Trial Brief: NLV v. Eco
NLV Laboratories, Inc. v. Eco Compliance Corporation

Whether an existing dispute over an agreement should have precluded summary judgment.

SUBSTANTIVE FACTS:

NLV appealed the summary judgment, claiming that no accord and satisfaction could have existed unless full payment was received.

NLV argued that the mere existence of a dispute should have precluded a summary judgment.

PROCEDURAL FACTS:

NLV Laboratories billed Eco Compliance $42,754.50 for services rendered

Eco Compliance sent a check for $13,531.19, stating in writing that this amount represented full and final payment and difference from the bill was deducted for overcharges and negligence on a different project.

NLV responded by depositing the check sent by Eco and then demanding the balance owed in writing.

Eco refused to pay any more and NLV sued.

Eco presented an accord and satisfaction defense and a request for summary judgment based on this defense was granted.

NLV appealed the summary judgment.

HOLDING: The Washington Court of Appeals concluded that…...

Appellate Brief
Question Presented / Issue Statement

Appellant Mary Smith seeks review of the decision of the United States District Court for the District of Anytown, which granted judgment in favor of appellees, the United States Postal Service (U.S.P.S.) and Jim Bonilla, egional Supervisor of the U.S.P.S., on their motion to dismiss appellant's complaint for failure to exhaust administrative remedies in appellant's lawsuit for gender discrimination, hostile work environment, and constructive discharge in violation of Title VII of the Civil ights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq. (Title VII). The questions presented in that case was whether appellant provided sufficient facts to warrant tolling her claim under a theory of equitable estoppel or whether the Court should refuse to hear her claims because they were filed after the applicable tolling period. Specifically, these questions are:

Does the time limitation outlined in 29 C.F.. § 1614.105(a)(1) prevent Ms. Smith from bringing…...

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Resources professional, Lehr, was very negative about the possibility of a favorable outcome for appellant. She repeatedly informed appellant that appellee Bonilla was well-liked by the people at the company and actively encouraged appellant to drop her complaint against appellee Bonilla. Moreover, Lehr was involved in a romantic relationship with appellee Bonilla, which was known to the appellant during the time of the investigation.

While it may seem egregious that appellee U.S.P.S. would allow a human resources professional who was engaged in a romantic relationship with an employee to conduct an investigation into that employee's behavior, the egregious nature of those allegations actually works against appellant's claim of equitable estoppel. If appellee Bonilla had engaged in a secret affair with Lehr, which appellant only uncovered after the limitations period had expired, then estoppel might apply to him. If appellee U.S.P.S. had been aware of the affair, but hidden it from appellant, then estoppel might apply to it. On the contrary, appellant's own allegations suggest that the romantic relationship between Lehr and appellee Bonilla was known during the course of the investigation. Therefore, the Court has to look at whether a reasonable person, under those same circumstances, would have believed that an investigation into appellee Bonilla would have resulted in a favorable outcome for appellant. Clearly, a reasonable person would have had, at the very least, grave misgivings about the outcome of such an investigation and would not have relied upon the fact that an investigation was occurring to prevent her from filing a discrimination claim.

The only other possible source of an estoppel claim is the fact that appellant met with a counselor who failed to file her employment discrimination claim against appellees. Perhaps the facts support a filing of a discrimination claim and the counselor's behavior was inappropriate. Moreover, it is possible that appellant believed that her discussion with the counselor would lead to a claim being filed within the statutory period, although her decision to delay speaking with a counselor until the statutory period had almost expired seems as if she was not protecting her rights. However, the question is whether the appellees engaged in behavior that would have prevented her from filing her claim. Even if the counselor's behavior kept appellant from filing a private lawsuit, there is no reason to believe that appellees were, in any way responsible for the counselor's behavior. They cannot be equitably estopped from bringing a statute of limitations defense by the behavior of a third party who was not under their control.

When examining equitable estoppel, it is also appropriate to look at laches. Laches is the "negligent and unintentional failure to protect one's rights." Elvis Presley Enter., v. Elvisly Yours, Inc., 936 F.2d 889, 894 (6th Cir. 1991). Laches has two elements. First, there must be an unreasonable delay in asserting one's rights and second, there must be prejudice to the defending parties. EEOC v. Watkins Motor Lines, Inc., 463 F.3d 436, 437 (6th Cir. 2006). The Court has specifically held that employers can use a laches defense when faced with discrimination claims; "in addition to other equitable defenses, therefore, an employer may raise a laches defense, which bars a plaintiff from maintaining a suit if he unreasonably delays in filing a suit and as a result harms the defendant." National R.R. Passenger Corp. v. Morgan, 536 U.S. 101, 121-122.

