FE1 Exam Thread (Read 1st post!) NOTICE: YOU MAY SWAP EXAM GRIDS

Teamhrach

Pyggg wrote: »

Hi everyone.

I emailed the office of public works last thursday enquiring about prices for the various legislations. I emailed info@opw.ie. I haven't heard anything since, just wondering if this is how they usually operate or should I email again?

Thanks

Phone them instead 016476834.
They're not great at answering the phone btw and it's a waste of time leaving a voice msg

legaleagle2010

Topics for property. Anybody else covering extra?

Succession
Finding
Adverse Possession
Registration of land
Co-ownership
Family Property
Landlord & Tenant

frankiejoepat

Which do you think are the big subjects?

I have six weeks to get Constit'l, Contract, Company and Equity. I have passed four already and feel as if I know how to study for FE1s now. Still will not be easy. I am driven by the nausea I feel at the thought of finishing 2018 and still facing into FE1s in the spring.

lawless11

legaleagle2010 wrote: »

Topics for property. Anybody else covering extra?

Succession
Finding
Adverse Possession
Registration of land
Co-ownership
Family Property
Landlord & Tenant

Maybe + easements and/or mortgages ? Seem like important topics.

randomrb

lawless11 wrote: »

Maybe + easements and/or mortgages ? Seem like important topics.

easements is a handy question if it comes up

FE1s2018

Hi Everyone,

Just wondering what people would say is the main contract topics? Is the exam predictable?

Thanks!

ArthurDayne

FE1s2018 wrote: »

Hi Everyone,

Just wondering what people would say is the main contract topics? Is the exam predictable?

Thanks!

The past papers are absolutely critical for Contract.  The essay questions can often be fairly random so by-and-large your main focus will be on the PQs.  The problem is that the PQs mix topics up a lot --- but if you look through the papers you'll see patterns (e.g. Consideration & Estoppel always seem to pop up in a PQ together).  Because the topics are so mixed, I would advise against an approach of taking risks on topics to cover.  The upside is that none of the topics are complicated, they are all of fairly manageable size, and you can bring in the legislation. 

If you cover Offer/Acceptance, Consideration & Estoppel, Terms, Consumer Contracts, Exemption Clauses, Discharge and Remedies in good depth you will be on a solid grounding.  Then, if you throw Misrep & Mistake into the mix (which are normally self-contained questions) you should be grand. 

A quick word of advice on technique for this exam too.  Perhaps more so than any other FE1 you want to take a good 15 minutes to read the questions, read them again, and really plan.   The answers tend to not be that long in Contract -- the key is covering enough ground to know what does and doesn't apply, and then having a nice tidy structure.  If you rush into starting your answer, you will confuse yourself and it will be a dog's dinner.

jus_me

Is equity as hard to pass as they say!!! Any tips?

Breacnua

ArthurDayne wrote: »

The past papers are absolutely critical for Contract.  The essay questions can often be fairly random so by-and-large your main focus will be on the PQs.  The problem is that the PQs mix topics up a lot --- but if you look through the papers you'll see patterns (e.g. Consideration & Estoppel always seem to pop up in a PQ together).  Because the topics are so mixed, I would advise against an approach of taking risks on topics to cover.  The upside is that none of the topics are complicated, they are all of fairly manageable size, and you can bring in the legislation. 

If you cover Offer/Acceptance, Consideration & Estoppel, Terms, Consumer Contracts, Exemption Clauses, Discharge and Remedies in good depth you will be on a solid grounding.  Then, if you throw Misrep & Mistake into the mix (which are normally self-contained questions) you should be grand. 

A quick word of advice on technique for this exam too.  Perhaps more so than any other FE1 you want to take a good 15 minutes to read the questions, read them again, and really plan.   The answers tend to not be that long in Contract -- the key is covering enough ground to know what does and doesn't apply, and then having a nice tidy structure.  If you rush into starting your answer, you will confuse yourself and it will be a dog's dinner.

Very solid advice

Breacnua

Equity : haven’t started it. Doing criminal property and contract. Am I mad to start it this weekend or will I focus on the three?

holliek

Trying to understand directors in company. Mind just lost and I know it’s an important topic. In relation to duties, should you learn all of them i.e. the 8 from s228 of 2014 act?
Besides duties of the directors, restrictions and disqualification, what else should I learn on them?

randomrb

Breacnua wrote: »

Equity : haven’t started it. Doing criminal property and contract. Am I mad to start it this weekend or will I focus on the three?

Is this your first three?

david_etc

holliek wrote: »

Trying to understand directors in company. Mind just lost and I know it’s an important topic. In relation to duties, should you learn all of them i.e. the 8 from s228 of 2014 act?
Besides duties of the directors, what else should I learn on them?

