Property - Perritt - Syllabus

SYLLABUS

Date	Subject	Assignment (numbers refer to pages in Dukeminier casebook)
22 Jan.	Acquisisition by capture	1, 14 n.4, 17-45 Boston parking spaces Questions for discussion in class
23 Jan.	Acquisition by creation Music: "Law of Property" "Property Scale" Lyrics: There was a whale from long ago, He said to me, "Sister, you must know, Make me bleed - it's only talk. You must consult the great John Locke." If you improve it, it's yours to keep. The right to property is more than skin deep. Whoa, whoa. That's the law of property.	51, 55-69, 86-93 Music Myths (Word version) Questions/hypotheticals for class Note on Hohfeld's framework Diagram for discussion in class (Word version for downloading and annotation)
25 Jan.	MUSIC AS PROPERTY Copyright law Flow chart for use in class (.html) (.ppt) Patents and Copyrights Clause, U.S. Const.	[important terms or provisions in longer, more complex sections have been highlighted in red] 17 U.S.C. Section 101, definitions; role of fixation Section 102, defining copyright Section 103, copyright in derivative works Section 106, defining "trespass" on copyright; the right to exclude Section 107, fair use privilege Section 109, first-sale doctrine; right to exclude rentals Section 114, (limited) rights in sound recordings Section 201, joint ownership; transfer of copyright 1995 United States Court of Appeals case involving copyright in the entertainment industry Music copyright hypos Copyright for directors of stage plays? (optional) Martignon case, holding anti-bootlegging statute unconstitutional
29 Jan.	Adverse possession	112-136
30 Jan.	No class
1 Feb.	Adverse possession - 2 charts .ppt .html	136-156 Case on adverse possession of music
5 Feb.	Acquisition by gift	157-172
6 Feb.	SYSTEM OF ESTATES Fee simple & fee tail	173-189
8 Feb.	Life estate	189-206
12 Feb.	Defeasible estates .ppt diagrams for use in class	206-224
13 Feb.	Future interests Additional hypothetical conveyances for class	225-244
15 Feb.	Rule Against Perpetuities - 1	244-262
19 Feb.	Rule Against Perpetuities - 2 diagrams used in class	262-274 (courtesy of Steve Anderson) Robert Hopperton, Teaching the Rule Against Perpetuities in first year property, 31 U. Tol. L. Rev. 55 John Makdisi, How to do a Perpetuities Problem, 36 Clev. St. L. Rev 95 (1987) (500K .pdf file)
20 Feb.	Concurrent interests diagrams for discussion in class	275-291
22 Feb.	Relations among concurrent owners	291-310
26 Feb.	Marital interests - 1 hypos for class	310-335
27 Feb.	Marital interests - 2	335-359
1 Mar.	LANDLORD-TENANT Basics Chicago Fair Housing Ordinance	361-384 come to class with one or more of your own, or one of your friends', "war stories" about LL-T controversies; do the same for the following classes focused on LL-T law
5 Mar.	Delivery of possession	384-403
6 Mar.	Defaulting tenants	403-421
8 Mar.	Landlord duties	421-444
10-18 Mar.	SPRING BREAK
19 Mar.	TRANSFERS OF LAND Basics	451-472 Pay special attention to the form contract on pp 454-462; several hypotheticals will relate to its provisions
20 Mar.	Contract of sale	472-494
22 Mar.	Warranty	494-513 MWRD v Burciaga litigation (complaint; summary of court's decision; deed) - will be discussed in class
26 Mar.	Deeds diagram of hypo	513-532
27 Mar.	Delivery of deeds Mortgages	532-541 541-558
29 Mar.	Title assurance diagrams for use in class	559-580 from Kurt Iselt's title search--will be the basis for hypos (.html) (Word) Title search: going all the way back
2 Apr.	Recording acts IL notice statute	580-600
3 Apr.	Recording acts -2	600-624
5 Apr.	Copyright registration Chart (.html) (Word)	Find the U.S. Copyright Office website and conduct a copyright registration search on at least two names of authors or titles of a literary or musical work or sound recording. Be prepared to discuss your results 17 U.S.C. § 201. Ownership of copyright (.html) (Word) § 408. Copyright registration in general (.html) (Word) § 412. Registration as prerequisite to certain remedies for infringement (.html) (Word) La Resolana v. Clay Realtors Angel Fire (.html) (Word)
9 Apr.	LAND USE REGULATION Basics	637-666 Restatement (Second) of Torts sections on nuisance (.html) (Word)
10 Apr.	SERVITUDES Easements	667-688
10 Apr. makeup class 1200-1330 Room 170	Implied easements audio file (20 meg .wav)	688-709
12 Apr.	Assignability, scope and termination of easements diagrams for class	709-721, 725-740
16 Apr.	Real covenants & equitable servitudes (Frank Bieszczat teaching) Pictures of class	740-767, 786-792
17 Apr.	Common interest communities	798-821
19 Apr.	ZONING Background and basics IL zoning statutes Counties (.html) (Word) Municipalities (.html) (Word) Zoning ordinance (.html) (Word)	821-841
23 Apr.	First Amendment and similar limitations	891-918
24 Apr.	Exclusionary zoning flow chart (.ppt)	918-939
26 Apr.	EMINENT DOMAIN & REGULATORY TAKINGS for discussion in class: IL eminent domain statutory excerpts (.html) (Word)	941-959 Framing question (.html) (Word)
30 Apr.	Physical occupations & balancing	959-973, 980-1004
1 May	Third categorical rule Course evaluation questionnaires will be distributed at the end of class	1006-1030
3 May	REVIEW
Before end of semester		Conduct a title search for an actual piece of real property in a land records office, and send a brief report of what you did and what you found to propdocs@kentlaw.edu. You may use any piece of property anywhere in the world, and search the records of whatever governmental entity maintains records for that property.

