Feminist Jurisprudence (4070) Feminist jurisprudence has been called one of the most important movements in legal scholarship today. Feminist scholars argue that the traditional body of law reflects the male emphasis on rights and abstractions while ignoring the distinctive perspectives of women. Scholarship spans every area of law, from sexual harassment to battered wives who kill their husbands; from the "no duty to rescue" rule to redefining fundamental legal concepts like what constitutes an injury. This course involves a review of selected issues in an effort to reconcile the law with the female experience. Limited enrollment. Grading: Letter graded. Credits: 2 or 3 Offered: Irregularly Categories: Long Paper Subject Areas: Jurisprudence and Legal History Seminar: Evolution and Constitutional Law (4631) This seminar is intended to introduce students to key concepts in evolutionary biology (pre-adaptive and vestigial uses, punctuated equilibrium, path dependence, speciation, etc.) and to explore the extent to which these concepts are useful in thinking about constitutional law and how it evolves. The seminar is also intended to give students an opportunity to pull together on a macro-level multiple concepts that have already been encountered in constitutional law classes as well as in other required courses. Students will be given an opportunity to think "outside-the-box" in considering different philosophical and interpretive approaches to constitutional law as well as to the role of law in society. Grading: Credits: 2 or 3 Offered: Irregularly Categories: Long Paper Subject Areas: Jurisprudence and Legal History, Constitutional Law and Civil Rights Seminar: Law & Economics (4644) What does economics have to say about law? Unlike most other legal doctrines, economic analysis purports to apply the same fundamental method and precepts to explain and evaluate policies and rules in a wide variety of legal fields, including civil procedure, contracts, constitutional theory, criminal punishment, evidence, property, and torts. This seminar critically examines the methodology and reach of economic analysis of law, including a basic survey of game theory and psychological theories of behavior. No prior acquaintance with economics, calculus, or psychology is necessary. Grading: Paper Credits: Variable Offered: Irregularly Categories: Long Paper Subject Areas: Jurisprudence and Legal History, Business and Commercial Seminar: Race and the Law (4945) Explores the many ways in which race and the law have interacted historically and continue to interact. Students read and discuss a wide variety of materials, presenting a variety of viewpoints. Materials include historical, social-scientific, critical race theory, and feminist writers, as well as current legal materials. The goal in the seminar is to assist each participant to develop his or her own thinking on this important current issue. Grading: Letter-graded. Credits: Variable Offered: Spring Categories: Long Paper Subject Areas: Jurisprudence and Legal History, Constitutional Law and Civil Rights
