You are an adult friend of a sixty-five year old male, James, who lives next door. James is friendly and kind to you and your family. James has become increasingly forgetful of facts and names lately and you once found him lost in another part of your familiar neighborhood. On the other hand, James has significant periods of mental clarity, living independently and performing complex mental tasks. For example, he profitably buys and sells collectibles at flea markets and on the Internet. James's family lives far away, and may not know that James is possibly showing early signs of mental instability. You know that a court can determine if someone is mentally incompetent and appoint a guardian to represent that individual. Only then can the guardian enter into binding legal obligations on behalf of the mentally incompetent person. From the perspective of contractual legal capacity, explain the advantages and drawbacks of declaring someone like James incompetent.

Alandlord rented an art studio to an artist. under the terms of the signed, written, two-year lease, the artist agreed to pay the landlord $1,000 per month and to assume responsibility for all necessary repairs. after the first year of the lease, the artist assigned the balance of his lease to a sculptor. the landlord approved the sculptor as a tenant and accepted two rent payments from her, and then the landlord sold the building to an investor. the sculptor had made two payments to the investor when an electrical fire broke out in the studio, injuring the sculptor. the fire was caused by faulty wiring. the landlord was aware that there was a dangerous wiring problem when he leased the property to the artist. but when the landlord discovered how costly repairs would be, he decided it would be more profitable to sell the property than to repair it. the problem was not easily discoverable by anyone other than an expert electrician, and the landlord did not tell the artist, the sculptor, or the investor about the problem. the sculptor sues to recover damages for her injuries. from whom can the sculptor recover?