Alphabetical Course Descriptions | Courses By Subject Area | First Year Courses | Upper Level Courses

UPPER LEVEL COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

(S) = Seminar

1L Legal Writing Instructor: Yearlong

3.5 sem. hrs.

Legal Writing Instructors and Fellows only.

Accounting

2 sem. hrs.

This course is designed to provide the student with an understanding of the basic fundamentals of accounting, emphasizing the nature and purpose of financial statements. The course will focus on legal problems that lawyers and their clients should consider in using and relying on financial statements and not on the technical aspects of preparing financial records and financial statements. No prior background in bookkeeping or accounting is necessary. The course's format will be approximately 50% lectures, 50% Socratic. The takeaway exam will be a combination of short-answer, essay and multiple-choice questions.

Adv Issues in Priv Fin & Corp Reorg - Yearlong (S)

1.5 sem. hrs.

This seminar will address topics in private financing and corporate reorganization under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code. The principal emphasis will be on student research; a written research paper (which may satisfy the senior writing requirement) will be required. Students will be required to select a paper topic and submit a brief abstract before December 1, 2008. The instructor will be available in during the fall term consult with students about the selection of a topic. There also will be one or more organizational meetings in the fall term. Beginning after spring break seminar meetings will be devoted to students' presentations of their research and discussions by the seminar participants. Students wishing credit for the senior writing requirement must submit an initial draft for my review and comment by the week following spring break. All final papers will be due no less than five days before grades are due in the Registrar's Office for graduating students.

Advanced Business Law: Understanding Business Law Scholarship (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course is designed to introduce the student to current academic research and scholarship on a range of business law topics. Students will read 6-8 works in progress by leading academics, and then attend workshop sessions in which the authors present their work. Prepatory sessions will focus on background readings that enable students to understand the scholarship in context. Students are expected to write short (approximately 5 page) position papers analyzing each of the papers presented and to participate actively in the discussion sessions. Students may complete the writing requirement and receive an additional credit by writing a research paper. Several sessions of this class will be cancelled, including October 9th. Make-up sessions will be announced. Corporations is required as a pre-requisite or co-requisite.

Advanced Criminal Law

3 sem. hrs.

The Fall 2006 Advanced Criminal Law builds upon the introductory criminal law course through a series of case studies and statutory drafting exercises. The case studies are from public sources or from the softcover coursebook, Criminal Law Case Studies (3d ed. West 2007), which is on reserve at the library. Student teams argue the prosecution and defense side of each case, based upon commonsense justice arguments that one might make to a jury, as well as upon the law as it then existed, and upon the Model Penal Code. The legal source document for the course is a general treatise on criminal law (Robinson, Criminal Law (Aspen 1997)), also on reserve at the library, so success in the course does not depend upon what a student remembers from, or what professor he or she had for, introductory criminal law. Student teams also draft proposed criminal code provisions relating to issues that arise in the case studies. Case studies in the past have concerned such topics as a brainwashing defense, the use of torture to save civilian lives, the battered spouse syndrome as a defense to spouse killing, the use of the death penalty, the use of the lesser evils defense in instances of protest or civil disobedience, drug addiction as involuntary intoxication, the use of deadly force against burglars, the defense of military orders, and euthanasia.

Advanced Legal Research

1 sem. hrs.

Advanced Legal Research. 1 sem. hr. Day. QIII. Spring. This course is designed to reinforce and expand upon the legal research skills and sources covered in First Year Legal Writing. Emphasis will be on electronic databases, specialized print sources, and various research strategies. Topics vary from year to year but usually include legislative history, administrative rules, looseleaf services, and a comparison of Lexis, Westlaw, and the Internet. This course is strongly recommended for: a) 2Ls planning to become Legal Writing Instructors or Fellows on the theory that they should be as well prepared as possible prior to assuming their duties in the Third Year, and b) 2Ls and 3Ls who, after a summer job, have come to realize that efficient research skills are essential to a successful legal career. LLMs are strongly urged to take instead U.S. Legal Research, an August course specially designed for them. You will be required to research and write a 15-20 page Pathfinder on a narrow topic of your choice. A Pathfinder is a bibliographic/legal essay which recommends a research strategy to a managing partner who will continue your research sometime in the future and doesn’t have time to start from scratch. The paper will force you to think about research options and to recommend the best paper and online sources germane to your topic. It will be due approximately one month after the last class. Pathfinders are graded unanonymously, on a curve, and are 100 % of the final grade. If you want 3 credits, you must register for this course, register for 2 credits of independent study, and write a 30-page Pathfinder with significant legal analysis.

Advanced Problems in Federal Procedure (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Study of selected problems in federal procedure, particularly complex litigation and discovery. There will be no exam. Each student will give two brief class presentations on selected readings. Each student will write a final paper, and will make a class presentation concerning his or her paper topic towards the end of the course. With instructors' prior permission, the final paper can be used to fulfill the senior writing requirement.

Advanced Seminar in Local Government Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course will address certain core topics in the area of local government law through a focus on the laws governing The City of Philadelphia. Among the topics we will examine are the separation of powers between the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and its largest City, Philadelphia, including the extent of the City’s home rule powers and the issue of state preemption of local laws with a focus on campaign finance limits and gun control laws. In addition, the course will examine topics involving the separation of powers within the City government itself, primarily between Philadelphia’s City Council and its Mayor, but also in regard to other internal divisions of power and tensions in decision-making. Finally, the class will look at such important local government topics as land use planning (zoning), economic development, family law, housing policy, civil rights, and the First Amendment. In addition to examining the nuts and bolts of law and policy in these areas, the class will also look at these issues from a theoretical perspective: Why are certain decisions made (or why should they be made) at a certain level of government? What are the socioeconomic and political theories that provide the best explanation of the legal and policy outcomes in these areas? A few visiting presenters will be invited to provide expert and “insider” views on some of these issues. Class participation will account for about a third of the grade for the course, and attendance is important in that regard. A variety of reading materials (cases, articles, book excerpts, essays) will be assigned, but there will be no assigned text. The course will require the submission of three short papers on topics related to the issues and theories addressed in class. The papers will not require significant, if any, legal research, but may require personal observation of, or inquiry into, current Philadelphia local government matters. Students who have taken Local Government Law (Pritchett) are encouraged to enroll.

Advanced Topics in Commercial Real Estate Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar is designed to introduce students to the variety and fluidity of structures in today's commercial real estate transactions and the lawyer's role in "structuring and negotiating the deal," taking into account the current state of the commercial real estate market. In the first part of the course, the students will get an overview of the impact of the capital markets crisis on commercial real estate transactions and real estate development, as well as an overview of the lenders forced to acquire the property securing their financing. Subsequently, the course will involve an examination and discussion of shopping center and mixed use development, acquisition, sale and leasing, including, the legal issues inherent in obtaining the entitlements, structuring the acquisition, the role of the lender as simply a source of financing or as an equity partner, and the legal relationships and conflicts among developers, contractors, architects, tenants, lenders, Wall Street, surety companies, hotel franchising companies and management companies. The exams will consist of a paper on selected topics. One or more paper topics will require research into points of law discussed in the earlier part of the course; other paper topics will involve creative analysis and deal structuring using tools learned in class and from the textbook.

Advanced Topics in Corporate Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will analyze the canonical cases in corporate law. The text for the course is a recently published volume that provides a substantive analysis of the cases. The reading list will also include major cases that led up to the decision or that subsequently relied on the decision to further develop the emerging doctrine. Finally, the reading list will cover some of Vice Chancellor Strine's emblematic decisions. Students will be reading the cases in their entirety which will provide a better understanding of the structure of Delaware corporate law. Students are expected to attend class and participate actively in seminar discussion. In addition, students will be expected to write a paper based on a case not covered in the class, but using the format of the text. The paper will thus provide a substantive discussion of the doctrine as well as the history surrounding the case. The grade in the class will be based 50% on class participation and 50% on the paper.

American Trials (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course will examine prominent trials of the 20th century that were impacted by and had an impact on our culture. The course will be interdisciplinary. We will read and view actual trial materials as well as literature, journalism, history, and films that grew out of the trials. The goal is to discuss the ways in which the lawyers molded the stories they told to fit the time, politically and socially, and how the trial itself then affected society and was depicted in various media. The reading for the course will be heavy but enjoyable, and films may be screened outside the normal class time. Consistent class participation and attendance are required. Students will write a paper for each of the six trials we study and give one presentation. Five of the papers will be short (3-4 pages), and one will be longer (10-15 pages). With the permission of the instructor, a 20-page seminar paper may be written in lieu of two of the papers to fulfill the senior writing requirement. Drop/add will end on Friday, January 16 at 4:00 p.m.

Analytical Methods in the Law

3 sem. hrs.

Familiarity with quantitative reasoning and statistics is increasingly an important part of a lawyer’s job. This course will prepare students to understand the use of and to apply quantitative tools from statistics, finance, and economics to problems of legal importance. Topics covered include decision analysis, hypothesis testing, linear regression, game theory, microeconomics, and time discounting. Legal applications include litigation, negotiation, environmental law, corporate law, criminal law, employment law, antitrust, and intellectual property. In addition to a main textbook, sources for course material are drawn from legal cases, scientific studies, and journal and newspaper articles. The goal of the course is for students to develop their quantitative intuition through practical application, including the use of computer tools such as Excel. No specific mathematics background is required, and students with little or no quantitative coursework are especially encouraged to take the course.

Anatomy of a Divorce

2 sem. hrs.

More than 50% of the marriages in this country end in divorce; the percentage is even higher in many countries outside of the United States. Besides its emotional and financial impact on the divorcing parties, the transfers of wealth attendant to marital dissolutions have substantial economic consequences on society at large with the property subject to distribution in divorce expanding to include career achievements or career potential, celebrity status, enhanced earning capacity, license and degrees. This course provides exposure to the dynamic process of representing the spectrum of clients, including same-sex couples, in a dissolution of marriage case and the unique issues, such as dealing with the media, gag orders, and seeking to close courtrooms to shield children when representing high-profile and high net worth individuals. Topics are covered from the perspective of a practicing lawyer and include: initial client interviews and retention, jurisdiction and choice of law issues, child custody and visitation, the interplay between the Court and matrimonial attorneys, mental health issues, temporary and permanent maintenance for spouses and support for children, awards of attorney and expert fees, the nature of property subject to division and distribution, the valuation process, unique issues raised by certain types of property, effects of bankruptcy, pre- and post-marital agreements, negotiating and drafting marital settlement agreements, pre-trial discovery preparation for and conduct of trial, and Federal tax aspects of marital dissolution. Guest lecturers will include a sitting matrimonial judge, a forensic accountant and a former client.

Anatomy of a Merger

2 sem. hrs.

This class will focus on a single transaction (probably the acquisition of TXU by a private equity consortium led by KKR and TPG) to frame the legal issues that often arise in connection with the sale of a public company by merger, including confidentiality agreements, laws applicable to the disclosure of merger proposals and negotiations, duties of directors, reason for and role of special committees of directors, structure of merger agreements generally and with private equity buyers in particular, typical merger agreement issues, acquisition financing issues, post-announcement shareholder litigation, rules applicable to merger disclosure and solicitation of proxies and the role of hedge funds and more traditional institutional investors in merger votes. Corporations is a pre-requisite for this course; Mergers and Acquisitions is a suggested co-requisite.

Animal Law & Ethics (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar course will focus both on fundamental legal and ethics questions, including human duties toward animals and whether conceiving of rights for animals is appropriate, as well as on an understanding of the current legal and administrative means through which the relationship between humans and animals is regulated. We will discuss the varying viewpoints expressed by animal advocates, generally falling into the category of either "animal welfare" or "animal rights" positions. We will discuss the fact that nonhuman animals are not legally "persons" and currently have no legal rights, per se, only limited legal "protections." Discussion of animal rights will necessarily entail an examination of the sources and characteristics of fundamental rights, why animals have historically been denied them, and whether legal rights are appropriately limited to humans. Further, we will discuss whether, if any such rights were recognized, what nonhuman animals should be entitled to them and, if so, to which legal rights they should be entitled. The class will also consider such issues as establishing standing to bring suits on behalf of animals, constitutional issues raised in animal protection cases and an analysis of the law and theory behind the protections afforded (or not afforded) animals under various federal and state laws. The focus will be on the status of animals as property, the doctrine of standing, and the nature of legal rights as applied to nonhuman animals. We will examine the content and enforcement of state anticruelty laws, the Endangered Species Act, the Federal Animal Welfare Act and accompanying regulations. We will have guest speakers for several sessions, including litigators and legislative advocates from the Humane Society of the United States and public interest law firms, a prosecutor who specializes in animal fighting, and leading legal scholars on animal ethics. Short papers will be submitted based on the assigned readings in lieu of a final exam. As this course is intended, in part, as an opportunity to engage in an open dialogue on the potential for developments in this nascent area of law, attendance and participation in class discussion is crucial and laptops are not permitted.

Antitrust Law

3 sem. hrs.

The course considers the basic principles of antitrust law. It will examine the laws of horizontal restraints (including price fixing and other forms of collusion), vertical restraints (including resale price maintenance and territorial and customer restrictions placed on dealers), monopolization, merger regulation, and the relationship between antitrust and other forms of economic regulation. Although a background in economics may be useful, no previous knowledge of economics is assumed.

Appellate Advocacy

3 sem. hrs.

The primary focus of this course is learning to write a persuasive appellate brief, and the secondary focus is on oral argument and appellate practice. The class will follow the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, and the briefs often focus on federal or constitutional questions. There will be reading assignments and focused writing exercises, including an appellate argument and appellate brief. Course writing will be subject to detailed review by the instructor and sometimes fellow classmates. Attendance and participation are important, and there will be some required independent legal research. Oral arguments will be videotaped after appellate briefs are submitted near the end of the course. You may get an assignment in August due at the first class. Class is limited to 12 students, with preference given to 2Ls.

Bioethics and the Law: Mental Illness and Moral Lives Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

People affected by bipolar disorder, major unipolar depression, anxiety disorders, stress disorders, schizophrenia and other DSM-IV mental illnesses have rich and difficult moral lives. This includes lawyers, judges, physicians and other highly regarded professionals. Read their autobiographies and discover remarkable levels of moral and ethical engagement. This seminar will examine how moralists recommend that a just and caring society judge and respond to the harmful and offensive acts of people with mental conditions. The seminar will also examine how we can rethink moral agency and other basic moral concepts to account for the moral engagement by people with mental conditions. What services and opportunities will a just society offer persons affected by mental illness to enhance their moral agency? The required texts for the course include five books (three of them riveting memoirs written by accomplished professionals with serious mental conditions) and a compilation of readings assembled by Prof. Allen.

Business Acquisition Process

2 sem. hrs.

This course will focus on developing the lawyering skills required by an attorney advising a client who is selling or purchasing a closely held business. Individual drafting exercises, as well as client interview/strategy discussions and negotiations by student(s) acting as counsel to the buyer or seller, will be interspersed with periodic lectures on the business acquisition process and analysis of selected court opinions and publicly available documentation of actual acquisition transactions. A prerequisite is the course on Corporations (aka Business Associations).

Chapter 11: Corporate Reorganization

3 sem. hrs.

This course, taught by an experienced practioner, will focus on the practical and strategic applications of Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code. It will examine applicable statutory and case law with particular emphasis on hypothetical considerations confronting debtors and creditors in a business reorganization so that students will appreciate the negotiation, litigation, and the transactional components of a Chapter 11 case. Students will be assigned to discuss problems from the text.

