review (A formal writ used to bring a case before the Supreme Court) long-arm statute a statute that extends a state's jurisdiction to nonresidents who were not served a summons within the state Parties in Trial Courts Plaintiff vs. Defendent Parties in Appeals Courts Appellant vs. Appellee (appellant files appeal) Mediation A method of settling disputes outside of court by using the services of a neutral third party, called a mediator. The mediator acts as a communicating agent between the parties and suggests ways in which the parties can resolve their dispute Arbitration a process of settling an argument or disagreement in which the people or groups on both sides present their opinions and ideas to a third person or group the arbitrator need not be a judge or a lawyer, the decision is binding and enforceable because parties are legally bound by contracts Negotiation Mutual discussion and arrangement of the terms of a transaction or agreement informal, with or without attorney Principles-based ethics Religion: religious principles no exceptions (deontogoly) Rights: duty to respect others' rights Kantian: what would happen if everyone acted the same way Consequences-based ethics Utilitarianism: 1. who will be affected? 2. cost/benefit analysis -- negative/positive results 3. greatest good for greatest number Sarbanes-Oxley Act A law passed by Congress that requires the CEO and CFO to certify that their firm's financial statements are accurate ways for employees to report suspected illegal practices Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Contains explicit extraterritorial application (meant to apply to bribes that happen in another country); in 1977; designed to stop bribery of foreign officials and to prohibit U.S. citizens and companies from making payments to foreign officials whose duties are not "essentially ministerial or clerical" for purpose of obtaining business; exception grease payments; applies to US persons/companies trading on US stock exchange foreign company on stock exchange Equal Protection Clause Clause in the Fourteenth Amendment that forbids any state to deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. By interpretation, the Fifth Amendment imposes the same limitation on the national government. This clause is the major constitutional restraint on the power of governments to discriminate against persons because of race, national origin, or sex. Interstate Commerce Clause Former independent agency of the U.S. government, established in 1887; it was charged with regulating the economics and services of specified carriers engaged in transportation between states. Surface transportation under the it's jurisdiction included railroads, trucking companies, bus lines, freight forwarders, water carriers, oil pipelines, transportation brokers, and express agencies. After his election in 1904, Theodore Roosevelt demonstrated support of progressive reforms by strengthening this "enabling" legislation A statute enacted by Congress that authorizes the creation of an administrative agency and specifies the name, composition, purpose, and powers of the agency being created. "notice and comment" Notice-and-comment rulemaking is a common rulemaking procedure under which a proposed rule is published in the Federal Register and is open to comment by the general public. Rules that are exempt from "notice-and-comment" requirements of the APA are those dealing with military or foreign affairs functions and those "relating to agency management or personnel or to public property, loans, grants, benefits or contracts. "deference" administrative agency The deference