The+Questionnaire


 * __Commons in European Private Law Questionnaire (last version pre Common Core November 15th-16th 2013)__**

1) Housing

Community members unable to afford housing inhabit homes in a development project undertaken by a private corporation under a public contract. The community members move in adding improvements to the development, making the houses habitable. The private corporation then discovers the community members and attempt to evict them with the help of the municipality. The community members refuse to leave and an occupation ensues.
 * 1) What further legal actions can the municipality take against the community members? By the corporation?
 * 2) What could be the legal defenses that the community members use against the municipality?
 * 3) Through what other means could the state ensure that the community members have access to housing?

2) Food

Community members that cannot afford to buy healthy food start a communal garden on a vacant plot of land. The owners of the plot of land discover the community members and attempt not only to evict them but also to claim ownership over the food grown by the community members on their land.
 * 1) What causes of actions do the community members have against the owners of the land?
 * 2) Through what other means could the state ensure that the community members have access to food?
 * 3) How would the outcome differ in rural as opposed to urban contexts?

3) Water

Community members living on the outskirts of a city do not have access to running water. They start to siphon off municipal water, managed by a private corporation to meet their water needs. The private corporation discovers the siphoning and with municipal assistance prevents the community members from further siphoning water.
 * 1) What further causes of action could the municipality take against the community members? What causes of action would the corporation have against the community members?
 * 2) What causes of action could the community members pursue against the city and the corporation?
 * 3) Through what other means could the state ensure that the community members have access water?

4) Labor

Community members fired from a local pottery plant relocated to a new country protest the relocation by occupying the factory and cooperatively managing the plant and sharing the profits of the pottery. The corporation attempts to evict the workers with the help of the municipality.
 * 1) What further causes of action could the municipality take against the community members? The corporation?
 * 2) What causes of action could the community members pursue against the city?
 * 3) Through what other means could the state ensure that the community members have access to employment?

5) Nature in Urban Spaces

A corporation purchases park land from a municipality and plans to convert it into a parking lot. The park is one of the few green spaces in which to enjoy nature for the town inhabitants. Community members stage a demonstration and claim common ownership of the park by camping and refusing to leave until development plans are cancelled. The corporation together with the municipality attempts to evict the community members.
 * 1) What further action could the municipality take against the community members? The corporation?
 * 2) What causes of action would the community members have against the municipality? Against the corporation?
 * 3) Through what other means could the state ensure that the community members have access nature?

6) Education

Public university tuition rates are raised to levels so unaffordable for most students that they are unable to pay the fees. A group of students and teachers occupy the University class rooms and conduct lessons without the University’s authority in protest. The University together with the municipality and state officials attempts to evict the students and teachers.
 * 1) What causes of action could the municipality/state pursue against the students? Against the teachers?
 * 2) What causes of action could the students take against the University?
 * 3) What if the university were not public but private? What causes of action would the students have against the corporation?
 * 4) Through what other means could the state ensure that the students have access to education?

7) Culture

Members of a local public theater occupy the theater to prevent the municipality from selling it to a private corporation. The municipality attempt to evict the theater members and a struggle ensues.
 * 1) What causes of action would the theater members have against the municipality?
 * 2) What causes of action could the municipality take against the theater members?

8) Knowledge

A Wikipedia like resource decides to sell its servers to a private corporation who decides to start charging people for information on the site. Those users that generated content for the site protest the fees.
 * 1) What causes of action could the users take against the private corporation? Against the current managers of the site?

9) Healthcare

A group of irregular migrants are refused healthcare by municipal healthcare providers due to their irregular status. Some doctors in hospitals begin to give the care anyway after their working hours. The municipality discovers this and orders the doctors to stop.
 * 1) What causes of action would the doctors have against the city?
 * 2) What causes of action would the migrant have?
 * 3) What causes of action would the municipality have against the migrants?
 * 4) What if this was a privately run hospital: what causes of action would the doctors have? The migrants? What measures could the private hospital take against the doctors? The migrants?

10) Childcare

A group of parents that cannot afford childcare start taking their children to work with them, organizing a cooperative daycare in the office without the consent of their employers. The employers object and shut down the cooperative daycare.
 * 1) What causes of action would the parents have against the corporation?
 * 2) Let us assume this is a state run business, what actions could the parents take against the state?

11) Elderly Care

A group of community members that cannot afford to care for their elderly parents take over an abandoned building an set up a cooperative elderly care facility. The owner with the help of the municipality attempts to evict the community members and their parents.
 * 1) What causes of action could the community members take against the owner?
 * 2) Against the municipality?
 * 3) What further actions could the owner take? The Municipality?

12) Public Spaces for Democratic Participation

A public square, used traditionally for social and political gathering, is sold to a corporation which plans to convert the square into a shopping mall. A group of community members protest the proposed development and occupy the square. The corporation together with the municipality attempts to evict the community members.
 * 1) What causes of action would the concerned community members have against the city? Against the corporation?
 * 2) What actions could the corporation take against the community members? The municipality?
 * 3) What if the corporation ensures that they will permit social and political gatherings to take place in the mall would this change the causes of action available to the community members.