Appellant would like to characterize her request for equitable estoppel in such a way that it appears that she is barred by just a few days from bringing her discrimination claim. In some ways this is true, but she also wants to allege a systemic pattern of discriminatory behavior by appellee Bonilla that goes back for years of employment. She failed to file her claim, either as a lawsuit or with the EEOC during that extended period of harassment. Moreover, she acknowledges that she was only transferred to appellee Bonilla's supervision after an unfavorable review when she was in another position. It certainly appears that her employment behavior for several years would be at issue in the lawsuit and that appellees would need to be able to provide substantiation of their claims about her behavior, particularly claims made in her employment evaluations, as part of their defense. The time delay in bringing suit would make this much more difficult for appellees.

Criminal Process; Arraignment to Pre-Trial
The purpose of criminal law is to promote respect for the law by people and ensure a just, safe, and peaceful society. The American justice system has many commendable elements that are aligned to the objectives of a justice system. The trial system significantly addresses many point of subtlety and does a great job in its effort to uphold the rule of law. In the effort to deliver justice, it is important that the rights of the defendant be uphold. This paper seeks to shed light on three stages before the process of criminal trial, and how the rights of the defendant are catered for in each of the stages before trial commences. These stages include the information, arraignment and the subsequent hearings at pretrial.

Arraignment

The stage that precedes and leads to trial in a criminal case is called arraignment. Arraignment must be done within reasonable time…...

Although in this particular case it seemed that Scott Peterson was guilty, even if the evidence was just circumstantial, this type of evidence has sent many people to death, only to find out later that they were not guilty. This is actually a flaw of the jury system. The European continental system lets a judge appreciate whether a person is guilty or not of some crime. Since judges have to pass an exam in order to be appointed and since they are not elected for some period of time, their complete independence is assured. This way, an impartial judge would be indifferent to the media pressure and would weigh the evidence better than any jury, since a judge certainly has more experience than any juror. However, the American legal system chose to put ordinary people to judge other ordinary people, with the "guilty beyond reasonable doubt" principle as the…...

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Reference:

1. Hilden, Julie, "The Scott Peterson trial: Can prosecutors win the case?," FindLaw Columnist Special to CNN.com, CNN.com, July 21, 2004 Wednesday

2. Sahagun, Louis, "Peterson Case Puts the Jury on Defensive," the Los Angeles Times, November 12, 2004 Friday

3. Dearen Jason, "Crunch time at Peterson trial" the Oakland Tribune (Oakland, CA), November 1, 2004 Monday

Dearen Jason, "Crunch time at Peterson trial" the Oakland Tribune (Oakland, CA), November 1, 2004 Monday

As per the arrangement, this will see Dulux offer the product for sale under its own brand name. In exchange for the access it will have to PFP technology, Dulux will be expected to pay an annual royalty fee. The said fee is expected to be 15% of the profits Dulux rakes in from the sale of PFP paint. Thus with regard to merchandising, PFP Ltd. plans to have a main partnership with Dulux. On the production front, the company will enter into a one year trial period partnership with Dulux for the production of Power Paint. Mass production of the same will largely be dependent on the results of this trial.
Benefits of Partnership

One of the key benefits of PFP's partnership with Dulux is the specialization each partner brings to the arrangement. Currently, Dulux has an elaborate distribution system and sound customer base to guarantee maximum exposure to Power…...

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References

Hill, C.W. & Jones, G.R. (2012). Strategic Management Theory (10th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.

Miller, R.L. & Jentz, G.A. (2010). Business Law Today: The Essentials (9th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.

The tactic backfired on him as Northern Republicans viewed with hostility his interest in reconciling fast and returning the south to
viability. Bitter northerners felt this denoted a suspect allegiance and
brutally attacked his policies, especially his effort to create a cabinet
more sympathetic to his interest in reconciliation.
By outcome, his opponents amongst northern republicans struck
preemptively. "Sensing vulnerability, Congress moved against Johnson by
passing the Tenure of Office Act, which limited Johnson's ability to remove
cabinet officials without congressional approval." (Bacon, 1) hen the
inevitable struck and Johnson attempted to remove a divisive secretary of
war, fringe elements of congress rallied for his impeachment. Though his
presidency was preserved by one vote, his fate as a divider and a president
made impotent by political opposition was sealed.

orks Cited:

Bacon, D.C. et al. (1995). History of the United States Congress. New
York: Simon…...

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Works Cited:

Bacon, D.C. et al. (1995). History of the United States Congress. New

York: Simon & Schuster.

