Agency And Employment Law

1. Lee hires Zeke to sell her house. She tells Zeke to ask for $200,000, but says she will take $175,000. Zeke’s friend Victor asks Zeke about the house, and Zeke tells him that Lee will take $175,000. Victor offers $175,000, and Zeke accepts. Zeke violated his duty of

A. obedience.

B. loyalty.

C. account.

D. due diligence.

2. Bob’s company was found in violation of ERISA. The violation likely relates to

A. workplace safety.

B. Bob’s pension plan.

C. failure to pay overtime.

D. workers’ compensation.

3. Steve is Jason’s agent, and it’s within Steve’s authority as Jason’s agent to purchase homes on Jason’s behalf. Steve contracts with Albert to buy Albert’s house for Jason. Steve, however, doesn’t tell Albert that he’s buying the house on Jason’s behalf or that he’s acting for another individual. Under the terms of the contract, which of the following statements is true?

A. Only Jason can be held liable.

B. Only Steve can be held liable.

C. Neither Steve nor Jason can be held liable.

D. Both Steve and Jason can be held liable.

4. Tony tries to start a union at Big Tech, Inc. His employer learns of his attempt to organize a union and fires him. Big Tech’s actions

A. are permitted if the state has adopted right-to-work legislation.

B. constitute an unfair labor practice.

C. are permitted if they first give Bob notice forbidding the union.

D. are permitted.

5. Sam gives Dennis a written power of attorney to sell his house. Though the power of attorney doesn’t expressly authorize Dennis to do so, Dennis purchases an ad in the newspaper to advertise sale of the house. The newspaper sends a bill to Sam. If Sam is liable for the bill, it’s most likely based on agency by

A. appointment.

B. implication.

C. operation of law.

D. estoppels.

6. David gives Ethel power of attorney. David then has a nervous breakdown and becomes insane. Ethel has the authority to act on David’s behalf

A. with regard to personal property but not real property.

B. only until Tom regains his sanity.

C. if the power of attorney is a durable power of attorney.

D. by necessity.

7. Jane works for Big Business, Inc., as a sales representative. The boss decides to fire her because she isn’t a Mets fan. The boss can

A. fire Jane.

B. not fire Jane if here work was satisfactory.

C. not fire Jane because of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

D. not fire Jane if she agrees to become a Mets fan.

8. Javier gives written authorization to Tamara to sell his house. Javier dies on the October 4. On October 8, Tamara enters into a written contract on behalf of Javier to sell the house to Trudy for $100,000. Before Tamara entered into the contract, she showed the written authorization to Trudy. Javier’s estate is

A. liable if Tamara knew Javier was deceased at the time of the contract.

B. liable if the price is fair.

C. not liable.

D. obligated to sell for $100,000 because Tamara had express authority.

9. Molly borrowed $5,000 from Larry and, as collateral, gave him jewelry and authority to sell the jewelry if she defaulted. Afterward, Molly had second thoughts and revoked the agency. Which of the following statements is true?

A. Molly can terminate the agency if she paid the loan.

B. Molly can terminate the agency based on impossibility of performance.

C. Molly can’t terminate the agency unless she claims bankruptcy.

D. Molly can’t terminate the agency unless Larry sold the jewelry.

10. Tim hires Brett to mow his yard once a week, using the mower stored in Tim’s garage. Tim then gives the mower to his brother Ed, who lives in another town. Brett complains to Tim, pointing out that Brett won’t incur expense to rent a mower to perform the contract. Tim says Brett is being uncooperative. Which of the following statements is legally true?

A. Tim violated his duty of loyalty.

B. Brett violated his duty of loyalty.

C. Tim violated his duty of cooperation.

D. Brett violated his duty of cooperation.

11. Bob’s company was found in violation of OSHA. The violation likely relates to

A. workplace safety.

B. racial discrimination.

C. failure to pay overtime.

D. workers’ compensation.

12. Carter wants to impress his boss, Marco. Carter approaches one of Marco’s potential clients and negotiates a contract with the client on Marco’s behalf. The client agrees and signs the contract. Marco, however, doesn’t know about Carter’s negotiation. Carter lacks the authority to negotiate on Marco’s behalf. When Marco finds out, he is so pleased about the contract that he overlooks Carter’s actions and tells Carter he did an excellent job landing the client. This forms an agency by

A. operation of law.

B. agreement.

C. estoppel.

D. ratification.

13. The right to notice of a plant closing or massive layoffs due to sale of a business is derived from the

A. Antitrust Procedures and Penalties Act.

B. Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Act.

C. Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

D. Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act.

14. Sally works for Big Tech, Inc. One day, the boss calls her into his office and says, “Women just don’t get tech. You’re fired.” Sally sues. In the course of the litigation, the company discovers that Sally was pilfering paper from the company storage, and under the employee handbook, this is grounds for termination. Sally’s discharge is

A. not wrongful because gender is a bona fide job qualification for working in tech.

B. wrongful because evidence can’t be used in a gender discrimination case.

C. wrongful because the employer intended to fire her based on gender.

D. not wrongful because the employer discovered evidence that justifies the firing.

15. Anna gives Doris a power of attorney. Doris does business with Big Bank as Anna’s agent. Anna then revokes the power of attorney. Anna is not liable on any contracts Doris made

A. after her agency was terminated.

B. that weren’t fully performed at the time notice was received by Big Bank.

C. after Big Bank received notice that she was no longer an agent.

D. after the date of termination but before notice was received by Big Bank.

16. The union at Big Tech goes on strike. The president can petition the attorney general to seek an injunction stopping the strike for 60 days if the

A. union failed to give 60 days’ notice of its intent to strike.

B. strike would endanger the nation’s health or safety.

C. demands of the union are unreasonable.

D. strike would result in large losses to the company.

17. Carl, a little person with dwarfism, applies for a job. He is told he won’t be hired because he is a little person. Carl sues, claiming discrimination under the Civil Rights Act. Which of the following statements is true?

A. Carl has no claim.

B. Unless Carl can show that the height requirement has a disparate impact on short people, he has no claim.

C. Carl has a good claim.

D. Unless the employer can show that being of a certain height is a bona fide job qualification, Carl has a good claim.

18. Polly hires Nick to sell her house and gives him power of attorney that authorizes him to do, but the power of attorney says nothing about price. Polly tells Nick to take nothing less than $200,000. Lola offers Nick $195,000 for the house, and Nick accepts. Nick violated his duty of

A. loyalty.

B. obedience.

C. account.

D. due diligence.

19. State right-to-work laws prohibit

A. closed shops, but not union shops.

B. union shops, but not closed shops.

C. agreements requiring union membership to get or keep a job.

D. employees from forming labor unions and bargaining units.

20. Phil receives a job offer from Big Tech, Inc., in a letter that states, “If you leave your current position and join us, we will employ you for the next five years as our company expands.” Phil takes the job, and he is fired after six months even though his work was satisfactory. If Phil sues and wins, the most likely reason is

A. the employment at-will doctrine.

B. express contract.

C. the state’s right-to-work law.

D. promissory estoppels