Alabama Bar Examination (UBE)

# Alabama Bar Examination (UBE) — Grounded Study Notes

## Contracts

**Contract Formation & Formation Defects**
- A contract requires valid acceptance that must be clear and unambiguous; certiorari denied in routine contract disputes absent significant federal question.
  - *VETETO v. GRIFFIN*, 140 S. Ct. 1292 (2020)

**Consideration and Adequacy**
- Basic contract enforceability requires mutual assent and exchange of consideration; courts avoid intervention in business judgment of adequacy.
  - *ROSADO v. LUCID ENERGY, INC.*, 140 S. Ct. 1103 (2020)

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## Torts

**Negligence & Duty of Care**
- Tort liability requires breach of a legal duty owed to the plaintiff, resulting in injury. Military personnel suing under Federal Tort Claims Act face sovereign immunity bar (*Feres* doctrine) against negligence claims for in-service medical malpractice.
  - *DANIEL v. UNITED STATES*, 139 S. Ct. 1713 (2019)

**Asbestos & Product Liability (Multi-party)**
- In products liability cases involving multiple defendants (asbestos manufacturers, suppliers, employers), courts examine causation and comparative fault; liability standards vary by state.
  - *AIR AND LIQUID SYSTEMS CORP. v. DEVRIES*, 139 S. Ct. 986 (2019)

**Criminal Assault & Robbery (Force Element)**
- For armed robbery under ACCA, the offense must involve "physical force" sufficient to overcome victim resistance; different statutory formulations yield different guilt thresholds.
  - *STOKELING v. UNITED STATES*, 139 S. Ct. 544 (2019)

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## Civil Procedure

**Subject Matter Jurisdiction & Patent Claims**
- Inter partes review is an administrative proceeding for patent invalidity; one-year bar to filing raises jurisdictional gatekeeping questions; parties may not raise issues on appeal not previously raised before the agency.
  - *THRYV, INC. v. CLICK-TO-CALL TECHNOLOGIES, LP*, 140 S. Ct. 1367 (2020)

**Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies**
- Under the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), prisoners must exhaust administrative grievance procedures before filing § 1983 suits; failure to exhaust at filing bars claims (Circuit split on cure after release).
  - *WEXFORD HEALTH v. GARRETT*, 140 S. Ct. 1611 (2020)

**Bankruptcy Discharge Orders & Res Judicata**
- At bankruptcy conclusion, discharge orders bar collection efforts and create res judicata for discharged debts; bankruptcy courts have authority to bar debtor's future litigation on discharged claims.
  - *TAGGART v. LORENZEN*, 139 S. Ct. 1795 (2019)

**Free Speech & State Action (School Speech)**
- Football coach's silent prayer on sideline implicates First Amendment free speech; state school's content-based suppression raises constitutional questions (facts disputed at preliminary injunction stage).
  - *KENNEDY v. BREMERTON SCHOOL DISTRICT*, 139 S. Ct. 634 (2019)

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## Constitutional Law

**Due Process & Criminal Procedure (Habeas Petitions)**
- Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) § 2244(b)(2) imposes bars on second/successive habeas petitions; petitioner must show prima facie new evidence or new constitutional rule (retroactive) before circuit court authorization granted.
  - *ST. HUBERT v. UNITED STATES*, 140 S. Ct. 1727 (2020)

**Capital Punishment & Eighth Amendment**
- Inmate seeking alternative execution method (nitrogen hypoxia vs. lethal injection) alleges Eighth Amendment cruel and unusual punishment; trial on method required absent extraordinary circumstances.
  - *PRICE v. JEFFERSON S. DUNN*, 139 S. Ct. 1794 (2019)

**First Amendment — Freedom of Religion (COVID-19 Emergency)**
- State COVID-19 closure orders limiting worship capacity to 25% or 100 attendees trigger strict scrutiny under Free Exercise; no cure at traditional preliminary injunction stage during acute pandemic emergency.
  - *SOUTH BAY UNITED PENTECOSTAL CHURCH v. NEWSOM*, 140 S. Ct. 1613 (2020)

**First Amendment — Integrated Bar Dues & Compelled Speech**
- Wisconsin integrated bar requires attorneys to pay mandatory dues; portions used for public advocacy on abortion, voting rights, budget issues raise compelled speech concerns under *Keller v. State Bar of California*.
  - *JARCHOW v. STATE BAR OF WISCONSIN*, 140 S. Ct. 1720 (2020)

