FINAL EXAMINATION

Monday, December 6, 2010

Length of exam: 3 hours
This is a closed-book examination
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS:
1. This is a closed book exam.
2. The exam consists of 18 pages, including an appendix.
3. The exam consists of two sections and each section has separate instructions. Section I
consists of 20 multiple questions. Section II consists of two essay questions, a diagram, a
lease and a statutory appendix.
4. You may answer the two sections in any order you wish.
5. Credit for all portions of the exam will be proportional to the time allowed. (A half hour is
allocated to reading the questions.)
SECTION II: ESSAY (2 hoursEssays Questions I and II)
INSTRUCTIONS FOR SECTION II ONLY:
1

This section consists of a fact pattern, two essay questions, a diagram and appendix.

Unless you are typing the exam, please write your essay answers in the bluebooks
provided. Write on every other line and on every other page (i.e., do not write on the back
of the pages. The ink shows through). Write your student number on the exam and on the
outside of each bluebook. If you rely on the discussion to one question in a subsequent
question, be sure to refer to the earlier discussion explicitly to make sure you receive
credit for it.

If you find an error or ambiguity in any of the questions, note the error or ambiguity and
any assumptions you are making in answering the question. If you resolve an ambiguous
issue one way (e.g., concluding that an ambiguous provision is a fee simple), also address
the issues that arise from the alternative conclusion (e.g., that the interest is a life estate).

You are in the State of Misery, a mythical jurisdiction in which there is very little law and in
which the courts are influenced by precedents from other states. The jurisdiction has,
however, adopted the following provisions:
a

a ten (10) year statute of limitations for actions in ejectment;

an implied warranty of habitability in all residential leases;

federal anti-discrimination laws (see appendix).

FACTS

Luna and Draco, co-workers in the food industry, discover that they both dream of owning
their own farm. Not long after they start dating, they spot forty acres with an old farmhouse for
sale not far from the city. They buy the land as joint tenants with a right of survivorship, marry
a year later, and raise their three children on the farm.
Eight years later, the farm is not doing well, and neither is the marriage. Draco leaves to
look for work in another state. After three months, he stops calling and Luna has no way to reach

him. To generate additional income, Luna joins the farm stay program. She expands the
farmhouse creating six one bedroom units with private baths, and places the following on-line
ad:
Sustainable Agriculture Internships and Farm Stays
Lively Hollows is a certified organic farm nestled among the rolling hills along the Missouri
River. The growing fields border the Little Horcrux Creek and benefit from silt loam soils
rich in organic matter. The farms nutrient, pest and weed management systems employ
sustainable agriculture techniques. Lively Hollows offers two ways to participate in this
state-of-the-art enterprise:
Apprenticeships: Acquire valuable farm experience in an internship running for three
months or more starting in April. The internship pays a stipend of $750 per month,
requires working six days a week, and offers instruction in organic techniques. Reasonably
priced food and housing are available.
Farm Stays: Spend a weekend, week, or more in a rustic nineteenth century farmhouse
located less than an hour from the metro area. Enjoy farm tours, instruction in sustainable
agriculture, hiking, fishing and rafting in the region. $60 per night for one bedroom, $80
per night for two rooms. Rates for extended stays are negotiable. One week cancellation
notice required.
Luna charges interns $350 per month for the room. The stipend she offers is considerably
higher than the norm for farm internships, but other internships typically include room and board
and the rent is far less than what Luna charges her farm stay guests or what the interns could
find elsewhere in the area.
Luna receives an on-line internship application from Rubeus, an aspiring farmer. She
sends Rubeus the lease in the appendix to this exam and he signs it.
QUESTION I (50 Minutes)
Rubeus arrives on Saturday evening, the first day of the rental agreement, with his
internship to start on Monday. Luna did not expect him until the next morning and all of the
rooms in the farmhouse are full. He spends the night on the living room sofa. The next day, a
guest who is supposed to leave that evening becomes so drunk that he cant drive and passes
out on the bed in the room Luna had reserved for Rubeus. During the night, the guest gets up,
trips and is badly injured. The room is on the third floor of the farmhouse and doctors advise that
moving him could be dangerous. He stays there for two weeks, with Rubeus remaining on the
downstairs sofa.
Rubeus loves the farmwork and doesnt complain. Ten weeks after the internship begins,
his daughters mother calls to say that she needs to care for her ailing father and wants Rubeus
to take their daughter, Lily. Rubeus moves Lily into his room. He tells Luna only after Lily arrives.
Luna lends Rubeus a cot for Lily to sleep on.
The first three months of the internship end just as the summer harvest is reaching its
height and Rubeus stays on without signing a new lease. At the end of the summer, however,
during the fifth month of Rubeuss stay, a violent hailstorm damages the roof and many of the
crops. Rubeuss room leaks badly and as the rainy weather continues, the room becomes damp
and moldy. Luna and Rubeus work around the clock to salvage the harvest and although she
helps Rubeus with some temporary patches, Luna doesnt have the money for a new roof. After
Lily catches a cold, Rubeus insists that Luna move them to a different room. The other rooms are
full, however, and when Rubeus demands a change, Luna tells him he had no business bringing
his daughter with him and had she known about the girl, she never would have chosen him for
the internship. The next day Luna tells Rubeus to leave. She also withholds Rubeuss internship

stipend for the month that has just ended, explaining that she is keeping the money to cover the
period remaining under the lease and the damage to the room from mold and wood rot that Luna
attributes to Rubeuss failure to keep the room dry. Rubeus has no where to go and he stays on
the farm, but stops working. Two days later, his daughter slips on a wet patch on the stairway
and breaks several bones, requiring surgery. The doctor also tells him that his daughters cold
has turned into pneumonia.
Advise Rubeus of any potential liability he faces or claims he has against Luna arising from
the lease, any defenses either of them can raise, and the odds of prevailing.
APPENDIX
LIVELY HOLLOWS RESIDENTIAL LEASE
This Lease agreement is made and entered into by Luna _____ (Landlord) and
__________________ (Tenant), pursuant to Tenants internship with Landlord.
1.

