dyfan/halluhard-seed-questions huggingface dataset:
Legal question (Bar Exam): At a local baseball stadium, an adult fan sitting in the unprotected general-admission seating area was struck by a high-speed foul ball and injured. The fan sues the team for negligence. Given the law regarding assumption of risk for spectators at sporting events, is the fan likely barred from recovery for ordinary risks inherent in the sport?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A local newspaper published a false allegation that a small-business owner committed embezzlement; the owner is not a public official or public figure. To recover for defamation, must the owner prove that the newspaper acted with actual malice—knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard for the truth?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A bicyclist shouted seconds after colliding with a delivery van, 'He ran the light and hit me!' and was fatally injured a minute later. At the delivery driver's trial, the prosecution offers the bicyclist's outcry for the truth of the matter asserted. Is that out-of-court statement likely admissible under the Federal Rules of Evidence's excited-utterance hearsay exception?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A hospital's electronic chart, kept in the ordinary course of business by nurses and updated contemporaneously, recorded a patient's allergic reaction and the time it occurred. In a later malpractice suit, the hospital offers the chart as evidence. Under the business records exception to the hearsay rule, is the chart likely admissible?
Legal question (Bar Exam): In a homicide prosecution the government seeks to admit into evidence a forensic laboratory report identifying the defendant's DNA on a murder weapon; the technician who prepared the report is unavailable for trial and had not been cross-examined. Under the Confrontation Clause as interpreted by Crawford, is the testimonial laboratory report admissible without prior opportunity to cross-examine the technician?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A trial witness testified at a preliminary hearing under oath that she saw the defendant at the crime scene, but at trial she recanted and denied seeing the defendant. The prosecutor seeks to admit the preliminary hearing statement to prove the defendant's presence at the scene. Under the Federal Rules of Evidence, is the prior sworn inconsistent statement admissible as substantive evidence?
Legal question (Bar Exam): In a burglary prosecution, the prosecutor seeks to introduce the defendant's prior unrelated felony theft conviction to prove that the defendant has a propensity to commit burglary. Under the Federal Rules of Evidence's rule on character evidence, is the prior conviction admissible to prove propensity?
Legal question (Bar Exam): During an armed bank robbery the getaway driver, who was part of the robbery plan but did not enter the bank, shot and killed a security guard while fleeing. The driver is charged with murder, and the getaway driver’s accomplice is charged separately. Under the felony-murder rule, is the accomplice who did not shoot nevertheless criminally liable for murder if the killing occurred in the course of the felony?
Legal question (Bar Exam): Two defendants agreed to burglarize a warehouse. During the burglary one defendant unexpectedly stabbed and killed the night watchman. The non-stabbing defendant had not anticipated any killing. Under accomplice liability principles and the felony-murder doctrine, is the non-stabbing defendant likely guilty of murder?
Legal question (Bar Exam): An undercover agent persistently pressured an otherwise law-abiding person to sell a small quantity of narcotics over several weeks, supplying the buyer with the location and customer contacts, until the person finally agreed and sold drugs. The defendant argues entrapment. Under the established entrapment defense, focused on government inducement and defendant's predisposition, is entrapment a viable defense?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A defendant who was suffering active hallucinations believed voices commanded him to stab a visitor; at trial he contends he lacked the capacity to know the nature and quality of his act because of a severe mental disease. Under the M'Naghten test for insanity, which focuses on the defendant's ability to know right from wrong or understand the nature of the act, is this evidence likely to support a successful insanity defense?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A suspect was arrested in his home and interrogated for three hours at the police station without being read Miranda warnings; during that time he confessed to the crime. At the government's criminal trial, the prosecutor seeks to use the confession in its case-in-chief. Under Miranda and its fruit exceptions, is the stationhouse confession admissible against the defendant?
Legal question (Bar Exam): Police, with probable cause to believe a car contained a large quantity of illegal narcotics and no time to obtain a warrant because the car was about to drive away, opened the locked trunk and seized drugs visible inside. Under the automobile exception to the Fourth Amendment's warrant requirement, was the warrantless trunk search constitutional?
Legal question (Bar Exam): An officer received an anonymous bulletin that a person wearing a red jacket would imminently shoot someone at a crowded bus stop; the officer arrived and saw a person in a red jacket standing calmly. The officer stopped and patted down the person and found a handgun. Under Terry's reasonable-suspicion standard governing stops and frisks, was the officer's stop and frisk constitutionally justified based on an anonymous tip lacking corroborating details?