Christian Legal Theory Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar explores the relationship between Christianity and American law, focusing principally on the perspectives of Catholic, Protestant and (to a lesser extent) Orthodox theologians and scholars on law and legal issues since the late nineteenth century, and on the political influence of Christian groups historically and in the present. At the outset of the semester, many of the readings will be drawn from the essays in The Teachings of Modern Christianity on Law, Politics, and Human Nature (Witte & Alexander, eds. 2005). We then will consider a variety of different topics, including Prohibition; gambling regulation; the Civil Rights era; the Moral Majority and the rise of the Religious Right; recent developments in Catholic Social Thought; and the debt relief movement. Guest speakers may be invited to join the seminar on occasion. Students will be required to write brief (less than 1 page) response papers for at least 9 of our classes. These papers will not be graded, but will be treated as part of the student’s class participation. Students will be required to write one long paper. The paper should be a maximum of twenty pages (double-spaced) in length (with references given in footnotes, not endnotes), and will be due at the end of the semester. Each student’s grade will be based on the paper and the student’s class participation.

Church and State

3 sem. hrs.

This course explores the tensions, common interests and political ramifications of religious faith and religious activity in an ostensibly secular society. The course will focus on constitutional issues, including the establishment and free exercises clauses of the federal constitution, and state and federal statutes such as the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act. It will also address questions of broad social applicability, including but not limited to compulsory flag salutes, school prayer, religious accommodation for employees, polygamy and same-sex marriage, drugs, ritual slaughter of animals, and government funding of religious freedom in the United States, as well as the development of constitutional doctrine and caselaw. There will be an in-class, open book exam.

Civil Practice Clinic: Fieldwork

7 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR CLINICS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. This clinical course examines first hand the challenging issues that confront lawyers who represent clients in civil disputes and litigation. Under close faculty supervision, students will serve as litigators in the Penn Legal Assistance Office, a teaching law firm providing legal representation to actual clients whose interests are directly at stake in state and federal court proceedings and in administrative agency hearings. Students will interview and counsel clients, develop case theories, negotiate with opposing parties, and provide legal representation in formal adjudicatory hearings under Pennsylvania's student practice rule. Students will be assigned their own individual cases in which they will have primary responsibility in a broad range of substantive areas, such as housing, social security disability, child custody and support, civil forfeiture, education, and discrimination and civil rights. The skills and experience obtained in this course will serve students throughout their professional careers, whether or not they choose to pursue litigation practice. In addition to their casework as lawyers, students will engage in classroom seminars twice weekly to obtain training in basic interactional skills (e.g., interviewing, counseling, negotiating) and to discuss in a collegial setting issues of case development, strategy and professional responsibility which arise in the Clinic's cases. Students will also participate in videotaped simulations utilizing trained actors as a means of enhancing skills development. Most important, each student will be assigned to an individual faculty supervisor with whom he/she will meet regularly on a one-to-one basis to receive close supervision and constructive feedback. Students will develop competence in basic lawyering skills as well as self-reflection, acquiring an ability to analyze what it is they do as lawyers and to learn from their own experiences. The Penn Legal Assistance Office is located in Silverman Hall which includes a court room, client interview and conference rooms, computerized student work and research areas and videotaping facilities. Fieldwork and classroom components of the course are graded separately. Class attendance is mandatory. N.B. You may not enroll in this course if: a) you are enrolled in the Criminal Defense Clinic, or an externship in the same semester; or b) you are responsible for 3 or more incomplete grades at the beginning of the semester. You must appear by the second meeting of the course. The drop/add period for this course ends at 4 p.m. on the first Friday after the start of the course. Students who elect to use their enrollment in the Civil Practice Clinic toward their public service requirement will receive one less credit for this course.

Civil Pre-trial Litigation

3 sem. hrs.

Students will take a mock case from initial client contact through settlement. Topics included will be problem identification and claim formulation, pleadings, discovery, dispositive and non-dispositive motion practice, settlement, strategic considerations, and ethical issues. The course will be writing-intensive. Students will draft a complaint or an answer, document requests, interrogatories, and motion papers. Students will also participate in a client interview, a deposition, motion arguments, and a pretrial conference.

Commercial Credit I

3 sem. hrs.

The course will provide an intensive examination of some of the practices and legal problems which arise in the extension of credit, particularly business credit. The principal focus of the course will be on Article 9 of the UCC, which deals with security interests in personal property. The course will also introduce basic practices and principles involved in the extension of both secured and unsecured credit. Attention will be given to problems of relating the UCC to underlying legal principles of general applicability and to other statutes, such as the Bankruptcy Code.

Commercial Credit II

3 sem. hrs.

This course will focus principally on bankruptcy, although we will also briefly consider state collection remedies and other nonbankruptcy issues that overlap with bankruptcy. We will consider all aspects of bankruptcy law, starting with commencement of the bankruptcy case; continuing through issues such as trustee avoidance powers and operating a business in bankruptcy; and concluding with liquidation, individual wage earner plans, and corporate reorganization. At various points, we will pay particular attention to recent legislative reform efforts. The course will consider both the theoretical debate as to the proper role of bankruptcy, and the doctrinal apparatus of the Bankruptcy Code. The class will be roughly 60% participatory, but will at times be Socratic (30%) or lecture (10%) in format. Class participation may be taken into account in grading. There will be an in-class exam.

Common Law Contracts for Civil Lawyers

2 sem. hrs.

This course provides a summary of modern American contract law. The emphasis is on how the common law of contracts developed, and how common law principles have been modified by common law courts, by the Restatements of Contracts, and by the Uniform Commercial Code. An overview of such basic concepts as offer, acceptance, consideration, defenses to contract formation, and remedies will be presented. The course assumes some familiarity with U.S. civil procedure (federal and state ) It is designed to give practicing lawyers familiar with Code contract principles an idea of how the American common law has shaped and developed similar commercial concepts and principles. The emphasis is on practice rather than theory and is geared to the practitioner rather than the student. Course requirements - there will be one final examination and a group project.

Comparative Environmental Law and Economics (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar takes an economic approach to explaining and normatively critiquing the environmental regulatory systems of the U.S. and Europe. It will focus on topics involving environmental federalism that are common to both the U.S. and Europe. These topics include: the judicial role in the evolution of regulatory centralization; the economic rationale and positive political-economic explanations for regulatory centralization (federalization); transboundary pollution; environmental standard-setting; institutions for public participation in environmental decisionmaking; and, climate change. Students are expected to attend all meetings of the seminar, and the course grade will be based 20% on class participation and 80% on participation on a 24 hour take-home examination.

Conflict of Laws

3 sem. hrs.

A study of the resolution of cases connected to more than one jurisdiction: when different jurisdictions (states or nations) have adopted different substantive rules of law, which should govern? Major topics will include the more significant historical approaches (vested rights and interest analysis); the Second Restatement; the role of the U.S. Constitution in interstate conflicts; international conflicts; and domestic relations.

Constitutional Criminal Procedure

3 sem. hrs.

This course will focus upon constitutional law issues that arise during the investigation of a criminal case. Attention is given to Fourth Amendment limitations on police conduct; the scope of the exclusionary rule; the law of confessions, including Miranda v. Arizona and its progeny; lineups and other pre-trial identification procedures; the use of informants and secret agents; and the privilege against self-incrimination in the grand jury setting.

Constitutional Litigation

4 sem. hrs.

The United States Constitution purports to restrain the actions of state and federal governments. When these restraints are transgressed, the injured parties and their representatives look to the federal courts for remedies. This course considers the legal doctrines that shape the courts' readiness to provide those remedies and the ways in which doctrines are likely to manifest themselves in the course of litigation. Topics include: the availability of damage actions, sovereign and official immunities, jurisdictional problems, abstention, Younger v. Harris and its emanations, standing and issues of institutional litigation. The format is Socratic. Exam will be a takeaway open-book essay.

Constitutional Theorizing (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will evaluate major theoretical works about the constitution, its meaning and interpretation. We shall begin with several of the most important essays in the Federalist Papers, regarded by many as America's foremost contribution to political theory. Among the other theorists whose work will be considered are Ames, Hand, Ely Michelman, Ackerman, Sunstein, MacKinnon, Bork, Dworkin, and Scalia.

Contract Drafting (S)

3 sem. hrs.

The aim of this course will be to teach students how to draft contracts that are clear and effective; participants can expect learn in one semester what a corporate associate might take several years to learn, if at all. The course will focus on two overarching topics: what to say in a contract, and how you should say it. In terms of contract language, much of our time will be devoted to having students put into practice the recommendations contained in Professor Adams’s ABA book “A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting.” In addition, we will examine the building blocks of a contract and the linkages between them; we will explore certain key contract concepts, such as “material adverse change” provisions and “best efforts” and its variants; and we will study the “boilerplate” provisions that are found in most contracts. We will also explore how contracts are drafted and negotiated. Throughout, we will consider the shortcomings of current drafting practices, in terms of both quality and process. There will be several written assignments, each requiring that students either draft a contract expressing the terms of a mock transaction or redraft a contract that is representative of mainstream practices but is nonetheless deficient. Students will be permitted to drop the course only after the first class. And anyone who wishes to add the class will be permitted to do so only if they attended the first class.

Copyright

3 sem. hrs.

This course will focus on the protection of literary, musical and artistic works through copyright and related doctrines. Topics will include the concept and purposes of copyright (including a brief discussion of patents and trademarks), copyrightable subject matter, ownership of copyright, formalities, and rights, limitations, and remedies provided by copyright. There will be an in-class examination. Class participation will be taken into account in grading.

Corporate Finance

3 sem. hrs.

This course presents an overview of the basic principles of corporate finance. Topics include securities valuation including the discounted cash flow analysis, pricing of bonds and common stocks; portfolio theory including the capital asset pricing model and precepts of market efficiency; and capital structure of firms, including the weighted average cost of capital and debt policy. This material is then combined in a section dealing with approaches to valuing entire companies. A final brief section introduces option theory. The course combines finance and legal perspectives for each topic. The primary reading is a standard MBA-level finance text. There will be a series of ungraded problem sets and a graded open-book final exam. This course or an equivalent course satisfies the requirements needed to register in upper-level MBA courses offered by the Wharton Finance Department. Prerequisite: A completed course in or current enrollment in Corporations. There will be an in-class exam.

Corporate Lawyering

2 sem. hrs.

The nature and substantive aspects of the practice of law in a corporation or other business setting: the unique role of in-house counsel; the ethical considerations and professional responsibilities of the employee/attorney; the multi-faceted functions and responsibilities of in-house lawyering including fostering the corporate conscience, corporate compliance, educating the organization, implementing corporate governance procedures, interfacing with business operations, participating in governmental/public affairs and legislative activities, and selecting, utilizing, and supervising outside counsel. The course will feature the participation of leading corporate executives and outside practitioners.

Corporate Taxation

2 sem. hrs.

Tax issues relating to the formation, capitalization, operation, restructuring, liquidation, and reorganization of corporate entities form the core of this course. The course will examine the tax consequences of equity and debt to both the issuing corporation and the shareholder or holder of corporate debt instruments and will provide a brief introduction to certain hybrid financial products commonly issued or acquired by corporate entities. While the focus is on tax issues, the business reasons for engaging in various transactions will be an integral part of the course. This course is useful both to students considering tax practice and to students interested in general business practice. Federal Income Tax I is a prerequisite. The course will combine lecture and problem solving.

Corporations

4 sem. hrs.

This course will focus on the structure and characteristics of the modern business corporation, with particular attention given to problems relating to the large, publicly held company. Some emphasis will be given to federal securities laws and the impact of federal securities regulation on corporate governance. The course will also incorporate introductory principles of valuation and finance and will utilize basic algebra. This course will be taught primarily in the Socratic fashion. The open-book exam consist exclusively of essay questions. Some of the Friday sessions of this class will be cancelled. Regular class attendance and participation are required.

Criminal Defense Clinic

4 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR CLINICS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. This clinical course will combine hands on trial experience with an educational component tailored to developing litigation skills. Students will try cases under the close supervision of a senior trial attorney from the Defender Association of Philadelphia. During the first four weeks there will be intensive classroom study where students will learn Pennsylvania Criminal Law, Procedure, Evidence, trial and cross examination skills. During this period students will also be assigned mock cases to prepare in addition to observing actual preliminary arraignments, preliminary hearings, and trials in municipal court. Students will then be assigned to represent defendants. Students will conduct misdemeanor trials and preliminary hearings for felony cases. Students will interview and counsel clients, develop case theories, negotiate with opposing parties, and prepare various pretrial motions. Students will be interacting with their clients, members of the judiciary, District Attorneys, witnesses and complainants. Successful participants will need to be able to persuasively articulate legal arguments, work with a wide variety of individuals and maintain their composure in difficult situations. It is the instructor’s expectation that each student will have the experience of representing clients on 5 to 7 different cases. In addition to the classroom educational component described above, students will be exposed to a variety of guest speakers who will examine some of the ethical and social issues raised in criminal defense, and particular issues involved in representing the indigent. This course will meet for 6-1/2 hours, over two days per week. There will be a mid-semester evaluation of the student's progress and weekly feedback of the student's in-court performance, which can be scheduled at the student's convenience. Clinical instruction will be conducted at the Law School, except when courtroom appearances are required. This course will be open to 2L's who have completed three semesters and have had Evidence. (Students who have not had three semesters will be ineligible for certification by the court to appear on behalf of clients.) Enrollment is limited to 8 students. Class attendance and courtroom appearances are mandatory. The drop/add period for this course ends at 4 p.m. on Friday, January 16, 2009. In addition to various handouts provided by the instructor, the required text is Crimes Code of Pennsylvania, Gould Publications. Students who elect to use their enrollment in the Criminal Defense Clinic toward heir public service requirement will receive three credits for this course.

Criminal Law Theory (S)

3 sem. hrs.

SEMINAR IN CRIMINAL LAW THEORY Fall '08 – INTUITIONS OF JUSTICE This Seminar examines issues of criminal law theory, as presented in a selection of readings from the scholarly literature. The specific criminal law theory topic of the Seminar is different each year, and is announced before the Seminar begins. Fall 2008 Seminar Topic: INTUITIONS OF JUSTICE This year's seminar will concern intuitions of justice and will examine such questions as: How do people's intuitions of justice compare to the criminal law's formal liability and punishment rules? What level of agreement or disagreement is there among different people's intuitions? Do these differences differ with demographics? Where do people's intuitions of justice come from? Should the criminal law care about lay person's intuitions of justice? Does it? If the criminal law was to track people's shared intuitions of justice, what would the legal rules look like? The first portion of the seminar will include readings that examine these questions. The second portion will involve the presentation of student papers on topics related to these questions. See the seminar's course portal for copies of the kinds of materials that will be included in the seminar's readings. **please note that all students who wish to be in the seminar -- be they currently registered or on the Wait List (or just interested in the class) -- must attend the first seminar meeting.**

Criminal Procedure: Prosecution and Adjudication

3 sem. hrs.

