In the United States, family laws and precedents as they relate to divorce, community property and alimony vary based on state law. Also, with new family models, "working couples", "working wives", "stay-at-home dads", etcetera, there are situations where some parties to a divorce question whether traditional economic allocations made in a divorce are fair and equitable to the facts of their individual case. Some groups have proposed various forms of legislation to reform alimony parameters (for...
Aug 21, 2023•11 min
Clause 4: Adjournment. Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting. Neither House may adjourn, without the consent of the other, for more than three days. Often, a House will hold pro forma sessions every three days; such sessions are merely held to fulfill the constitutional requirement, and not to conduct business. Furthermore, neither House ma...
Aug 19, 2023•10 min
Today marks the beginning of your journey into the intricate world of criminal law. As future legal practitioners, it's essential to grasp the foundational concepts that underpin our criminal justice system. Let's dive right in. Understanding the Purpose and Principles of Criminal Law. Criminal law serves a crucial role in society: maintaining order, protecting individuals and property, and upholding moral standards. It distinguishes between acceptable behavior and actions that warrant punishmen...
Aug 18, 2023•6 min
Episode 1: Introduction to the Bar ExamIn this session we’ll cover: Overview of the Bar Exam and its significance. Understanding the format and structure of the exam. Strategies for effective preparation. Now welcome to "Mastering the Bar Exam," the podcast that will equip you with the knowledge and skills to ace the Bar Exam and become a successful attorney. I am your host, my goal is to help you, aspiring law students, pass the Bar Exam with flying colors. In today's episode, we will begin our...
Aug 17, 2023•4 min
Welcome back, everyone, to the second part of our session on the Preamble and Articles of the U.S. Constitution. In the previous segment, we discussed the significance of the Preamble in setting the goals and guiding principles of our Constitution. Now, we will embark on a detailed examination of each Article of the Constitution, from Article 1 to Article 7. So, let's begin! Article 1 - The Legislative Branch. Article 1 establishes the first and most extensive branch of the U.S. government - the...
Aug 16, 2023•9 min
Chapter 1: Introduction to Contracts Law. Understanding the Role of Contracts in Legal Practice. Contracts are fundamental legal instruments that play a pivotal role in various aspects of legal practice. They are agreements between two or more parties that create legally binding obligations enforceable by law. Understanding the nature and significance of contracts is crucial for law students and aspiring lawyers to navigate the complexities of contract law. Definition and Characteristics of Cont...
Aug 15, 2023•8 min
Alimony, also called aliment (Scotland), maintenance (England, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Canada, New Zealand), spousal support (U.S., Canada) and spouse maintenance (Australia), is a legal obligation on a person to provide financial support to their spouse before or after marital separation or divorce. The obligation arises from the divorce law or family law of each country. In most jurisdictions, it is distinct from child support, where, after divorce, one parent is required to contribu...
Aug 14, 2023•11 min
Clause 7: Judgment in cases of impeachment; Punishment on conviction. Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law. If any officer or the President or the Vice President is convicted of impeachment, that person is immediately re...
Aug 12, 2023•11 min
Employee rights. Derivative suits. Because directors owe their duties to the corporation and not, as a general rule, to specific shareholders or stakeholders, the right to sue for breaches of directors duty rests by default with the corporation itself. The corporation is necessarily a party to the suit. This creates a difficulty because almost always, the right to litigate falls under the general powers of directors to manage the corporation day to day (for example Delaware General Corporation L...
Aug 11, 2023•6 min
Introduction to the Preamble. The Preamble of the U.S. Constitution serves as an eloquent and powerful introduction to the document. It begins with the iconic words, "We the People of the United States," emphasizing that the authority and power of the government originate from the citizens it serves. The Preamble sets the tone for the Constitution, expressing the collective vision and aspirations of the Founding Fathers. Setting the Goals of the Constitution. Let's now explore the Preamble's tex...
