LRW EXAM QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
1. sources of law (5) - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅Case law, constitutions, statutes, administrative
regulations, the executive branch
Primary sources of law (7) - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅Actual laws; these include constitutions, statutes,
case law/common law (judicial opinions), regulations (executive), executive orders (executive),
Rules of procedure (legislative/judicial), treaties (executive/legislative)
Secondary Sources of Law (13) - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅• Encyclopedias- (AmJur2d and C.J.S are main
two legal encyclopedias) comprehensive coverage of legal topics, not in depth, objective
• Law review- commentary on law, subjective
• Bar journals- practical applications, subjective or objective. Short articles of practical interest of local
lawyers.
• Practice manuals
• CLE- continued learning education (lawyers must keep up with new law)
• Legislative history
• Treatises- In depth scholarly treatment of legal system, nuances of subject, subjective but can be
objective, hornbooks
o they contain commentaires (a series of short articles) written by scholars usually restricted to one area
of the law and organized by chapter, section and paragraph
o
• A.LR- American law report, new or emerging law, in depth, narrow, cutting edge topic, (opposite of
encyclopedia) ***If you find this then a lot of work is done for you***
• Restatements- ALI (American Law Institute) restate laws in an organized way of all states, not binding
unless adapted by a court (second restatement of contracts)
o a scholarly completion of the common law produced by the American Law Institute they will write
about what they think the law is or should be
• Uniform law- commission that gets together to figure out what laws need clarification, UCC began as
this but was adapted, WI version of UCC which was adapted = is primary but otherwise secondary.
,• Periodical publications
• Dictionaries
• Foreign sources
primary v. secondary sources - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅Primary sources of law= LAW, secondary sources
are NOT the law
Secondary sources of law are always persuasive only
Primary sources can be persuasive or binding
Judicial Review - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅Allows the court to determine the constitutionality of laws
o Legislature has the power to change common law but judges can review a statute to see if it is
constitutional (only in this instance)
o Power of court to test and invalidate statute for unconstitutional only
constitutions - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅a written plan that provides the basic framework of a government
· a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other
organization is acknowledged to be governed.
· State and nation
· The U.S constitution & the Wisconsin Constitution
common law vs enacted law - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅· The 'common law' = case law
o means the substantive law and procedural rules that have been created by the judges through the
decisions in the cases they have heard
o Judicial
o Primary law
· Enacted law = statute law that has been passed and put into effect
o Primary
o Is in effect
, statutes v. regulations - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅· Laws created by agencies are called "regulations."
· Regulations usually must be authorized by a statute,
· However, they have the same legal force as statutes.
· Agencies are part of the executive branch of state and federal government, and thus are tasked with
the execution of the law
· Regulations = executive
EPA regulations
functions of statutes - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅1.) Create new law
2.) Change existing law
3.) Codify (organize if messy)
relationship between statutes and cases - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅· Statutes can override cases
· Cases can only ever say if a statute is unconstitutional (only time judge may do this)
o (judicial review)
hierarchy of authority between federal and state, and within each system - CORRECT
ANSWER✅✅Federal
· High Court= U.S Supreme Court
· Intermediate= Circuit Court (WI= 7th circuit out of 13)
· Trial Court= District Court
o WI= Eastern and Western
Courts
13 circuits, not a unified court of appeals instead they are independent autonomous sister courts, don't
have to follow each other's opinions, a high court might grant cert if there is split
(How many federal circuit courts are there? = 13, how many numbered 11, 12 geographic)
1. sources of law (5) - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅Case law, constitutions, statutes, administrative
regulations, the executive branch
Primary sources of law (7) - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅Actual laws; these include constitutions, statutes,
case law/common law (judicial opinions), regulations (executive), executive orders (executive),
Rules of procedure (legislative/judicial), treaties (executive/legislative)
Secondary Sources of Law (13) - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅• Encyclopedias- (AmJur2d and C.J.S are main
two legal encyclopedias) comprehensive coverage of legal topics, not in depth, objective
• Law review- commentary on law, subjective
• Bar journals- practical applications, subjective or objective. Short articles of practical interest of local
lawyers.
• Practice manuals
• CLE- continued learning education (lawyers must keep up with new law)
• Legislative history
• Treatises- In depth scholarly treatment of legal system, nuances of subject, subjective but can be
objective, hornbooks
o they contain commentaires (a series of short articles) written by scholars usually restricted to one area
of the law and organized by chapter, section and paragraph
o
• A.LR- American law report, new or emerging law, in depth, narrow, cutting edge topic, (opposite of
encyclopedia) ***If you find this then a lot of work is done for you***
• Restatements- ALI (American Law Institute) restate laws in an organized way of all states, not binding
unless adapted by a court (second restatement of contracts)
o a scholarly completion of the common law produced by the American Law Institute they will write
about what they think the law is or should be
• Uniform law- commission that gets together to figure out what laws need clarification, UCC began as
this but was adapted, WI version of UCC which was adapted = is primary but otherwise secondary.
,• Periodical publications
• Dictionaries
• Foreign sources
primary v. secondary sources - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅Primary sources of law= LAW, secondary sources
are NOT the law
Secondary sources of law are always persuasive only
Primary sources can be persuasive or binding
Judicial Review - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅Allows the court to determine the constitutionality of laws
o Legislature has the power to change common law but judges can review a statute to see if it is
constitutional (only in this instance)
o Power of court to test and invalidate statute for unconstitutional only
constitutions - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅a written plan that provides the basic framework of a government
· a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other
organization is acknowledged to be governed.
· State and nation
· The U.S constitution & the Wisconsin Constitution
common law vs enacted law - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅· The 'common law' = case law
o means the substantive law and procedural rules that have been created by the judges through the
decisions in the cases they have heard
o Judicial
o Primary law
· Enacted law = statute law that has been passed and put into effect
o Primary
o Is in effect
, statutes v. regulations - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅· Laws created by agencies are called "regulations."
· Regulations usually must be authorized by a statute,
· However, they have the same legal force as statutes.
· Agencies are part of the executive branch of state and federal government, and thus are tasked with
the execution of the law
· Regulations = executive
EPA regulations
functions of statutes - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅1.) Create new law
2.) Change existing law
3.) Codify (organize if messy)
relationship between statutes and cases - CORRECT ANSWER✅✅· Statutes can override cases
· Cases can only ever say if a statute is unconstitutional (only time judge may do this)
o (judicial review)
hierarchy of authority between federal and state, and within each system - CORRECT
ANSWER✅✅Federal
· High Court= U.S Supreme Court
· Intermediate= Circuit Court (WI= 7th circuit out of 13)
· Trial Court= District Court
o WI= Eastern and Western
Courts
13 circuits, not a unified court of appeals instead they are independent autonomous sister courts, don't
have to follow each other's opinions, a high court might grant cert if there is split
(How many federal circuit courts are there? = 13, how many numbered 11, 12 geographic)
