Law Commons^™

The Paradoxes Of Restitution, Mark A. Edwards

Faculty Scholarship

Restitution following mass dispossession is often considered both ideal and impossible. Why? This article identifies two previously unnamed paradoxes that undermine the possibility of restitution.

First, both dispossession and restitution depend on the social construction of rights-worthiness. Over time, people once considered unworthy of property rights ‘become’ worthy of them. However, time also corrodes the practicality and moral weight of restitution claims. By the time the dispossessed ‘become’ worthy of property rights, restitution claims are no longer practically or morally viable. This is the time-unworthiness paradox.

Second, restitution claims are undermined by the concept of collective responsibility. People are sometimes …

The Legacy Of The 9/11 Fund And The Minnesota I-35w Bridge-Collapse Fund: Creating A Template For Compensating Victims Of Future Mass-Tort Catastrophes, Michael K. Steenson

Faculty Scholarship

The purpose of this article is to analyze and compare the 9/11 Fund and the Minnesota bridge-collapse compensation scheme for purposes of illustrating the necessary components of any future compensation schemes legislatures consider adopting in cases involving other catastrophes. This article first sets out the primary issues that must be addressed when considering a compensation scheme. It then examines the choices made in the 9/11 Fund and Minnesota’s bridge-collapse compensation scheme. A brief comparison of the two compensation schemes follows to provide the framework for considering the components of future compensation schemes.

The Ethics Of Invalid And 'Iffy' Contract Clauses, In Symposium: Contracting Out Of The Uniform Commercial Code, Christina L. Kunz

Faculty Scholarship

This Symposium focuses on the extent to which attorneys can use agreed terms to supplant or “bump” the provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC). The articles in this Symposium demonstrate that the degree to which attorneys customarily “contract out” varies considerably from UCC article to article. In reality, though, the issues surrounding contracting out of UCC provisions are not limited to the UCC, statutes, or other codified rules. Most “repeat players” in the market periodically ask their lawyers to redraft their standard-form contracts in ways that increasingly favor the drafter. Some of these lawyers may intentionally draft clauses that …

Is Public Health Paternalism Really Never Justified? A Response To Joel Feinberg, Thaddeus Mason Pope

Faculty Scholarship

n the preeminent scholarly legal treatise on paternalism, The Moral Limits of the Criminal Law: Harm to Self, Joel Feinberg argues that hard paternalism is never justified because it is superfluous; all reasonable restriction of self-regarding conduct can be justified on (more palatable) soft paternalistic grounds.

In this article, I argue that Feinberg's strategy seems to work only because he "stretches" soft paternalism to justify liberty limitation that is properly described as hard paternalism. I expose Feinberg's strained appeals, and argue for honesty and transparency regarding the bases for paternalistic liberty limitation. If the rationale for public health restrictions on …

Defective Products And Product Warranty Claims In Minnesota, J. David Prince

William Mitchell Law Review

Warranty law is an important supplement to tort law principles governing liability for defective products. Warranties arise from promises or assertions associated with either the sale of a product or some other transfer of a product for value. Such promises or assertions about a product may be express, made in the form of the seller’s statements about the qualities or attributes of the product, or they may simply be implied as a matter of policy. Although warranty law is generally regarded today as part of the body of contract law, the origins of warranty lie in tort. Important developments in …

Case Note: Tort Law—Shades Of Gray: The Sophisticated Intermediary Defense Is Now Available For Minnesota Industrial Failure To Warn Actions—Gray V. Badger Mining Corp., Kerri Nelson

William Mitchell Law Review

This Note briefly examines the context of Minnesota failure to warn claims against industrial suppliers. It describes the various defenses Gray has made available, particularly the sophisticated intermediary and bulk supplier doctrines. The Note also reviews the various jurisdictional incarnations of the sophisticated intermediary defense, and analyzes the doctrine’s application in Gray. Additionally, the Note attempts to predict Gray’s future, recommending that the sophisticated intermediary defense not be expanded beyond the employment context, and suggesting that the Gray defenses, viewed as a cohesive whole, will quickly get rid of weaker claims while permitting valid claims to go forward. Finally, the …

Red Owl's Legacy, Gregory M. Duhl

Faculty Scholarship

In the early 1960s, Joseph Hoffman, a high school graduate, baker and father of seven, sought to obtain a Red Owl grocery store franchise in Wisconsin. He entered into negotiations with Red Owl Stores, Inc. after the franchisor assured him that the $18,000 he had to invest in the franchise was sufficient. Over the course of the negotiations, Red Owl encouraged Hoffman to sell his bakery, buy a small grocery store to gain experience in the grocery business, sell his grocery store three months later, and move his family to the desired location for his Red Owl franchise. The negotiations …

