Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 6 of 6
Full-Text Articles in Law
The Fault That Lies Within Our Contract Law, George M. Cohen
The Fault That Lies Within Our Contract Law, George M. Cohen
Michigan Law Review
Scholars and courts typically describe and defend American contract law as a system of strict liability, or liability without fault. Strict liability generally means that the reason for nonperformance does not matter in determining whether a contracting party breached. Strict liability also permeates the doctrines of contract damages, under which the reason for the breach does not matter in determining the measure of damages, and the doctrines of contract formation, under which the reason for failing to contract does not matter In my Article, I take issue with the strict liability paradigm, as I have in my prior work on …
Outrageous Fortune And The Criminalization Of Mass Torts, Richard A. Nagareda
Outrageous Fortune And The Criminalization Of Mass Torts, Richard A. Nagareda
Michigan Law Review
The case of the blameworthy-but-fortunate defendant has emerged as one of the most perplexing scenarios in mass tort litigation today. One need look no further than the front page of the newspaper to find examples of mass tort defendants said to have engaged in irresponsible conduct - even conduct that one might regard as morally outrageous in character - but that nonetheless advance eminently plausible contentions that they have not caused harm to others. This issue is not merely a matter for abstract speculation. A now-familiar mass tort scenario involves a defendant that markets a product without informing consumers about …
Contracts-Release-Misrepresentation By Releasor's Attorney- Avoidance By Releasor For Unilateral Mistake As To Contents, Neil Mckay S.Ed.
Contracts-Release-Misrepresentation By Releasor's Attorney- Avoidance By Releasor For Unilateral Mistake As To Contents, Neil Mckay S.Ed.
Michigan Law Review
Under the objective theory of mutual assent, which bases the imposition of contractual obligations on the expressed intent of the parties, rather than on a subjective meeting of their minds, the law has generally granted relief to the signer of a contract who is under a misapprehension as to its contents only where he can show that the mistake was made without negligence on his part. The theory of affording relief in such a case apparently is that the instrument does not really represent the expression of the signer's intent, and the contract is, therefore, void at its inception. In …
Insurance - Exclusionary Clauses - Death Due To Violation Of The Law By The Insured, Robert A. Solomon
Insurance - Exclusionary Clauses - Death Due To Violation Of The Law By The Insured, Robert A. Solomon
Michigan Law Review
When a person carrying a life or accident insurance policy dies as the result of an act committed by him in violation of the law, the beneficiaries may or may not be precluded from recovering upon it. In the absence of a special exclusionary clause, the general view is that the beneficiary may recover. However, if it appears that at the time the insured took out the policy he intended to commit a crime recovery is barred, at least if the death occurred within the contestability period. In order to delimit from the general coverage provisions the risks that would …
Torts - Injuries Following Mental Disturbance - Collection Letters, Michigan Law Review
Torts - Injuries Following Mental Disturbance - Collection Letters, Michigan Law Review
Michigan Law Review
To collect a lawful debt of $61.80, defendant collecting agent wrote plaintiff three letters threatening to sue and to report plaintiff's poor pay record to the members of defendant association if payment was not promptly made. Plaintiff alleged that he was just recovering from a serious illness and that the defendant was aware of the plaintiff's weakened condition; that the defendant sent the letters intending to cause the plaintiff mental and physical injury, for the purpose of collecting the bill, and that the plaintiff did suffer a relapse as well as mental agony. The trial court sustained the defendant's demurrer. …
Frauds - Actions - Proper Party Plaintiff, Michigan Law Review
Frauds - Actions - Proper Party Plaintiff, Michigan Law Review
Michigan Law Review
The American Law Institute Restatement of Torts states that a person injured by a fraudulent representation can recover from the maker only if the maker desired this injured person to rely on the representation. The maker's liability is further limited to those injuries arising from transactions in which the maker desired to influence the injured person.