Traditional criminal procedure courses share two features: First, they treat criminal procedure as a subset of constitutional law. This means that they focus on doctrine and case law, in particular the decisions of the Supreme Court and how the Warren Court expanded defendants’ rights while the Burger and Rehnquist Courts have stayed or reversed this trend. Second, traditional courses focus on jury trials. This course will not be a traditional criminal procedure course. As a former federal prosecutor, my own view is that law schools focus too much on Supreme Court doctrine, ignoring variations among states and how police, prosecutors, and judges implement these rules in the real world. I also think that we should move beyond our obsession with jury trials, which today account for only 4-5% of felony adjudications. The real action today is in charging, plea bargaining, and sentencing, and this course will pay much more attention to these topics.This course will not overlap with Constitutional Criminal Procedure (now called Criminal Procedure: Investigation), which covers searches and seizures, Miranda warnings, etc., so those who have taken that course should feel free to take this one as well (and that class is NOT a prerequisite for this one). This course will, however, overlap with the Advanced Criminal Procedure course, so students may not take both. This lecture course will survey post-arrest criminal procedure. Topics will include the right to counsel, charging, double jeopardy, joinder, discovery,guilty pleas, sentencing, and appeals. Time permitting, there will also be selective coverage of jury trials and habeas corpus / collateral review. The final exam will be open-book and take-home, with two essay questions. For each question, students will receive documents such as a police report, an indictment, and a guilty plea or sentencing transcript and will have to write an appellate brief or a habeas petition / opposition challenging or defending a conviction. (There may be a third, short policy essay, weighted less than the issue-spotting questions.) The textbook for this course will be the same one (Miller & Wright) used in last year's Criminal Procedure: Investigation class. The instructor expects prompt and consistent class attendance and will allow students to drop the class in the first two weeks but not thereafter, absent exceptional circumstances. The instructor is seriously considering conducting an oral midterm examination and will discuss details at the start of the semester. Students may not use laptop computers in this class, except during exam review sessions. Students should focus on listening and responding to the professor and one another instead of trying to transcribe every word spoken in class.

Cybercrime Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course will explore the legal issues that judges, legislators, and lawyers confront as they respond to the increase in Internet and computer-related crime. We will explore how crimes in cyberspace challenge traditional concepts of crime that developed to deal with crimes committed in physical space. We will also explore how the investigation and prosecution of crime in cyberspace are altered from the physical world models. Topics will include: an exploration whether paradigms of the physical world translate to the cyber world; computer hacking and computer viruses; child exploitation; on-line threats and on-line stalking; online economic espionage and intellectual property theft; the interaction of the laws of privacy (constitutional and other) and law enforcement efforts to gather evidence from computers and on the Internet; issues of federalism and national sovereignty in computer crime; and cyber terrorism. An introductory course in American criminal law is required, but previous experience in computer technology is not. A basic familiarity with the Internet will be helpful. (This is a criminal law course, not a technology course). The seminar will examine how the criminal justice system should respond to computer-related crime. We will consider four broad questions. First, what conduct should be considered criminal in cyberspace? Second, how do we protect privacy on the Internet and what rules should govern law enforcement investigations of computer crime? Third, how should traditional notions of sovereignty that govern criminal law in the physical world apply in cyberspace? Finally, what are the risks of warfare and intelligence gathering in cyberspace? After the first, introductory class, we will spend approximately five classes each on the first and second questions and one class each on the third and fourth. I expect to have a federal law enforcement agent as a guest lecturer. In addition to the textbook, we will use materials from actual cases. Students will be required to write two papers of approximately 1,500 words each. For third year students, this requirement can be converted into a single paper to fulfill the senior writing requirement. Papers are to be on the issues discussed in class, or, with the approval of the instructor, on another appropriate topic. Attendance is mandatory. Absences for good cause are permitted. I view this seminar as a discussion class. It is limited to 14 students. The absence of even one person diminishes everyone's experience.

Deals: Economic Structure of Transactions & Contracting

3 sem. hrs.

This course focuses on the role of professionals, including lawyers and investment bankers, in creating value through transaction engineering. The overall goal of the course is to explain how private parties actually order their commercial interactions and to develop a theory of how they ought to do this. The first half of the course will be devoted to impediments to transacting, including asymmetric information, difficulties intrinsic to contracting over time, enforceability, and various forms of strategic behavior, and to a variety of possible responses rooted in decision theory, option theory, risk management, and incentive alignment. In the second half of the course, student teams will apply the tools developed in the first half to a series of real transactions. That part of the course will be described in more detail in a separate memo to be circulated once the roster of deals is fixed. The requirements for the class are regular attendance and active participation in class discussions, completion of assigned homeworks, a short paper applying the principles covered in the class to a transaction, and a group project. For the group project, students will be divided into teams of roughly 8 to 10. Each team will be assigned to a transaction and given access to the original documents for their deal. The student teams will present their transaction to the class, focusing on how the transaction was structured and the advantages and disadvantages of that structure. After the students make their presentation, one or more of the parties who worked on the transaction will present the deal and take questions from the class. Each student team will then draft a final paper on its transaction. The only prerequisite for the course is that students have taken or currently be taking corporations. Although not required, because the course draws heavily on concepts from economics and finance, most students find it helpful to have taken at some point in their educations courses in microeconomics and finance. This course meets jointly with the mBA level course offered through the Wharton Management Department. Enrollment will be restricted this year to 25 upper class Law students and 25 graduate Wharton students. In the event that the course is oversubscribed, Law students will be admitted from the waiting list only if other students drop the course. Priority for admission in these circumstances will go to students who have attended the class from the beginning.

Death Penalty & Habeas Corpus

2 sem. hrs.

The course explores the theoretical bases and practical realities of death penalty law, and the interplay between substantive and procedural law both at the state and federal levels in the context of actual practice. The first half of the class deals generally with substantive death penalty issues, commencing with the Supreme Court's decision in Furman v. Georgia. We look at the limits imposed on the states by the Supreme Court in order to have a constitutionally viable death penalty. What are the minimum protections that a state death penalty statute must provide? What trial procedures must be in place? The second half of the course explores how these issues interplay with federal habeas corpus, particularly since the enactment of the AntiTerrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) in 1996.

Early American Legal History (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will explore the social and intellectual history of American law in the colonial period. While we will pay some attention to the development of legal rules and institutions, we will concentrate on legal culture—on that configuration of values and habits of mind that shaped the operation of the legal system and informed how colonists understood the law’s purposes and meanings. In so doing, the course will stress the multiple roles of law: as a way of resolving disputes, distributing resources, channeling politics and social development, shaping personal identities, and creating authoritative categories of knowledge. This seminar is organized into four main parts. The first section charts how colonization produced divergent regional legal cultures in the seventeenth-century Chesapeake and in Puritan New England. The second looks at the regulation of slavery and of gender relations. The third returns to the problem of seventeenth-century legal culture, exploring not regional variation, but the important and distinctive characteristics of that legal culture evident throughout the American colonies, characteristics that lent it a flavor or style. Finally, the fourth section asks how and why the legal culture of the eighteenth century displaced that of the seventeenth. Stronger imperial oversight, the growing importance of trained lawyers, and the expansion of population and commerce are all considered as causes of this transformation. The seminar ends by asking if there is a rubric that aptly describes the course of colonial legal development from 1600 to 1760—perhaps modernization, or anglicization, or the formalization of informal law?

Election Law

2 sem. hrs.

We will address a variety of constitutional, statutory and practical issues, including: the role and rights of major and minor political parties; ballot access; voting rights, including voter suppression and voter fraud; money and corruption in politics; government stasis and the efficacy of remedial efforts such as term limits, and the Initiative, Referendum and Recall; and our state-driven election regulatory administration. There are no prerequisites for this course, although Constitutional Law would be helpful. Prior political experience is not necessary. Please note that class participation constitute 25% of the student's grade.

Employment Discrimination

3 sem. hrs.

This course will introduce the basic theories and legal principles underlying equal employment opportunity law in the United States. The course focuses primarily on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended, and secondarily on the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and the Americans With Disabilities Act: the fundamental federal statutes prohibiting employment discrimination based on race, gender, religion, age and disability. The course begins with an overview of the primary structures of proof in employment discrimination cases--individual disparate treatment, systemic disparate treatment, and disparate impact. We then consider in greater depth specific topics including sexual harassment, gender identity and sexual orientation discrimination, retaliation, pregnancy discrimination, religious discrimination, reasonable accommodation requirements, and affirmative action.

Employment Law

3 sem. hrs.

This course will introduce the basic legal principles and social policies underlying one of the liveliest subjects in any attorney’s civil practice: the law governing the relationship between employers and employees in the workplace, where nine out of every ten American workers are employed. The course will examine the statutory and decisional law of employee selection, compensation and benefits, employment security, workplace safety and health, and the termination of employment. It will dedicate time to emerging issues in employment law, including workplace privacy issues, the proposed Employee Free Choice Act, the use of surveillance in the workplace, "golden parachutes" and covenants not to compete, pre-employment background investigations, and genetic testing. Although employment discrimination law will not be covered in depth, a few classes will be devoted to the various causes of action for employment discrimination. Class will be primarily Socratic, with a lecture component. Students will have the choice between writing a term paper (which may be used for the senior writing requirement) or a 24 hour take-home final examination. Attendance will play a role in the grades of those students opting to write a term paper.

Entrepreneurship Legal Clinic

5 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR CLINICS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. This clinical course involves the direct representation of entrepreneurs, businesses, and social entrepreneurs from underserved communities. With the guidance and supervision of full-time faculty with significant transactional experience, students serve as the primary counsel to both for profit and non-profit clients on matters such as business structuring and formation, contract drafting and review, intellectual property, managing employees, negotiating with third parties, asset acquisitions and dispositions, business strategy, and regulatory requirements. The Clinic does not litigate. Through weekly seminars, concepts and skills involving substantive law, business, and professional development are introduced to enable students to best serve their clients and learn the fundamentals of transactional practice. Enrollment is limited to 16 students. Corporations is a prerequisite. N.B. You may not enroll in this course if: a) you are enrolled in another clinical course, or an externship in the same semester; or b) you have 3 or more incomplete grades at the beginning of the semester. To successfully enroll in this course and avoid being replaced by a student on the wait list, you must appear by the second class session. (See General Enrollment Procedures for Clinics available on the Registrar's Clinic Course Description page). The drop/add period for this course ends at 4 p.m. on the first Friday after the start of the course. Students who elect to use their enrollment in the Entrepreneurship Legal Clinic toward their public service requirement will receive one less credit for this course.

Environmental Lawyering

2 sem. hrs.

Environmental law has moved to the forefront both nationally and internationally. This course offers a unique opportunity to learn substantive environmental law and practical lawyering that cuts across most areas of legal practices (real estate, corporate, administrative and litigation). Using “real world” case studies and simulations throughout the semester, students will be asked to role-play as environmental attorneys in, among other things, (1) acquiring, financing and selling an ongoing business with potential environmental concerns; (2) negotiating with the federal EPA regarding a client’s non-compliance with environmental laws; (3) litigating a toxic tort matter; (4) pursuing and defending a citizens’ environmental suit; and (5) wrestling with ethical issues relating to the above presentations. Guests include an EPA official and a state or federal judge. The course is for students interested in learning environmental law and/or in just learning lawyering skills.

Evidence

4 sem. hrs.

A study of the common law and federal rules of proof, taught by a practicing trial lawyer. The scope and function of the rules are analyzed against the background of problems arising during the trial of an issue of fact, and the rules are evaluated on the basis of their logical consistency and their tendency to promote or impede a rational method of investigation. The format will combine lectures organizing the materials, Socratic questioning on the readings, and class discussions about policy issues. A particular emphasis will be the importance of thinking strategically about how to apply the rules in pre-trial preparation, and during trial itself. The exam will be entirely closed-book with a mostly black-letter, multiple-choice section and a less structured policy-oriented essay.

Externship: Community Legal Services - Fieldwork

7 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR EXTERNSHIPS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. With a budget of more than five million dollars from state, local and private sources, Community Legal Services (CLS) is one of the primary legal services agencies responsible for meeting the civil legal needs of Philadelphia's poorest citizens. CLS employs experienced lawyers and leading advocates in priority areas of law affecting low-income residents, including landlord-tenant, consumer, employment, welfare, disability and elder law. Opportunities for placement exist in CLS offices in Center City or at CLS' neighborhood office in North Central Philadelphia. Student assignments will involve a broad range of lawyering tasks, including to the greatest extent possible client interviewing, counseling, case planning and development, and hearing preparation and participation. Each student will work closely with an experienced legal services attorney at the assigned location. There are potential placement sites at CLS in its Landlord-Tenant, Employment, Public Benefits, and Consumer-Housing Units. In addition, CLS’ Advocating on Behalf of Children Project represents disabled children from low income families seeking SSI (Supplemental Security Income) and other benefits. The law students working with the ABC program have their own cases, get their own records documenting their clients’ disability, write briefs and represent their clients at hearings before Administrative Law Judges of the SSA (Social Security Administration). The ABC program is a small unit with one paralegal, one full time attorney and one part time attorney. Students enjoy the collegial atmosphere of the unit. Students also work on systemic issues and appellate briefs as they arise during their externship. Community Legal Service students should contact Valerie Rose in the Clinical Programs office to arrange for their certification under Pennsylvania's student practice rule.

Externship: Death Penalty Litigation - Fieldwork

7 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR EXTERNSHIPS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. The Death Penalty Externship will provide law students with hands-on training in most areas of post-conviction capital case litigation. Students will participate in a thorough orientation on capital work and responsibilities at the Capital Habeas Corpus Unit, Federal Court Division of the Defender Association. They will also attend informal seminars instructed by staff attorneys on specific aspects of capital post-conviction litigation including habeas corpus evaluation hearings and appellate litigation. Most of the students' time will be spent researching and writing claims for inclusion in habeas petitions as well as investigating cases, including interviewing clients, witnesses, and jurors.

Externship: Philadelphia District Attorney's Office - Fieldwork

7 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR EXTERNSHIPS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. PREREQUISITE: Students must have completed Constitutional Criminal Procedure and Evidence. Participants, after an intensive training program, and upon certification by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, will appear in the Philadelphia Municipal Court to handle preliminary hearings in felony cases, pre-trial motions and trials in misdemeanor cases. Student experiences are closely supervised and critically analyzed. Mock presentations and evaluations are conducted throughout the course. Participants must possess the fortitude to litigate in court; students will be interacting not only with members of the judiciary before whom they appear, but also with opposing counsel, and witnesses and victims of crime, some of whom may be uncooperative. Successful participants need excellent interpersonal and communications skills, abundant self-confidence, an outgoing nature, flexibility, and an ability to maintain their composure under stress. While this local externship will require a minimum of 20 hours work each week, it is likely that in many weeks the work will require substantially more hours. Participants must be available: 1. on two full days to appear in court. 2. From 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. -- on the afternoon preceding each day in court to review case files with their assigned supervising attorney (e.g. from 3:00 p.m. Friday if court days are Monday and Tuesday). 3. to participate in a classroom component from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. each Wednesday. 4. after each court appearance to complete their paperwork. This must be done before the student leaves the office and entails approximately 2 to 3 hours of very careful preparation. Students cannot miss the class meeting to finish this work. 5. Mandatory Orientation: All students MUST be available Wednesday, January 14 and Wednesday, January 21, 2009 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., at Three South Penn Square (meet in the Lobby). You must bring your copy of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code. Background Check. A background and/or criminal record check will be made. Students must complete a background form and submit two passport-sized photographs. Required Text. The required text is Crimes Code of Pennsylvania (Gould Publications). District Attorney students should contact Valerie Rose in the Clinical Programs office to arrange for their certification under Pennsylvania's student practice rule.

Externship: Philadelphia Legal Assistance - Fieldwork

7 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR EXTERNSHIPS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. With a budget of almost three million dollars in federal funds, Philadelphia Legal Assistance (PLA) is one of the primary legal services agencies responsible for meeting the civil legal needs of Philadelphia's poorest citizens. PLA employs experienced lawyers and leading advocates in priority areas of law affecting low-income residents, including family law, disability, housing, consumer and bankruptcy. Placement will be in PLA offices in Center City. Student assignments will involve a broad range of lawyering tasks, including to the greatest extent possible client interviewing, counseling, case planning and development, and hearing preparation and participation. Each student will work closely with an experienced legal services attorney at the assigned location. Philadelphia Legal Assistance students should contact Valerie Rose in the Clinical Programs office to arrange for their certification under Pennsylvania's student practice rule.

