Here is my Torts take home exam Ed, was wondering if you could give me a few "pointers" so that I may get a head start since I am an old stupid "wannabe" lawyer that I inspire to become......
I hope you have some time on your hands... Thanks
The stupid, and confused,
TIME
TORTS I
Professor Young
Final Examination
Fall 2002
FACT PATTERN
Immediately after completing your first year of law school with great distinction, you arrive for the first day of your $1000 a week summer clerkship with the large and prestigious firm of Stodgy, Respectable & Loaded. Prominently displayed on your mahogany desk is your very first assignment.
To: Summer Clerk
From: Partner
Re: Kerans v. Porter Paint Co.
Hi, and welcome to the real world. Sorry I couldn't greet you in person, but I have to spend the whole week in depositions in Palm Beach. Please have your response to this assignment on my desk by Friday afternoon so I can review it over the weekend.
Our clients, Elizabeth and Bertram Kerans, have asked us to look into the remedies that may be available to them for damages they have suffered as a result of Elizabeth's being sexually harassed on the job. While we generally do not do plaintiffs work, the Kerans are good friends of Mr. Stodgy, and this case will be receiving our very best efforts. A number of associates will be working on various aspects of this case, so please confine your discussion to the possibility that we will be able to proceed against Porter Paint for its own negligence. More experienced associates will be looking into the possibility that the company may be vicariously liable for the torts of its employee, and a junior partner will be dealing with the complicated question of what impact the workers compensation bar may have on this claim. What we need from you is a thorough analysis of the direct negligence claim.
Elizabeth Kerans is 52 years old. She and her husband are relatively well to do. Elizabeth has not worked for wages since they were married in 1961, although she has worked as a volunteer for a variety of social and charitable causes. She decided to get a job after her husband made a snide comment about her not being able to handle a real job. She accepted a position as a decorating consultant in one of Porter Paint's retail paint stores. Her job was to offer advice on coordinating paint, wallpaper and flooring to customers purchasing materials at the paint store. The store was open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Elizabeth was to work from 1 p.m. to close four nights per week. Her immediate supervisor was Chester Smith. On her first day on the job, Sally Johnson, one of her co-workers, warned Elizabeth to be careful about getting stuck in the store alone with Chester. When Elizabeth asked what she meant, Sally replied "They don't call him Chester the Molester for nothing". Just then, Chester approached, and the women did not finish their conversation. The rest of the first day passed uneventfully.
On the second day, Sally worked from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. While Sally was in the store, nothing unusual happened. Elizabeth has told us that as soon as Sally left, Chester started acting "weird" and she began to get nervous. When we asked her to be a little more specific, she said that Chester seemed to be staring at her and began standing so close to her that she became very uncomfortable. However, she did not say anything, because this was a new job and she wasn't sure that he was doing anything very wrong. Within an hour after Sally had left, Chester had managed to "accidentally" touch or brush against Elizabeth's breasts twice. Each time Elizabeth had jumped back, and Chester had said sarcastically "Oh, excuse me". Around 5:30, Chester had reached up under Elizabeth's dress. Elizabeth says that she was flabbergasted, and does not remember exactly how she reacted. Further, she has great difficulty remembering just what happened next. Her therapist says that she has blocked out parts of the incident, which is a common psychological reaction to extreme stress. At any rate, before Elizabeth ran screaming from the store sometime between 6 and 6:30, Chester had forced her to touch his genitalia, had exposed himself to her in a back room, and finally had appeared before her naked and asked her to watch him masturbate.
I hope you have some time on your hands... Thanks
The stupid, and confused,
TIME
TORTS I
Professor Young
Final Examination
Fall 2002
FACT PATTERN
Immediately after completing your first year of law school with great distinction, you arrive for the first day of your $1000 a week summer clerkship with the large and prestigious firm of Stodgy, Respectable & Loaded. Prominently displayed on your mahogany desk is your very first assignment.
To: Summer Clerk
From: Partner
Re: Kerans v. Porter Paint Co.
Hi, and welcome to the real world. Sorry I couldn't greet you in person, but I have to spend the whole week in depositions in Palm Beach. Please have your response to this assignment on my desk by Friday afternoon so I can review it over the weekend.
Our clients, Elizabeth and Bertram Kerans, have asked us to look into the remedies that may be available to them for damages they have suffered as a result of Elizabeth's being sexually harassed on the job. While we generally do not do plaintiffs work, the Kerans are good friends of Mr. Stodgy, and this case will be receiving our very best efforts. A number of associates will be working on various aspects of this case, so please confine your discussion to the possibility that we will be able to proceed against Porter Paint for its own negligence. More experienced associates will be looking into the possibility that the company may be vicariously liable for the torts of its employee, and a junior partner will be dealing with the complicated question of what impact the workers compensation bar may have on this claim. What we need from you is a thorough analysis of the direct negligence claim.
Elizabeth Kerans is 52 years old. She and her husband are relatively well to do. Elizabeth has not worked for wages since they were married in 1961, although she has worked as a volunteer for a variety of social and charitable causes. She decided to get a job after her husband made a snide comment about her not being able to handle a real job. She accepted a position as a decorating consultant in one of Porter Paint's retail paint stores. Her job was to offer advice on coordinating paint, wallpaper and flooring to customers purchasing materials at the paint store. The store was open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Elizabeth was to work from 1 p.m. to close four nights per week. Her immediate supervisor was Chester Smith. On her first day on the job, Sally Johnson, one of her co-workers, warned Elizabeth to be careful about getting stuck in the store alone with Chester. When Elizabeth asked what she meant, Sally replied "They don't call him Chester the Molester for nothing". Just then, Chester approached, and the women did not finish their conversation. The rest of the first day passed uneventfully.
On the second day, Sally worked from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. While Sally was in the store, nothing unusual happened. Elizabeth has told us that as soon as Sally left, Chester started acting "weird" and she began to get nervous. When we asked her to be a little more specific, she said that Chester seemed to be staring at her and began standing so close to her that she became very uncomfortable. However, she did not say anything, because this was a new job and she wasn't sure that he was doing anything very wrong. Within an hour after Sally had left, Chester had managed to "accidentally" touch or brush against Elizabeth's breasts twice. Each time Elizabeth had jumped back, and Chester had said sarcastically "Oh, excuse me". Around 5:30, Chester had reached up under Elizabeth's dress. Elizabeth says that she was flabbergasted, and does not remember exactly how she reacted. Further, she has great difficulty remembering just what happened next. Her therapist says that she has blocked out parts of the incident, which is a common psychological reaction to extreme stress. At any rate, before Elizabeth ran screaming from the store sometime between 6 and 6:30, Chester had forced her to touch his genitalia, had exposed himself to her in a back room, and finally had appeared before her naked and asked her to watch him masturbate.