Essay: Recent Developments In Minnesota Dram Shop Law, Christopher E. Celichowski, Michael T. Johnson

William Mitchell Law Review

Minnesota's Civil Damages Act is a creature of statute without counterpart in common law. The Act, referred to as the “Dram Shop Act,” is highly penal in nature and is intended to provide remedies for damages attributable to commercial lenders' illegal sale of intoxicating liquors. Since the Act's inception more than ninety-two years ago, Minnesota courts traditionally have construed it in a strict fashion. Over its long evolution, the “duet” of legislative action and court interpretation served to clarify several ambiguities within the Act. Despite precise and oftentimes circumstantial application, certain ambiguities remain. The following article will--in the context of …

Minnesota And The American Rule: The Recoverability Of Attorneys’ Fees Following In Re Silicone Implant Insurance Coverage Litigation, John M. Bjorkman

William Mitchell Law Review

In the United States, a successful litigant is generally not entitled to recover attorneys' fees from the opposing party absent specific statutory or contractual authorization. This basic principle is commonly referred to as the American Rule. Minnesota recognized and adopted the American Rule roughly 125 years ago. A limited number of exceptions to this longstanding rule exist, but Minnesota courts have generally been reluctant to expand or add to these exceptions. In Minnesota, an exception to the American Rule exists for fees incurred in a declaratory action to establish insurance coverage but only if the insurer has breached its duty …

Civil Justice Reform Symposium: Introduction, James F. Hogg

Faculty Scholarship

Many people in the United States are not happy about the way in which litigation proceeds. In a country sometimes thought to be overpopulated with lawyers, either one party or both parties in a significant percentage of civil cases apparently cannot afford, or decline to retain, legal counsel. Financing for legal aid seems to be less than adequate, pro bono services are helping to some extent, but the administration of civil justice is in danger of sinking in the swamp of pro se ("do-it-yourself') litigation. The articles in this symposium discuss ideas for reform, such as introductory resources directed at …

With The Legislature's Permission And The Supreme Court"S Consent, Common Law Social Host Liability Returns To Minnesota, Michael K. Steenson

Faculty Scholarship

In 1990, the Minnesota Legislature amended the Civil Damage Act to allow for common law tort claims against persons 21 years old or older who knowingly provide alcohol to a person under 21 years of age. The 1990 amendment is unique because the legislature in effect appears to be releasing its stranglehold on liquor liability law, permitting the courts to apply common law negligence principles under the defined circumstances, but without providing any guidelines as to how the common law remedy should be formulated. The interpretive problems the amendment creates will eventually have to be resolved by the courts. The …

The Semiconductor Chip Protection Act And Its Impact On The International Protection Of Chip Designs, Jay Erstling

Faculty Scholarship

The United States Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984 (“SCPA”') has already had a profound impact on the creation of foreign legal systems of chip protection. The allure of reciprocity under the SCPA has motivated a host of nations, including Japan, the Member States of the European Communities (“EC”'), Sweden, Finland, Canada, Australia, and Switzerland, to adopt or consider adopting chip protection legislation. The SCPA has also been the impetus for multilateral discussions within the World Intellectual Property Organization (“WIPO”') and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (“GATT”') to establish an international standard of chip protection. The result has …

Bandwagon Is Rolling: Adr Demands And Thrives On Lawyers Creative Thinking, Christine D. Ver Ploeg

Faculty Scholarship

The ADR (alternative dispute resolution) bandwagon is rolling. Clients are becoming disenchanted with traditional litigation, and they're hearing about ADR. ADR has three broad categories: mediation, the mini-trial, and arbitration. Attorneys can provide a real service to clients by being familiar with and developing skills in ADR.

Court Trial Empirical Survey: Interview Responses From Trial Judges Explaining Their Experiences And Views Regarding The Trial Of Non-Jury Cases, John O. Sonsteng, Roger S. Haydock

Faculty Scholarship

Knowing how a judge will react to certain trial techniques in a trial can greatly enhance an attorney's effectiveness in the courtroom. This article contains and explains the results of the authors' empirical survey. Fifty-nine judges serving in both criminal and civil court in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area were surveyed, with each judge responding to thirty-eight questions designed to obtain objective information concerning their experiences and views on effective trial advocacy. The survey covered eight topics: (1) trial briefs; (2) pretrial chambers discussions; (3) opening statements; (4) direct and cross-examinations; (5) evidentiary matters; (6) closing arguments; (7) findings of fact …