Legal question (Bar Exam): Police responding to a 911 call reporting screams entered a private home without a warrant and found an unconscious victim and an armed intruder; officers secured the scene and arrested the intruder. Under the exigent-circumstances and emergency-aid exceptions to the warrant requirement, was the warrantless entry and search likely permissible under the Fourth Amendment?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A municipal ordinance prohibited all 'political demonstrations' in every public park, but allowed nonpolitical gatherings, concerts, and rallies to take place. A group was cited for distributing leaflets protesting a local ordinance in a city park. Under First Amendment standards for content-based restrictions on speech in public forums, is the ordinance likely constitutional?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A county placed a large, solitary nativity scene on the courthouse lawn each December without any secular symbols or disclaimers. A local resident sued claiming the display violated the Establishment Clause. Under the principle that government endorsement of religion is scrutinized, is the county's nativity-only display likely constitutional?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A municipality adopted a zoning ordinance that prevented all commercial development of a privately owned waterfront parcel, leaving the owner with no economically viable use of the land. The owner sues, alleging a regulatory taking without just compensation. Under Supreme Court Takings Clause precedent distinguishing total deprivations of economically viable use and multi-factor Penn Central analysis, is there a plausible claim that the regulation constitutes a compensable taking?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A national corporation is incorporated in Delaware with its principal place of business in New York. A plaintiff sues the corporation in State X, where the corporation has occasional sales shipped into the state but no office or employees, for a tort that occurred elsewhere. Under the 'nerve center' and Daimler general-jurisdiction standard, can State X exercise general personal jurisdiction over the corporation?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A plaintiff domiciled in State A sues a defendant domiciled in State B in federal district court alleging damages of $60,000. For purposes of diversity jurisdiction, which requires an amount in controversy exceeding $75,000, does the federal court have subject-matter jurisdiction based on diversity?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A defendant in a diversity action seeks dismissal because the plaintiff's claim is barred under the state's two-year statute of limitations, but the plaintiff contends Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 3 makes the case timely. Under the Erie doctrine and its progeny governing conflict between federal procedural rules and state substantive law, should the federal court apply the state's statute of limitations or the federal rule?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A plaintiff sued her former employer in state court for breach of contract and obtained a final judgment on the merits. Later, after new facts were discovered arising from the same employment relationship, she sued again in the same court for related contract-based damages. Under the doctrines of res judicata and claim preclusion, is the second suit barred?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A proposed Rule 23(b)(3) class seeks certification for thousands of consumers alleging deceptive advertising, but each class member's damages require individual proof of transaction price and personal loss. Under the Federal Rules governing class actions, if individualized issues of damages predominate over common questions, should a court certify a nationwide damages class?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A neighbor openly used a 10-foot strip of an adjacent vacant lot as a private garden, with fences and flower beds, continuously and exclusively for fifteen years while the record owner did not object. The state statutory period for adverse possession is ten years. If the neighbor brings an action to quiet title, does the neighbor have a valid claim for title by adverse possession?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A seller completed installation of a built-in chandelier in a home during construction and later sold the house. After closing, the seller removed the chandelier claiming it was personal property he paid for and thus could be taken. Under the law distinguishing fixtures from personal chattels, does the chandelier normally pass with the real property to the buyer?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A rural landowner used a neighbor's well-worn footpath across an adjoining parcel to reach a river for fishing openly and continuously for twenty years despite no written grant. The owner of the servient parcel never gave permission but tolerated the use. Under the law of prescriptive easements, has the landowner likely acquired an easement by prescription to use the path?
Legal question (Bar Exam): An owner conveyed Blackacre to Purchaser A but did not record the deed. Later the owner conveyed Blackacre to Purchaser B, who paid value, had no notice of A's earlier conveyance, and promptly recorded B's deed. Under a typical race-notice recording statute, who holds the superior title to Blackacre?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A salesperson for a corporation regularly negotiated contracts using company letterhead and met with clients in the company's executive suite; a new contract was signed with a third party who reasonably believed the salesperson had authority though no formal delegation occurred. The corporation later disavowed the contract. Under the doctrine of apparent authority, is the corporation likely bound by the salesperson's signature?
Legal question (Bar Exam): Three partners in a small professional partnership learned of a profitable new client opportunity; one partner secretly diverted the client's business to an entity he owned and collected fees without informing the partnership. Under partnership fiduciary duties, particularly the duty of loyalty, did that partner breach his obligations to the partnership?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A sole shareholder treated a closely held corporation as an alter ego: she commingled personal and corporate funds, failed to observe corporate formalities, and used the corporation to perpetrate a fraud on a creditor. The creditor sues the shareholder personally to collect the corporation's obligations. Under the standards for piercing the corporate veil, is the creditor likely to recover from the shareholder personally?
