POLS 2350 MIDTERM EXAM QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
What is the correct legal term for the "name" of a case? - answer Style of cause
Lon Fuller's "Morality of Law argues that, at a bare minimum, law must... - answer 1. Be
inteligible
2. Not be secret
3. Be administered as it is written
"Law can be readily identified as the certain rules created by legitimate law-making
institutions and backed by state force." What view would take this approach? - answer
Legal positivist
What best characterizes estate law in Canada? - answer The state will only *rarely*
interfere with the intentions of the testator about who will inherit his/her wealth; only
when the testator's wishes are *contrary to "public policy" will they be altered/ignored*
True or False: The traditional distinction between public law and private law is whether
the state is considered one of the parties to the action - answer True
Section 15 of the "Charter" is our "equality clause" that demands every Canadian to be
treated equal under the law. Can this section be used to attack "affirmative action"
programs that seek to remedy conditions for groups that have been historically
disadvantaged? - answer No, the second part of s.15 specificially allows for laws and
programs that ameliorate such conditions
Which of the following might be considered a "legal fiction"
A) financial markets
B) political parties
C) municipal governments
D) all of the above - answer All of the above
The result in "Caron v. Alberta" hinged on the alleged "source of law." That source
was... - answer The "1867 Address" that was amended to the "1870 Order"
According to Martin Loughlin, a "world-view" or "world-making" can be judged on which
three criteria? - answer 1. credibility
2. coherence
3. utility
The law must perform *well* on all three criteria
,The rights in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms are NOT absolute. They are
limited by sections 1 (the reasonable limits clause) and section 33 (the notwithstanding
clause). In terms of their application... - answer S.1 applies to all rights in the Charter;
s.33 only applies to *some rights* (namely *ss.2 and 7-15*)
If a justice agrees with the result a majority of their colleagues arrives at but disagrees
with the reasoning that brought them to that result, they.. - answer Will likely write a
separate "concuring" opinion
True or False: The traditional distinction between public law and private law is whether
the state pays for the litigation - answer False
What best describes the form of the U.S. and CDN Constitution? - answer It is generally
accepted that the *U.S. Constitution is entirely written down*; the CDN Constitution
contains written elements but is *supplemented by constitutional conventions and
unwritten principles*
"Corporations" are best understood as... - answer A legal fiction, but one that has real
world implications
In the Common Law system, if a judge declines to use an existing precedent to decide a
case, we say that the judge... - answer "Distinguished the case from the precedent"
A contract law dispute in Quebec would be settled under... - answer Quebec's Civil
Code at the provincial level
A patent or copyright dispute in Quebec would be settled under... - answer Common law
rules and principles, *except* as altered by Federal statutes
The jurisdiction of Quebec makes Canada more complex legally. For this reason,
Canada is best described as a... - answer Bijural nation
What best describes the federal division of power when it comes to family law? - answer
The Federal Gov't legislates "marriage and divorce," but the provincial gov'ts have
jurisdiction over "civil rights and property in the province." In practice this means that
the *provinces deal with most aspects of family law* (including custody, access,
support, property division)
If you were tried for a criminal assault in QC it would be according to... - answer
Common law at the federal level
A copyright dispute in Sask. would be according to... - answer Common law at the
federal level
, What constitutes private law? - answer Contract law, tort law, property law, family law,
estate law, corporate law
What constitutes public law? - answer Constitutional law, criminal law, administrative
law, taxation law
Should law reflect justice according to a positivist? - answer Not necessarily, law is
independent of morality and consists of enactments of the sovereign (who may or may
not be morally just)
Should law reflect justice according to a naturalist? - answer Yes, because an unjust law
is no law at all
What are the two key procedural protections in natural law? - answer 1. nemo judex in
causa sua: no one should be the judge of his own case
2. audi alteram partem: listen to the other side (give equal opportunity to both sides)
What are the four elements of a law according to legal positivism? - answer 1. Body of
rules
2. Enacted and applied by public officials
3. Formulated by legitimate means
4. Backed by state force
What is the significance of AVI v. MHVB? - answer This case dealt with pseudolaw
(collection of spurious legally incorrect ideas that superficially sound like law and
purport to be real law aka believes it to replace conventional law)
How is politics bound by law? - answer - The rule of law
- Primacy of legal norms and systems (PM used to be able to make laws on a whim, now
they have to go through parliament, and they might not even be accepted)
- Constitutional supremacy (legal rules can be argument stoppers - even if a PM uses the
statutory process to change the law, it can be struck down)
How is law shaped by politics? - answer - Statutory law (political representatives take
control of law; statutes always trump common law)
