Two Names, One Concept, and a Visit to Panera Bread
As you prepare for the bar exam, one common hurdle you might encounter is understanding that many legal concepts are known by different names.
I was reminded of this during my recent visit to St. Louis, Missouri. As I stepped outside of my hotel one morning, I headed to Panera Bread for breakfast … or so I thought. Instead, I was walking towards St. Louis Bread Company.
Little did I know before entering the fast-casual restaurant that the two establishments are one and the same. The chain was originally founded in 1987 as St. Louis Bread Company in St. Louis. When the company expanded outside the St. Louis area, it rebranded as Panera Bread. However, in the St. Louis area, the locations still operate under the original name, St. Louis Bread Company, while elsewhere, they are known as Panera Bread.
But aside from the exterior St. Louis Bread Company signage, everything within the this Euclid Avenue store in St. Louis reflects the same Panera Bread one would find elsewhere.
St. Louis Bread Company, 23 South Euclid Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63108
Just as St. Louis Bread Company is, in fact, Panera Bread, know that several legal principles have dual identities that you must recognize.
Take, for instance, res judicata and claim preclusion. These terms refer to the principle that a matter adjudicated by a competent court and a final judgment rendered is conclusive in any future lawsuit on the same cause of action.
Another example is collateral estoppel and issue preclusion. These terms denote the principle that once an issue has been actually and necessarily determined by a valid and final judgment, that determination is conclusive in subsequent suits involving a party to the prior litigation, even if the new suit is based on a different cause of action.
This concept of dual names extends to other legal terms that you might see on the bar exam:
Proximate Causation / Legal Causation
Actual Causation / Factual Causation
Mens Rea / Criminal Intent
Actus Reus / Criminal Act
Personal Jurisdiction / In Personam Jurisdiction
Hearsay Exemptions / Hearsay Exclusions
Master and Servant / Employer and Employee
Understanding these synonymous terms is crucial for bar exam preparation, as they may appear under either name in exam questions. (As a side note, the issues of res judicata/claim preclusion and collateral estoppel/issue preclusion were tested on the February 2013 and February 2021 Multistate Essay Examinations.)
