Law Commons^™

Objections And Exceptions, Leo Carlin

West Virginia Law Review

No abstract provided.

Torts-Family Relationship-Child's Right To Recover For Enticement Of Parent From Home, William H. Lowery

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a six year old girl, sued to recover damages alleged to have been sustained as a result of defendant's enticing her mother from the family home. Plaintiff contended that as a child and member of the family she had a legally protected right to maintenance of the family relationship. Defendant answered that no tort had been committed, since no right in the plaintiff was recognized at common law and that to recognize such a right would amount to judicial legislation. From a judgment in favor of plaintiff, defendant appealed. Held, affirmed. Allowing a child a right of action …

Torts-Assumption Of Risk-Flying Pucks And The Ice Hockey Spectator, James F. Gordy S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff and her husband attended an ice hockey game being sponsored by the defendant. Both testified that they knew nothing about the game. They asked for the ''best seats in the house" and were seated in the front row of an unprotected section, immediately adjacent to the ice and behind a low wooden wall. During the progress of the game, plaintiff was struck and injured by a puck driven from the ice. Defendant had furnished screened areas, which were unfilled at the time; he had prominently displayed many large placards warning of the danger of flying pucks and advising of …

Agency-Liability Of Employer For Employee's Intentional Torts, L. W. Larson, Jr.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a spectator occupying a front seat at a hockey game, was struck and injured by one of the players who was attempting to strike an opponent. Beyond the fact that a hockey game was in progress, there was nothing to indicate the player's motive. Plaintiff recovered judgment against appellant, the corporation that employed the player who had struck her. The lower court instructed the jury that the player who had struck the plaintiff was as a matter of law acting as a servant, agent, or employee and within the scope of his employment at the time the plaintiff was …

Municipal Tort Liability, Allan F. Smith

Michigan Law Review

Municipal government in the United States is big business. In 1946, the 397 cities having a population of 25,000 or more spent a total of nearly 3 billion dollars for general governmental expenditures. In 1947 the total increased by 17 per cent to $3,477,000,000. Of that amount, 2½ billion were actual operational expenses for such activities as public safety, public health, sanitation, hospitals, local street and highway maintenance, and schools. Since the figures do not include the amounts expended in connection with municipal water works or municipal street railways, they lend weight to the assertion that our municipal governments are …

Corporations-Shareholders' Derivative Suits-When Demand On Shareholders Is A Prerequisite To Maintenance Of Suit, Thomas L. Waterbury S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

A shareholder's derivative suit is an equity proceeding instituted by a shareholder on behalf of himself and all other shareholders to assert corporate rights. Both the corporation and the parties allegedly liable to the corporation are necessary parties. The question to be considered in this comment is, when must the plaintiff shareholder show that he sought redress for the corporation through collective action of the shareholders and failed to secure it? As a preliminary matter, we may ask what sort of collective action the shareholders are expected to take. A few authorities suggest that the shareholders, as a body, bring …

Successful Trial Tactics, By A. S. Cutler, Lloyd Paul Stryker

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Corporations-Officers And Directors-Stock Option Incentive Employment Contracts For Corporation Executives, A. B. Perlin, Jr. S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

In the past few decades considerable attention has been directed toward "piecework payment" for corporate executives; that is, compensation based largely upon results rather than upon past or expected performance. The stock option incentive employment contract' is one of the means utilized to achieve that desired objective.

Equity-Divorce And Separation-Wife's Agreement Not To Claim Alimony As Defense To Later Action For Arrears, Melvin J. Spencer

Michigan Law Review

In a prior action against H for separate maintenance, W was awarded custody of their children and monthly maintenance of $50. She later lived openly with X, adopted his name, and had a child by him. Some of the children left W during their minority and lived with H. The maintenance payments were discontinued when W told H that she would no longer receive them. Four years after payments ceased, W unsuccessfully moved the federal district court to adjudge H guilty of contempt and to award her a money judgment for the past-due installments. Held, judgment for …

Res Judicata-Use Defensively Of Former Judgment By One Not A Party Or In Privity With A Party To Former Action, Richard H. Conn

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff sued defendant in a federal district court to foreclose a mortgage lien alleged to exist on defendant's land in consequence of a loan by plaintiff to defendant's predecessor in title. Defendant's land was but a part of the tract originally encumbered. In a prior action in the state court, plaintiff had sought foreclosure of the same mortgage against the holder of another parcel of the mortgaged land on the precise grounds now asserted against defendant. In that action it was held that the entire mortgage had already been discharged. Defendant moved for summary judgment, contending that the former decision …