M. Lin's release from MCF has had the effect of rendering his lawsuit moot. In this case, M. Lin was incarcerated at the time the lawsuit was filed, but not at the time it is being decided. Thus, M. Lin's cause of action fails on the issue of mootness. Additionally, of the six members whom were denied visitation privileges, five of them have had sons which whom were formerly incarcerated at MCF, but now have been released. The son of the sixth MOM member asserting denial of visitation privileges died after his release from MCF. Thus, all of the six members of MOM claims will fail as a result of mootness.
C. RIPENESS

AUTHORITY

The controversy must be ripe for decision; ripeness bars consideration of claims before they have fully developed. A case may be dismissed as unripe where a statute has never been enforced and there is no real threat that…...

Amicus Brief that I examined for this particular assignment is entitled "Floyd v. Cain." It largely functions as a means of providing evidence that people may falsely confess to crimes for a multitude of reasons. Therefore, it implies that not all convictions are actually true, particularly those in which false confessions may have been involved.
This particular brief was written due to a legal matter involving John Floyd, who has spent approximately the past 30 years in prison largely due to his confession to a charge of murder. There are several mitigating factors pertaining to this particular case, most noticeably the fact that Floyd "has a full scale IQ of 59 and, at age 60, reads at the level of a second grader" (APA, 2013). At the time that the American Psychological Association (APA) prepared this brief, there was new evidence in Floyd's case that he may have falsely confessed.…...

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References

American Psychological Association. (2013). "Floyd v. Cain." www.apa.org. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/about/offices/ogc/amicus/floyd.aspx

Haedicke, S.J. (2010). "Brief of Amicus Curae the American Psychological Association in support of petitioner John Floyd." American Psychological Association. Retrieved from  http://www.apa.org/about/offices/ogc/amicus/floyd-v-cain-brief.pdf

K. Comment: I agree with the majority opinion. The Constitution is the absolute guiding law of the land, and the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees that its protections will be extended to state actions. The Fourth Amendment guarantees a right to privacy and assures citizens that they will be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. The Fourth Amendment also imposes a warrant requirement for the majority of searches, so that most searches that occur without a warrant violate the Fourth Amendment. The search in this case certainly violated the Fourth Amendment, but whether or not the constitutional violations were as egregious as in this case should not be the determinant of whether evidence is excluded, because the Constitution absolutely bans all unreasonable searches and seizures. hile the dissent suggests that other remedies can help a defendant who has been subjected to an unreasonable search and seizure, the fact is that none of…...

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Works Cited

Mapp v. Ohio, 367 U.S. 643 (1961).  http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?navby=case&court=us&vol=367&page=643

policy, law and management. It is based on a particular background that has been provided.
Law, Policy, and Management Brief: Models of Court-Agency Interaction

Courts play a very significant role as they interact with administrative agencies. Administrative agencies are beyond the influence of the technical processes that are applied in courts of trial. The rules that are used in court trials are not applicable in the proceedings of agencies. Moreover, agencies also have the power to outline the rules that will govern the proceedings of the agency when there is no statutory provision. The agencies have been given broad discretion when it comes to creating rules to govern proceeding (Administrative Agency Adjudications - Administrative Law).

However, the agencies do not have the power to act like the legislature when creating procedural rules. The jurisdiction of agencies is the power that the law gives them to make judgment in controversies. In administrative law,…...

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References

Administrative Law - Administrative Law. (n.d.). Administrative Agency Adjudications - Administrative Law. Retrieved June 12, 2016, from  http://administrativelaw.uslegal.com/administrative-agency-adjudications/ 

Ansell, C., & Gash, A. (2007). Collaborative Governance in Theory and Practice. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory,18. Retrieved, from  http://sites.duke.edu/niou/files/2011/05/Ansell-and-Gash-Collaborative-Governance-in-Theory-and-Practice.pdf 

Bazelon, D. (1976). The Impact of the Courts on Public Administration. Indiana Law Journal,52(1). Retrieved, from  http://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/cgi/viewcontent .

(2008). SHRM Online - Society for Human Resource Management. Leadership Competencies. Retrieved June 8, 2016, from  http://www.shrm.org/research/articles/articles/pages/leadershipcompetencies.aspx

Bio-Statistics
esearch activities, whether clinical trial based, experimentally designed, or product oriented, must exhibit and command interest, enthusiasm, and passionate commitment. To this end the researcher must catch the essential quality of the excitement of discovery that comes from research well done. The first step in the attainment of the desired research goal is to develop a scientific approach toward that which is being investigated. A requirement within the scientific approach best-fit format that is oftentimes misunderstood, and consequently wrongly applied, is that of sampling.

In a rather philosophical approach to sampling Ohlson (1998) states that sampling is " ... But part of the whole. Check to make sure I fairly represent my larger connection " (p. 27). With these words Ohlson is informing the research enthusiast that sampling alone can skew testing results, infuse uncontrollable error into statistical processes, and violate the empirical premise under which the research investigation is…...