**Establishment Clause — Religious Discrimination (Historic Preservation)**
- New Jersey historic preservation fund excludes religious buildings from grants solely because they are religious; exclusion facially violates Free Exercise/equal protection (religious status discrimination).
  - *MORRIS COUNTY BOARD v. FREEDOM FROM RELIGION FOUNDATION*, 139 S. Ct. 909 (2019)

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## Criminal Law & Procedure

**Certiorari Jurisdiction & Death Penalty Appeals**
- Standard capital murder convictions and sentencing by jury do not automatically warrant Supreme Court review; petition for writ of certiorari at Certiorari Clerk's discretion based on "exceptional" federal question.
  - *BENAVIDES v. TEXAS*, 140 S. Ct. 1301 (2020)

**Confession & Post-Conviction Review**
- Post-conviction claims of forced confession or false confessions are subject to habeas review under AEDPA § 2254; state-court determinations of fact receive deference.
  - *THIBODEAUX v. DREW EVANS*, 140 S. Ct. 1136 (2020)

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## Evidence

**Admissibility of Out-of-Court Statements (Child Abuse)**
- Videotaped forensic interviews of child victims are hearsay; courts may admit them under child-abuse exceptions and confrontation analysis even where child testifies at trial (no per se bar to dual presentation).
  - *SNAPP v. STATE OF INDIANA*, 121 N.E.3d 144 (Ct. App. Ind. 2019)

**Attorney Fees & Damages (Real Property Disclosure)**
- In residential property fraud/disclosure act claims, courts award attorney fees if party breaches disclosure duties; attorneys must itemize hours for scrutiny; unjustified fees may be reduced on appeal.
  - *KROOT v. CHAN*, 125 N.E.3d 531 (Ill. App. Ct. 2019)

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## Real Property

**Bankruptcy Stay & Trustee Sale (Deeds of Trust)**
- Automatic bankruptcy stay halts pre-petition non-judicial trustee sales; if sale not completed before filing, debtor retains legal/equitable interest; timing of sale completion critical under state law (Washington DoTA).
  - *IN RE: LOPEZ*, 596 B.R. 371 (Bankr. E.D. Wash. 2019)

**Chapter 13 Plan Confirmation (Vehicle Deductions)**
- Chapter 13 debtors must contribute all projected disposable income; vehicle ownership deduction (title, registration, insurance) capped at actual monthly payment; inflated deduction violates § 1325(b).
  - *IN RE: TRAYLOR*, 595 B.R. 419 (Bankr. D. Utah 2019)

**Misconduct by Presiding Judge (Disqualification)**
- Judicial disqualification requires showing of actual bias or reasonable apprehension thereof; ex parte discussions, improper focus on fee collection, and time-guideline violations may warrant recusal (fact-intensive).
  - *IN RE DISQUALIFICATION OF STUCKI*, 125 N.E.3d 963 (Ohio 2019)

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## Cross-Cutting Themes (MBE & MEE Relevant)

**Multi-party Causation & Comparative Liability**
- Products liability across multiple defendants (suppliers, manufacturers, employers) requires separate causation and comparative-fault analysis per state law; no uniform federal rule.
  - *AIR AND LIQUID SYSTEMS CORP. v. DEVRIES*, 139 S. Ct. 986 (2019)

**Administrative Exhaustion & Judicial Review**
- Exhaustion of administrative remedies (PLRA, patent review) is a jurisdictional prerequisite in many federal contexts; failure bars judicial review absent exceptional circumstances.
  - *WEXFORD HEALTH v. GARRETT*, 140 S. Ct. 1611 (2020); *THRYV, INC. v. CLICK-TO-CALL TECHNOLOGIES, LP*, 140 S. Ct. 1367 (2020)

**Fundamental Rights & Strict Scrutiny**
- State interference with fundamental rights (religious exercise, free speech, due process) triggers strict scrutiny; content-based or status-based classifications must be narrowly tailored to compelling interest.
  - *SOUTH BAY UNITED PENTECOSTAL CHURCH v. NEWSOM*, 140 S. Ct. 1613 (2020); *JARCHOW v. STATE BAR OF WISCONSIN*, 140 S. Ct. 1720 (2020)