Chapter 1
This chapter (as do most chapters in this book) starts with a “scenario”: a fact
pattern which creates the setting for the legal issues addressed in that chapter.
Because of the very introductory nature of this Chapter 1, the text does not refer
The instructor should view the scenario as a teaching tool. One method is to
diagram the parties’ depicted in the scenario on the blackboard, so the student
sees in a graphic way the recurring fact patterns characteristic of construction
disputes. Of course, the instructor is free to add other parties or other variables to
the chapter’s scenario so as to accentuate different issues.
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While some instructors will decide not to devote any class discussion to this
Chapter 1, there are ways of discussing the legal system that can make the topic
interesting. For example, the students can be asked to postulate a “lawless”
world where there are no state made rules and no places available to hear
grievances. This should make them see the importance of law as a method of
protecting members of society as well as being essential for economic
exchanges.
Ask students whether they have ever lived within a “precedent” system. Have
they ever asked “have we ever done this before?” Is this a desirable way of
running a club, a business or a school?
Answers to Chapter Questions
1.) Name at least three areas of the law that have been delegated to the states by the
U.S. Constitution.
2.) What are the three things that the U.S. Constitution regulates power among?
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a. The three things are (1) the branches of the federal government, (2) the
federal government and the states, and (3) all governments and their citizens.
3.) How does a law become a statute?
4.) What is the purpose of the separation of powers in the U.S. political system?
5.) What are the five principal areas of exclusive federal jurisdiction?
6.) What is the difference between courts of general jurisdiction and those of limited
jurisdiction?
7.) What are the two primary forms of compensation for contracts for legal services?
8.) List three examples of professional associations that publish standardized
documents for construction services.
9.) What are the Restatements of the Law?
10.) Which legal process is used to uncover information in the hands of the other
party?