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References

Ferguson, Geroge A. 1966. Statistical Analysis in Psychology and Education. New York:

McGraw-Hill Book Company

Ohlson, E.L 1998. Best-Fit Statistical Procedures, ACTS Testing Labs. Chicago Thompson, David M., Kozak, Sharon E. And Sheps, Sam (1999). Insulin adjustment by a diabetes nurse educator improves glucose control in insulin-requiring diabetic patients: A randomized trial. CMAJ, 161(8):959-62

Van Dalen, Debold B. (1966). Understanding educational research. New York: McGraw-Hill

391).
Padilla's counsel subsequently filed a petition for certiorari with the United States Supreme Court, which was again denied in April of 2006. Meantime, Padilla had been transferred to civilian custody, essentially rendering the petition for a writ of certiorari in the highest court in the land a moot point.

The question before the Court of Appeals was whether the President of the United States had the constitutional authority to detain a United States citizen who was allegedly associated with al Qaeda, a known terrorist organization that the United States was at war with.

The Judge who ultimately penned the Court of Appeals' opinion, Luttig, was joined by Judges Michael and Traxler (2005) and wrote:

The detention of petitioner being fully authorized by Act of Congress, the judgment of the district court that the detention of petitioner by the President of the United States is without support in law is hereby reversed. (p.397).

In essence,…...

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References

American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia. (2006). Padilla v. Hanft.

Retrieved from  http://www.acluva.org/docket/padilla.html .

Judge Luttig, and Judges Michael and Traxler. (2005). Padilla v. Hanft, 423 F. 3d 386 - Court of Appeals, 4th Circuit. Google Scholar. Retrieved from  http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=4248615015622681524&q=Padilla+v.+Hanft,+423+F.3d&hl=en&as_sdt=2,44&scilh=0 

Rumsfeld v Padilla. (2004). Rehnquist, William, C.J., Sandra Day O' Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy and Clarence Thomas. Google Scholar. Retrieved from  http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=15130484144621962379&q=Rumsfeld+v.+Padilla,+542+U.S.+426+ (2004)&hl=en&as_sdt=2,44.

Gault
Caption: In re Gault et al., 387 U.S. 1; 87 S. Ct. 1428; 18 L. Ed. 2D 527; 1967 U.S. LEXIS 1478; 40 Ohio Op. 2D 378.

Facts: After allegedly making obscene phone calls to a neighbor, the appellants' son, a fifteen-year-old boy, was taken into custody by the Gila County sheriff. The detention occurred without notice to the parents. The boy was questioned without being advised of his right to silence and without his parents present. At no time were the boy or his parents advised that the boy had the right to counsel. When the mother went to the juvenile facility where her son was being detained, she was advised that he was being held because of obscene phone calls and that a hearing would occur the next day. At the hearing in the Juvenile Court, a petition was filed stating that the boy was a delinquent minor.…...

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References

In re Gault et al., 387 U.S. 1; 87 S. Ct. 1428; 18 L. Ed. 2d 527; 1967 U.S. LEXIS 1478; 40 Ohio

Op. 2d 378.

United States of America, Plaintiff -- Appellee,
Ann W. McRee, Joseph H. Hale, Defendants -- Appellee.

United States Court of Appeals,

Eleventh Circuit.

Parties: United States of America (Plaintiff) v. McRee & Hale (Defendants)

Facts:

On February 28, 1985 the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a jeopardy assessment in the amount of $1.9 million which would impact Hale's property and businesses. He was in prison at the time for securities fraud and perjury, and his affairs were being handled by Ann McRee and Paul Wagner. On April 15, 1985, the IRS sent Hale a Denial of Appeal of Jeopardy Assessment with right to appeal, which they did not take advantage of. The IRS accidentally sent Hale a refund check in the amount of $359,380.25 because of a computer error which should have stated that they took $340,000 as partial payment of the amount owed. Hale did everything in his power to convert that money to cash…...

Case Facts: Ernesto Miranda was arrested and locked up in a Phoenix police station on March 13, 1963 where he was identified by a complaining witness (Samaha, 2012). Law enforcement officers took him to an Investigation Room where he was questioned before the two officers came out with a written confession that he signed. During the questioning, Miranda was not notified that he had a right to an attorney and was notified of the need for voluntary confession after making his oral confession. The written confession was then admitted into evidence at his trial before a jury despite objections from the defense counsel. The court then found him guilty of kidnapping and rape and sentenced him to 20 to 30 years in prison for each count, with these sentences running simultaneously. This ruling was upheld by the Supreme Court of Arizona following Mirandas appeal on the basis that his constitutional…...