COMPETENCY TEST I -- ANSWER SHEET



COMPETENCY TEST I -- ANSWER SHEET

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Section 1: Bluebook

(Total Points: 30)

(Note to scorers: To pass this portion of the test, students will need to get 70% of the available points. That means they'll need 21 or more points to pass this section. The total points available for each question is noted in bold italics right underneath the question on your grade sheet, but not on their test. You can give partial credit for partially-correct answers, but avoid giving partial credit for a question that is clearly wrong (e.g., using id. where it isn't appropriate). As you score the answers, mark the number of points you have given for each question in the left margin, separated by a slash from the total possible points for that question (e.g., 2/4). Write the total number of points for any given section just to the right of the Section Heading, circle it and indicate pass or fail next to it. When you're done, write Pass or Fail at the TOP of the test, just to the right of the main heading).

Write the proper citation based on the information given in each question. Read each question carefully. Be meticulous about underlining, spacing, capitalization, and punctuation. Do not include introductory signals unless specifically asked to do so. Please write legibly. We cannot give credit for what we cannot read.

1. You are planning to cite Rivers v. Cooper which was decided in 1986 in the North Carolina Court of Appeals. The case begins on page 10 of the North Carolina Court of Appeals Reports (volume 78) and on page 232 of the South Eastern (Second) Reporter (volume 123). You are presenting this legal document to a North Carolina court. The proper citation is:

(3 pts.): Rivers v. Cooper, 78 N.C. App. 10, 123 S.E.2d 232 (1986)

(It is impossible to anticipate all possible answers, but some guidelines should help our scoring be consistent. I would give a student 3 points for a perfect response, and deduct one point for each MAJOR error they make. Consider the following errors to be major: failing to underline the case name, putting S.E.2d before N.C. App., using the wrong abbreviation for N.C. App., failing to underline the case name, leaving off the date. For minor errors, such as spacing, I'd deduct 1/2 point. If you can't tell how they've spaced it, resolve the question in the student's favor. However, if you can't read the answer at all, you can return it to the student or refuse to grade it.)

2. Cite this same case to a Georgia court:

(3 pts.): Rivers v. Cooper, 123 S.E.2d 232 (N.C. Ct. App. 1986)

Again, you should give 3 points for a perfect answer, and deduct 1 point for major errors. Major errors would again include failing to underline a case name, not knowing this should NOT be a parallel cite, using the wrong abbreviation for the N.C. Court of Appeals or failing to include a reference to that court, or leaving off the date. Minor errors would include spacing, underlining the comma after the case name, etc., and should deduct 1/2 point.

3. Assume that you used a quotation from Bard v. Nottingham in a legal memorandum written for a fictitious North Carolina law firm in RRWA. You properly cited the case in the previous citation. The case begins on page 55 of the North Carolina Reports (volume 321) and on page 399 of the South Eastern (Second) Reporter (volume 345). You also cited page 58 of the North Carolina Reports and page 402 of the South Eastern (second) reporter as the pages on which the quotation appears. The case was decided in 1955.

Now you wish to cite the case again to support an argument that you've made. The portion of the case that supports your argument appears on page 58 of the North Carolina Reports and on page 402 of the South Eastern (Second) Reporter (the same pages as the original quotation). Assume that there are no intervening citations and that the document you are writing will be presented to a North Carolina court. The proper citation is:

(3 pts): Id.

(Give 3 points for the exact answer. Deduct 1 point if the period is not underlined. Deduct two points for some other kind of short form. Give no credit for an answer that makes no effort to use a short form).