Contracts-Duty To Mitigate Damages Upon Anticipatory Breach Of Forward Contract Of Sale, William F. Snyder

Michigan Law Review

The theory of our law in regard to damages for breach of contract has been to give the innocent party as nearly as possible what he would have received had the contract been performed. To this end, our courts have worked out a rough formula which has been described by Professor Grismore as follows:

" ... The promisee is, in general, entitled to recover the economic equivalent of the performance promised, at the time and place fixed in the contract, plus any losses incurred or gains prevented through not receiving it, less any savings that have resulted to the promisee …

Bills And Notes-Personal Liability Of Agent Who Signs Note Which Principal Has No Legal Power To Execute, N. S. Peterman S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Defendant gave a note, signed by him in his representative capacity as village president, to plaintiff in payment for services rendered to the village. Defendant signed after he was authorized to do so by a resolution of the village board of trustees. The facts showed that the parties understood the village to be the primary obligor on the note. Actually, the village had no legal power to make such notes and could not have been indebted by them. Plaintiff sued defendant as an individual and won a verdict in the trial court. On appeal, held, reversed. Defendant having signed …

Tort Liability Of The State: The Federal Tort Claims Act And The Crown Proceedings Act, Harry Street

Michigan Law Review

Anglo-American legal systems have for so long lingered behind the Continent of Europe in developing a satisfactory basis of governmental civil liability that the enactment of the Federal Tort Claims Act of 1946 in the United States, and the Crown Proceedings Act of 1947 in Great Britain are events justifying a comparison and evaluation of these belated attempts to provide the citizens with an adequate remedy against the State.

Courts--Process--Nonresident Motorist Service Statute--Service On "Driver" As Within Provision Permitting Service On "Owner", C. C. Grunewald S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

While in Arkansas, appellee, an Illinois resident, drove a third party's automobile and was involved in a collision in which plaintiff's intestate was killed. Plaintiff instituted a negligence action in an Arkansas court against appellee, who had previously returned to Chicago, by service and notification pursuant to the Arkansas nonresident motorist service statute. Appellee appeared specially and moved to quash the service as ineffective under the statute. On appeal from the lower court's decision sustaining the motion, held, affirmed. The statutory language which permitted service on a nonresident "owner" did not allow service on a nonresident "driver." Kerr v. …

Evidence - Office Custom To Prove Fact Of Mailing, R. J. Nordstrom S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff agreed to purchase land from defendant by a contract in which it was stipulated that the performance of the mechanics of purchase would be completed through a third party, Webster. Plaintiff deposited the purchase money with Webster with instructions to deliver it to defendant only after he (Webster) had, inter alia, procured a policy of title insurance. Webster absconded with the funds. In a suit to determine the incidence of loss, plaintiff sought to prove that Webster had procured the policy before he absconded and therefore held the purchase money as agent for defendant. The proof that plaintiff …

Venue-Forum Non Conveniens-Transfer Of Venue In Federal Employers' Liability Cases Under The New Judicial Code, Donald D. Davis

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a resident of Texas, brought action in a United States district court in Minnesota to recover damages under the Federal Employers' Liability Act for injuries received in an accident in Texas. Defendant, in accordance with section 1404(a) of the United States Judicial Code, moved for a change of venue to Texas for the convenience of parties and witnesses and in the interest of justice. Plaintiff resisted the transfer solely on the ground that the section did not apply where venue was granted under the F.E.L.A. Held, by a two judge district court, motion granted. Hayes v. Chicago, R.I. …

Libel-Limitation Of Actions-"Single Publication Rule" Extended To Include Books, W. M. Myers

Michigan Law Review

In November, 1941, defendant book publishers commenced distribution of a book containing allegedly libelous statements concerning plaintiff. Thereafter, there were seven additional printings, the last in December, 1943, distribution of which began in March, 1944. Although more than 12,000 copies of the book were sold prior to this reprinting, only 60 copies were sold from stock during the year immediately preceding July 2, I 946, the date plaintiff instituted his action. To determine whether the action was barred by the statute of limitations, the following question was certified to the New York Court of Appeals: "Do sales from stock by …

Torts - Liability For Intentionally Inflicted Emotional Disturbance, Donald D. Davis

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff alleged that defendant used vile and abusive language toward her on a public street; that defendant knew she was advanced in pregnancy, highly nervous and sensitive; and that by reason of defendant's language she suffered an emotional disturbance resulting in impairment of health. The trial court rendered judgment in favor of the defendant after the opening statement of plaintiff's counsel. The court of appeals reversed the judgment of the trial court and held that plaintiff was entitled to submit her evidence to the jury. On appeal, held, reversed. Plaintiff did not allege that she was put in fear …