UNIVERSITY OF BALTIMORE SCHOOL OF LAW
Spring 2019
Course: Property LAW 607 329
Instructor: Jack Lynch
Office: 410-837-4629
Home: 301-962-3414
Email: [email protected]
Days/Times: Weds., Fri., 10:00 am to 11:50
Law Scholar: Amy Valdivia
Course description: This course includes the topics of possession and adverse possession; estates in land
and future interests; landlord and tenant; concurrent tenancies; easements; covenants and servitudes;
rights incident to ownership of land; conveyancing; title guarantees and recording acts. I have also
included material at the beginning of the course pertaining to personal and intellectual property to let
you know that there actually are truly stimulating and relevant property issues that are the subject matter
of truly stimulating upper-level courses taught by a number of my wonderful colleagues.
Course materials:
Casebook: A Concise Introduction to Property Law, by David Callies et al (1st ed 2011 Lexis); Workbook:
Estates in Land and Future Interests, by Linda Edwards (4th ed 2013 Wolters Kluwer).
Student learning outcomes: The students in this course will be expected to:
--Master common law incidents of ownership of present and future interests in real property;
--Appreciate policy rationales behind different viewpoints of the courts of different jurisdictions;
--Understand legally imposed and contractually assumed regulations of relationships between
landowners; and
--Acquire an ability to read and understand modern statutory regulation of land use and the
relationship of landlord and tenant.
Grading: The final grade will be based on the final exam and a midterm. The midterm will be a multiple
choice exam concerning future interests and will count for 20% of the course grade.
Course expectations: ABA standards call for 2 hours of work outside class for each hour per week in class.
I have tried to limit the assignments to a reasonable amount of reading per class. If you have difficulty
with the material, please do not hesitate, ever, simply to email me to see whether I may help you with
your difficulty. I have expectations for you; you should have them for me.
Attendance: Students who miss more than 5 class meetings may be required to withdraw from the course
with a grade of FA, or may be precluded from taking the final exam.
Course website: This course uses a TWEN site for posting materials. You are responsible for enrolling on
this site at the beginning of the semester.
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Computers: I and many other law school professors do not believe that laptops are a good way to take
notes in a law school course. Nevertheless, you may use your laptops in class except during period of the
semester when we are studying future interests.
Class cancellation: Students will be notified by email or any departures from the schedule of classes as
indicated on the syllabus. If there in inclement weather, students should visit the University of Baltimore
website or call the University’s Snow Closing Line at 410-837-4201. If the University if open students
should presume that classes are running on the normal schedule.
Academic integrity: Students are obligated to refrain from acts that they know, or under the
circumstances, have reason to know will impair the academic integrity of the University and/or School of
Law. Violations of academic integrity include, but are not limited to; cheating, plagiarism, inappropriate
communication about exams, misrepresentation about any academic matter, including attendance, and
impeding the Honor Code process. The School of Law Honor Code and information about the process are
available at http://law.ubalt.edu/academics/policiesandprocedures/honor_code/.
Title IX Sexual Misconduct and Nondiscrimination Policy: The University of Baltimore’s Sexual
Misconduct and Nondiscrimination policy is compliant with Federal laws prohibiting discrimination. Title
IX requires that faculty, student employees and staff members report to the university any known, learned
or rumored incidents of sex discrimination, including sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, stalking on
the basis of sex, dating/intimate partner violence or sexual exploitation and/or related experiences or
incidents. Policies and procedures related to Title IX and UB’s nondiscrimination policies can be found at:
http://www.ubalt.edu/titleix.
Disability policy: If you are a student with a documented disability who requires an academic
accommodation, please contact Karyn Schulz, Director, Center of Educational Access, Office of Disability
and Access Services, at 410-837-4141 or [email protected].
Date Topic Reading
1/9 Intro. and Personal Property Casebook, pp. 1-55
1/11 Personal property Casebook. Pp. 61-73; Popov v. Hayashi, 2002 WL
318337231 (Cal. Super. 2002); Lawrence v. A.S. Abell Co.,
299 Md. 697 (1984); Casebook, pp. 73-78.
1/16 Personal property and right to Casebook, pp. 78-84; A & M Records v. Napster, 239 F.
lateral support 3d 1004 (9th Cir. 2001); Casebook, pp. 86-104; Mullan v.