4. You are writing an intra-office memorandum and have cited page 104 of Sharon Kennedy's article, "Feminist Legal Theory," which appeared in volume 59 of the New York University Law Review, beginning on page 99, published in 1989. Now, after citing three other authorities in the interim, you wish to cite the article once again. You now wish to cite text from page 121. The proper short citation form is:

(3 pts.): Kennedy, supra, at 121

(3 points for a completely correct answer. Deduct 1 point for failing to put a comma or including a period after supra. Deduct 1 point for including extra information such as the title of the article or journal. Deduct 1 point for failing to use "at." 0 points for failing to use a short form at all or for using a completely wrong short form which seems unrelated to the Bluebook rules)

5. You have cited Gill v. Hardy, 97 N.C. 122, 136, 222 S.E.2d 390, 405 (1996) in a brief to the North Carolina Supreme Court. You now plan to quote text from the case which appears on page 139 of the North Carolina Reports and on page 408 of the South Eastern (Second) Reporter. Assume that there are no intervening citations. The proper short citation form is:

(3 pts.): Id. at 139, 222 S.E.2d at 408 is the correct answer. Gill [or Hardy], 97 N.C. at 139, 222 S.E.2d at 408 OR 97 N.C. at 139, 222 S.E.2d at 408 are not technically acceptable, but can receive 2.5 pts. credit each.

(Deduct 2 full points if the student didn't use a short form at all or failed to use the N.C. Reporter cite if choosing any option other than Id.. Deduct 1/2 point for failing to underline the period in Id. Deduct an additional point if the student chose a short form other than Id. but failed to use a parallel cite).

6. You wish to cite all of section 16-2 of the North Carolina General Statutes, which has been partially amended. The original statute was passed by the General Assembly in 1988 and published most recently in the General Statutes in 1989. The statute was amended in part in 1990, and the amended parts were published most recently in the Supplement in 1993. You wish to cite the entire section, both the main body and the amended parts. According to Rule 3.2(c), the proper citation is:

(3 pts.): N.C. Gen. Stat. § 16-2 (1989 & Supp. 1993)

(A perfect answer gets 3 points. Deduct 1 point for failing to abbreviate N.C. Gen. Stat properly. Deduct 1 point for failing to include both the 1989 and Supp. 1990 references in the parentheses. Deduct 1 point for using the wrong dates. Deduct 1/2 point for obvious spacing errors or for writing out the word section. The abbreviation "sec." is okay in RRWA, although not approved expressly by the Bluebook)

7. Hospital Corporation of Scotland is the defendant in a case you wish to cite. According to Table T-6 and Table T-10, how should its name be abbreviated when you cite the case?

(3 pts.): Hospital Corp. of Scot.

A perfect answer gets 3 points. Deduct 1 point if they abbreviate Hospital, or if they fail to abbreviate Corporation or Scotland appropriately.

8. You are citing numerous authorities to support a legal proposition in a legal memorandum you are submitting to your senior partner. Some of the authorities support the proposition you are putting forward, but the last two are in direct contradiction to that position. What Bluebook Rule would help you decide which Introductory Signals to use in your string citation?

(3 pts.): 1.2

This is the only correct answer, and earns 3 points. If a student cites Rules 1.1, 1.3, or 1.4 they can get partial credit of 1/2 point each. If they cite Rules 1.2 AND another relevant rule (1.1, 1.3, or 1.4), give them 3 points.

9. Same situation as above, except now you have to decide what order to put the authorities in within each citation sentence. You have a North Carolina statute and two North Carolina Supreme Court cases, all directly on point, in your first citation sentence. You introduce all of these sources with the signal, "See." One of the cases was decided in 1997 and one was decided in 1991, and both provide equal support for your proposition. According to Rule 10.4, in what order should these three authorities appear in your citation sentence:

(a) 1997 case, 1991 case, statute

(b) statute, 1997 case, 1991 case

(c) 1991 case, 1997 case, statute

(d) statute, 1991 case, 1997 case

(3 pts.): The ONLY answer that earns any points is (b), and it earns 3 pts.

10. Please correct each citation according to the sixteenth edition of The Bluebook. Use the citation rules applicable to legal memoranda and court documents. Do NOT use the rules applicable to law review footnotes.

(3 pts.: completely correct answers get 1 pt.; partially correct answers get 1/2 pt. -- deduct 1/2 point if they use law review typeface conventions)

a. Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

U.S. Const. amend. XIV

b. Uniform Commercial Code, Section 2-205, published in 1977.