Externship: US Attorney's Office, Civil Division - Fieldwork

7 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR EXTERNSHIPS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. Student-externs will engage in and observe all phases of work of the civil "side" of the U.S. Attorney's Office. This will include both affirmative and definitive litigation on behalf of the federal government agencies and will likely involve the extern in discovery or trial-type proceedings. A security clearance must be obtained prior to the start of the semester's work. Obtaining a security clearance can take up to 6 weeks. Because of the amount of time it takes to get security clearance, if you enroll in this course, it is important that you not drop this externship. It would be unfair to other interested students for selected students to decide not to take it. The enrolled student will be notified immediately upon closing of advance registration and must start the security clearance process immediately. Security clearance screening will disqualify those who admit recent use of illegal drugs. Non U.S. citizens are not eligible for this externship.

Externship: Women's Law Project

4 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR EXTERNSHIPS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. The Women's Law Project will provide students with an opportunity to work with the experienced lawyers on the Law Project's current and proposed litigation. The Law Project specializes in several areas of law, including reproductive rights, family law, gender-based discrimination in insurance, and violence against women. Externs will be under the supervision of the Managing Attorney. The Women's Law Project is a public interest law center devoted to improving the legal status of women and their families. It does high impact litigation, policy development, and systems advocacy on a broad range of issues.

Family Law

3 sem. hrs.

This survey course provides an introduction to the legal regulation of the family. Topics include restrictions on marriage; rights and obligations imposed on married couples; legal problems facing same-sex couples and nontraditional families; premarital and separation agreements; the legal construction of parenthood; the legal ramifications of alternative reproductive technologies; and the various incidents of divorce, including property distribution, spousal support, custody, and child support.

Federal Courts

4 sem. hrs.

This course examines the functions, powers and responsibilities of the federal courts, and considers their relationships with state governments and with the executive and legislative branches of the federal government. Topics covered will include justiciability; congressional authority over, and statutory and judge-made limits on, federal jurisdiction; Supreme Court review of state court judgments; federal common law; advanced topics in federal question jurisdiction; suits challenging state and federal government action, and immunities asserted in such suits; and federal habeas corpus. There will be an in-class, open-book essay exam.

Federal Courts

Federal Crimes Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

The Federal Government plays an increasingly significant role in the prosecution of crime in the United States, particularly in the corporate and white collar context. This course will focus on the application of the developing federal criminal law to organizations and individuals and consider the trends of federalization and criminalization while analyzing the most widely used federal criminal statutes. Topics will include the prosecution of white collar crime such as financial fraud and embezzlement, securities offenses, obstruction of justice, money laundering, and the mail and wire fraud statutes as well as RICO, conspiracy, and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The course will also explore the increasing use of deferred and non-prosecution agreements, internal investigations, and the law of corporate and entity liability. The grade component will be 75-80% paper and 20-25% class participation. 1st year criminal law or permission of the instructor is required.

Federal Income Taxation

4 sem. hrs.

This course presents an introduction to the basic principles of the federal income tax. The course is designed both to educate the generalist in the fundamentals of taxation and to provide a foundation for those students who wish to take advanced tax courses. This course is a prerequisite for Corporate Taxation and most other advanced tax courses. The course will use lecture and Socratic formats. Class participation may be taken into account in grading.

Federalism (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will examine a variety of topics in the political economy of constitutional federalism. Issues to be covered include the advantages and disadvantages of political decentralization, competition between state and local governments, the impact of federalism on the status of minority groups, the Founding Fathers' view of federalism, and the role of the judges in enforcing federalism through judicial review. While most of the course focuses on federalism in the United States, some readings will also employ a comparative perspective. Each student will be required to write a research paper on a federalism-related topic of his or her choice. Grading will be based partly on written work, and partly on class participation.

Fiction Writing About the Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Lawyers are paid to tell their clients’ stories. Being a good storyteller—understanding pace, characterization and narrative structure—is in some ways as important as understanding procedure or substantive law. One can gain legal knowledge from books, but storytelling takes practice. The first aim of this class, then, is to hone storytelling skills, to learn how to present a compelling narrative. But fiction teaches us more than just technique. A good story or novel challenges our sense of the world and of our part in it. What is it to be human? What makes people love or cease to love? What causes people to step over society’s limits, to step outside the law? Why do people invoke the law against others, and why do people dread and fear that law will be used against them? What is the meaning of this omnipresent human construct, and why does something that at its base is imaginary take on such a terrifying force in society? The second aim of this course is to expose students to the fictional answers offered by some published writers and, more important, to offer them a chance to think about and express their own conclusions about life. Third, knowledge of fiction—how it achieves its effects, what it aims for, how it succeeds or fails—is an important piece of general knowledge. It is my hope that this course will add to your enjoyment of reading novels and stories and so deepen the general education that is very important to lawyers if they are to fulfill their traditional role as members of a learned profession.

Financial Accounting

3 sem. hrs.

The objective of the course is for the student to learn to read, understand, and analyze financial statements. The course adopts a decision-maker perspective of accounting by emphasizing the relation between the accounting data and the underlying economic events that generated them. The course focuses initially on how to record economic events in the accounting records (bookkeeping and accrual accounting) and how to prepare and interpret the primary financial statements that summarize a firm's economic transactions (the balance sheet, the income statement, and the statement of cash flows). The course then examines in depth the major asset, long-term liability, and shareholders' equity accounts. This class is offered for a grade only; there is no pass/fail option.

First Amendment in the 21st Century (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Discussion of the First Amendment's guarantees of freedom of speech, press and assembly during the second half of the twentieth century occupied a central place in the Supreme Court's practice of judicial review. As the century closed, the "information age" brought new urgency to some elements of the discussion, and threatened to transform others. This seminar will examine the development of the constitutional doctrines protecting freedom of expression, and the ways in which these doctrines are likely to occupy the courts in the next decade. Discussion is likely to include problems of incitement and threats, conspiracy, compelled speech, anonymity, libel, obscenity, emotionally abusive speech, intellectual property, privacy, access to public fora, the internet and media structure. The first nine weeks will consist of discussion of class materials presented by the instructor; the last four weeks will consist of presentation of papers by students. Reading will be substantial, and attendance, preparation and class participation will be required of all seminar members.

Foundations of the United States Legal System

3 sem. hrs.

This course aims to provide for the entering LL.M. class an intensive introduction to the American legal system. Topics covered include American legal history, the Constitution, basic civil procedure, the law of torts, and an introduction to legal theory.

Freedom & Responsibility Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

The topic will be the limits of criminalization as social and legal policy with special attention to policies concerning licit and illicit substances. Attendance, preparation and consistent participation are required. A paper limited to 15 pages on any related topic the student chooses is required. A longer paper can also satisfy the senior writing requirement.

Gender & the Law in Recent Amer History (S)

3 sem. hrs.

The past several decades have witnessed both transformational changes and surprising continuities in how sex and gender interact with legal theories, practices, and institutions. This seminar will explore various topics in the recent history of American law and gender, including paid and unpaid work, family, reproduction, sexuality, identity, politics, violence, and the legal system. Readings will consist of both primary and secondary sources. Students may choose either to take a final examination or to write a substantial research paper. Other course requirements include presentations, participation in class discussions, and short reading response papers.

Globalization and Public Law

1 sem. hrs.

The current international financial crisis makes it more evident than ever that we are living in a globalizing world: a world in which economies and societies are more and more interconnected, in which transnational economic and social realities acquire a constantly growing importance. What is true for economies and societies is also true for Law: the legal systems are more and more interconnected, while an increasing share of public affairs is dealt with by global bodies, often acting in a position of large autonomy from the states. This situation raises various issues concerning constitutional and administrative law. Not only does it generate an internationalization of domestic administrative and constitutional laws, not only does it transform the distribution of functions between domestic administrative and constitutional laws and international law, but it also renders necessary a reflection on some kind of constitutionalization of global public bodies and/or on their submission to commonly recognized principles of administrative law (such as motivation, transparency, legitimate expectation, judicial review,…).

Health Law and Policy Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will examine recent debates in health law and policy through discussion of current events, proposed legislation, and scholarly articles in the legal, medical, and public policy literatures. Weekly topics may vary depending on student interest, but will likely include malpractice liability reform, obesity, health disparities, direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising, and other issues related to health care access, quality, and financing. Requirements include a presentation/discussion of one health law-related current event, a research paper of at least 20 pages on any approved health law-related topic, and an oral presentation of the research paper. Evaluation will be based on the paper and class participation.

Human Reproduction: Law & Policy

3 sem. hrs.

This course will examine selected topics relating to why, when and how human beings create other human beings. Feminist legal and philosophical perspectives will be featured in a close analysis of legal conflicts and the roles both sexes and the latest technologies play in contemporary reproductive practices. We look back to traditional regimes for regulating childbirth, pregnancy, contraception, and abortion; but also at current practices and ahead to novel regimes for regulating the use of genetic and other biological enhancements that permit control over how children look, behave, feel, achieve and endure. The primary texts will be Judith F. Daar, Reproductive Technologies and the Law, and a supplement of recent feminist, bioethical and other normative and policy perspectives. Students are encouraged to complete their senior writing requirement in connection with this course; but may take a final essay examination.

Immigration Law

3 sem. hrs.

This course explores immigration policy and provides a comprehensive overview of the legal framework that regulates the admission and deportation of aliens in the United States. The course begins with a brief review of the history of immigration in the United States, a discussion of the morality of immigration restrictions, an analysis of the economic effects of immigration, and an examination of the constitutional basis for the federal government's power over immigration matters. The course then covers the existing categories of visas, the statutory provisions that can trigger exclusion or deportation, the issue of unauthorized immigration, and the constitutional law regarding restrictions on immigrant access to public benefits. The course explores the constitutional rights of aliens and the corresponding limits to the federal immigration power, including those arising from the First Amendment and from the Due Process Clause.

Insurance Insolvency (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course will take a transactional, law and finance approach to studying some of the largest and least understood financial institutions in the world: life insurance companies. With trillions of dollars of assets under management and balance sheets that can exceed those of banks, life insurance companies are an integral part of the financial system and the leading supplier of such important lifecycle financial products as life and disability insurance, annuities, and pensions. Yet these financial giants are regulated in the U.S. through a state-based regulatory system that dates to the 19th century. We will study and critique the existing state-based approach to life insurance solvency regulation, as well as current proposals to allow federally chartered and regulated life insurance companies, by working through the regulatory framework as it applies to historical case studies and the financial crisis of 2008. In the process, students will receive an introduction to the valuation of the assets and liabilities of financial institutions and, equally important, how financial institutions fail. These are topics of tremendous current importance as we watch the rescues (or not) of seemingly impregnable financial institutions, such as AIG, Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers, Wachovia, and no doubt more by the time the semester is over. The seminar is intended to be of particular interest to students who anticipate engaging in a transactional law practice. Wharton students with a finance background are encouraged to enroll, regardless of any prior legal study. Students will be required to prepare one page memos on the materials assigned each week and to participate in a small group project for which the group will be graded as a whole. There will be no exam.

Insurance Law

3 sem. hrs.

This course introduces law students to insurance institutions, law, and policy. After taking this course, students will know how to read and analyze a standard form insurance contract, how to spot the insurance issues in a wide variety of legal and public policy contexts, and how to think about insurance related issues using conceptual tools from economics, history, and sociology, as well as law. The course will cover both first party insurance (life, health, disability, property) and third party insurance (auto, general, and professional liability). We will discuss some issues relating to social insurance, but it will not be a major focus of the course. Liability insurance will receive the most extensive consideration

Intellectual Property & Nat'l Econ Value Creation (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course will explore the legal structure of intellectual property laws in the United States and select foreign countries and the effect of these laws on the countries national economic development. In this process, we will explore the nature of the correlation between different types of intellectual property laws and national economic development. We will also discuss the quantification of the economic value of different types of intellectual property laws. Lastly, we will engage in a discussion as to whether intellectual property laws can be effective tools for social engineering.

Intellectual Property: Trademarks

2 sem. hrs.

This course examines ways in which the manufacturer can establish and protect his /her identity and the identity of his/her product in the marketplace. Attention is directed to the various devices which can be used for this purpose, particular focus being given to trademarks and trade-names under the Lanham Act, common law and various state laws. Attention is also given to related areas of unfair competition, including such topics as false advertising.

International Bankruptcy

2 sem. hrs.

This course first introduces students to the basic principles and problems of international bankruptcy cases. It then turns to the business bankruptcy systems of various countries and regions in all parts of the world, with instruction from leading lawyers and judges from those countries and regions. The course then focuses on the questions presented when parties in a business bankruptcy case are invoking the bankruptcy laws of different countries and how these questions are resolved by courts in the United States under new Chapter 15 and by courts in other countries.

International Business Transactions

3 sem. hrs.

This course provides an overview of the legal issues—domestic, foreign, and international—that arise when U.S. companies do business abroad. Transactions discussed include export sales, agency and distributorship agreements, licensing, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, privatization, project finance, and foreign government debt. The course also covers U.S., foreign, and international regulation in such areas as antitrust, securities, intellectual property, tax, and foreign corrupt practices. The course does not cover U.S. rules on import restrictions or W.T.O. matters.

International Communication: Power & Flow Seminar (S)

1 sem. hrs.

This course will address old and new patterns of communications flow across national and societal borders, taking account of media technologies, mutual perceptions, rhetorical forms, and the balance of power and influence in a globalizing world.

International Environmental Law

3 sem. hrs.

The course will focus on the development of international law, institutions, and regimes that respond to international environmental problems. Topics will include transboundary air pollution, ozone depletion, climate change, whaling, and fisheries conservation. The course will begin with introductions to economic and ethical issues in environmental law, to the sources of public international law, and to the problem of making that law effective. The course will also examine how international trade law and institutions, including the World Trade Organization, affect efforts to protect the environment.

International Finance

3 sem. hrs.

The course is intended to discuss the emerging legal structures and the regulatory problems of globalizing financial markets and institutions. Particular emphasis will be given to issues resulting from different levels of economic and political development in various parts of the world.

International Human Rights

3 sem. hrs.

This course traces the dramatic rise of the individual as a subject of international law in the post-World War II era; specifically, as a beneficiary of fundamental rights recognized, protected and enforced directly by that system of law. It begins by laying historical foundations, showing how the individual was formerly treated as no more than a mere appendage of his/her State, and then considers the transformation effected by the United Nations Charter (1945), the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and two International Covenants (1966). The evolution of specific areas of human rights will be considered, e.g., elimination of racial discrimination, elimination of discrimination against women, freedom of religion, elimination of torture, etc. In each case, three eras will be traversed: (a) that of general principles, in which the notion of the rights emerges at the general level; (b) that of specificity, in which the content of the rights takes shape and is defined; and (c) that of enforcement, in which the international legal system seeks to give practical effect to the rights it has recognized, at the national, regional and international levels. Documentary videos will be shown in class, dealing with the creation of the Universal Declaration, the struggle for human rights in Guatemala and Czechoslovakia, women's rights, children's rights and a contemporary trial arising in the context of the former Yugoslavia. The essay exam will be an open-book takeaway. Students may opt to write a paper (with Professor Reicher's permission) in addition to the exam. Such papers will count as 60% of the course's grade (with the takeaway exam constituting the other 40%) and may be considered for Senior Writing. Class participation may be taken into account to improve a student's final grade.

