Description

Cooley I – The Cooley Series – 1.5 Contact Hours
This is the first of three cases and one paper (“Cooley’s Dictum”) that we will study in what we are calling our Cooley Series, which, of course, refers to Justice Thomas M. Cooley. First appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court in 1864, Cooley served as Justice and then Chief Justice for 20 years. Cooley is not only revered in land surveying circles, and probably best known for what many surveyors refer to as “Cooley’s Dictum” (actually entitled “The Judicial Functions of Surveyors”), he is also recognized by the Michigan Bar Association as having “established the most distinguished record of any individual ever associated with Michigan Jurisprudence.” This month’s case is an opinion given early in Cooley’s Supreme Court tenure in 1866, Britton v. Ferry. This case is a study of a boundary dispute and the role original monuments play in the resolution of the controversy. This is a 2-Page Letter covering 1 Court Opinion consisting of 10 pages. This 12-Page document has a 10-Question examination based on the text of the newsletter and the case-in-chief.

OBJECTIVES: To enhance professional competency and improve practitioner’s knowledge of the law as it relates to the practice of land surveying.