General Provisions
a.
This lease begins on _________, 2011, and runs for three months thereafter. The
lease may be renewed for an additional period only with the signed written agreement of
Landlord and Tenant.
b.
In the event of any dispute pertaining to any portion of this agreement, the tenants
sole recourse shall be to arbitration, with an arbitrator to be selected by mutual agreement from
a list provided by the National Home Stay Association.
c.
Assigned space may be used for personal residence only. The Landlord reserves the
right to change room assignments and to require Tenants to move to different accommodations
when the Landlord deems it expedient.
d.
All residents, and their visitors and guests, and expected to act with common
decency and decorum and respect for other residents. Overnight guests are permitted only with
the advance agreement of the Landlord.
e.

Insurance carried by the Landlord covers Landlord property only.

f.
No subleasing or assigning permitted. If Tenant sublets or assigns, Landlord may
terminate the lease.
g.
If Tenant brings an unsuccessful legal action or proceeding, Tenant shall pay for all
reasonable attorneys fees and costs Landlord incurs in defending the suit.
2.

The Landlord Agrees to the Following:

a.
To put the Tenant in possession of the leased premises and permit the Tenant to
quietly and peaceably hold and enjoy the premises during the term without any interruptions by
the Landlord or any person claiming under Landlord, provided that the Tenant observes and
performs the covenants and conditions hereinafter set forth.
b.
To maintain the halls, stairs, and common areas, to furnish necessary utilities,
including electricity and water, for the reasonable enjoyment of the premises; provided, however,
that failure to furnish same due shall give the Tenant no claim for damages or for rebate of rent
and shall not justify the Tenant in failing to observe and perform any of the Tenant's obligations
under this lease.

c.
Within thirty (30) days from the termination of the tenancy, to return Tenant's
security deposit or to provide Tenant with a written itemized list of damages for which the
security deposit or any portion thereof is withheld, along with the balance of the deposit.
Landlord shall send all notices, payments and statements to Tenant's last known address.
3.

The Tenant Agrees to the Following:

a.
To pay the first months rental no later than ______, 20__ and to pay rent for each
successive month of occupancy no later than the first day of each month. If rent has not been
paid by the 10th of each month, a $50 late fee is applied and Landlord may terminate the lease.
The Landlord will deduct the rent from Tenants monthly internship stipend unless Landlord and
Tenant reach a written agreement to the contrary.
b.
To perform all of the obligations of the internship at Lively Hollows, with Landlord
reserving the sole discretion to determine whether the internship obligations have been
satisfactorily completed.
d.
To give the Landlord free access to the premises at all reasonable times for the
purpose of examining the condition thereof and making necessary repairs.
e.
To keep the leased premises in good order and condition and free from any
nuisance, filth, illegal activity, or danger of fire.
f.
To make no alterations, repairs, or improvements in the leased premises; any
alterations, repairs, or improvements made by the Tenant, however, shall become a part of the
premises and may not be removed at the expiration of this Lease.
g.
To peaceably surrender possession of the leased premises and furnishings, upon the
expiration of this lease, in as good condition as when received, except ordinary wear and tear.
h.
To pay $50 per day for every day that possession of the premises is held after
termination of this lease.
i.
That the Landlord shall not be liable to the Tenant for any damage caused by theft
or burglary, water, rain, snow, ice, sleet, fire, explosion, frost, storms, and accidents, or by
breakage, stoppage, or leakage of water, gas, heating and sewer pipes, electric wiring or current,
or plumbing upon, about or adjacent to the premises.
4.

The Parties Mutually Covenant and Agree:

a.
That the Landlord is not liable for any damage resulting from any existing or future
defect in the premises or for the acts, omissions, or nuisance of Landlord or any other persons,
specifically including but not limited to damages resulting from falling plaster, leaking roofs, or
faulty or inadequately lit or repaired sidewalks, stairs, halls, yards, or interior areas.
b.
That if the premises are totally or partially destroyed or rendered wholly or partly
untenantable by fire or otherwise, without fault or negligence of the Tenant, this lease shall
terminate at the option of the Landlord as of the date of destruction and a pro rata proportion of
the prepaid rent shall be refunded to the Tenant.
c.
That the Landlord has the right and privilege to enter Tenants room at any time for
the purpose of making inspections or performing any maintenance that is needed, or when the
Landlord has reasonable cause to believe (i) the Tenant has violated the terms of this Lease, or
(ii) a health or safety emergency requires the Landlords intervention.

****
In Witness Whereof, the parties have executed this Lease as follows:
Dated: ________________, 20__
Dated: ________________, 20__

STATUTORY APPENDIX (Civil Rights Statutes)

42 USCS
1982. Property rights of citizens
All citizens of the United States shall have the same right, in every State and Territory, as is
enjoyed by white citizens thereof to inherit, purchase, lease, sell, hold, and convey real and
personal property.
3603. Effective dates of certain prohibitions
(a) Application to certain described dwellings.
Subject to the provisions of subsection (b) of this section . . . , the prohibitions against
discrimination in the sale or rental of housing set forth in section 3604 of this title shall apply. . .

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Slide 4

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Slide 5

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