U.C.C. § 2-205 (1977)

c. The Third Restatement of Torts, published in 1997, Section 404.

Restatement (Third) of Torts § 404 (1997)

Section II: Research Sources

(Total Points: 30)

(Note to scorers: Grade this section as you did the one above. Students need to get 70% of the answers correct, which means they need a total of 21 points or better. partial credit may be given as directed for partially-correct answers. Mark the total # of points given separated by a slash from the total number of points possible for each question in the left margin next to the question (e.g., 2/4). After you've finished scoring, add the total number of points earned for this Section, write that number to the right of the Section heading above, circle it, and write PASS or FAIL directly next to it).

1. Name two kinds of information you could find in Shepard's North Carolina Citations for Statutes:

(4 pts. -- 2 each): (Note that there are lots of possible answers here, including: whether it's been repealed, amended, declared unconstitutional, etc.; whether it's been interpreted or applied; whether it's been used in a law review article or referred to in an Attorney General's opinion)

(a)

(b)

2. What resource(s) do you use to find out if a federal administrative regulation has been changed or altered since it appeared in the Code of Federal Regulations?

(2 pts.): LSA (List of CFR Sections Affected); Federal Register

(Give one point for each correct answer)

3. In two sentences or less, explain why it is important to make sure you update any research you do in primary law (cases, statutes, administrative regulations):

(2 pts.): Students will express their answer many ways. The bottom line is that your research is invalid if the law has been changed significantly.

4. Name two well-recognized national legal encyclopedias:

(2 pts. -- 1 for each correct answer)

(a) American Jurisprudence Second (Am. Jur. 2d)

(b) Corpus Juris Secundum (C.J.S.)

5. You are a summer clerk in a small firm in your home town. One of your partners has been asked to present a talk on living wills at your state's annual Bar Association Convention. She asks you to see if there are any law review articles on this topic. You do not have access to computer-assisted legal research materials. Where could you look?

(1 pt.): EITHER of the following answers will get a point:

Index to Legal Periodicals and Books (or more simply, Index to Periodicals or Index to Legal Periodicals) OR Current Law Index

6. Are North Carolina statutes and cases available in the UNC Law Library in CD ROM form?

(1 pt.): Yes

7. North Carolina has two appellate courts: the N.C. Supreme Court and the N.C. Court of Appeals. In what two official state reporters are their opinions found?

(3 pts. -- one for each correct answer)

(a) N. C. Supreme Court Reports (or N.C. Reports or N.C. are okay)

(b) N. C. Court of Appeals Reports (or N.C. App. is okay)

In what other (parallel) hard copy publication could you find the same opinions?

South Eastern Reporter (or S.E. or S.E.2d)

8. In four sentences or less, explain what the West Key # System is and how it could help you do research:

(2 pts.): Students will all express their answers differently. Give them points for knowing that keys refer to a subject and that keys are used throughout West publications to help streamline a search. If they know other relevant information, you can give them credit for that as well, as long as the total points earned isn't in excess of 2.

9. You have just been hired for your first summer internship in a large law firm. Your senior partner has asked you to find some recent North Carolina cases on the topic of trespass to chattels (personal property). The law firm does not have access to computer assisted legal research materials. You have learned about a number of resources you could use to begin your search for such cases. Name two of them:

(2 pts. -- 1 for each right answer)

(There are lots of choices here. Some possibilities are: West's Digest, annotated statutes, CJS, Am. Jur. 2d, Strong's, ALR, Shepard's (once you have a case), legal periodicals, CD Rom materials and other computer searches)

(a)

(b)

10. What do the initials, A.L.R., stand for and how could you use that resource when doing legal research?

(1 pt.): ALR stands for The American Law Reports. That is a kind of case finding tool where the publishers print an article focusing on a particular case which raises a distinct question of law, and exploring how other jurisdictions treat the same questions. It is a good case-finding tool.

