Course Descriptions
402 - Entertainment Law and Counseling Seminar (2). This seminar will introduce students to the real world of entertainment law and counseling, examining a variety of legal and practical problems encountered in representing talent in the entertainment and sports industries. Issues to be covered include deal making, talent agreements, media relations, network and syndication television agreements, endorsements, and book/author publishing agreements. Students will be expected to participate actively in this "hands on" seminar. Some of the classes may be held at Mr. Jacobs' office, within 2 blocks of the law school. Participation in this innovative seminar will be by instructor permission only. The seminar is open to 3L and 4L students, with a class limit of only 10; the survey course in Intellectual Property is a prerequisite. (Carr)
Open to: J.D., LL.M., M.J., S.J.D., and D.Law students
Prerequisites: none
This course consists of both a classroom component and a field work component. Students will spend 6-8 hours per week in a field placement at a public interest organization or government agency that works on elder law issues. Possible placements include the Center for Disability and Elder Law, the Cook County Public Guardian's Office, and the Cook State's Attorney's Office. Students will be required to keep a journal on their field placement. Readings and discussions will focus on students' experiences and issues relating to elder law. Grades will be based on journal entries, class participation, and performance in the field work placement. There will be no final exam. (Angelari)
405 - Seminar on Wealth and Transfer Taxes, with a Focus on the Federal Estate Tax (2). This seminar is a policy oriented examination of wealth and transfer taxes with a focus on the federal estate tax. The history and general features of the federal estate tax will be examined. The views of prominent philosophers and business leaders, such as John Locke and Andrew Carnegie, on the transmission of property at death will be examined. We will then examine the federal estate tax enacted in 1916. We will consider the justifications for its enactment and arguments for and against its retention. The subsequent history of the tax will be surveyed to see if the tax accomplished the objectives of its proponents. We will look at the recent campaign to gain public support for repeal of the tax. This campaign resulted in one of the more unusual pieces of federal legislation ever enacted, the temporary estate tax repeal of 2001, part of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001. We will examine the reasons for the form the temporary repeal took. Each participant will present a paper on a specific topic to the seminar. Participants will be given a maximum of fifty minutes for discussion of the participant's paper with the other participants. Some examples of potential topics include: 1.) Should consumption taxes replace all transfer taxes? 2.) In an ideal (and therefore nonexistent) world could all income taxes be abolished and be replaced by a confiscatory estate tax? 3.) Should an accessions tax replace transfer taxes? 4.) Lessons about organizing support to repeal a tax law from the recent estate tax repeal. 5.) The proper role of advertising and public relations specialists in influencing tax policy. 6.) The usefulness or uselessness of economics in deciding whether transfer taxes should be repealed. 7.) The prospects for making the temporary repeal of the estate tax permanent. 8.) Should the estate tax be reformed but retained? The participant's topic will be chosen jointly by the participant and Professor McCormack. The final paper will be due no later than May 20, 2005. Papers should be no longer than twenty pages, double spaced. Regular attendance is mandatory. The grade will be based 50% on the presentation and 50% on the final paper. No prerequisite is necessary but a general understanding of federal income tax and the federal gift and estate tax could be useful. Limit 18 participants. (McCormack)
406 - Mediation Advocacy (3). Mediation Advocacy considers the role of the attorney in the mediation process. The course combines theory with practice, utilizing "fishbowl" exercises and simulations that enable students to develop skills and put into practice effective techniques as mediation advocates. The course begins with a general overview of various forms of conflict resolution including negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and litigation. Emphasis will be placed on the importance of seeing a dispute in the broader context of all dispute resolution processes, and determining which of those processes may be useful for a particular matter and when it should be used. We will next address a range of pre-mediation considerations including evaluation of cases for mediation, communicating with clients and adversaries about mediation, establishing goals and objectives for mediation, selection of mediators, brief writing for mediation, and preparation for the mediation session. Thereafter, students will prepare and deliver opening statements in simulated mediations, and represent clients and manage the range of issues and strategies that arise during mediation. A variety of matters will be addressed here including mediation negotiation strategies, joint sessions, private caucus, getting past impasse, ethical issues, effective use of a mediator, and developing creative settlements. While serving as attorneys, parties, and mediators in pre-mediation and mediation simulations, students will develop firsthand knowledge and experience with the mediation process and become effective advocates for their clients. There is no final exam; however, a significant portion of a student's grade will be derived from class participation. (Block, Foley, Frisbie, Torre)
407 - Intellectual Property Litigation Seminar (2). This seminar will address litigation topics specific to the intellectual property context, primarily based on experiences of the instructors in actual cases. These will include such topics as litigating motions for emergency injunctive relief for alleged infringement of intellectual property rights; litigating internet domain name disputes; attorney-client privilege and work product doctrine considerations in the intellectual property context; use of and discovery relating to consulting and testifying experts in various kinds of intellectual property cases; litigating the admissibility of survey evidence in trademark cases; and similar litigation issues. In addressing these litigation topics, the course will touch on a variety of intellectual property areas, i.e., patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets and the reading materials will likewise cover these areas. In additiion, the course will provide students with a variety of litigation perspectives as it will be "team taught" by a series of intellectual property litigators from the firm of Jenner and Block. In addition to traditional class-room discussion, planned activities for this course include hands-on student participation in such activities as mock oral arguments, as well as drafting of litigation materials. Grading will be based on these activities; there will be no final exam.