Aug 09, 2023•5 min
A special needs trust, also known in some jurisdictions as a supplemental needs trust, is a specialized trust that allows the disabled beneficiary to enjoy the use of property that is held in the trust for his or her benefit, while at the same time allowing the beneficiary to receive essential needs-based government benefits. A Special Needs Trust is a specific type of irrevocable trust that exists under Common Law. Several Common Law nations have established specific statutes relative to the cr...
Aug 08, 2023•16 min
Today, every state plus the District of Columbia permits no-fault divorce, though requirements for obtaining a no-fault divorce vary. California was the first U.S. state to enact a no-fault divorce law. Its law was signed by Governor Ronald Reagan, a divorced and remarried former movie actor, and came into effect in 1970. New York was the last state to enact a no-fault divorce law; that law was passed in 2010. Before no-fault divorce was available, spouses seeking divorce would often allege fals...
Aug 07, 2023•12 min
Employee rights. While investment managers tend to exercise most voting rights in corporations, bought with pension, life insurance and mutual fund money, employees also exercise voice through collective bargaining rules in labor law. Increasingly, corporate law has converged with labor law. The United States is in a minority of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries that, as yet, has no law requiring employee voting rights in corporations, either in the general meeting...
Aug 04, 2023•9 min
Clause 2: Classification of senators; Vacancies. Immediately after they shall be assembled in Consequence of the first Election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three Classes. The Seats of the Senators of the first Class shall be vacated at the Expiration of the second Year, of the second Class at the Expiration of the fourth Year, and of the third Class at the Expiration of the sixth Year, so that one third may be chosen every second Year; and if Vacancies happen by Resignation,...
Aug 03, 2023•12 min
Course Title and Objectives. Let's start by looking at the title of our course: "Constitutional Law: Sources and Principles." As the title suggests, we will delve into the various sources of constitutional law and examine the fundamental principles that underpin it. Importance of the U.S. Constitution. Now, why is it essential to study the U.S. Constitution? The U.S. Constitution is the supreme law of the land, serving as the foundation for our legal system and the framework upon which our gover...
Aug 02, 2023•4 min
An honorary trust, under the law of trusts, is a device by which a person establishes a trust for which there is neither a charitable purpose, nor a private beneficiary to enforce the trust. While such a trust would normally be void for lack of a beneficiary, many jurisdictions have carved out two specific exceptions to this rule: trusts for the care of that person's pets; and trusts to provide for the maintenance of cemetery plots. The name of the device derives from the lack of any beneficiary...
Aug 01, 2023•13 min
Grounds for divorce are regulations specifying the circumstances under which a person will be granted a divorce. Adultery is the most common grounds for divorce. However, there are countries that view male adultery differently than female adultery as grounds for divorce. Before decisions on divorce are considered, one might check into state laws and country laws for legal divorce or separation as each culture has stipulations for divorce. Grounds for divorce. Cruel and inhuman treatment constitu...
Jul 31, 2023•10 min
While investment managers tend to exercise most voting rights in corporations, bought with pension, life insurance and mutual fund money, employees also exercise voice through collective bargaining rules in labor law. Increasingly, corporate law has converged with labor law. The United States is in a minority of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries that, as yet, has no law requiring employee voting rights in corporations, either in the general meeting or for represent...
Jul 28, 2023•9 min
Clause 2: Qualifications of Members. No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen. The Constitution provides three requirements for Representatives: A Representative must be at least 25 years old, must be an inhabitant of the state in which he or she is elected, and must have been a citizen of the United S...
Jul 27, 2023•13 min
The right of self-defense (also called, when it applies to the defense of another, alter ego defense, defense of others, defense of a third person) is the right for people to use reasonable or defensive force, for the purpose of defending one's own life (self-defense) or the lives of others, including – in certain circumstances – the use of deadly force. If a defendant uses defensive force because of a threat of deadly or grievous harm by the other person, or a reasonable perception of such harm...