Restrictions (and to a lesser extent, disqualifications) is important. Key case for restrictions is Re La Moselle Clothing and Rosegem (approved by the SC in Re Squash (Ireland) Ltd). See Shanley J's criteria in Re La Moselle for deciding restrictions. Know the three criteria that must be met for a director to defend a restriction under s. 819.

Duties is the most important thing though. Know that the CA14 codified the duties for the first time, however it expressly notes that old case law applies. Key duties are acting in good faith, avoiding conflicts of interest, exercising care, skill and diligence, and not fettering discretion. There is specific case law on all those areas.

Also note to who the duties are owed. General position, as noted in Percival v Wright, is that they are owed to the Company itself (and not the individual members). S. 227 of the Act confirms this by stating that duties are owed "to the company (and the company alone)", however there is a small body of case law where directors have been found to owe duties to creditors and others in certain circumstances (such as when a company goes into insolvency). Does the fact that the CA14 specifically states that duties are owed to "the company alone" undermine that case law? Hard to say.

Breacnua

randomrb wrote: »

Is this your first three?

Yeah , first three.

randomrb

Breacnua wrote: »

Yeah , first three.

Try and do the four, the pressure of having to pass all three at once can be tough and all it takes is one question or paper and you come away with nothing, there is still lots of time

holliek

david_etc wrote: »

Restrictions (and to a lesser extent, disqualifications) is important. Key case for restrictions is Re La Moselle Clothing and Rosegem (approved by the SC in Re Squash (Ireland) Ltd). See Shanley J's criteria in Re La Moselle for deciding restrictions. Know the three criteria that must be met for a director to defend a restriction under s. 819.

Duties is the most important thing though. Know that the CA14 codified the duties for the first time, however it expressly notes that old case law applies. Key duties are acting in good faith, avoiding conflicts of interest, exercising care, skill and diligence, and not fettering discretion. There is specific case law on all those areas.

Also note to who the duties are owed. General position, as noted in Percival v Wright, is that they are owed to the Company itself (and not the individual members). S. 227 of the Act confirms this by stating that duties are owed "to the company (and the company alone)", however there is a small body of case law where directors have been found to owe duties to creditors and others in certain circumstances (such as when a company goes into insolvency). Does the fact that the CA14 specifically states that duties are owed to "the company alone" undermine that case law? Hard to say.

Thank you for the reply.
Are the only duties that I need to know those in s228? As in all the duties of a director are contained in that section? Also could I just learn the 4 you stated there or should I know all 8 of them?

byrne7

Could someone send me an up to date grid for company, equity and criminal if they have them? Thanks in advance!

jazzypatty89

LegallyBlonde2 wrote: »

Is contract, tort, company and EU doable with 6 weeks full time study or should I leave EU off until next March?

I am doing these exact four and I am in the exact same boat - feel like EU is such a big subject but going for it. Best of luck and let me know if you need anything!

SwD

Hey folks, could somebody please grace me with a copy of an Equity grid?

bigtophat13

randomrb wrote: »

Try and do the four, the pressure of having to pass all three at once can be tough and all it takes is one question or paper and you come away with nothing, there is still lots of time

I'm in a similar boat. Did company, Eu and equity last semester so filling in the gaps with those ones but yet to start contract yet which I haven't seen since first year but as said here, I couldn't stomach the idea of making one misstep and missing out on everything.

Also, more generally, as helpful as this thread is, it spooks me so much. I never even heard of a grid before a week or two ago, from what I gather it's just predictions right?

Heart Shaped Box

Does anyone have anything by way of sample answers for Constitutional law??

Finding it very difficult to know what they're looking for in the problem questions... and based off the grids, it seems like each problem question touches on a range of areas of the course, many of which I wouldn't have identified from the question

I can swap grids (and more) for all 8 subjects

frankiejoepat

For the company paper from March of this year, what was being asked in questions 3, 5 and 6? Things are bad when you can't figure that out open book :-(

Also, was Q8 a freak Q - were floating charges ever the basis for a question by themselves before?

Many thanks in advance for any help.

Frances94

bigtophat13 wrote: »

I'm in a similar boat. Did company, Eu and equity last semester so filling in the gaps with those ones but yet to start contract yet which I haven't seen since first year but as said here, I couldn't stomach the idea of making one misstep and missing out on everything.

Also, more generally, as helpful as this thread is, it spooks me so much. I never even heard of a grid before a week or two ago, from what I gather it's just predictions right?