International Tax

3 sem. hrs.

This is an introduction to U.S. taxation of U.S. and foreign persons engaged in international activities. Topics will include the scope of U.S. taxing authority, tax treaties, source of income issues, transfer pricing, foreign tax credits, anti-deferral rules, etc. The goal of the class is to provide an overview of the relevant law, giving due respect to its complexity and the policies underlying it, and to identify and wrestle with the types of issues that frequently arise. A basic tax class is a prerequisite for this course

International Trade Regulation

3 sem. hrs.

This course is a comprehensive introduction to the legal framework for U.S. and international regulation of international trade in goods. The course will include: a brief introduction to the economics of trade; an examination of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), and related instruments; and an analysis of U.S. laws providing relief from unfairly traded imports, including the antidumping and countervailing duty laws, and of U.S. laws providing for other restrictions on imports, such as safeguards.

Intro to Theory & Practice of International Arbitration (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar provides an introduction to international arbitration. The course will cover the legal framework for international arbitration, including key treaties and the Federal Arbitration Act, interaction with US courts and the role of international arbitral institutions. Students will gain further knowledge of international arbitration practice by an in-depth discussion of several contemporary problems in both commercial arbitration and investor-State arbitration pursuant to investment treaties. Students will have the opportunity not only to discuss these topics in theory but also to draw on insights from practitioners. The course will be led by Associate Professor William Burke-White with the assistance of four leading practitioners in the field.

Intro to the European Legal Systems

4 sem. hrs.

This course will provide a comprehensive "combined" introduction to the legal systems of Europe, covering both the material traditionally covered in courses on comparative law, and integrating it with a course on the law of the European Union. It will examine simultaneously both the history and the nature of the legal systems of continental Europe, and the way in which the EU grew out of those systems, and in turn has influenced them. (This course is largely independent of Comparative Law, which was offered last year; students who took that course are welcome to take this one as well.) Many of the characteristic features of the Civil Law -- the absence of a jury, the relative lack of reliance on judicial precedents, the civilian approach to civil and criminal procedure -- have their origin in ancient and medieval times. The course will therefore start with a brief introduction to European legal history. After that, we will turn to an examination of the three most influential modern systems (France, Germany, and Italy). We will examine the civil codes, the nature of continental adjudication, the comparative law of "inquisitorial" systems of criminal justice, and comparative constitutional law. After having treated the domestic systems, we will turn our attention to the rise of the EU, the nature of its institutions, the way in which it functions on the international scene, and the way in which it has been bringing fundamental change to the domestic legal systems of Europe. The emphasis throughout the course will be on the ideas underlying legal change - that is, on the intellectual justifications the civil lawyers have provided for their approach to legal problems, and on the historical factors that have shaped the distinctive continental European approach to the law. The intention of the course is to provide a comprehensive account of European law in all its facets, and to attempt to understand both how these systems arose, and where they might be heading.

Introduction to Trial Advocacy

2 sem. hrs.

What is trial work really all about? What does it mean to be a trial lawyer? This introductory course will provide an overview of the litigation process. Topics will include client evaluation and new case analysis, investigation, evidence gathering, deposition preparation and taking, trial preparation, negotiation, jury selection, opening and closing arguments, direct and cross-examination. Attendance and participation are mandatory. Class work will count towards each student's grade.

Islamic Finance

2 sem. hrs.

This course will explore contemporary Islamic finance from a transactional vantage and with particular emphasis on structuring financial transactions and products. Islamic finance will be examined both as an application of Islamic religious law and ethics (shari’ah) and as an effort to create and operate a shari’ah-compliant economic system without interest payments and receipts and based upon a compliant risk-reward paradigm that maintains expected returns for the transactional parties. We will examine some of the core principles of the shari’ah and the methodology by which shari’ah compliance is determined (Shari’ah Supervisory Boards and the issuance of rulings (fatawa)). As a base, we will examine certain principles and precepts of shari’ah and the classical contractual and legal forms that have been approved as being shari’ah-compliant. Our paradigm will be the study of recent Islamic finance transactions in different financial categories and markets. As examples, we will consider, among other structures: (a) lease (ijara) structures in real estate acquisition financings, construction and development financings and private equity transactions; (b) commissioned construction and manufacture concepts (istisna’a) in real estate construction and development transactions and project financings; (c) murabaha (sale at markup) arrangements pertaining to trade finance and working capital facilities; (d) partnership (musharaqah) arrangements in acquisition financings, construction and development financings and project financings as well as more conventional joint venture arrangements; (e) arboon (sale with downpayment) structures as they pertain to hedge fund activities, particularly short sales and options trading; (f) rahn (pledge and mortgage) and adl (trusted person) concepts as they apply to project financings and collateral security structures; (g) Islamic bond and securitization (sukuk) structures used in project finance, municipal finance, corporate finance and the capital markets; and (h) international investment fund structures used for Islamic finance, including associated tax and “know your customer” considerations. In light of market realities, we will also consider conventional Western equivalents to most of the shari’ah-compliant structures. Course participants will develop a new shari’ah-compliant structure for a financial transaction.

Issues in Corporate Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will examine a variety of cutting edge issues in corporate law with frequent guest lecturers. A basic course in corporations (at Penn or abroad) is a prerequisite. Attendance is required. Students will be expected to write a series of 3-5 page "reaction papers" in response to the assigned reading.

Jewish Political Tradition

2 sem. hrs.

This course is an introduction to the theory and methods of the Jewish legal system by reading rabbinic texts focusing on a central question: Who has the authority to govern the Jewish polity? We will examine rabbinic views about the biblical division of authority among kings, prophets, priests, and judges and then look at their successors: rabbis, the lay community, the non-Jewish state, and the State of Israel. Course themes include separating religion and state in Jewish law and thought, the role of controversy and of consent in Jewish law, the capacity of Jewish law to accommodate a civil state and civil society, and the place of Jewish law within the legal culture of the State of Israel. Throughout, we will employ a comparative perspective, considering contemporary theories of jurisprudence and American constitutional theory. The course is geared to accommodate both novices with no prior background in Jewish law, as well as advanced students.

Judicial Clerkship Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

The goal of this seminar is to prepare students for their judicial clerkship experience upon graduation from law school. The course will focus on three principal areas: judicial writing, research resources, and the judicial experience and process. To provide a framework for these areas, specific areas of law will be discussed which give rise to unique problems which judicial clerks most frequently address. We will have a number of guest speakers and meet with current judicial clerks to discuss their experiences.

Justice and Fiction

3 sem. hrs.

Images of justice, the law, and lawyers pervade American popular culture. In this course, we’ll trace those images, starting with Erle Stanley Gardner’s Perry Mason series, Travers’s Anatomy of a Murder, Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, Lewis’s Gideon’s Trumpet, and the like, and continuing to modern-day images in And Justice for All, The Godfather (or the Best Movie in Legal History), The Firm, and beyond. It’s true (undoubtedly) that popular fiction mirrors the images of justice that prevail at the time it was created, and we’ll also examine social, political, and legal trends to see how they have influenced and informed fiction. Our ultimate purpose in examining these images is to explore their implications for the law, the legal profession, and society. We’ll ask and (you’ll) answer questions like, what is the difference between law and justice in The Merchant Venice? When does law lead to justice? When does it thwart justice? What accounts for the difference? What is the difference between legal, just, right, and moral endings, in fiction? How does it affect a society to learn its criminal procedure from Boston Legal? What effect does Law & Order have on law students and lawyers, and their expectations of real-life practice? How does it affect potential jurors, and what are the long-term implications? How do images of fictional lawyers affect the culture's opinion of the profession? Okay, you get the idea. The course requirements will be different from last year, because this is now a three-credit course (i.e., the bigs). Reading for this course will be of the page-turning variety, a novel or a movie a week, and supplemental reading will be required and provided, to give legal and political context to the novels. Please sign up for this class only if you will do the reading. You can't rely on having read To Kill A Mockingbird in middle school. Likewise, please sign up only if you like to talk in class. I want to hear what you think about these questions, and shyness is adorable in three-year-olds only. There will be two papers: one mid-year paper and one final paper. There will not be a final exam. Your grade will be determined by the two papers and your class participation. Bottom line: This course is really fun, but it’s not a joke. Join only if you know the difference.

Juvenile Justice Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

How are juvenile offenders treated differently from adult offenders? To what extent should they be? These questions provide the focus for examining how the state treats the "aberrant" behavior of children. Students will be introduced to the legal, social, and historical underpinnings of the juvenile justice system in the United States beginning with founding of the juvenile court in 1899 and then-held assumptions about the nature of childhood. We will examine how in the late twentieth century the juvenile court has undergone both ideological and institutional change from its original form. These shifts in theory will be outlined with specific attention to several U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have significantly affected juvenile court, as well as psychological and social science data that have a continuing impact on juvenile court practice and jurisdiction. Throughout the course, students are invited to consider and imagine a future role for the juvenile court as it goes forward. Each class will be co-taught by two adjunct professors who are practitioners in the filed of children's law with particular emphasis in juvenile justice. During the last five classes, weekly reading assignments will be developed by student led teams, who will work with the professors in advance to select appropriate topics, relevant caselaw or other materials, as well as appropriate videos. Student teams will be responsible for leading class discussion on their designated topic. Each student is expected to complete a paper, 15-20 pages in length, on an aspect of the juvenile justice system. The topic must be approved by one of the course instructors. Students wishing to satisfy the law school's writing requirement must notify one of the instructors by the fourth week of class.

Labor Law in Comparative Perspective

3 sem. hrs.

This course will introduce the fundamentals of labor law in the United States, comparing the American approach with those of other advanced industrialized democracies. We will study the federal law governing employee collective action, including the law governing organizing, employee-union relations, collective bargaining (including tools of economic pressure), and preemption of state law. We will then consider the appropriate scope of application of the NLRA regime; assess the political economic role of organized labor; consider historical and institutional explanations for American 'exceptionalism', and; explore the advantages and disadvantages of American labor law as compared to its alternatives.

Land Use Law

3 sem. hrs.

This course examines how the development and preservation of land is shaped and controlled through government regulation. Among the major issues this course will examine are: the law of zoning, the constitutional constraints on land use regulation, and the establishment and enforcement of subdivision controls, building codes, and other development regulations. The course will explore several current topics in land use regulation, including exclusionary zoning, environmental justice, smart growth, and historic preservation. Students will approach these questions from both theoretical and practical vantage points, and will be required to conduct research on how land use regulations are implemented in "real world" situations.

Law & Policy of Cost-Benefit Analysis (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Federal and state governments, and the U.S. public, are increasingly turning to cost-benefit analysis and risk assessment to guide rulemaking decisions and to set priorities among interventions intended to protect health, safety, environmental quality, homeland security, financial assets, etc. This course prepares students to critically evaluate risk and cost-benefit analyses, in order to help make decisions that are responsive to law, science, economics, and public values. Students will analyze recent and pending decisions by EPA, FDA, OSHA, and other agencies, to explore how analysis has informed or obscured important controversies, and how the courts have shaped both analysis and outcome. We will also discuss the art of crafting cost-effective controls, considering both traditional rulemaking and innovative proposals for new policy instruments. Required readings will include a mix of journal articles about methods of analysis and regulatory policy, along with close analysis of several major court decisions. The course instructor is an environmental health scientist, but the course will not require any particular science or math background. Rather, lectures and class discussion will emphasize insights the instructor gleaned during 10 years as the chief rulemaking official at OSHA and member of numerous EPA advisory committees, including many details of regulatory analyses, court decisions, and enforcement actions that are poorly captured in the public record. There will be a first class meeting scheduled for Friday, January 16th, 10:30-11:50 in Silverman Ground 48.

Law and Bioethics

3 sem. hrs.

This course provides a comprehensive overview of American law as it relates to emerging ethical issues in medicine and health care. Picking up where introductory courses in health law and public health law often leave off, this course focuses on principles of constitutional, tort, administrative, and criminal law that govern the ethically-fraught landscape between the patient, the care provider, and the state. We will examine how courts and legislators have responded to various modern challenges in bioethics, including end-of-life care, maternal-fetal conflicts, genetic and reproductive technologies, exercises of conscience by health care providers, property rights in human tissue, and research ethics. There will be an in-class exam.

Law and Economics (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will provide students with an opportunity to learn about current research in law and economics through presentations by some of the leading scholars in the field. We spend two seminar sessions on each paper. During the first, we discuss the paper and background literature. During the second, the author joins us and discusses the paper with seminar members, law faculty, and other members of the Penn community. In preparation for the second session, students write short (two to three page) critiques of the author's paper. Final grades will be based on the bi-weekly critiques and seminar participation. Some background in economics or law and economics is helpful; however, knowledge of technical economics is unnecessary.

Law and Economics of Crime (S)

3 sem. hrs.

In this seminar, we will discuss the empirical literature on the causes and consequences of crime. We will cover a wide range of policy relevant topics including the deterrence effects of capital punishment and imprisonment, the effect of police on crime, and the effect of economic conditions on the behavior of criminals. Additionally, we will examine the links between crime and legalized abortion and fetal alcohol exposure. Students will be evaluated based on a semester paper.

Law and the Holocaust

3 sem. hrs.

This course draws together comparative law, constitutional law, jurisprudence, conflicts of laws, international law, human rights and legal history to examine the Nazi philosophy of law, emanating from the egregious racial ideology, and how it was used to pervert Germany's legal system to discriminate against, ostracize, dehumanize, and ultimately eliminate, certain classes of people; then, to study the role of international law in seeking to rectify the damage by bringing perpetrators to justice and constructing a system of international human rights designed to prevent a repetition. The course will consider the following areas: 1. The Holocaust: "Lawful Barbarism.” Overview of the Holocaust, and the ways in which it was "anchored" in law. 2. The Ideology That Made It Possible. Nazi theories of race and the nature and role of the State, and the legal system as an instrument of both. 3. The Nazi Legal System In Action. Laws giving effect to the theories of race, and their interpretation and application by the judges. 4. Jurisprudential Issues. Parts 2 and 3 above will form the foundation for an exploration of the role of morality in a system of law, through a consideration of academic writings and judicial reflection. An example of the former is the celebrated Hart-Fuller debate, in the Harvard Law Review; and an example of the latter is the controversial Bernstein litigation, in which the Courts grappled with the effect to be accorded in the US to expropriations of property by the Nazi regime. 5. Measure For Measure: The Response Of The International Legal System. Prosecution of crimes against humanity at Nuremberg; national legislation and court decisions bringing perpetrators of atrocities to justice; the Genocide Convention; and the evolution of international human rights, stressing the equality and dignity of all human beings, as a direct antithesis of the Nazi racial philosophy. 6. Lessons For The 21st Century. Case studies in which contemporary history--in Cambodia, the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Sudan, etc.--raises the disturbing question: What lessons, if any, has the world learned from the Nazi era? Teaching in the course revolves around specially-edited materials, supplemented by video excerpts of archival footage of the Nuremberg and Eichmann trials, a re-enactment of the Wannsee Conference, a biography of Dr. Josef Mengele, Leni Riefenstahl's classic propaganda film Triumph of the Will, and a contemporary war crimes trial arising in the context of the former Yugoslavia.

Lawyer as Persuasive Advocate

3 sem. hrs.