- Politics of judicial appointment (which judges get appointed)
What is the correct legal term for the "name" of a case? - answer Style of cause
Lon Fuller's "Morality of Law argues that, at a bare minimum, law must... - answer 1. Be
inteligible
2. Not be secret
3. Be administered as it is written
"Law can be readily identified as the certain rules created by legitimate law-making
institutions and backed by state force." What view would take this approach? - answer
Legal positivist
What best characterizes estate law in Canada? - answer The state will only *rarely*
interfere with the intentions of the testator about who will inherit his/her wealth; only
when the testator's wishes are *contrary to "public policy" will they be altered/ignored*
True or False: The traditional distinction between public law and private law is whether
the state is considered one of the parties to the action - answer True
Section 15 of the "Charter" is our "equality clause" that demands every Canadian to be
treated equal under the law. Can this section be used to attack "affirmative action"
programs that seek to remedy conditions for groups that have been historically
disadvantaged? - answer No, the second part of s.15 specificially allows for laws and
programs that ameliorate such conditions
Which of the following might be considered a "legal fiction"
A) financial markets
B) political parties
C) municipal governments
D) all of the above - answer All of the above
The result in "Caron v. Alberta" hinged on the alleged "source of law." That source
was... - answer The "1867 Address" that was amended to the "1870 Order"
According to Martin Loughlin, a "world-view" or "world-making" can be judged on which
three criteria? - answer 1. credibility
2. coherence
3. utility
The law must perform *well* on all three criteria
,The rights in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms are NOT absolute. They are
limited by sections 1 (the reasonable limits clause) and section 33 (the notwithstanding
clause). In terms of their application... - answer S.1 applies to all rights in the Charter;
s.33 only applies to *some rights* (namely *ss.2 and 7-15*)
If a justice agrees with the result a majority of their colleagues arrives at but disagrees
with the reasoning that brought them to that result, they.. - answer Will likely write a
separate "concuring" opinion
True or False: The traditional distinction between public law and private law is whether
the state pays for the litigation - answer False
What best describes the form of the U.S. and CDN Constitution? - answer It is generally
accepted that the *U.S. Constitution is entirely written down*; the CDN Constitution
contains written elements but is *supplemented by constitutional conventions and
unwritten principles*
"Corporations" are best understood as... - answer A legal fiction, but one that has real
world implications
In the Common Law system, if a judge declines to use an existing precedent to decide a
case, we say that the judge... - answer "Distinguished the case from the precedent"
A contract law dispute in Quebec would be settled under... - answer Quebec's Civil
Code at the provincial level
A patent or copyright dispute in Quebec would be settled under... - answer Common law
rules and principles, *except* as altered by Federal statutes
The jurisdiction of Quebec makes Canada more complex legally. For this reason,
Canada is best described as a... - answer Bijural nation
What best describes the federal division of power when it comes to family law? - answer
The Federal Gov't legislates "marriage and divorce," but the provincial gov'ts have
jurisdiction over "civil rights and property in the province." In practice this means that
the *provinces deal with most aspects of family law* (including custody, access,
support, property division)
If you were tried for a criminal assault in QC it would be according to... - answer
Common law at the federal level
A copyright dispute in Sask. would be according to... - answer Common law at the
federal level
, What constitutes private law? - answer Contract law, tort law, property law, family law,
estate law, corporate law
What constitutes public law? - answer Constitutional law, criminal law, administrative
law, taxation law
Should law reflect justice according to a positivist? - answer Not necessarily, law is
independent of morality and consists of enactments of the sovereign (who may or may
not be morally just)
Should law reflect justice according to a naturalist? - answer Yes, because an unjust law
is no law at all
What are the two key procedural protections in natural law? - answer 1. nemo judex in
causa sua: no one should be the judge of his own case
2. audi alteram partem: listen to the other side (give equal opportunity to both sides)
What are the four elements of a law according to legal positivism? - answer 1. Body of
rules
2. Enacted and applied by public officials
3. Formulated by legitimate means
4. Backed by state force
What is the significance of AVI v. MHVB? - answer This case dealt with pseudolaw
(collection of spurious legally incorrect ideas that superficially sound like law and
purport to be real law aka believes it to replace conventional law)
How is politics bound by law? - answer - The rule of law
- Primacy of legal norms and systems (PM used to be able to make laws on a whim, now
they have to go through parliament, and they might not even be accepted)
- Constitutional supremacy (legal rules can be argument stoppers - even if a PM uses the
statutory process to change the law, it can be struck down)
How is law shaped by politics? - answer - Statutory law (political representatives take
control of law; statutes always trump common law)
- Politics of judicial appointment (which judges get appointed)
