Question

Question 2

Rawhide, Inc. builds a tannery in Curley's neighborhood. Before the tannery opens for business, Curley moves to another neighborhood. However, he retains ownership of his property near the tannery. Curley leases out the property near the tannery to Mo. Once the tannery begins operating, it gives off foul odors that Mo can smell from his property. If Curley sues the tannery for nuisance, is he likely win his case? Explain why or why not.

Question 3

Rawhide, Inc. builds a tannery in Curley's neighborhood. The tannery gives off foul odors that Curley can smell from his property. If Curley sues the tannery for nuisance and wins, which of the following is the court most likely award? Explain why you chose your answer.

a. Compensation for Curley's damages.

b. Nominal Damages.

c. An injunction against the tannery.

d. Nothing.

Question 4

SureShot, Inc., is a manufacturer of special equipment used by hunters. One of their leading products is a machine that simulates the calls of elk. Each piece of equipment can make several high frequency sounds that are not audible to the human ear. In order to ensure the quality of their equipment, SureShot tests each piece of equipment several times. These tests involve testing the range of sounds that each piece of equipment makes. Therefore, dozens of high frequency sound waves are emitted from SureShot's manufacturing plant every day. Not knowing of the high frequency sounds, Kelly’s Kennels Inc., opens a dog breeding school next door to SureShot. The high frequency noises, while not audible to humans are audible and very disturbing, to dogs. The sound waves cause the dog to howl for hours every day and interfere with Kelly’s Kennels business. If Kelly’s Kennels brings an action against SureShot to recover damages for interfering with Kelly’s Kennels business, what is the most likely outcome for SureShot? Explain your answer.

a. Lose, because Kelly’s Kennels came to the nuisance after Sure Shot had already been there.

b. Lose, because Kelly’s Kennels business is abnormally sensitive to the sound waves.

c. Win, because the sound waves represent a trespass onto Kelly’s Kennels property.

d. Win, because the sound waves have seriously interfered with Kelly’s Kennels business.

Question 5

Mike is an avid collector of western art. One of his favorite pieces is a sculpture of a cowboy riding an unsaddled horse made out of old soup cans, tin foil and duct tape. Mike places the sculpture in his backyard so that he can look at it whenever he sits on his porch. Unfortunately, Stu, who lives next door to Mike and who hates the sculpture, can also see it from his porch. In fact, Stu hates the sculpture so much that he does not go out onto his porch anymore. If Stu tries to get Mike to remove the sculpture by suing him for nuisance, will Stu win? Defend your answer.

Question 6

An oil tanker belonging to Oil Finders, Inc. runs aground and causes a massive oil spill that damages several miles of the Texas coastline. As a result, several public beaches are rendered unusable to the public. Riker and Picard are avid surfers who like to hit the waves as often as they can. Because of the oil spill, they will not be able to surf for at least six months. They file suit against Oil Finders, Inc. for nuisance. Will the court hear their suit? Defend your answer.

Question 7

An oil tanker belonging to Oil Finders, Inc. runs aground and causes a massive oil spill that damages several miles of the Texas coastline. As a result, several public beaches are rendered unusable to the public. Riker and Picard make their living harvesting clams and oysters at the various beaches in the area and their business has been destroyed as a result of the oil spill. They file suit against Oil Finders, Inc. for nuisance. Will the court hear their suit? Defend your answer.

Question 8

John and Kelsey live in a house in Missouri that they purchased for $250,000. The town has never had a garbage dump and the city government has spent millions of dollars over the years sending the town's trash to a dump located in a different part of the state. In order to save money, the town contracts with Mr. Barr, the president of a waste management company, to build and maintain a landfill at the edge of the town. Within six months, the landfill is operational. Eventually, as more and more of the town's trash gets dumped into the landfill, the residents of the town are subjected to the odor that the landfill gives off. The odor is not constant but, on windy days, it is noticeable. As a result, the house that John and Kelsey bought for $250,000 is reduced in value to $240,000. If John sues the town for nuisance, which of the following is most likely to occur? Defend your answer/

a. Win, because his house's value has been reduced.

b. Win, because John moved to the neighborhood before the landfill opened.

c. Lose, because the odor is not constant.

d. Lose, because benefits of the landfill outweigh the damage done to John.

Answer 1

ANSWER 2

In this situation, Curley will not have a viable action for nuisance against Rawhide because, while Curley has possessory interest in his land (he still owns it), the odor from the tannery is not affecting his use and enjoyment of the property (because he does not live there). That being the case, Curley will not be able to recover for nuisance.

ANSWER 3

The correct answer is c. An injunction against the tannery.

EXPLANATION: If a nuisance is perpetual, which most nuisances are, the remedy granted to plaintiff will be an injunction. In other words, a court will order defendant to stop engaging in the act that is causing the nuisance. Because the nature of the nuisance here is a foul odor which will not go away unless Rawhide stops engaging in his actions as a tanner, the court will force Rawhide to close or modify his tanning business so as to eliminate the nuisance. Therefore, the correct answer is C.

ANSWER 4

The correct answer is b. Lose, because Kelly’s Kennels business is abnormally sensitive to the sound waves.

EXPLANATION: In an action for private nuisance, one of the things that plaintiff must prove is that defendant's act caused an interference with plaintiff's use and enjoyment of the property that is substantial and unreasonable. "Unreasonable" here is defined as something an ordinary person would not tolerate. Here, it is safe to say that Kelly's Kennels' sensitivity to the high frequency sound waves is abnormal. Please note that A is wrong because coming to a nuisance is not a complete defense.

ANSWER 5

Stu will not win because unfortunately for Stu, aesthetic considerations are not taken into account in determining a nuisance. Thus, an ugly statue or other display of art or decoration will not give rise to a cause of action for nuisance no matter how much it bothers plaintiff. That being the case, Stu's suit will fail.