Government Practice

Clean water, safe food and drugs, stable banks, sensible land use, an open and accessible internet-these and many more aspects of modern American life depend largely on decisions made by unelected officials staffing administrative agencies at the local, state, and federal levels. This course examines the authority and procedures that these administrative agencies use to make law, investigate violations of the law, and adjudicate the application of the law to individuals and businesses. The course raises student awareness regarding the operation of the administrative state and important separation of powers and due process questions raised by ubiquitous administrative governance.

Grading: Exam
Credits: 3
Offered: Fall/Spring

Subject Areas: Administrative and Legislative Process, Child and Family Law, Government Practice, Health Law, Public Interest Law, Business and Commercial, Criminal Law, Employment Law, Environmental Law

This course is intended to introduce law students to the law and policy relating to public education (K-12) in the United States. The course will examine the authority of the state to compel attendance, regulate the contents of curriculum, the control and discipline of students and teachers, the relationship between public schools and religion, freedom of expression, tort liability, maltreatment of minors, equal education opportunity under Title IX, Title VI, bilingual education statutes and the educational rights of disabled children.

Grading: Letter graded
Credits: 2
Offered: Irregularly

Subject Areas: Government Practice, Torts, Constitutional Law and Civil Rights

The course is designed to provide students the opportunity to observe, participate in, analyze, gain insight into the functions of and reflect upon the work of a government agency lawyer. In their field placements, students will observe and participate in activities specific to the field placement, which can include transactions, appeals, rulemaking, legislation, policy and employment and labor issues. In addition to doing fieldwork, students attend a seminar on a regular basis during the semester. Students will bring their experience into the classroom for detailed analysis of the lawyers' work, function of the different agencies, the government decision making process, and the role of the government lawyer. Students interested in the class will be directed to apply for the federal, state agency and local government agency externships that have been established by the Externship Director. Students may also find their own placements and may register for the course after receiving permission from the instructor. To apply, students need to contact the faculty.

Grading: Pass/Fail.
Credits: Variable
Offered: e/o Fall

Categories: Experiential

Subject Areas: Government Practice

Studies the principal jurisdictional problems encountered in the federal courts. The course includes an in-depth analysis of diversity and federal question jurisdiction, suits against government officials, federal injunctions of state court proceedings, the abstention doctrine, the Eleventh Amendment and sovereign immunity, the Erie doctrine, and cross-jurisdictional preclusion.

Grading: Letter graded
Credits: 2
Offered: Irregularly

Subject Areas: Government Practice

This course introduces students to ethics, communications, and other practical and skills-oriented aspects of government practice. The course will use lectures, discussions, and simulations led by faculty and experienced practitioners to explore subjects such as the special ethical obligations and expectations of government attorneys, issues surrounding public and private government information, and interacting with the public, media, and government professionals in other disciplines.

Grading: Pass/fail
Credits: 1
Offered: Irregularly

Subject Areas: Administrative and Legislative Process, Government Practice

Examines the fundamentals of federal income taxation, including gross income, deductions and credits, assignment of income principles, methods of accounting, gains from dealings in property, non-recognition, capital gains and losses, and tax procedure.

Grading: Letter graded
Credits: 3 or 4
Offered: Fall/Spring

Subject Areas: Child and Family Law, Government Practice, Taxation

Presents an overview of the legislative process through lectures, readings, speakers, and a series of drafting exercises. Covers a range of topics pertaining to legislative advocacy, including the legislative process, developing an effective legislative strategy, ethics in lobbying, effective representation of clients before the legislature, the role of the executive and judicial branches, and careers at the legislature. The motivation to actively participate in class sessions is critical to successful completion of the course.

Grading: Letter-graded.
Credits: 2
Offered: Spring

Subject Areas: Administrative and Legislative Process, Government Practice

Lawmaking is increasingly the result of statutes rather than the common law, so it is critical for lawyers to understand the legislative process and how statutes are interpreted and drafted. This course will examine legislation and legislatures at the national, state, and local levels by focusing on two primary aspects of legislation. The first half of the course will focus on rules affecting legislative service and methods and rules used to pass legislation. This will give students a better understanding of structural aspects of legislatures that impact how legislation gets adopted. Topics discussed in this half of the course will include: case law affecting redistricting; rules and case law related to expulsion and exclusion of legislators; term limits; lobbying restrictions; item vetoes; single subject rules; and direct democracy. The second half of the course will focus on the interpretation and implementation of statutes and ordinances. We will examine the canons of construction and extrinsic sources for statutory interpretation, such as committee reports and sponsor statements. Students will also learn concepts related to drafting statutes.

Grading: Letter graded
Credits: 2
Offered:

Subject Areas: Administrative and Legislative Process, Government Practice

This course will examine constitutional and statutory regulation of the electoral process. We will explore topics including the right to vote and the right to an equally-weighted vote; representation, districting, and partisan gerrymandering; minority vote dilution, the Voting Rights Act, and racial gerrymandering; election administration, vote-counting, voting technology, and voter identification; and campaign finance laws and reform. The final grade will be based on class participation, an exam, and preparation of a paper on a topic selected by the student and approved by the professor. With the professor's prior approval, students may prepare a "long paper" to satisfy the Advanced Research and Writing requirement. You will get three credits if you write a long paper (which you may do even if you’ve already satisfied the long paper requirement) and two credits if you write a shorter paper. This is a seminar course with limited enrollment.

Grading: Letter graded.
Credits: 2 or 3
Offered: Spring

Categories: Long Paper

Subject Areas: Government Practice, Public Interest Law, Constitutional Law and Civil Rights

This class is about the First Amendment and the Free Press. We will discuss a selection of the legal issues generated by the activities of the mass media. We will consider regulations of print, broadcast, and electronic media, including laws that govern obscenity and pornography, laws aimed at balancing free press and fair trial rights, and laws meant to preserve multiple voices in a market. We will explore publication-related issues such as libel and invasion of privacy, and newsgathering-related issues such as the extent of the reporter's privilege and restrictions on access to information. We will examine common law, regulatory law including Federal Communications Commission regulations, and statutory law including the Freedom of Information Act, but the primary focus of the course will be on how the First Amendment limits governmental control over the media. The final grade will be based on class participation, an exam, and preparation of a paper on a topic selected by the student and approved by the professor. With the professor's prior approval, students may prepare a "long paper" to satisfy the Advanced Research and Writing requirement. You will get three credits if you write a long paper (which you may do even if you’ve already satisfied the long paper requirement) and two credits if you write a shorter paper. This is a seminar course with limited enrollment.

Grading: Letter-graded
Credits: 2 or 3
Offered: Fall

Categories: Long Paper

Subject Areas: Government Practice, Intellectual Property, Public Interest Law, Constitutional Law and Civil Rights

This course analyses the Supreme Court cases, the federal statutes, and the regulations and policies necessary for addressing terrorism, and other major threats to American safety and well-being.

Grading: Letter graded
Credits: Variable
Offered: Fall

Categories: Long Paper

Subject Areas: Government Practice, Constitutional Law and Civil Rights