Legal question (Bar Exam): An elderly testator with mild dementia executed a will leaving the entire estate to a long-time caregiver shortly after suffering a minor stroke; the testator understood he owned a house, had two children, and could name them, but his physician noted short-term memory lapses. Under the standard for testamentary capacity, which requires understanding the nature of the act, the nature and extent of property, and the natural objects of bounty, is the will likely valid on grounds of capacity?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A manufacturer in State A and a retailer in State B orally agree that the manufacturer will sell 100 widgets to the retailer for $15,000, to be delivered in two months. The retailer later refuses to accept delivery, and the manufacturer sues for the contract price. Under UCC §2-201, is the oral contract enforceable against the retailer?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A buyer sends a purchase order containing a clause requiring any disputes to be resolved by arbitration. The seller's written acknowledgement form, which it sends back and which the buyer accepts by taking delivery, contains instead a clause specifying litigation in a state court. Under UCC §2-207, did the seller's additional term become part of the contract?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A contract for the sale of specialized machine parts required delivery by June 1. The seller delivered conforming parts on June 4. The contract stated that 'time is of the essence.' The buyer rejected the goods as untimely. Under the UCC perfect-tender rule and the doctrine of 'time is of the essence,' may the buyer lawfully reject the late delivery?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A supplier informs a buyer three weeks before performance is due that it will not be providing the contracted materials. Shortly afterward, the supplier indicates it will, after all, perform and tenders delivery before the delivery date. Under the doctrines of anticipatory repudiation and retraction, may the buyer immediately treat the supplier's initial statement as a breach and recover damages before the tendered performance?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A consumer purchases a used car from a merchant dealer and signs a contract containing a conspicuous, typed 'AS IS' clause that disclaims all implied warranties, including merchantability. The dealer also verbally assures the buyer that the car has 'no mechanical problems.' Under UCC §2-314 and §2-316, can the buyer still recover for breach of the implied warranty of merchantability?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A municipal ordinance establishes a statutory speed limit and makes violations a misdemeanor. A driver exceeds the speed limit and strikes a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk, injuring the pedestrian. The pedestrian sues for negligence and relies on the speed statute as evidence of negligence per se. Assuming the statute was enacted to protect pedestrians, is negligence per se likely to apply?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A consumer purchases a lawn mower that explodes during normal use because the manufacturer failed to include an adequate guard warning about a known defect. The consumer is injured. Under principles of strict products liability, can the consumer recover from the manufacturer for the defective and unreasonably dangerous product?
Legal question (Bar Exam): An investor relied on an accountant's negligent but non-fraudulent financial statements when deciding to invest in a company and lost money. The accountant did not have a contractual relationship with the investor but prepared the statements knowing they would be used by potential investors. Under common-law negligent misrepresentation rules, may the investor recover in tort from the accountant?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A factory began emitting noxious odors and airborne particulates that substantially and unreasonably interfered with a neighboring homeowner's use and enjoyment of her property. The neighbor sues to enjoin the factory and for damages. Under the tort of private nuisance, is the neighbor likely to prevail?
Legal question (Bar Exam): At an amateur baseball game, a spectator in a screened-in seating area is struck by a foul ball and sues the team and stadium for negligence. The venue had posted signs warning of foul-ball risks, and screened seating is available only by special request. Under the assumption of risk doctrine applicable to sports spectators, is the spectator likely to be barred from recovery?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A witness at trial initially testifies for the prosecution but the defense impeaches the witness by suggesting bias. The prosecution then offers a written, contemporaneous statement the witness gave to police before she had any motive to fabricate and that is consistent with her testimony. Under the Federal Rules of Evidence concerning prior consistent statements, is the written statement admissible to rehabilitate the witness?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A defendant is charged with arson. At trial the prosecutor seeks to admit evidence that the defendant committed a different, prior arson several years earlier to show intent and absence of mistake. Under FRE 404(b) principles governing admission of prior bad acts for non-character purposes, is the evidence of the prior arson admissible to prove intent?
Legal question (Bar Exam): Police present to the court a series of digital photographs of a crime scene taken by an officer's body‑worn camera. The defense objects on authentication grounds, arguing that the photos could have been altered. Under FRE 901, may the officer's testimony that the photos were taken by his camera and accurately depict the scene be sufficient to authenticate the images?