Hacker, 187 Md. 261 (1946).
1/18 Right to exclude; adverse Casebook, pp. 105-22; Stevens v. City of Cannon Beach,
Possession 510 U.S. 1207 (1994) (dissent of Scalia, J.); casebook, pp.
pp. 147-54; Md. (Courts and Jud. Proc.) Code Ann.
§5-103 (a); Collins v. Staubitz, 300 Md. 60 (1984).
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1/23 Concurrent estates Casebook, pp. 491-96; Md. (Cts. & Jud. Proc.) Code Ann.
11-603; Downing v. Downing, 326 Md. 468 (1992);
Johnson v. McIntyre, 356 Md. 471 (1999); Helinski v.
Harford Memorial Hospital, 376 Md. 605 (2003).
1/25 Concurrent estates Casebook, pp. 496-502; Carozza v. Murray, 63 Md. App.
496 (1985); Bruce v. Dyer, 209 Md. 421 (1987).
1/30 Possessory estates Ch. 1-2; Study questions 2-9/2-28; Casebook, pp. 439-5
50; Casebook, pp. 466-75; Workbook, Ch. 3.
2/1 Future interests retained Workbook, ch. 4; Study questions, 4-1/4-10; Casebook,
pp. 450-60; Workbook, Ch. 5.
2/6 Remainders; executory Workbook, study questions, 5-41/5-61; Casebook, pp.
Interests
2/8 Vested remainders subject Ch. 7 Workbook; Workbook, study questions 7-4/7-7;
to divestment; shifting and Ch. 8 Workbook; Workbook questions, 8-3/8/10.
springing executory interests
2/13 Rule against perpetuities Workbook, Ch. 13, 14; Md. (Est. & Tr.) Code Ann. 11-102;
Workbook, study questions, 14-2/14-16.
2/15 Rule against perpetuities Casebook, pp. 476-91; Dorado Ltd. P’ship v. Broadneck
Dev. Corp., 317 Md. 148 (1989).
2/20 Mid term exam
2/22 Real estate transactions Md. (Real Propt.) Code Ann. §§5-103, 104; Casebook, pp.
767-84; Beall v. Beall, 291 Md. 224 (1981).
2/27 Real estate transactions Casebook, pp. 784-812; Schlosser v. Creamer, 263 Md.
583 (1973); Md. (Real Propt.) Code Ann. §§4-101, 103,
2-105, 106, 017, 108, 109, 110, 111, 112.
3/1 Real estate transactions Casebook, pp. 813-47.
3/6 Landlord and tenant Casebook, pp. 519=45; Md. (Real Propt.) Code Ann. §8-204,
207; Stevan v. Brown, 54 Md. App. 235 (0983).
3/8 Landlord and tenant Casebook, pp. 547-70; Md. (Real Propt.) Code Ann. §§8-208;
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208.1, 401, 401.2, 602, 604; Williams v.HABC, 361 Md. 143
(2003).
3/13 Servitudes Casebook, pp. 613-55
3/15 Servitudes Casebook, pp. 656-704
3/27 Servitudes Casebook, pp. 705-34; City of Bowie v. MIE Properties, Inc,
398 Md. 657 (2007); Ridgely Condo. Ass’n v. Smirniodis,
105 Md. App. 404 (1995).
3/29 Public regulation of land Casebook, pp. 163-81; 185-202.
4/3 Public regulation of land Casebook, pp. 203-38; Murr v. Wisconsin, 137 S. Ct. 1933 (2017).
4/5 Zoning Casebook, pp. 251-90.
4/10 Zoning Casebook, pp. 291-34; Mayor & City Council of Baltimore, v.
Mano Swartz, Inc., 268 Md. 79 (1973).
4/12 Nuisance Casebook, pp. 334-41.
4/17 Review
4/19 Review too
