MI Bar Multistate Bar 5

Question 1

A father contracted with a painter to paint his daughter's house as a gift. Before the daughter learned of the contract, the father and painter mutually rescinded. Can the daughter enforce the contract?

Accepted Answer

No, because her rights as a third-party beneficiary never vested

Answer

A third-party beneficiary's rights vest only upon assent, reliance, or suit, so the parties could freely rescind before she knew of the contract.

Question 2

A pedestrian was struck by a barrel that fell from a warehouse window exclusively controlled by the warehouse owner; the cause is unknown. The pedestrian's best theory is:

Accepted Answer

Res ipsa loquitur, because the accident ordinarily does not occur without negligence and the instrumentality was in the defendant's exclusive control

Answer

Res ipsa loquitur permits an inference of negligence when the event ordinarily results from negligence and the defendant controlled the instrumentality.

Question 3

At a murder trial, the prosecution offers a formal stationhouse statement by a now-unavailable witness who was never cross-examined. Admitting the statement most likely violates:

Accepted Answer

The Confrontation Clause, because the statement is testimonial

Answer

Under Crawford, testimonial statements of an unavailable declarant are inadmissible against a criminal defendant absent a prior opportunity for cross-examination.

Question 4

A state law grants a tax exemption to farms under 100 acres but not larger farms. A large farm challenges the classification under equal protection. The law will be reviewed under:

Accepted Answer

Rational basis, because economic classifications need only be rationally related to a legitimate interest

Answer

Economic and tax classifications involving no suspect class or fundamental right receive rational basis review and are almost always upheld.

Question 5

A woman was cornered in an alley by an attacker brandishing a knife and demanding her life. She shot him. In a jurisdiction with no duty to retreat, her self-defense claim requires showing:

Accepted Answer

A reasonable belief that deadly force was necessary to prevent imminent death or serious bodily harm

Answer

Deadly force in self-defense requires a reasonable belief of imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury, with no retreat duty in a stand-your-ground jurisdiction.

(MI Bar) Michigan Bar Exam Practice Test

(MI Bar) Michigan Bar Exam Practice Test

MI Bar Multistate Bar 5