The focus of this course is on advocacy as persuasive communication. The principles of persuasion will be analyzed and applied in the context of the lawyer's interpersonal relationships: lawyer/client; lawyer/witness; lawyer/lawyer; lawyer/judge/fact finder. Students will prepare and participate in two videorecorded cases out of class in which they will be required to demonstrate their ability to persuade. The simulated cases are in an arbitration tribunal, since advocating in an informal tribunal is usually a lawyer's initial trial experience. In the simulated cases, students will be able to develop their skill in making legal and factual arguments, in eliciting, selecting, and persuasively presenting factual information through witness interviews, witness preparation, the examination of witnesses on direct-, cross-, and redirect examination, and in making an opening statement and closing argument. There will be individual review and evaluation of the videodisks. Development of the ability to evaluate critically one's own ability to persuade, both from a skill and ethical standpoint, will be emphasized throughout. Selected portions of the Rhetoric of Aristotle are required reading. For one additional semester credit, students may write a paper comparing Aristotle's analysis of persuasion with persuasion in modern trial advocacy. The class will meet for two 80 minute sessions each week. The class format is primarily participatory. Frequently during the semester, students will be required to spend substantial out-of-class time in planning, preparation, and participation in the simulations. Students also must be available for individual conferences which will be scheduled during the semester. Enrollment will be limited to eight students and open to second-, third-year, and graduate students who have completed or are enrolled in the course in Evidence. Preference will be given to third-year and graduate students. Drop/Add ends at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, September 5, 2008. Attendance at the first class session is mandatory and other announced class sessions, which will be identified during the semester.

Lawyering in the Public Interest Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar explores major lawyering themes that confront public interest lawyers in diverse practice areas and settings. It is designed to integrate theory and academic analysis with practice themes emerging from students' public interest work experiences during law school. Students will closely examine the unique challenges posed by community lawyering; the efficacy of competing service delivery models; the impact of scarcity of resources and high volume practice upon the practitioner; the empowerment of the disadvantaged and powerless through law and education; litigation and non-litigation strategies; legal and non-legal restrictions on the work of public interest lawyers; professional responsibility issues; the role of the private practitioner in the delivery of legal services to the poor; and current themes and timely issues relating to access to justice and public interest practice. Requirements include mandatory attendance, class participation, oral presentations, and completion of a seminar paper. Students will write seminar papers on topics selected with the approval of the instructors. Paper topics may, but need not, relate directly to the particular issues discussed in class. The paper is expected to be of publishable quality and may, with additional development and instructor permission, be used to satisfy the senior writing requirement. The final several weeks of the seminar will include oral presentations by students on their papers. There will be no final examination. Enrollment is limited. If the seminar is oversubscribed, preference will be given to Public Interest Scholars and Sparer Fellows who register timely for the course.

Legal Aspects of Entrepreneurship

2 sem. hrs.

This course introduces students to the unique role of the lawyer in counseling entrepreneurs and emerging growth companies which they generate. A hypothetical example of a start up technology or life sciences venture will serve as the backdrop for exploring the numerous substantive disciplines which are commonly implicated in such representations, including corporate and tax issues considered in entity formation, protection of intellectual property, issues surrounding the raising of seed and venture capital, labor and employment, outsourcing and equity compensation issues. Discussion of such issues will be lead by guest lecturers expert in such areas. In addition, to provide the practical background for understanding the role of the emerging growth lawyer, the course will also feature prominent guest speakers who will address preparation of a business plan, the role of the accountants, organizational build out consultants, investment banks and venture capitalists. The course will conclude with a panel of Chief Executive Officers of successful emerging growth companies who will describe their experiences with legal issues and the role of the lawyer in facilitating their successes. In addition to covering the substantive and practical disciplines inherent in representing such companies, the course will track how those issues change and the answers evolve throughout the life cycle of an emerging growth company, from start-up through initial public offering or exit. Professors Goodman and Jannetta are both Partners in the Emerging Growth Practice at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP. There will be a takeaway exam.

Legal Imagination: Criminals & Justice Across Literature (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Legal Imagination: Criminals and Justice Across Literature This seminar will focus on the legal, moral, religious, social, psychological, and political dimensions of crime, blame, shame, and punishment as discussed in great works of literature. It will be co-taught by Professor Stephanos Bibas of the law school and Professor Ilya Vinitsky of the Slavic Studies department. The first part of the course will compare and contrast visions of justice in Eastern and Western Europe and emphases on divine versus human justice. Readings may include the Book of Job, Tyndale's and Theodora's after-death visions, selections from Dante's Divine Comedy, Hawthorne's Scarlet Letter, and selections from Enlightenment thinkers. The second part will move to the psychology of the individual person, the criminal. Readings may include selections from Victor Hugo's The Last Day of a Condemned Man and Jeremy Bentham's Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation, Dickens' Oliver Twist, and especially Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment, as well as secondary critical essays about these works. Part three of the course will focus on the state institutions of criminal justice. Readings may include Tolstoy's Resurrection, Kafka's The Trial, Solzhenitsyn's One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich or selections from The Gulag Archipelago, and especially Dostoyevsky's The Brothers Karamazov. Students will have a choice of writing one long or three short papers and will be expected to participate actively in classroom discussion, as well as making presentations and taking turns leading discussion. Students may not use laptop computers in this class. Students should focus on listening and responding to the professor and one another instead of trying to transcribe every word spoken in class.

Legal Research for Non-Law Students

3 sem. hrs.

This course is designed for juniors and seniors planning on attending law school as well as graduate students in other disciplines who want to be able to do legal research as part of their research in their own field. Using research problems from a variety of fields such as business, education, and medicine as well as current events, we will examine the various types of legal materials created by the different branches of federal and state governments as well as international organizations. By exploring print sources, electronic databases and internet sites, students will learn how to conduct research in primary and secondary materials, how to evaluate and interpret materials retrieved, and how to apply those findings to specific problems. Students will be able to incorporate their own research interests into the course materials.

Legal Scholarship Seminar (S)

1.5 sem. hrs.

The seminar is intended for students who are seriously interested in pursuing an academic career in law. The goal of the seminar is to enable the participants to produce a publishable legal article on a topic of their choice. The seminar will meet intermittently to discuss common concerns. *The meetings will be held at the first two or three weeks of the fall so there will not be a significant conflict with other classes.* Supplemental guidance will be given on an individual basis. Enrollment in the seminar is limited to 6 students. Interested students must come to the first meeting with an original research project, and submit a four page outline by the second week. Enrollment is subject to the approval of the instructor.

Legislative Clinic

4 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR CLINICS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. The Legislative Clinic offers students an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the role of lawyers in the legislative process and in the formation of public policy. The seminar is a live client course that combines legislative placements with a classroom seminar component. After consultation to consider student interests and preferences, students will be assigned to legislative placements in the offices of members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly or the U.S. Congress, or at public interest organizations advocating for legislative change under the supervision of experienced legislative advocates. In the seminar portion of the course, students will examine basic lawyering competencies required for successful legislative lawyering and will discuss issues of public policy, legislative strategy and professional responsibility that arise in their fieldwork. Seminar topics will include an examination of the role of the legislative lawyer; a comparison of lawyering skills needed to succeed in legislative and judicial forums; strategic legislative planning; statutory drafting; legislative research; and principles of legislative advocacy. The course requires a minimum of 12 hours per week (seminar and fieldwork) for which students will earn 4 credits. The course meets weekly for two hours. Enrollment is limited. Attendance is mandatory and class participation will count in grading. There is no final examination, however there are several required statutory drafting assignments, simulated exercises, and journal responsibilities. Students intending to enroll in the course must arrange their class schedules such that they can devote one full day during the week to their legislative placement. The best days to reserve for legislative placements are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday (although Friday is acceptable). The drop/add period for this course ends at 4:00 p.m. on the first Friday following the start of the course. Students who elect to use their enrollment in the Legislative Clinic toward their public service requirement will receive three credits for this course.

Litigation for Social Change Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course will examine the use of litigation as a tool to effect social change. We will look at the unique nature of the American legal system that makes this possible. We will review the use of class actions and other vehicles that have been successfully employed. We will consider the consequences of the use of litigation. There will be a takeaway exam.

Local Government Law

3 sem. hrs.

Over ninety percent of Americans live in urban areas. This course will examine many of the issues facing urban America through an analysis of the function of local governments in the American legal and political system. We will consider federal, state and local statutes and case law that shape governmental institutions. Specific topics include: the formation of local governments; the scope of local autonomy with respect to zoning, policing, and the provision of public services; federal-local, state-local, and inter-local relations; local taxation and economic development initiatives; and, the relationship between cities and suburbs. Because local governments operate in a variety of jurisdictions (and because “local government law” intersects numerous areas of substantive law) this course will not primarily emphasize legal doctrine or the mastery of specific legal rules. Instead, the course is intended to familiarize you with those general concepts from which to draw more specific legal and political conclusions.

Mediation and Other Alternatives to Litigation

4 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR CLINICS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. Mediation involves the intervention of a neutral third party into an existing or threatened dispute, usually with the aim of facilitating a negotiated resolution of the conflict. Lawyers are increasingly immersed in this arena, both as mediators and as representatives of clients in mediation. It is also a subject of great interest to business/transactional lawyers and those practicing criminal alw. This clinical course focuses on the role, skills and ethical questions involved in the mediation function. It includes classroom study, simulated skills training, observations of outside neutrals in actual cases, and real case fieldwork in which students are front-line mediators under faculty supervision. By the end of the course, students will have learned a great deal about negotiation, advising, evaluating cases in litigation, chairing a meeting--as well as conflict resolution as a mediator. The course begins with classroom study and intensive simulation skills training. During this period, students are assiged to observe actual mediations and adjudications. In order for the fieldwork to begin by Week 6, there are approximately 12 hours of extra skills classes. These extra classes will be scheduled during the first week of class and will be at times that are open on all students' schedules. (There will be partial make-up time reduction in later weeks.) Starting in Week 6, students are assigned to faculty-supervised mediations. Cases include civil litigation, criminal matters, child custody disputes and employment discrimination matters. The seminar meets for two (2) class sessions per week during most of the semester. Enrollment is limited. In order to avoid being replaced by a student on the wait list, you must appear by the second meeting of the class. Students who elect to use their enrollement in the Mediation Clinic to satisfy their Public Service requirement will receive three credits for this course. NB: Students must be available for extra front-end classes from 12:00-1:20pm on the following Mondays and Wednesdays: January 26, 28, February 2, 4, 9, 11, 16 and 18.

Mergers and Acquisitions

3 sem. hrs.

This course will explore the law of business combinations, that is, mergers and acquisitions. It will primarily focus on Delaware law and the applicable federal Securities Regulation. As such, it is the central "advanced" corporations course offered. Completion of a four credit (United States) Corporations course is a prerequisite. Securities Regulation is advised, but not required. For students with a strong interest in M & A, you should seriously consider taking the "Anatomy of a Merger" course in parallel.

Negotiation and Dispute Resolution

3 sem. hrs.

Effective negotiation is at the root of most successful professional and personal encounters today. Whether representing an individual client or putting together a billion dollar deal, there are measurable differences in results between those who negotiate well and those who do not. The same is true whether buying a car or having a discussion with a family member. This course provides law students with the practical tools to become better negotiators. Students will learn how to systematically prepare for negotiations, deal effectively with hard bargainers and power imbalances, find hidden agendas, use standards more effectively, build coalitions, find creative options to overcome impasses, win over opponents and generally gain better results from the myriad encounters of life. This includes negotiating with peers, superiors and subordinates, in two-party and multiparty situations, with those who are similar as well as those who are very different. The course will include work on the special challenges of attorneys, including agency and ethics issues, use of negotiation in a litigation environment, and the problems and opportunities of multi-cultural and international representations. Also to be addressed will be issues of personal style, negotiating in highly emotional situations and dealing with a wide variety of parties, from passive to belligerent, corporate to government, family to fiduciary. A theoretical foundation will be presented. But the emphasis in each case will be on practical, operational tools. The course will be participatory. Students will negotiate cases from the start and will also be encouraged to bring their own thorny negotiation problems to class, to be analyzed and solved. This includes issues that students may already have or contemplate from their law firm jobs. There will be opportunities outside of class for one-on-one meetings with the professor on individual negotiation issues. Please note: All students are required to attend the first class of the semester. If you do not show up to the first class, you will be dropped from the course and your seat will be given to someone on the waiting list. Professor Diamond highly encourages #’s 1-10 on the waitlist to attend the first class. NOTE: Publisher for text books is not available as a choice. For Bargaining for Advantage, publisher is Penguin. For Influence, publisher is Quill.

Non-Profit Organizations (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Harvard has a $35 billion endowment. The Gates Foundation has $30 billion of its own and is also spending $30 billion of Buffett's money. This seminar seeks to understand how nonprofit organizations are held accountable. Co-taught by an administrative law scholar and a corporate law scholar, the seminar will trace out the various monitoring and accountability mechanisms employed in the nonprofit sector, and compare them to the ways in which for-profit firms and governmental entities are held accountable. During the first half of the semester, we will examine the basic legal/regulatory structure within which nonprofits operate. During the second half of the semester, outside speakers from various nonprofits will discuss their organizations. There are three main requirements: (a) attendance; (b) preparation for and participation in the seminar; and (c) series of 3-5 page reaction papers in which you respond to (but do not summarize) either the material for class or the previous week's speaker.

Parents, Children and the State (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course is designed to examine the allocation of power between children, parents, and the government both within and outside of the family unit. Rather than providing a survey of family law, this course focuses upon primarily poverty law issues that arise from public institutions designed to promote social welfare and to protect and nurture young people and their families. Students should enter the course with a basic understanding of Constitutional law, along with a desire to explore social welfare through a variety of mediums. This course focuses upon the child welfare system. We begin with the foundational cases that establish both the legal rights and liabilities of parents. We will also examine recent federal legislation regarding termination of parental rights and touch upon adoption policy as it intersects with the foster care system. In exploring the dependency and child welfare systems, we will consider the role that race and class play in abuse and neglect cases and work to define the appropriate parameters of state intervention into the daily lives of families. Finally, we will examine the unique challenges that face counsel for children and parents.

Partnership Taxation

3 sem. hrs.

This course explores the federal income tax aspects of conducting a business or investment activity as an enterprise that is taxed as a partnership for tax purposes, rather than as an association taxable as a corporation. The course considers when joint undertakings cross the line from mere co-ownership to taxation as a partnership (and why the rules developed as they did), the way in which the results of partnership operations are taxed (and why or why not the rules reach the correct result), and why business start-ups might choose to operate initially in partnership form. In some areas, I may ask if an alternate approach would have achieved a better result. No partnership course could be complete, however, without considering why partnerships tended to be the business form of choice for the dreaded "tax shelter" (whatever that is). Neither familiarity with accounting principles, balance sheets or income statements, nor exposure to sophisticated business transactions, should be considered a prerequisite. I ask only that you bring an open mind and a willingness to read some admittedly complicated Treasury Regulations. The text will be supplemented with Examples intended to reinforce the technical rules described in class. Federal Income Taxation I is a prerequisite, however. All students are required to bring a copy of the Internal Revenue Code and a copy of the Treasury Regulations (excerpts from the Regulations are included as a supplement to the course materials) to class every day.

Patent Law

2 sem. hrs.

In our modern technologically-based economy, the creation and enforcement of patent rights can make or break a business. With record numbers of patents being issued every year, the stakes for inventors (and, indeed, their lawyers) continue to increase, even as the patent law and its administration faces growing criticism. This course seeks to equip students with a detailed overview of the law and policy of the United States patent system. In so doing, we will focus on the basics of the statutory requirements for patents, the scope and form of patent rights and a look at the subject matter of patents.

