Deck 33: The Nature and Regulation of Real Estate and the Environment

Question 1

Owners should be aware that they owe licensees and invitees and guests the same standard of due care with regard to hidden dangers, even dangers the owner is unaware of.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

The western states of the U.S. have adopted the riparian rights theory to deal with a landowner's rights to water.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The National Environment Policy Act (NEPA) does not apply to purely private activities.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

A variance permit is an exception to the requirements of a zoning ordinance.

Question 5

Kathy had a private well dug in her land that provided water to about 10 people living in the same locality. Its protection would come under the purview of the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974.

Question 6

Easements can only be created in deeds or in wills.

Question 7

Suppose a transferor would convey land with these words "to Ben for life and then to Jane." That would mean that Ben has a life estate and after Ben's death, Jane would also have a life estate.

Question 8

Bill purchased a plot of land for which the deed states that the grantor transfers the property "to grantee and his or her heirs". This would have the legal effect of creating a(n) _____.

A) fee simple absolute
B) leasehold estate
C) accession
D) fixture
E) fee simple defeasible

Question 9

In the Clean Air Act, like most federal environmental laws, the federal government has control over the way each state implements the provisions of the Act.

Question 10

The National Environment Policy Act (NEPA) was finally passed in the Clinton Administration, after many years of opposition from anti-abortion groups.

Question 11

The owner is ordinarily entitled to the fair market value of land condemned under eminent domain.

Question 12

A leasehold estate is one whose termination date is usually known.

Question 13

An easement is an estate, whereas a license is personal to the grantee and is not assignable.

Question 14

The remainderman is the person who becomes the owner when a life estate terminates.

Question 15

Zheng has her house built on the border of a public watercourse in a state that follows riparian rights theory. It can be said that she:

A) is entitled to have the water body maintained in its natural state by other owners.
B) is entitled to use the water for any purpose she may require.
C) is not entitled to use any water without obtaining an approval from a court of law.
D) is entitled to use only as much water as was used by the previous owner of the land.
E) is entitled to divert all the water for her personal and professional use so as long as she is the first one to do so.

Question 16

In property law, a(n) _____ is an interest in real property, ranging from absolute dominion and control to bare possession.

A) fixture
B) chattel
C) estate
D) attachment
E) lien

Question 17

In most U.S. states, a widow or widower has a statutory right to a percentage (often one-third) of the property of the spouse when the spouse dies. This is known as a(n) _____.

A) attachment
B) lien
C) accession
D) dower
E) conversion

Question 18

In relation to the rights of the landowners on water in United States, the _____ doctrine permits the benefit to be derived from use of the waterway to be weighed against the gravity of the harm.

A) natural flow
B) reasonable use
C) prior appropriation
D) constructive annexation
E) remainder-person

Question 19

A fee simple defeasible estate is one that will come into the owner's possession upon the occurrence of a particular event.

Question 20

If Anne holds an easement that allows her to travel over the land owned by Alice, Anne holds an affirmative easement.

Question 21

A(n) _____ is an agreement regarding the use of land that "runs with the land".

A) dominant tenement
B) restrictive covenant
C) servient tenement
D) easement appurtenant
E) eminent domain

Question 22

The _____, enacted in 1899, was the first federal water pollution statute in the United States.

A) Rivers and Harbors Act
B) Clean Water Act
C) Federal Water Pollution Control Act
D) Water Quality Act
E) Water Pollutant Discharge Act

Question 23

Amir was irritated with the loud music that Ron, his neighbor played each day. In fact, the loud music had affected him to such an extent that he could not sleep for days. However, even after requesting Ron to turn down the volume, he continued to play loud music. Under tort law, Ron's actions could be classified as:

A) Private nuisance.
B) trespass.
C) zoning.
D) battery.
E) Public nuisance

Question 24

Landowners who innocently purchased property contaminated by hazardous wastes are protected from EPA cleanup requirements by the _____.

A) Superfund Amendment and Reauthorization Act
B) Toxic Substances Control Act
C) Solid Waste Disposal Act
D) Resource Recovery Act
E) Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

Question 25

State the elements of proof that are necessary to make out a case of attractive nuisance as per the Restatement of Torts, Section 339.

Question 26

State the various purposes that an environmental impact statement must serve.

Question 27

Sharon owns a restaurant in Harrisburg, PA. When the unclean kitchen conditions and food spoilage in the restaurant resulted in cases of food poisoning among customers, Sharon was responsible because they were considered to be _____ on Sharon's land.

A) licensees
B) sureties
C) trespassers
D) invitees
E) tenants

Question 28

Which of the following acts is also known as the Superfund?

A) Toxic Substances Control Act
B) Comprehensive Environment Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
C) Environment Protection Agency
D) Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
E) Noise Regulation Act

Question 29

Which of the following is true of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act?

A) The act requires companies to notify the EPA ninety days before manufacturing or importing new chemicals.
B) The act gives the EPA emergency powers to respond to public health or environmental dangers from faulty hazardous waste disposal.
C) The act gives the EPA power to govern the creation, storage, transport, treatment, and disposal of hazardous wastes.
D) The act is designed to restore and maintain the "chemical, physical, and biological integrity" of the country's waters.
E) The act created an effluent permit system known as the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.

Question 30

A property might be categorized either as 'commercial' or 'residential.' A commercial building cannot be built in a residential neighborhood, and vice versa, without a change in the ______ ordinances.

A) easement
B) inter vivos
C) zoning
D) restrictive covenant
E) accession

Question 31

Brad owns a piece of land that falls in the path of a new highway planned by the city. The city took Brad's land to build the highway, and , in return, gave him a new piece of land about a mile away. The city's power to do so is known as:

A) causa mortis.
B) restrictive covenant.
C) easement appurtenant.
D) dominant tenement.
E) eminent domain.

Question 32

A(n) _____ is granted independent of the easement holder's ownership or possession of land.

A) positive easement
B) negative easement
C) easement in gross
D) dominant tenement
E) servient tenement

Question 33

Differentiate between the riparian use doctrine in the eastern states and the prior appropriation doctrine in the western states.