Jul 26, 2023•12 min
In American estate planning parlance, an incentive trust is a trust designed to encourage or discourage certain behaviors by using distributions of trust income or principal as an incentive. A typical incentive trust might encourage a beneficiary to complete a degree, enter a profession, or abstain from harmful conduct such as substance abuse. The beneficiary might be paid a certain amount of money from the trust upon graduating from college, or the trust might pay a dollar of income from the tr...
Jul 25, 2023•12 min
Adultery (from Latin adulterium, “I change or alter one lineage for another”) is extra-marital sex partaken by a spouse, or premarital sex partaken by a betrothed person, that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal consequences, the concept exists in many cultures and shares some similarities in Christianity, Judaism and Islam. Adultery is viewed by many j...
Jul 24, 2023•15 min
While the board of directors is generally conferred the power to manage the day-to-day affairs of a corporation, either by the statute, or by the articles of incorporation, this is always subject to limits, including the rights that shareholders have. For example, the Delaware General Corporation Law §141(a) says the "business and affairs of every corporation ... shall be managed by or under the direction of a board of directors, except as may be otherwise provided in this chapter or in its cert...
Jul 21, 2023•11 min
Article One of the United States Constitution establishes the legislative branch of the federal government, the United States Congress. Under Article One, Congress is a bicameral legislature consisting of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Article One grants Congress various enumerated powers and the ability to pass laws "necessary and proper" to carry out those powers. Article One also establishes the procedures for passing a bill and places various limits on the powers of Congress an...
Jul 20, 2023•12 min
In law, provocation is when a person is considered to have committed a criminal act partly because of a preceding set of events that might cause a reasonable individual to lose self control. This makes them less morally culpable than if the act was premeditated (pre-planned) and done out of pure malice (malice aforethought). It "affects the quality of the actor's state of mind as an indicator of moral blameworthiness." Provocation is often a mitigating factor in sentencing. It rarely serves as a...
Jul 19, 2023•14 min
An interest in possession trust is a trust in which at least one beneficiary has the right to receive the income generated by the trust (if trust funds are invested) or the right to enjoy the trust assets for the present time in another way. The beneficiary with the right to enjoy the trust property for the time being is said to have an interest in possession and is colloquially described as an income beneficiary, or the life tenant. Beneficiaries of a trust have an interest in possession if the...
Jul 18, 2023•13 min
Polygyny is a significant structural factor governing divorce in countries where this is permitted. Little-to-no analysis has been completed to explicitly explain the link between marital instability and polygyny which leads to divorce. The frequency of divorce rises in polygynous marriages compared to monogamous relationships. Within polygynous unions, differences in conjugal stability are found to occur by wife order. There are 3 main mechanisms through which polygyny affects divorce: economic...
Jul 17, 2023•15 min
Shareholder liability for debts. One of the basic principles of modern corporate law is that people who invest in a corporation have limited liability. For example, as a general rule shareholders can only lose the money they invested in their shares. Practically, limited liability operates only as a default rule for creditors that can adjust their risk. Banks which lend money to corporations frequently contract with a corporation's directors or shareholders to get personal guarantees, or to take...
Jul 14, 2023•11 min
Key concepts in bankruptcy include the debtor's discharge and the related "fresh start". Discharge is available in some but not all cases. For example, in a Chapter 7 case only an individual debtor (not a corporation, partnership, etcetera) can receive a discharge. The effect of a bankruptcy discharge is to eliminate only the debtor's personal liability, not the in rem liability for a secured debt to the extent of the value of collateral. The term "in rem" essentially means "with respect to the ...
Jul 13, 2023•15 min
Justification is a defense in a criminal case, by which a defendant who committed the acts asserts that because what they did meets certain legal standards, they are not criminally culpable for the acts which would otherwise be criminal. Justification and excuse are related but different defenses (see Justification and excuse). Justification is an exception to the prohibition of committing certain offenses. Justification can be a defense in a prosecution for a criminal offense. When an act is ju...
Jul 12, 2023•11 min