RECOMMENDED SECONDARY MATERIALS

Restatement (Third) of Property (West Group)

FINAL EXAMINATION

The final examination in this course will be given on Friday, 18 May 2006, at 1:15 P.M. and at no other time. It will last three hours.

In the final examination, you are responsible for all the materials discussed in class and in the assigned readings. Obviously, the examination cannot touch upon all that material, but anything we do in class, anything you see in your land-register- visit, and anything in the assigned readings may be tested. You may bring any materials, whether commercially prepared or not, to the final exam, but successful performance on the exam will not require original research. Prepare for the exam as though it were “closed-book.”

ATTENDANCE

Much of the material and most of the legal analysis in this course is not contained in the assigned readings. Consequently, class attendance is an indispensable part of the course. Failure to attend regularly will result in exclusion from the course and a grade of “E” Sporadic absences will result in a lowering of your grade, in the discretion of the instructor. The instructor reserves the discretion to determine what constitutes “regularly” and “sporadic.” The only safe course is to attend every class.

TARDINESS

I strongly discourage tardiness and reserve the power to lower your grade for tardiness.

TEACHING ASSISTANT

Frank Bieszczat , 2L, is the Teaching Assistant for the course. His email address is fbieszczat@kentlaw.edu. He will be available every ____ from ___ PM to ___ PM, in the 2d floor cafeteria area, for questions and will give supplementary presentations on certain material.

HATS

Do not wear hats in class.

WANDERING IN AND OUT OF CLASS

Once you are present in the classroom, please stay there, unless you have a genuine emergency. If an emergency requires you to leave the classroom, do not return.

CLASS PARTICIPATION

I teach “Socratically.” Every student is expected to be prepared in every class. Any student may be called on at any time. Volunteering is encouraged. There is no “right” answer; only cogent and persuasive arguments, backed up by legitimate legal authority.

VISITING A LAND REGISTRATION OFFICE

Visiting a land registration office and doing a title search is a mandatory requirement for credit in the course. You may do this at any time during the semester. After attending, you must send me an email, to propdocs@kentlaw.edu, briefly describing what you observed and explaining how it relates to one or more specific subjects in the syllabus.

FINAL GRADE

Your final grade will be determined by how well you do on the final exam, except that I reserve the power to decrease your final grade for unsatisfactory classroom participation, failure to complete any drafting exercises satisfactorily, failure to complete the land-registration-office visit, or excessive absenteeism or tardiness. I also reserve the power to increase your final grade for outstanding classroom participation. Evaluation of your final examination will emphasize reasons given, analysis and logic as well as the conclusions drawn. Organization, legibility, and clarity are very important. A shorter answer that is well organized and evidences a clear understanding of basic concepts and their interrelationships is better than a long answer with disconnected fragments of information.

OFFICE HOURS & APPOINTMENTS

I welcome interaction with students. I will be happy to make an appointment to see any of you individually or in groups. I do not have specific office hours. If you want to meet, please set up an appointment by emailing me at hperritt@kentlaw.edu, calling me at (312) 906-5098, emailing or calling my assistant, Ms Patricia O’Neal at (312) 906-5128, poneal@kentlaw.edu, or by seeing me before or after class.

WEBSITE

http://www.kentlaw.edu/perritt/courses/property

The Website contains the syllabus and supplementary materials. Please check the Website regularly, particularly before you begin preparing for a particular class and again before coming to class. I will update it regularly.

E-MAIL

I may communicate with you by e-mail at any time throughout the semester. Check your e-mail regularly. If you would like to communicate with me via e-mail, please feel free to do so.