TORTS I PROFESSOR MURPHY

SAMPLE EXAM QUESTIONS

Fall Semester

QUESTION ONE
(50 minutes)

Late one night, in a posh resort community, Paul Punk and Kid Vicious broke into
a vacation home they believed to be vacant, but that was in fact occupied by Orville
Owner and the Owner family. Working efficiently, Punk and Vicious quickly stripped the
home of its portable valuables, including a priceless Matisse print, the family silver and
the contents of Owner’s safe. In his haste, however, Vicious knocked over a valuable
Ming vase which shattered on impact. Awakened by the noise, Owner started downstairs,
calling, “Who’s there? Identify yourself or I’ll call the police.” Punk and Vicious did not
reply, but hastily gathered their loot and ran out the door. Owner, in hot pursuit,
encountered Ned Nerd, who was on his way to meet Olga, Owner’s daughter. Mistaking
Nerd for one of the robbers and fearing for his safety, Owner knocked Nerd to the ground
and pounced on him. Owner’s wife, Olive, seeing her husband and Nerd grappling on the
ground, helpfully knocked Nerd unconscious with the fireplace poker. Only when Owner
and Olive had carried Nerd into the house did they recognize their daughter’s boyfriend.

Vicious and Punk, meanwhile, had successfully hot-wired Owner’s car and were
preparing to leave. Owner ran in front of the car and commanded the robbers to stop.
Instead, Punk drove the car right at Owner, hoping to force him out of their path. Owner,
in fact, leapt to safety and suffered no injury. Olga, however, looking for Nerd, proved a
greater obstacle. The collision between Olga and the car caused her to sustain a
concussion and broken nose and the car to careen into a tree. The resulting impact
destroyed the car, the Matisse print and the contents of Owner’s safe (including the gold
watch given Owner by his grandfather). The family silver suffered only minor damage
and Vicious and Punk emerged dazed but otherwise unscathed.

Owner has come to your law firm with the above tale of woe. The senior partner
directs you to prepare a memorandum discussing potential causes of action and defenses,
if any, between the following parties:

1) Orville Owner v. Punk and/or Vicious

2) Olga v. Punk and/or Vicious

3) Nerd v. Owner

4) Nerd v. Olive
TORTS I PROFESSOR MURPHY

SAMPLE EXAM QUESTIONS

Fall Semester

QUESTION TWO
(60 Minutes)

Shortly before sunset in late November, David Dummy, a happy-go-lucky twelve-

year-old, took the family motorboat out for a spin on the lake. David was cruising
along when a small boat suddenly swerved into his path. To avoid the boat, David
turned quickly to his right. In doing so, however, he put himself on a collision course
with another small boat, piloted by Penny. Although unable to avoid the collision,
David did manage to minimize its impact and Penny’s boat sustained only a small
hole, while Penny herself suffered only bumps and bruises. Unfortunately for Penny,
however, the hole was sufficient to capsize the boat. Although Penny called for help,
David dismissed her cries as a ploy for attention and turned toward shore.

As David approached the dock, he saw Sally Mermaid swimming directly in his
path. Sally was practicing routines for her Busch Gardens debut and had unknowingly
drifted into that part of the lake traditionally reserved for boats. Without slowing
down, David impatiently tooted the boat horn but Sally made no response. Deciding
that Sally must have heard the boat and the horn, David proceeded toward the dock.
To his surprise, Sally did not move and was, consequently, run over by the boat.
Sally’s mother was watching Sally practice from shore and witnessed the collision.
Mrs. Mermaid immediately collapsed and was treated for shock. She remained in the
hospital for two weeks. Sally herself sustained a concussion and an imprint of the
boat’s bow on her forehead.

Penny, meanwhile, clung to her boat for two hours before she was discovered and
retrieved by another boater. Recognizing that Penny was suffering from hypothermia
and needed immediate medical attention, the boater put Penny in his car and rushed
her to the hospital. In his haste, however, the boater collided with another driver.
Penny suffered a broken arm in the collision.

Discuss David’s potential liability to

a) Penny

b) Sally

Include in your discussion any cause of action each might have against David, any
defense thereto and your assessment of the likelihood of success of each cause of
action.