Legal question (Bar Exam): During a robbery, one participant in the felony killed a store clerk. The principal participant who planned and directed the robbery did not pull the trigger. Under the felony‑murder rule in most jurisdictions, is the principal liable for murder committed by his accomplice during the commission of the felony?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A defendant charged with larceny took property from a store believing reasonably, but mistakenly, that the store had given him permission to take it. The larceny statute requires a specific intent to permanently deprive another of property. Can the defendant assert a mistake of fact defense that negates the required specific intent to steal?
Legal question (Bar Exam): An undercover officer repeatedly urged a quiet, otherwise law-abiding person over weeks to sell contraband, providing logistics and money; the person eventually sold drugs and was arrested. The defense claims entrapment. Under the federal entrapment doctrine, will the defense likely succeed if the defendant lacked predisposition before the government's repeated persuasion?
Legal question (Bar Exam): Officers stopped a car for a minor equipment violation and discovered the driver was intoxicated; they arrested the passenger on an outstanding warrant unrelated to the stop, removed the passenger from the vehicle, and then opened the trunk and searched a duffel bag found there without a warrant or consent. The officers had no probable cause to search the bag and no exigent circumstances. Under the Fourth Amendment, is the warrantless search of the duffel bag likely constitutional?
Legal question (Bar Exam): During a custodial interrogation, a suspect twice said, 'Maybe I should talk to a lawyer,' before answering more questions and making incriminating statements after the officer continued questioning without clarifying. Under Miranda and Supreme Court decisions about invocation of the right to counsel, must the police cease questioning when a suspect makes an ambiguous statement like 'Maybe I should talk to a lawyer'?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A city code bans signs in residential front yards that convey any 'political message' but permits commercial advertisements and religious displays. A homeowner who posts a sign protesting a city policy is cited under the ordinance. Under First Amendment doctrine regarding content-based restrictions on speech in public fora, is the ordinance likely constitutional?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A small town opens public meetings with a prayer led by clergy from a single faith tradition and regularly excludes clergy from other faiths from offering the invocations. Some residents object that the practice violates the Establishment Clause. Under Supreme Court precedent permitting legislative prayer, does a pattern of exclusively single‑faith invocations likely run afoul of the Establishment Clause?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A county required a developer, as a condition of issuing a building permit, to dedicate a strip of land along the property for a public park. The developer claims the dedication is unrelated in character and degree to the impact of the development. Under the Nollan/Dolan/Koontz line of takings law, must the government satisfy an essential nexus and rough proportionality to justify the permit condition, and if not, is the condition an unconstitutional taking?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A plaintiff sues in federal court on diversity grounds. The defendant moves to dismiss, arguing the action is barred by the state's statute of limitations. Under Erie and its progeny, must the federal court in a diversity case apply the state's statute of limitations when determining whether the claim is time‑barred?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A Delaware corporation incorporated and headquartered in Delaware sells products nationwide but is neither incorporated nor headquartered in State X, where thousands of its products were sold and where it has many customers. A plaintiff sues the corporation in State X state court for a product defect. Under Daimler's standard for general jurisdiction, may State X assert general jurisdiction over the corporation based solely on its substantial sales within the state?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A plaintiff obtained a final judgment on the merits in state court against a defendant for injuries arising out of a motor vehicle accident, and later filed a second action against the same defendant for additional claims arising from the same accident that could have been litigated in the first action. Under claim preclusion (res judicata), is the second action barred?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A homeowner lets a neighbor openly use a chain of land for gardening and parking for eight continuous years, believing the neighbor's use to be permissive. State law requires ten years' adverse use to establish title by adverse possession. After eight years the neighbor sues to quiet title. Under the standard elements of adverse possession, can the neighbor prevail?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A seller conveyed a parcel of land that had been part of a larger tract and the buyer discovered after purchase that there was no road access except by crossing the seller's retained parcel. The buyer seeks an easement by necessity to access the public road. Under property law governing implied easements by necessity, can the grantee obtain an easement from the grantor?
Legal question (Bar Exam): A restrictive covenant in a subdivision deed prohibits owners from 'painting the exterior of any residence an unusual color' and was intended to preserve neighborhood appearance. A new owner paints her house bright purple. Under the requirements for a covenant to run with the land (intent, touch and concern, and privity), is the burden likely enforceable against subsequent owners?
Legal question (Bar Exam): An agent signs a contract with a supplier for the purchase of goods, and the contract references the name of the principal but the principal's identity was not disclosed to the supplier at the time of contracting. After delivery, the supplier seeks payment from both the agent and the disclosed principal. Under agency law for contracts with undisclosed or partially disclosed principals, can the supplier hold the principal liable on the contract?