1: Case Scenerio:

Marcia Ferguson purchases an airline ticket. She complies with all of the carrier's ticketing, check-in, and confirmation requirements. When Ferguson boards the plane she is told that it is overbooked, that she has been "bumped" from the flight, and the carrier is sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused her. Ferguson tells the carrier's representative that they have to arrange alternative transportation for her.

1. Would Ferguson's claim be supported by the law?
2. Explain the other legal responsiblities the carrier has to Ferguson in this situation.
3. Would the carrier owe Ferguson "denied boarding compensation" if at the time of her scheduled flight the airport was hit with hurricane force winds and the flight was cancelled?

2: Case Scenerio:

Leo Anderson hires shirley Jackson as his literary agent to find a publisher for his books. When Jackson reads Anderson's latest manuscript, she realizes it is a best seller. She tells Anderson the book is so bad that no publisher will want to publish it. She offers to pay him $200 for the manuscript. He agrees. Jackson then sells the manuscript to a publisher for $1 million.

1. Did Jackson violate her duty as an agent to exercise judgment and skill in performing her work?
2. Explain the legal principles that would apply to this case should Anderson decide to take legal action against Jackson?
3. How could Anderson have avoided falling prey to a dishonest agent?

3: Case Scenerio:

Robert Patton works as an accountant for Marquois-Hanson Financial Corporation. At age 55, Patton develops problems with his eyes that require him to use a special lamp and to take frequent breaks to prevent eye strain. The condition also requires his relocation to an office with a window. Upon learning of the changes that awill have to be made, Patton's supervisor fires him and hires a younger person.

1. What law or laws might protect Patton in this situation.
2. Why would a company opt to fire an older employee and hire a younger, less experienced employee with similar credentials?
3. What is one way that you as an employee who has been with the same company for 20 years safeguard against being fired because of your age?

4: Case Scenerio:

Charles Gill gave Dianne Shively an engagement ring, worth approximately $3600, when they became engaged. Less than a month later, Shively told Gill that she was not ready for marriage.

1. Is Gill entitled to the return of the ring? Why or why not?
2. If Gill had broken the engagement, would a judge necessarily require Shively to return the ring?
3. In legal term, when a couple is engaged they are considered to be in what stage of the marriage contract?

5: Case Scenerio:

The Kings lease a residential dwelling from a partnership. The lease agreement provides that the tenants are to "take good care of the house" and "make, at their own expense, the necessary repairs caused by their own neglect or misuse." A guest of the Kings trips on a loose tread on an outside stairway and is injured.

1. Who is legally responsible, the landlord or the tenant? Explain.
2. Who would be held responsible, the landlord or the tenant, if someone in an apartment slipped on a wet kitchen floor?
3. What is the best way to protect yourself before entering into a lease agreement?

6: Case Scenerio:

William Galindo's neck was broken while he was playing in a high school football game. As a result of that injury, Galindo is a quadriplegic; he cannot use his arms or legs. The high school had an accident insurance policy that paid the following: $10,000 for the loss of both hands or both arms and $10,000 for the lost of both feet or both legs. The policy also contained the following words: "Maximum Dismembership Benefit $10,000."

1. Is Galindo entitled to insurance proceeds? If so, how much? Explain your answer.
2. If Galindo had been killed in the accident, how much money would the beneficiary recieve if the accident insurance policy had a double indemnity clause?
3. What other kind of insurance would you hope that Galindo had in this situation?

7: Case Scenerio:

Taylor took out several student loans to help pay for his college education. During the first year of the repayment period, when he owed $8,697, Taylor filed a petition for involuntary bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

1. Must Taylor repay his student loans?
2. Would Taylor have to repay his loan if he filed for bankruptcy during the seventh year of his repayment period?
3. What is involuntary bankruptcy and how is it filed?

8: Case Scenerio:

On September 14, David Siegel drew up and delivered a $20,000 check to Peter Peters, postdated to the following November 14. Peters immediately desposited the check in his own bank. Siegel's bank overlooked the date and deducted the money from Siegel's account on September 17.

1. Does Siegel have a valid reason to bring suit against his bank? Explain.
2. On what legal grounds would Siegel stand if on November 14 his bank refused to pay the check even with sufficient funds in his account?
3. Do you think it is wise to get into the practice of routinely postdating checks?

9: Case Scenerio:

Michael Reed was walking to work one morning and found a check on the sidewalk? The check was payable to a person named Irene Lupi.

1. Is Reed a holder? Why or why not?
2. If the check that Reed found was indorsed in blank by Irene Lupi, would Reed be a holder? Why or why not?
3. If the check that Reed found was indorsed by Irene Lupi, with a special endorsement to Charles Maclean, would Reed be a holder? Why or why not?

10: Case Scenerio:

Max Massie is a general partner in the construction firm of Massie, Briggs, and Yates. While operating a forklift at a construction site, Massie collides with a limousine owned by the mayor. The mayor sues not only Massie, but also Yates and Briggs. Yates and Briggs argue that Massie was at fault, so the mayor has no cause or action against them.

1. What is a general partnership?
2. Are Yates and Briggs correct in arguing that the mayor has no cause of legal action against them?
3. If Massie was driving his own car on the way to the golf course when he collided with the mayor's limousine, would the mayor have legal ground to use the partnership? Explain.

11: Case Scenerio:

Janet Juliano, who owns stock in a corporation that merged with another corporation, claims that she was not notified of the merger until it was completed.

1. Is this likely to have happened?
2. Explain the usual procedure in a merger and how a shareholder would be involved in the merger.
3. Would Juliano now own shares of the original corporation or the new corporation?

12: Case Scenerio:

After working for Datatech Corporation for 10 years, Harry Bailey took a position with another company. The company notified Bailey that his pension benefits under the noncontributory pension plan terminated when he left.

1. Does Bailey have any legal rights? Explain.
2. What does the term "portability" refer to in dealing with pension plans?
3. If Datatech's pension plan had been contributory, when would Bailey's own contributions have been vested?