Prerequisite: A previous intellectual property class is a prerequisite to this seminar. Any one of the following will qualify: (1) Intellectual Property (survey course); (2) Introduction to Patents course; (3) Introduction to Trademarks and Copyrights course; or (4) Intellectual Property and the Internet Seminar. Please note that taking a concurrent Intellectual Property class will not satisfy the pre-requisite.
408 - State Prosecution Function Seminar (2). The public prosecutor's professional challenges, ethical obligations and power distinguish the prosecution function from the work of other lawyers. Typically, attorneys are charged to zealously represent their clients' interests within the bounds of law; the prosecutor is charged instead to serve the best interests of justice. Most litigators are challenged to meet the specific demands of the caseloads presented to them by their clients; the public prosecutor is a minister of justice who has great power to affect the criminal justice caseload, establishing priorities through screening, investigations, diversion, plea bargaining and other procedures. No other attorney or judge has greater responsibility to ensure due process in criminal cases and investigations. This seminar will provide students with a comprehensive, strategic overview of the prosecution function in the state criminal justice system. Students will research, write and present papers on aspects of the prosecution function. They will make oral presentations on their topics before their written papers are due. Students will be encouraged to write and present as teams. Criminal Law and one of the Criminal Procedure courses are prerequisites; Evidence and Professional Responsibility are helpful background but are not necessary. (Nora)
410 - Advocacy (2). This course focuses on persuasive written and oral communication skills which are necessary for critical analysis and the competent representation of all clients. Students will explore all sides of an argument, provide evaluations of the merits of particular cases, and persuade the reader/listener of the student's position. Pre-requisites: successful completion of Legal Writing I and II. (Brendel, Perlin and the Advocacy faculty)
411 and 416 - Trial Practice I (3). This course offers the opportunity to develop the skills necessary to conduct a trial, including opening statements, direct and cross examinations of witnesses, and closing arguments. One section is offered each semester (course 411). In addition, an intensive eight day course is offered during the summer and between semesters in January (course 416). Each course is taught by a team of lawyers and judges with a student/faculty ratio of 8 to 1. The groups rotate among the teachers, and each student is given the opportunity to perform the exercises. At the end of both the intensive and the semester long courses each student conducts a complete trial at the Daley Center. Since the intensive course in January is a spring semester course, it cannot be taken by students intending to graduate at that time. Prerequisite: Evidence. (Carey and the trial practice faculty)
412 - Trial Practice II (3). This course provides additional opportunity to develop witness examination skills, skills in opening and closing statements, and skills in the development of case theory. Students are assigned in teams of four to each side of a case, and they try four or five cases over the semester. The student teams rotate each week among the teaching faculty. Enrollment is permitted first for those students who received the grade of "A" in Trial Practice I. Enrollment of students who received less than an "A" depends upon space availability, although typically the course has accommodated all those who have sought enrollment. (Carey and the trial practice faculty)
414 - Professional Responsibility (3). This course, required of all students in their last year of school, focuses on ethical questions in the practice of law, and examines the basic premises underlying the lawyer-client relationship and the duties assumed by the members of the legal profession, including duties to clients, the public, the courts, and other professionals. Materials consist of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, the ABA Model Code of Professional Responsibility, and other pertinent standards regarding lawyers' ethics. (Breen, Covey, Crane, Grogan, McDermott, Rosenberg)
415 - Appellate Practicum (3). This program, which is offered with the cooperation of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, enables students to prepare briefs and otherwise participate in appellate proceedings on behalf of indigent litigants. Students work under the immediate supervision of a faculty member who has been appointed as counsel for such litigants. Students normally are permitted to present oral arguments to the court in cases which the students have briefed. Participation is subject to approval of the instructor and is necessarily limited by the number of cases assigned by the court. (Shoenberger)