Philosophical Aspects of Tort Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

In this course we will explore, from a philosophical perspective, a number of different aspects of the law of torts. Two of the fundamental questions we will be asking are the following: Is there an independent principle of justice or fairness which requires persons to compensate for harms they cause others – the so-called principle of corrective justice – and, if there is such a principle, can it be regarded as providing the moral foundation of tort law? Related questions that we will examine are likely to include the following: If there is an independent principle of corrective justice, is it best understood as supporting a fault standard or a standard of strict liability? What is the relationship between corrective and distributive justice? What is the philosophical character of the requirement of a duty of care, and under what circumstances should tort law impose affirmative duties of care? What is the philosophical character of the standard of reasonable care, and, more particularly, what is the content of this standard? For example, what is the relationship between the reasonableness standard and the Learned Hand formula? What is the philosophical character and justification of the causation requirement in tort, and under what circumstances can this requirement be weakened or even departed from? What is the nature of harm? What is the nature of risk, and what does it mean, morally speaking, to impose a risk on someone else? In the course of examining these questions, we may look at particular doctrinal controversies associated with, for example, the doctrine of alternative liability, the doctrine of market share liability, the loss of chance doctrine in medical malpractice and toxic tort cases, and certain issues of damage assessment. Note: All readings for the course will be made available in either photocopied or electronic form.

Philosophical Foundations of Legal & Moral Equality (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Readings will mostly come from modern moral or political philosophers. Will start with Rawls and include selections from people such as Elizabeth Anderson, myself, G.A. Cohen, Dworkin, Habermas, Michelamn, Scanlon, Scheffler, Sen and others. A number of times during the semester, a student can expect to write a critical comment (not based on research) on the weeks reading; all other weeks, the student should write a question that the student thinks should be addressed about the reading - the critique or question being due the day before the class meets. Class discussion will focus on the readings, student critiques and student questions. The central questions of the seminar are: whether the concept of equality has a moral basis and if so, what is that basis; what is the best conception of equality; and how could/should/does that conception relate to law, presumably but not necessarily constitutional law. Given the nature of the course, attendance is expected and more than two absents may result in a lower grade. When absence is necessary, the student should still do the whatever written work is expected of him or her that week (though if needed it can be somewhat late).

Political Philosophy of the Constitution (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will examine the political philosophy of the framers of the Constitution. We shall read some of the works of the Whig political tradition in England (and in particular the essays of Hume) then study selected constitutional writings of the principal Framers, in particular Madison’s Notes of the Constitutional Convention, The Federalist and the writings of James Wilson. The aim will be both to understand the philosophical arguments relied upon by the Framers, and to examine their sources within the wider intellectual history of the eighteenth century.

Problems in Law & Morality (S)

3 sem. hrs.

The seminar takes up a variety of puzzling features of law that one runs into again and again, almost regardless of what area of law one is considering. Why is the law so either/or? (In other words, why are legal judgments generally guilty/not guilty, liable/not liable, contract/no contract, slander/no slander etc., when reality seems so much more continuous?) Why does consent count for so little even when there are no obvious problems with force, fraud, incompetence, or unequal bargaining power to worry about? (In other words, why does the assumption of risk so often fail, and why are there so many victimless crimes on our books?) Why is the law so full of loopholes that everybody is aware of and which could readily be plugged? Why do legal rules so often seem to reward wrongdoers? Why do people exercising their legal and moral rights so often end up in conflict? Shouldn't valid rights mesh more harmoniously with each other? Along the way, various subsidiary issues will also be considered: why are some things property and not others, why it may not be meaningful to speak of harm to future generations, why we consider it worse to no longer be alive in 2008, than not yet to be alive in 2008, why it is okay to do what would otherwise be wrong just because you happen to be a lawyer, judge, government official or other kind of special functionary. Readings will consist of portions of various books and articles.

Prof Resp: Legal Ethics & Advocacy

2 sem. hrs.

In what area of the law will you practice? Corporate Law? Litigation? Real Estate? Labor? Criminal Defense? Intellectual Property? Tax law? Regardless, the art of advocacy permeates all of those areas and others. But as lawyers, there are boundaries, defined by the Rules of Professional Conduct. From the outset of the professional relationship and beyond, we will examine and simulate advocacy in many different areas of the law. We will review and role play selected case law with particular emphasis on practical solutions to “real world” ethical issues. The course will also afford us an opportunity to address some current topics in a number of areas of the law and to dissect them from an ethics and advocacy point of view. For example, we will review areas including ethics and electronic discovery, the lawyer’s duty of disclosure under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, intellectual property disputes, corporate struggles, criminal defense, tax controversies, and real estate transactions. We will attempt to find common practical grounds which pervade all areas of the law. There will be an inclass exam.

Professional Responsibility

3 sem. hrs.

Every other course you take in law school makes you better able to help your clients fulfill their hopes and dreams. This course is designed to help fulfill your own professional obligations while also providing services to your clients consistent with their ethical entitlements. Through the use of hypothetical problems, a casebook written by Professor Susan Martyn and Larry Fox and the short stories in Mr. Fox's Legal Tender, a collection of short stories, the class will explore many of the great issues that confront the conscientious lawyer who wants to conform his or her conduct to the applicable rules of professional conduct and other law governing lawyers.

Professional Responsibility

2 sem. hrs.

In examining various dimensions of the lawyer's interaction with clients, other lawyers, legal institutions and the public, the course will focus on the many legal and non-legal influences on the lawyer's conduct in situations involving choice or decisions. It will emphasize the effects of the Model Rules of Professional Conduct and the central importance of judgment and wise discretion in the life as a lawyer, paying particular attention to those situations in which the lawyer faces conflicting obligations and the law regulating lawyers proves inconclusive in resolving those tensions. The course considers these questions in light of the varying judgments one might make about the validity of the premises of the adversary system and traditional and alternative conceptions of the lawyer's role. A major objective is to assist students in bringing to bear on the problems presented their own emergent concept of the sort of lawyer they each wish to be. Extensive use will be made of videotapes, rather than cases, in presentingthe questions dealt with in the course. The examination will be multiple choice, closed book, and will focus entirely on the effect of the Model Rules of Professional Conduct. The coursebook will be available at the Penn Book Center, corner of 34th and Sansom Streets. (This is NOT the University Bookstore). Supplementary xeroxed materials will be available in the Secretarial Office.

Psychological Analysis of Legal Decision Making (S)

3 sem. hrs.

In this course, we will look at the psychology of judgments and decisions in the context of legal decision-making. This line of inquiry, sometimes called "behavioral law and economics," attempts to challenge some assumptions of law and economics with empirical observations from experimental research. We will consider some of the following questions: What factors drive decisions about whether and how much to punish wrong-doers? How do moral and social norms interact with legal rules to affect behavior? How do cognitive biases affect the ability to bargain efficiently for the allocation of goods? We will read articles from psychologists, experimental economists, and legal scholars.

Race, Racism and American Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This course will examine how American law has historically helped to construct racial identity and fostered competing notions of racial equality. Through judicial opinions, statutes, scholarly articles, historical materials, popular music and culture and other sources, students will analyze how the law has been used to both perpetuate racial discrimination and promote the rights of people of color. Students will also explore the limits of the law’s capacity to address institutional and structural racism. The course will address key contemporary issues such as school integration, affirmative action, electoral politics, marriage and adoption, housing discrimination, voting rights, felon disfranchisement, disproportionate minority confinement, imposition of the death penalty, indigent defense and the role of juries. As a complement to doctrinal courses, this course will also touch upon various doctrinal issues such as constructs of law, statutory and constitutional interpretation, and jurisdiction/access to courts, as relevant to the subject matter at hand. Students will be introduced to Critical Race Theory and will apply its teachings through their own writings and analysis. Students will also be introduced to international sources of law and will explore their potential impact on the American legal system’s construction and treatment of race and racism.

Real Estate Transactions

3 sem. hrs.

This course is designed to provide an introduction to modern real estate transactions, in theory and in practice. The course materials will cover sales/purchases, mortgage financing, leasing, and related subjects, with emphasis on the relevant transactional documents and the lawyer's role in negotiating and drafting those documents. Although there are no formal prerequisites, the instructor will assume that students have taken contracts, property 1, and civil procedure.

Refugee Law

3 sem. hrs.

This course will explore the origins of “refuge” or “asylum” including the myriad of human rights violations that force people to flee and seek protection, public policy issues such as US laws and regulations that govern asylum, and international agencies that are involved in the process of granting protection. The course will cover both the international refugee law and human rights context of State practice with reference to international treaties and customary international law. The course will begin with a review of The United Nations 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees - the standard against which refugee protection will be measured. We will study the dimensions, responsibilities and realities of the Office of the United National High Commissioner for Refugees which monitors implementation of this treaty. We will then cover regional practice relating to refugees in Europe, Latin America and Africa and Asia and briefly discuss root causes reasons of current and potential population displacements The major portion of the course, however, will deal with US statutory, regulatory and case law determining who is and is not a refuge vis-a-vis the 1980 Refugee Act, implementing regulations, and administrative and judicial decisions law. To better understand and see how theory is put into practice, especially as it relates to deterring refugees from entering the US through their detention students may be involved in interviewing asylum seekers. The course will conclude by looking at the international institutional response to refugee problems. We will conclude with a discussion of ancillary refugee issues such as, restricted employment and welfare entitlements, expedited procedures, and returns to safe countries. By the end of the course, students should be able to: 1. Understand the international framework for refugee determinations 2. Understand the US domestic framework including legislation, regulations and judicial decisions, for refugee and asylum related issues 3. Show competency in conducting an intake of an asylum seeker and developing a case analysis 4. Research Country Conditions regarding human rights violations 5. Prepare An Application for Asylum, Form I-589 6. Prepare an Affidavit attesting to the asylum seeker's claim for asylum 7. Prepare a packet with evidence to support the claim for asylum

Regulatory Policy Analysis (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Lawyers play a key role in making public policy, whether in legislative, executive, or judicial settings. This seminar focuses on the role of the lawyer as policy analyst, aiming to develop skills of research, analysis, and exposition suitable for effective policy counseling and decision making. The seminar will emphasize a general framework for analyzing any kind of social or economic problem and assessing different types of alternative legal solutions. Seminar participants will work either individually or in teams (at their choosing) to prepare and present their own original policy analysis of an important problem they select. There will be no final exam. Grades will be based on class participation, short papers written during the term, and a final policy analysis presentation/project which may be completed individually or in groups.

Religion, Law & Lawyering (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar examines moral issues in public and private life from a religious perspective, without tying the investigation to any particular tradition of revelation. It is premised on the observation that the ways in which many of us think about questions of moral and legal obligation, and about our own intended careers, are related to our religious or spiritual outlook. The seminar will provide a context in which we can explore, individually and collectively, what the content of that relation is for each of us. Its aim is to read, think, and talk about contested moral questions with colleagues united only in their belief that the questions and their connection to religion are worth pondering, and in their (perhaps tentative) willingness to bring something of themselves into our discussions. This is not a seminar on the law of the First Amendment, although it may affect our understanding of some of the controversies that have arisen there The seminar will consider questions like these: Where do moral imperatives come from, and how do the answers found in religion and in law affect one another? What are the implications of religiously-grounded values for our thinking about moral obligations and disputed issues of public policy? What are the differences (and similarities) between religious and secular sources of moral norms? Can religion's importance to our legal thinking, and its oft-found grounding in (differing) claims of revelation, be honored in a manner that honors too our commitment to pluralism and freedom of conscience? Can we integrate our religious commitments with our choices of, and within, our work lives? The seminar will meet in one two-hour session each week. Requirements are regular attendance, conscientious engagement with the readings, active participation in discussions, and a reflective essay on an aspect of the readings and class discussions at the end of the fall semester. The reading will consist of a specially prepared set of edited writings, to be distributed. They are not doctrinal legal materials.

Remedies

3 sem. hrs.

Most law school courses revolve around the standards for legal liability: when one is liable for breach of contract, or for a tort, or for violation of some constitutional or regulatory standard. This course is about the consequences of civil liability for litigants who have been wronged or who are about to suffer wrong. We will assume that the defendant's actual or threatened conduct is impermissible, and ask what a court can do about that conduct. Topics will include damages measurement, injunctive and preliminary relief, specific performance, declaratory judgments, restitution, criminal and civil contempt, punitive remedies, and complex equitable remedies in institutional and civil rights litigation.

Research in International and Foreign Law

1 sem. hrs.

Research in Foreign and International Law 1 sem. hour. Spring QIII This course will provide an opportunity for students to get acquainted with the basic sources available for research in public and private international law, as well as in the law of selected foreign countries. Students will learn how to find international treaties, European Union documents, decisions of international courts, statutes and court decisions of the United Kingdom, Canada and selected civil law jurisdictions such as France and Germany. The emphasis will be on English language materials. International trade, human rights and foreign constitutional and labor law research will be singled out for special attention. The availability of foreign and international materials online will be discussed. No prerequisites are required. The course is strongly recommended for journal editors working in this area and for participants in the Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. The course will have some recommended readings and several practical assignments. Optionally, a student may write a short paper and make an in-class presentation. It will be graded pass-fail. There will be no final exam. Class attendance is mandatory. The format will be 70% lecture, 30% participatory.

Same Sex Marriage: Law, Religion and Advocacy (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will address the ways that marriage has been defined and re-defined in American law and religion. We will focus especially on the ways that supporters and opponents of same-sex unions have argued that justice, the Constitution, faith, and equality lead to one or another conclusion. Students will be required to write weekly responses to the reading, or a single research paper. Senior writing credit available for longer papers.

Securities Regulation

4 sem. hrs.

This course examines the federal securities laws and the work of the Securities and Exchange Commission. The first half of the course focuses on the regulation of the capital-raising process. Topics covered include registration of securities under the Securities Act, civil liability, the definition of a security, financial derivatives, divestitures, recapitalizations, mergers and acquisitions, the regulatory advantages afforded small firms in capital formation, private placements, and resales of control and restricted securities. The second half of the course considers the disclosure obligations of public companies. Topics covered include the registration and reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act, going private transactions, proxy solicitations and proxy contests, tender offers, state takeover regulation and its relationship to federal law, insider trading, and the various theories of liability for the unlawful use of nonpublic information in securities transactions. A knowledge of securities regulation is particularly useful for students pursuing careers in business law, litigation, investment banking, or private equity. The course will use lecture and Socratic formats. Class participation may be taken into account in grading. Students may not drop or add after the end of the drop/add period. There may be catch-up/review classes. There wil be a midterm examination covering the first half of the course and a second examination during the final examination period covering the second half of the course. Regular, punctual attendance is expected.

Sexuality and the Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

In this course, we will examine some of the rapidly expanding legal responses to developing sexual orientation and gender identity communities. Substantive issues to be covered include the recognition of lesbian and gay relationships, including marriage and civil unions, employment discrimination and sexual harassment, gender identity issues, and the rights of expression, association, citizenship and political representation. We will look at trends in these issues through out the country and analyze the law's changing regulation of these fundamentally diverse and fluid communities. The class is a seminar and includes significant class participation.

Social Welfare and American Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar focuses on the role of law in remedying poverty, addressing inequality, and providing social and economic security in the United States in the twentieth century. The primary aim of the course is to familiarize students with broad themes in twentieth-century legal history, including the growth of the administrative state, changes in legal thought, and the “rights revolution.” A secondary aim is to give students a greater understanding of the workings and development of the American welfare state, a topic that is relevant to contemporary legal debates and intersects fruitfully with issues in administrative law, constitutional law, family law, and poverty law. Attendance, preparation, and class participation are essential. Grades will be based on contribution to discussion and a final paper.

Sports Law

2 sem. hrs.