The grids are based on what came up every sitting. Very useful I find

bigtophat13

frankiejoepat wrote: »

For the company paper from March of this year, what was being asked in questions 3, 5 and 6? Things are bad when you can't figure that out open book :-(

Also, was Q8 a freak Q - were floating charges ever the basis for a question by themselves before?

Many thanks in advance for any help.

Nothing to worry about, that's why we've still 5/6 weeks left.

3. It's so specific I doubt it will come up again although its so self contained it would be a nice one. All to do with the rights of the directors to refuse a transfer and their absolute discretion where its in the best interests of the company. Talk about how they dont need to give a reason and they can stay silent and to assume they're mala fides you'd need a high level of evidence before you can look at their silence as negative. Cases like Re Hafner, Re Bede, Popesly and Dublin Mill are old ones of relevance and then new ones if anyone has any I'd appreciate them too but Village Cay Marine and Re Banfi are two cases I have. You'd then have to talk about where that leaves the person who wants to be registered and how the owner still holds them on trust for the purchaser and how they can't vote if they can't force the registration with a court order under 173 I think. Then you'd say there's a 2 month time limit under 95 (3) to refuse on the registration.

5. This is all on the oppression and minority shhr rights. From the outset it doesn't like he has much of a case. Talk about how the real applicant is the company and then discuss how he could try (but likely fail) with a derivative action and then how he'd try as an oppressed minority shareholder under 212 (mainly this cause this they explicitly ask) and then say how there are a few circs where they may order it but he's unlikely to avail of many besides maybe the new (if it exists - its debateable) justice of the case criteria. Then you could say the court has a wide discretion as to what they could do. Perhaps if they think its unworkable they may order a purchase of shares for market value or something? they wouldn't go the route of Re Murphs and disband it because its a thriving business with 75% of the shhr and the directors working together, unless they were super nasty which they don't seem to have been. Also you'd have to talk about how the agreement was not in the Constitution and how he wouldn't have much of a case there.

6. I wouldn't go near this it's so specific. Lets just pray it doesn't come up again!

8. Floating charges so much of a topic on its own I guess is a little surprising but it has happened before the last 2 autumns to a degree and a question spring 16 about priority and what not. I'd definitely have a knowledge of the area as the JD Brian case law is important and still relatively recent. Even if you don't use it for this you could well end up referring to it in a liquidation case question where a floating charge has been created 12 months before liquidation or 24 in the case of a connected person and you'd have to show that there was consideration granted and they're not just trying to bypass the pari passu principle.

Hope this was some help, I've only bits and pieces done myself so far too so I get the panic looking at odd questions.

bigtophat13

Frances94 wrote: »

The grids are based on what came up every sitting. Very useful I find

Ok phew, I've rough ideas myself from going through the papers. thanks

olliej

Trying to narrow down topics for EU (am I crazy?)
Thinking to focus on:
Institutions
Judicial Review
Free Movements (all)
Direct Effect
Competition Law
Fundamental Rights
Equality

Any advice from anyone who has sat it before??

Teamhrach

olliej wrote: »

Trying to narrow down topics for EU (am I crazy?)
Thinking to focus on:
Institutions
Judicial Review
Free Movements (all)
Direct Effect
Competition Law
Fundamental Rights
Equality

Any advice from anyone who has sat it before??

Member State Liability & Infringement Actions??
People advised me not to bother with competition law
Maybe cover Citizenship slightly, just to have bullet points - in case it appeared as part of a PQ?

bigtophat13

olliej wrote: »

Trying to narrow down topics for EU (am I crazy?)
Thinking to focus on:
Institutions
Judicial Review
Free Movements (all)
Direct Effect
Competition Law
Fundamental Rights
Equality

Any advice from anyone who has sat it before??

Trying to narrow it down myself and it's so broad, you look like you have a lot there to be honest. I'm focusing on the questions that always come up so;

-DE mixed with damages
-Article 263 judicial review
-All the free movement of goods as you can get 2 questions on that sometimes
-Competition and Equality - worried they'll do a part A part B to choose between them or the competition could be something nasty like mergers
-Fundamental rights with a focus on Education, Family and where they can restrict (criminality focus)
- Question on democratic defecit and consider that my institutions question
- Perhaps a question on the general principles of EU law even though that is so broad its painful

Are you going to bring Prelim Reference procedure into it or where do you see that coming in?

bigtophat13

Teamhrach wrote: »

Member State Liability & Infringement Actions??
People advised me not to bother with competition law
Maybe cover Citizenship slightly, just to have bullet points - in case it appeared as part of a PQ?

Why leave competition law out? Very technical when it comes up or?...

iamanengine

I forgot to send off my application and I have just now seen the closing date was yesterday. Is there no way they would accept my application if I sent it off now?