417 - Professional Responsibility Seminar (3). Students chosen to participate in the seminar work closely with the teachers on special projects in the area of professional responsibility, particularly the continual updating of a bibliography of Illinois case law and other legal materials on lawyers' ethics, as part of a nationwide project. (Breen, Donnelly)
418 - Pre-Trial Litigation (2). This course integrates a theoretical and practical approach to the pre-trial components of litigation. The students gain an understanding of the purpose of pleadings, pre-trial motions, depositions, and settlement conferences. The idiosyncracies of Cook County, collar county, and federal practice are explored. Additionally, the differences between professional and unprofessional conduct at various pre-trial stages are identified and discussed. (Murphy)
418 - Pre-Trial Litigation: Illinois Civil Litigation (2). This course will teach the students the practical application of pre-trial discovery in Illinois. The course will demonstrate real world application of discovery, from pre-suit investigation, to interrogatories, requests for production, requests to admit, and depositions. Students will be required to participate in class projects and demonstrations on the techniques of using these discovery tools. (Phillips, Webb)
418 - Pre-trial Litigation Practicum: Depositions, Objections and Motions in Limine (2). This course teaches students essential nuts and bolts of civil litigation practice with a focus on practical application of evidentiary theories. The course uses simulated civil cases. Students apply evidentiary theories to different fact patterns as litigators do. The course focuses on the use of evidentiary objections throughout the life of a case: depositions, motions in limine (typically used prior to trial to exclude prejudicial evidence) and trial. Working in teams, students will learn basic deposition taking techniques and play the role of lawyers deposing, examining, and defending witnesses while offering appropriate evidentiary objections. Motions in limine exercises will teach students how to draft persuasive motions in limine to exclude certain category of evidence.
With this hands-on approach, students will develop self confidence regarding the strategic use of evidentiary objections - an essential skill of successful litigators.
This two credit course meets for two hours once a week. Evidence is the prerequisite. There is no final exam. The course grade is based on class room participation, performance during simulated exercises, and written work. Enrollment is limited to 15.
419 - Advanced Advocacy (1). This course will continue advancing the skills learned in Advocacy, focusing on refining written and oral argument skills. Students will research and write the second issue from the National Moot Court Competition problem studied the previous semester. The course is designed for those looking for a more in-depth understanding of how to argue persuasively on a given issue. The class will also benefit students participating in moot court competitions in the spring semester, or those who just want to enhance their communication skills. The class is six weeks long, and is ungraded. lfulton@ccdllaw.com. (Fulton)
422 - Federal Criminal Prosecution Seminar (2). From the convening of a grand jury to sentencing, federal criminal prosecution involves a series of often complex investigative and prosecutorial steps. This class explores those steps and the legal and social issues related to them. By tracking the course of a federal criminal case, the students explore issues concerning the federal grand jury process, investigative techniques, charging decisions, discovery, plea negotiations, pretrial hearings, trial, and sentencing. (Kendall, Soffer)
424 - Complex Issues in Personal Injury Litigation: Seminar (2). When representing clients on a contingency fee basis, there are many legal, ethical and practical question which arise. Among these are the following: How does one assess the value of a case? How do you factor in some matters such as the ability of the plaintiff to present himself/herself to a jury or a judge; the cost of proving the case; experts needed, complexity of issues, unresolved legal questions, and many others? If one decides not to represent the client, but believes that the cause is viable, how is a referral to be made? What must be shared with the client and with the lawyer to whom the referral is made? This seminar examines these and other real world questions in depth. These seminar is limited to no more than 10 students. (Rodin)
425 - Feminist Jurisprudence (3). The purpose of the course is to explore, in ways that are personally meaningful and professionally useful, the role of law in regulating the lives of women. We will cover the historical background of feminist legal theory, the standards of constitutional equality, the various feminist theories, and the construction of female sexuality. We will turn to Nussbaum's work on sex and social justice in order to pursue a philosophical grounding in the anti-subordination principle on a global basis. The remainder of the course will study one or more of the following, to be determined by the class: violence against women, reproduction, marriage, mothering, education, wage labor, and the legal profession.