This course will focus on many topics in the law of sports. General areas to be covered will include contracts, antitrust, labor, arbitration, constitutional law and amateur athletics. Special attention will be given to antitrust litigation in the National Football League, collective bargaining in professional sports, television issues, franchise movement, Title IX, amateur sports, and the changing concepts of amateurism. It will be helpful if students have taken Antitrust or Labor Law. There will be a takeaway exam.

Statistical Methods in the Law

2 sem. hrs.

In recent years, proof based on statistical evidence has come to play a key role in diverse types of litigation. Some prominent examples are epidemiological studies in mass tort cases, multiple regression models in employment discrimination class actions, Bayesian probabilities in forensic evidence, and disputed elections. To comprehend statistical methods, to use them correctly, and to expose errors by others are challenges for most lawyers and judges. Statistical methods have also been used with increasing frequency in empirical studies of the legal system. The purpose of this seminar is to prepare students for this brave new world by introducing them to the basic ideas of probability and statistics as they have appeared in the legal arena. The emphasis is not on calculation but on what might be called the legal logic of statistical inference. The goal is to equip students to recognize issues raised by quantitative methods and to work more knowledgeably with experts. The seminar ends with a mock jury trial of a case with statistical data in which students examine and cross-examine statistical experts. College level statistics is helpful but not required. There is an optional extra hour for students who would like additional mathematical work.

Structured Finance and Securitization

2 sem. hrs.

This seminar is designed to familiarize the student with the underlying legal concepts necessary to understand contemporary securitization and structured finance transactions. The course will introduce the basic economic elements of securitization and the economic business rational for this type of finance. Today, structured finance and securitization is a major element of the worldwide capital markets practice. The topics covered will include commercial finance, including Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code, corporate law, securities and investment company act regulation, bankruptcy law and securitization, tax issues and structuring considerations in securitization transactions, bank regulatory aspects of securitization, and cross-border securitization transactions. The course will focus on the many types of securitization that exist today and show how different legal disciplines interact in each of the transaction. The course will require some knowledge of introductory corporate and tax law and some exposure to basic bankruptcy law concepts. Introductory Securities Regulations will also be helpful. The course will not require any background in the economics of securitization or related capital markets transactions, although this may be helpful. It is the goal of the course to provide a thorough introduction to this area of practice so that a student has skills to evaluate these types of transactions in a law firm or investment banking firm setting.

Study of Judicial Behavior (S)

3 sem. hrs.

How (and why) do judges reach the decisions they do? This fundamental question has perplexed legal scholars for more than a century. This seminar will introduce students to the dominant approaches to the study of judicial behavior in both the legal academy and the broader university. The seminar will place particular focus on the current dialogue between law professors and political scientists about how best to study judges and understand judicial behavior, although students will also read and consider works informed by economics, cognitive psychology, and related fields. The structure of the seminar will involve student engagement with major scholars working in this area. The first few meetings will involve background reading and discussion. Then, during the bulk of the semester, the instructors will arrange for scholars to visit Penn and present their work and receive comments and questions from the members of the seminar. Students will write a number of brief response papers on the works presented, participate in discussions of those works in advance of the authors' visits, and then lead the discussion when visitors make their presentations to the seminar. Evaluation will be based on the response papers and participation in the weekly seminar discussions. Enrollment is limited to 16 students.

Supreme Court Practice (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Decisions of the Supreme Court are thought simply to reflect the Justices' views of the merits of the legal issues before the Court. But the results often are heavily influenced by the particulars of the process that leads up to the decision. This seminar will study the Supreme Court primarily from the point of view of the advocacy process that precedes and influences the Court’s decisions. The course will examine the nature of effective advocacy before the Court and the ways in which advocates’ strategies may (or may not) influence the Court at each stage of a case – the petition for certiorari and brief in opposition; merits briefs by petitioner and respondent; and oral argument. The course will also consider the influence of amici at each stage as well as the special role of the Solicitor General's office. Materials will include actual petitions, briefs, and oral arguments from recent and pending Supreme Court cases, as well as secondary sources. The course will include consideration of one or more cases currently before the Court, with a trip to the Court hear an oral argument if feasible. Course sessions will include guest lectures by experienced Supreme Court advocates and others involved with Supreme Court litigation. Course requirements: to be determined, but will include drafting documents for presentation in pending cases, and possibly an analysis of an oral argument.

Supreme Court: Great Cases (S)

3 sem. hrs.

The class sessions will discuss a number of Supreme Court decisions, through the prism of Holmes’s apothegm that “[g]reat cases, like hard cases, make bad law.” Also, each member of the seminar will write a concise essay (twenty-five to thirty pages; first draft due prior to pring recess) on the career -- and, most particularly, the impact on the Court -- of one of the chief justices. Further, the essay-writer will give a brief oral report on her/his chief justice.

Tax Policy Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

The seminar will focus on original papers by some of the leading scholars in tax policy and public finance. In alternating weeks, the professors and the students will discuss the following week's paper and perhaps related work that has been assigned in class. At the next meeting, the professors and students will be joined by the paper's author for an extensive and we hope lively discussion of the paper. The seminar is intended to give students the opportunity, rare in law schools, to participate in serious work on tax policy through the equivalent of an advanced graduate-level seminar.

Taxation of Business Entities

3 sem. hrs.

Modern tax practice requires a panoptic understanding of business forms. The classic “C corporation” no longer predominates, and it is not unusual for a single deal structure to incorporate a variety of business entities. This course covers major topics in the taxation of corporations (both “C” and “S”), limited liability companies, partnerships, and their owners. The course is organized primarily topically; business forms are analyzed in parallel fashion topic by topic. Topics include the choice of entity, contributions from owners to businesses, business operations, and distributions from businesses to owners. The course objectives are two: to provide students with a general sense of the landscape of business taxation; and to instill in students the sort of deeper understanding of each business form that derives from explicit and frequent comparison to alternatives. The course is intended for two types of students. First, it is addressed to students who wish to specialize in tax law, and who may go on to take courses on partnership tax or corporate tax, which would generally cover a different set of more specialized topics. The course is also intended for students who are not planning to specialize in tax, but who believe they would benefit from a general examination of business tax issues, perhaps as a complement to their study of other areas of business law.

Technological Change, Economic Growth & the Law Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will explore in depth the cutting edge legal issues in our emerging knowledge-based economy. In so doing, we will engage a number of economic perspectives on innovation law and policy, evaluating the impact of intellectual property laws, antitrust oversight, government support for basic research, and telecommunications regulation. We expect that students will come with an interest in these areas and some relevant background. Because the seminar will be driven almost entirely by student papers and class discussion, you must be very interested in the topic and committed to attending every seminar-except for an extraordinary reason.

The Takings Clause (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar will focus on current theoretical issues involving the Takings Clause. Reading will consist primarily of law review articles and other legal scholarship about the Takings Clause.

Topics in Defamation

2 sem. hrs.

This course is meant to be an introduction to the basics of the law of defamation, and to current areas of controversy as the law continues to develop and new media emerge. A prior class dealing with First Amendment issues would be helpful, but is neither required nor necessary.

Topics in Philosophy of Law

3 sem. hrs.

This is an advanced seminar in the philosophy of law, listed as both a law school and a philosophy course offering. The course will begin with a brief survey of current scholarly writing on the central jurisprudential question "What is Law?" We will then address three methodological topics of significance for the philosophy of law: First, who is the legal subject? Is he rational or irrational, well-motivated or malicious, savvy or naïve? Second, what is the best account of legal reasoning? Do contemporary approaches to legal reasoning adequately take into account the psychology of the legal subject? Third, what general jurisprudential approach should we use to evaluate substantive theories of law? Should a theory of law seek to capture moral intuitions? Maximize utility or wealth? Reflect the choices legal subjects would presumably make were they able to select their own legal rules? Having addressed the foregoing foundational questions about law, we will then turn to more specific applications of legal theory. We will discuss specific topics in contracts, tort theory, criminal law, punishment theory, and international law, in order to test the theoretical propositions developed in the first part of the course in an applied context. Students will be expected to write one 25-30 page seminar paper. In addition, the seminar will be offered in conjunction with the Institute for Law and Philosophy's faculty workshop series, which will meet four times throughout the fall semester. Students are expected to write a short paper commenting on the speaker's article, and to attend the four workshop meetings on select Thursdays from 4:30 to 6:30.

Topics in Public Health Law (S)

3 sem. hrs.

At its best, public health law seeks to strike a reasonable balance between theories of collective good and the liberty rights of individual citizen-patients. Yet all too often, policymakers fail to recognize that the successful implementation of public health policy depends in large part on the cooperation of front-line medical professionals, whose opinions as to the appropriate balance between collective and individual goods are shaped by traditional principles of medical ethics. This course will examine circumstances in which physicians’ medical decisions may be guided not only by patient well-being, but also by the state’s public health and safety goals; case studies will include routine and reporting of infectious diseases, mental health practice, military and correctional medicine, and public health emergencies such as epidemics. Through readings in history, case law, ethics, and philosophy, this course will explore the tension between medical professionalism and societal protection, and urge students to think critically about when and how the state’s powers may be permissibly exercised to further public health objectives. For students interested in public health policy, this course provides a framework for understanding many current health policy debates.

Transnational Legal Clinic - Fieldwork

6 sem. hrs.

PLEASE SEE IMPORTANT ENROLLMENT PROCEDURES FOR CLINICS AVAILABLE ON THE REGISTRATION INSTRUCTIONS PAGE. Students in the Transnational Legal Clinic will explore the lawyer’s work in settings that cut across cultures, borders, languages and legal systems. Students engage in direct legal representation of individual and organizational clients in the context of immigration as well as broader advocacy efforts that raise settled and developing int'l and comparative legal norms in a variety of venues. Fieldwork may also include projects in transactional, legislative, or policy settings. Students will work in teams of two or more under faculty supervision, and will be responsible for all aspects of client representation. Students will be expected to engage in critical reflection on choices presented and made in the course of lawyering, and their individual development as a lawyer. Throughout the semester, students will have the opportunity to discuss competing interests underlying the development of immigration law in the U.S. and its relationship to int'l law, the role of int'l and comparative law in legal advocacy, law and organizing, and the role of the client in larger human rights/impact litigation cases. The Clinic will meet in seminar twice weekly for training in fundamental lawyering skills (interviewing, counseling, fact investigation, case theory and persuasive advocacy). Seminar time will also be used for case rounds, during which students will share with their clinic colleagues developments in their cases, and solicit suggestions and feedback on legal, factual, ethical and strategic issues. In addition, students will meet regularly in their teams with the faculty supervisor. The seminar is not a substitute for an international law or immigration course. Substantive law will only be discussed to the extent it is relevant to specific cases. The students are responsible – with the guidance of the faculty supervisor – for researching and learning the underlying substantive law relevant to their individual cases. Fieldwork and seminar components of the course will be graded separately with 2 credits awarded for the seminar component and 4 credits awarded for case work. Students will be provided with a grading memo at the start of the semester outlining the criteria on which they will be graded, and students will be required to write a self-reflection memo mid-semester and again at the end of the semester evaluating their own performance in accordance with those criteria. Class participation is mandatory. Students enrolled will be asked to read prior to the start of classes The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, by Anne Fadiman. The book explores the relationships between the American medical system, doctors and social workers, and a young Hmong girl and her refugee family. It raises several issues of cross-cultural communication that will serve as the basis for discussions throughout the semester. The book can be found online and at most bookstores. N.B. You may not enroll in this course if you are enrolled in another clinical course or an externship in the same semester. In order to avoid being replaced by a student on the wait list, you must appear by the second meeting of the class. Enrollment is limited. Preference will be given to 3Ls.

Trial Advocacy: Yearlong

2 sem. hrs.

This is a skills course in trial techniques and related litigation theory development. The student will learn how to prepare and try a case. The objectives are to create strong fundamental skills in the art of direct examination, cross-examination, objections, preparation of witnesses, jury selection, preparation and examination of expert witnesses, introduction of documents, and opening and closing arguments. There will be video-taped exercises followed by individual critique. The course culminates in full mock trials in state or federal courtrooms, with witnesses and jurors. All students participate as trial counsel. Any Evidence course is a prerequisite for this class. Attendance and participation are mandatory. Approximately six (6) students will be selected from the combined classes to participate, on a voluntary basis, in the National Mock Trial Competition. Tryouts are held at the conclusion of the first semester. If selected, the Trial Team's second semester will entail participation on the Trial Team, and those selected will not be required to attend the regular Trial Advocacy classes.

Trusts and Estates

3 sem. hrs.

This course is a general survey of the law relating to family wealth transmission. The course will study both transfers within the probate system-wills and intestate succession-and transfers outside it, with special attention to trusts. The course will examine the substantive law as well as the policy issues that surround it. Particular attention will be given to the Uniform Probate Code. Cases from a variety of jurisdictions will also be discussed. Examination.

U.S. & E.U. Telecommunications Law (S)

1.5 sem. hrs.

The US and Europe have historically taken widely divergent approaches to the regulation of communications technologies. In more recent years, the approaches have begun to converge, in part because of the increasing globalization of the telecommunications market and in part because of certain intellectual insights that have transformed the conventional wisdom about economic regulation. This seminar will compare the regulatory approaches taken in the US and Europe, studying both the ways in which they have converged and the key differences in intellectual commitments that tend to keep them distinct. In the process, the seminar will provide an introduction to EU law, covering both the EU’s institutions and lawmaking process. The seminar should be of particular interest to students interested in Internet policy, economic regulation, EU law, and the impact of different institutional structures (such as government ownership and federalism) on regulatory policy. The seminar will meet for twelve weeks in the fall semester. It will meet again for two sessions late in the spring semester, when students will present their papers.

UN Security Council in the 21st Century (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar is an introduction to the functions and operations of the UN Security Council, the only body of the United Nations capable of compelling action by a Member State. The intent of the course is to expand the student’s understanding of the strengths and limitations of the Security Council; the legal and political framework within which it operates; the practical aspects of advocating for Security Council action; and proposals for reform. Students will become equipped with the analytical tools to assess if a country situation falls within the jurisdiction of the Security Council as well as understanding the complex interplay between the Council and other UN and international organizations. To help make the subject as tangible as possible, the instructor will use a variety of techniques including role-playing, case study examples, video clips, discussions, lectures, and an occasional guest speaker.

US & EU Telecommunications Law - Yearlong (S)

Visual Legal Advocacy II (S)

3 sem. hrs.

This seminar is open to students who have taken Visual Legal Advocacy I and wish to complete their video projects or take on new projects, including short advocacy videos of their own devising. It is also open, with the permission of the instructor, to students who have proven expertise with regard to documentary film production. The seminar will meet as a production collective at the call of the instructor. Participants will be expected to participate in the Second Visual Legal Advocacy Roundtable which will be held on Friday, October 17, 2008, and other activities of the Penn Program on Documentaries & the Law. The seminar is 3 credit hours.

Visual Legal Advocacy Seminar (S)

3 sem. hrs.

Visual Legal Advocacy will introduce students to the art of making short nonfiction advocacy films on behalf of actual individual clients and/or groups devoted to the advancement of the cause of social justice. Instruction will track the steps in the production of a nonfiction or documentary film, starting with pre-production planning (including writing treatments and shooting scripts, budgeting, and scheduling), going on to the rudiments of production (including introductions to camera, lighting, and sound equipment), and concluding with post-production (including making paper edits and an introduction to editing). Participants will be divided into several working groups that will be responsible for the production of a short piece of visual legal advocacy, most likely a video clemency petition made on behalf of a formerly incarcerated person whose employment opportunities are limited by her/his criminal record or a victim impact statement made on behalf of a person harmed or injured by Philadelphia's gun violence.