1.
Read and understand the case or question
assigned. Show your Analysis and Reasoning and make it clear you understand the
material. Be sure to incorporate the concepts of the chapter we are studying to
show your reasoning. Dedicate at least one heading to each following outline
topic:
Parties [Identify
the plaintiff and the defendant]
Facts [Summarize
only those facts critical to the outcome of the case]
Procedure [Who
brought the appeal? What was the outcome in the lower court(s)?]
Issue [Note
the central question or questions on which the case turns]
Explain
the applicable law(s). Use the textbook here. The law should
come from the same chapter as the case. Be sure to use citations from the
textbook including page numbers.
Holding [How
did the court resolve the issue(s)? Who won?]
Reasoning [Explain
the logic that supported the court’s decision]
2.
Do significant research outside of the
book and demonstrate that you have in a very obvious way. This refers to
research beyond the legal research. This involves something about the parties
or other interesting related area. Show something you have discovered about the
case, parties or other important element from your own research. Be sure this
is obvious and adds value beyond the legal reasoning of the case.
3.
Dedicate 1 slide to each of the case
question(s) immediately following the case, if there are any. Be sure to state
and fully answer the questions in the presentation.
4.
Quality in terms of substance, form,
grammar and context. Be entertaining! Use excellent audio-visual material and
backgrounds!
5.
Wrap up with a Conclusion slide. This
should summarize the key aspects of the decision and also your recommendations
on the court’s ruling.
6.
Include citations on the slides and a
reference slide with your sources. Use APA style citations and references.
These
are the areas we are studying for this week
The
Law of Torts
Product
and Service Liability Law
Environmental
Law
In
2002, Mayóla Williams, the widow of a man who smoked as many as three packs of
Marlboro cigarettes a day for almost 50 years, sued Philip Morris USA for the
torts of negligence and fraud. Williams’s husband had eventually died from a
smoking-related disease. Williams argued that the products produced by Philip
Morris were a cause of her husband’s death. The case was important because it
could have redefined how large punitive damages ought to be against tobacco and
other large and powerful corporations in product liability cases. In 2006, the
Supreme Court of Oregon awarded Williams $800,000 in compensatory damages and
$79.5 million in punitive damages.
Philip
Morris appealed the court’s decision, arguing that punitive damages should more
equally fit the actual damages suffered. In other words, Philip Morris argued
that the amount of the punitive damages should be based on the damages only the
plaintiff in the instant case suffered, rather than any damages that other
users of the product (who were not in court) might have suffered. What could be
the dangers of punishing the defendant for the damage the defendant has caused
to individuals who are not in court? How did the Supreme Court decide in this
case? Philip Morris USA et al. v. Williams, et al, 127 S. Ct. 1057, 549 U.S.
346 (2007).