431 - Documenting and Negotiating Financial Transactions (2). This course offers students an opportunity to focus on the legal issues that arise between borrowers and their financial advisor/banker. Topics covered include a focus on commercial loan agreements, other capital raising vehicles and mergers and acquisitions. The course also focuses on the perspective of the CFO and the banker in deciding when and how to raise additional capital, expansion through acquisition and partnership/joint-ventures with other entities. Students also study examples of actual loan agreements and other related documents as well as analyzing case law involving financial institutions and loan agreements. This course uses practical examples of actual transactions including details of their negotiation and execution with the student actively involved on a case study basis. Prerequisites: Students taking this class will be expected to have taken Business Organizations. Knowledge of Secured Transactions and Federal Income Tax would greatly assist the student; these classes are not, however, required to take the course. (Cronin, O'Brien)
432 - Financial Planning for Lawyers and Clients (2). The course focuses on the financial planning process which entails setting lifetime objectives and implementing those objectives by: 1) protecting against risk, 2) managing credit, money, and investments, and 3) ultimately disposing of one's wealth. Among the specific topics to be examined are the following: insurance (life, disability, long-term care, property and liability), borrowing (mortgages, home equity loans, credit cards), investments (stock, bonds, mutual funds), and retirement planning. In addition, the course teaches students to understand financial reports and how planning is affected by the time value of money, compound interest, taxes and inflation. Each student is required to prepare a personal financial plan that can be used as a guide for the student over his/her lifetime. The student's plan will serve as the primary evaluation mechanism. (Kwall)
433 - Seminar on the Preparation and Trail of a Private Antitrust Suit (2). This seminar will take the participants through all the stages of the preparation of a private antitrust suit: the complaint, issues of proof, pretrial motions and conferences, discovery, class certification, and motions for summary judgment. The course will conclude with issues concerning trial, settlement and plaintiffs' counsel fees. (Donner, Specks)
434 - Federal Criminal Law (2). Most criminal law is state law. This course will start with a brief exploration of when the federal government should venture into the realm of criminal law, and then the bulk of the course will cover the various federal criminal statutes. In particular, it will address bribery of officials, organized crime, drug trafficking, money laundering, blackmail, mail fraud, and sentencing. (Bronsteen)
440 - Criminal Appellate Practicum (3). This course provides students with an opportunity to work for credit in analyzing trial records and preparing briefs for appellants in criminal cases before the Illinois Appellate Court, the Illinois Supreme Court, or the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Students involved in this work have the opportunity, under close faculty supervision, to study a trial record, possibly to meet a client, to analyze possible arguments on appeal, to prepare a brief, to prepare a reply brief, to write appropriate motions, to assist in the preparation of an oral argument, and to observe the appellate court process. There is a limited enrollment, and instructor permission is required. (Raphael)
441 - Litigation Technology (3). Litigation Technology is an advanced trial practice course qualifying for credit towards the advocacy certificate. This three-hour, graded credit course is designed to teach students how to prepare and try cases in a modern environment. Students will learn to conduct dynamic and persuasive courtroom presentations by combining advanced trial advocacy skills with litigation software packages Sanction II, PowerPoint, SmartDraw, and Case Map. Following eight weeks of advocacy and software instruction, students pair into teams to try four, hi-tech, mock trials. Course materials include student licenses for Sanction II, Smart Draw, and Case Map, as well as a new text, published by Aspen, Litigation Technology, written by former Assistant State’s Attorney Michael Rogers. The course will be taught Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Ferrara (Loyola alum) and Lisa Noller.
Trial Practice I is a course prerequisite. Enrollment is limited to 12. Enrollment will be conducted as for the intensive trial practice course: you need to sign up with Prof. Carey, who will compile a list and wait list if necessary. Students will need a Windows-based laptop to use in class. The course will meet one night a week, 6:00 to 9:OO p.m., site TBA. There is no final exam. (Ferrara, Noller)
444 - Land Use Seminar: Building American Cities (2). Advanced seminar that provides students with the opportunity to concentrate on issues of their choice related to historic or contemporary development patterns in urban America.