Section 3: Plagiarism

(Total Points: 20)

(Note to scorers: Follow the same procedure you've been following, BUT STUDENTS NEED TO EARN 75%, OR 20 POINTS, TO PASS). Mark the total number of points given out of the total number available for each question in the left margin next to the question (e.g., 2/5) and then total the number of points given and mark that number directly to the right of the Section heading above, circle it, and indicate if the student's grade is a PASS or FAIL).

1. You are studying in the Law School library and are stunned to see an upperclass student take down a volume of the Virginia Law Review, cut out several pages with a razor blade, and return the book to the shelf. The student is not an employee of the library. Please answer the following questions about what you've observed:

(a) Setting aside possible defenses, does this student's behavior appear to be in violation of any Code of Conduct of the University of North Carolina (answer yes or no):

(5 pts.): Yes

(b) If you believe the student has violated a Code, please name that Code and explain why you think it's been violated:

(5 pts.) The Honor Code or the Campus Code

(c) If you would like to see this situation pursued by the Law School Honor Court, to whom would you report the situation and what would be the first step followed once the situation is reported?

(5 pts.) George Oliver, the Student Attorney General for the Law School. He would begin an investigation to see if the student should be charged.

(You can give full credit for either George's name or his title, and can give partial credit if the student knows that the violator would be charged, given an attorney, etc. but fails to mention the initial investigation.)

2. The Lending Library of the Writing and Learning Resources Center (Room 107) contains donated study aids which can be checked out for twenty-four hours. If a student checks out material but decides not to return it for a week because he or she needs to use it to make outlines, what Code or Codes is the student violating?

(5 pts.): The Honor Code or the Campus Code

Section 4: Plain English and Legal Writing

(Total Points: 20)

(Note to scorer: Follow the same scoring procedure you've been following, BUT STUDENTS NEED 75%, OR 20 POINTS, TO PASS THIS SECTION. Mark the total # of points given separated by a slash from the total number of points available for any question in the left margin next to the question. Total the number of points given for this section and place that number, circled, to the right of the Section heading above. Note clearly if the student has earned a PASS or FAIL on this section.)

Choose the option which best applies the principles of Plain English:

8 pts. total for the following forced-choice questions: Students earn 2 points for every correct answer.

1. ______ A. The trial judge was of the opinion that the argument by the

appellant failed to persuade him.

______ B. The appellant's argument did not persuade the trial judge.

2. ______ A. The defendant has waived her right to use lack of

personal jurisdiction as an affirmative defense because she

failed to state that defense in her answer.

______ B. Since the defendant failed to raise personal jurisdiction as

a defense in her answer, she has waived her right to use it.

3. ______ A. The defendant told the prosecutor that he had been with

his brother during the robbery.

______ B. The defendant stated to the prosecuting attorney that he

had been in the company of his brother at the time the

robbery occurred.

4. ______ A. Plaintiff Rapid Ride Water Adventures (RRWA) requires

all raft riders to sign a liability release form before rafting.

______ B. Said plaintiff, Rapid Ride Water Adventures, hereinafter

referred to as "RRWA," requires all individuals preparing to

ride rafts to sign a release of liability form prior to taking a

raft ride with their company.

5. Please rewrite the following sentence in the space below using principles of Plain English:

Should the Tarheels fail to make it to the NCAA Final Four, the lessee, as undersigned, shall be able to declare the lease for a residential apartment at the locus of the game to be both null and void.

(2 pts): Read each student's submission and give two full points if their answer improves the answer above. Deduct one point if they've substantively changed the content of the message in an effort to be brief.

One possibility: If the Tarheels lose before the Final Four, this rental agreement is void.

6. Besides the business heading (To:, From:, Re:, Date:), please name the five sections you would expect to find in most intra-office memoranda:

(10 pts:) Score two points for each section correctly identified: Question or Issue Presented, Brief or Short Answer, Facts, Discussion or Analysis, Conclusion. These do not need to be presented in order, because that's not how we asked the question.

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