Research Assignment: Part 2 – Damages
Review the Research Assignment Part 2 scenario below:
You are presently working as a paralegal in a large law firm in San Diego, California. Your supervising attorney, Janet Jones, has called you into her office. Janet just finished an interesting meeting with some potential clients. Rob and Bunny Sherman have a 15-year-old son named Rob Jr. Rob Sr. and Bunny want to bring suit against the Church of the Divine Light. It is similar to the Church of Scientology, but not actually related to any one, organized church.
The parents allege that Rob Jr. was tricked into attending some meetings. One night about a year ago, Rob Jr. was getting ready to return home after one of their youth meetings. The organizer of the youth retreat, Tom Marsden, allegedly made numerous excuses for keeping Rob there. It reached a pinnacle when Tom told Rob Jr., “If you leave, you will be thrown into the eternal fires of Hell, and you will not be allowed back.” Rob Jr. acquiesced and remained. The next day Tom had Rob Jr. write a letter to his parents telling them that he was planning to stay with the Church, as they were his “new” family. Rob Jr. was also told to demand money from his parents to cover his expenses.
Rob Jr. remained with the church for a period of roughly 6 months. Rob Sr. and Bunny arranged to meet with Rob Jr. to give him his money for that month, and pulled him into the car and brought him home. They had to watch him carefully for about two weeks, but he finally came out of the “brainwashing.”
They want to sue the Church for a number of things. They want to sue on their son’s behalf for the intentional torts that were inflicted on him, as well as for the torts committed against them.
Your Final Assignment—the final draft of which due at the end of Unit 8—requires you to draft a memorandum of law to your supervising attorney. It will be at least 8–10 pages in length. You will follow the general formatting instructions and will useBluebook citation format. In that memo you will have conducted research and evaluated the case law to determine which causes of action, if any, can be filed against the Church. Which are the strongest and which may not survive?
Remember that the minimum page requirement for the Research Assignment: Part 2—Damages and defenses is at least 5 to 7 pages and your essay is due at the end of Unit 6. As explained below, be sure to use FIRAC on this Assignment and prepare it in an essay—rather than outline format. Use section headings for each cause of action and include the damages that could be available to the plaintiffs based on the rule of law. Submit your essay in a memo format.
Using FIRAC you will begin your paper with a statement of the facts. You will then use IRAC regarding each tort that you identified. For each tort this will require you to state the issue (e.g. does Rob Jr. have a cause of action against the church for the tort of false imprisonment?).
Next state the rule of law for this tort. Be sure to state each of the elements of the tort when explaining the rule of law and cite to the applicable case law or civil statute immediately after stating the rule of law.
After you state the rule of law, provide your analysis (applying the facts provided above to the rule of law) for the tort that you have identified. You will follow this with your conclusion regarding the tort. Repeat this for each tort.
Remember to discuss damages based on your research of the rule of law. Explain the rule of law regarding compensatory and punitive damages and provide your analysis and conclusion regarding whether Rob Jr. and/or his parents can recover these damages.
Also discuss possible defenses that the church can raise. Explain the rule of law regarding these defenses and cite to your research. ; Provide your analysis and your conclusion regarding these defenses.
This Assignment relies on your research. You need to research primary and binding authority (California case law and civil statutes). If you use a secondary source, use Restatement on Torts.
Remember that this assignment must be at least 5 to 7 pages in length.
Submit your Assignment to the Dropbox by the end of Unit 6.
…………….Answer preview……………….I hereby write this memo to give you an overview of the case concerning Rob and Bunny Sherman against the church of divine light which they accuse of brainwashing their son as well as using him for other causes as well……………………………