Prerequisite: Land Use 350 or comparable land use survey course is a prerequisite. Flexible scheduling available. (Furda)
451 - Estate Planning (3). This seminar attempts to simulate the day-to-day practice of an estate planner. The topics range from the initial client interview to the formulation of sophisticated estate plans for those with substantial property, such as a successful business. The goal is to provide exposure to a broad range of client situations with supervised formulation and implementation of estate plans. Students generally work in teams of two or three and submit several drafting assignments throughout the semester. Pre-requisite: Estate and Gift Tax; Estates is highly recommended. (Buccino, Rhodes)
453 - Negotiations Seminar (1). This course will be conducted in an intensive workshop format over the course of one weekend. Students will learn the basic elements of negotiation techniques and put them into practice. We will cover the negotiation process from the initial establishment of rapport, to the resolution of the conflict and compromise, to reach final agreement. We will also cover some of the legal aspects of negotiation re the Settlement Agreement. Grades will be based on the student's performance in an actual negotiation at the end of the course. Students who do exceptionally well may be invited to represent Loyola at the ABA National Negotiation Competition in the fall. (Gaspardo)
456 - Mediation Seminar (2). Mediation is a voluntary process in which parties attempt to negotiate a settlement with the help of an impartial third-party neutral. This course will offer an overview of mediation techniques, applications and history. Through simulations and other in-class exercises, students will consider how mediation differs from other types of alternative dispute resolution, different models of mediation, and how the role of the advocate changes during a mediation. (Levitz, Nathanson)
456 - Alternative Dispute Resolution (2). This course examines the various forms of alternative dispute resolution, both in theory and in practice. The course emphasizes the legal and ethical issues that have accompanied the increased use of mediation and other conflict management methods in the justice system. Students learn the techniques of mediation and arbitration and practice using them in role plays, simulations, and classroom discussions.
457 - Family Business Seminar (2). This course introduces graduate business students and law students to the special challenges and opportunities of family ownership and management of a business, and is intended to increase the student's analytic abilities to understand the unique characteristics of a multi-generational family business and the most frequent stumbling blocks to family business succession. The course is intended for students who may now, or someday, work in their family business, as well as students planning on entering professional service fields in which the bulk of their clientele may be family firms. (Rhodes)
458 - Canon Law for Civil Lawyers (2). Mention "canon law" and the uninformed person may wonder how much the law has to say about firing a cannon. "Canon law" to a more educated mind may conjure up images of medieval scholars poring over Latin manuscripts. Other with some limited contemporary contact with canon law will at least have heard of the Catholic Church's procedures involving marriage annulments.
Many people would be surprised and perhaps mystified to find out that canon law still plays a central role today in determining how the Catholic Church handles the broad spectrum of issues involved in the daily management of a world-wide multinational organization. Moreover, there are many aspects of a contemporary civil lawyer's practice that may involve issues requiring some knowledge or familiarity with the current canon law of the Church.
Example of these would be in the areas of litigation relating to allegations of clerical sexual misconduct with minors; mergers and joint ventures involving Catholic schools and health care institutions; immigration aspects of foreign religious workers; will, estates and bequests involving ecclesiastical goods and offerings for Masses; incorporation and tax-exempt status of religious organizations; the protection of human rights; and, of course, marriage and family law, especially divorces and annulments.
This course will be conducted as a seminar in which students will be invited to write a research paper and make a classroom presentation on some issue that involves aspects of both civil law and canon law. Since there will be no examination, grading will be based on the research paper, the classroom presentation, attendance and participation in the seminar discussions. (Paprocki)
Click here for an article about Bishop Paprocki and the course in Canon Law.
459 - Introduction to the English Legal Profession (1). This is a ten-week lecture series which explores a variety of issues pertaining to the English legal profession . It is a mandatory preparatory course for those students who have been selected to participate in the annual London Comparative Advocacy Program. As an elective course for other students, a final paper is required. Topics include the history of the common law, the development of the English legal profession, English civil and criminal procedure, the role of the European Union in English law, the modern legal profession and the history of London. (Faught)
459 - London Comparative Advocacy (1). The London Comparative Advocacy Program is a two-hour ungraded course: students take Introduction to the English Legal Profession one semester, followed by this course the following semester. Each year, twelve students are selected to travel to London for about two weeks between semesters during which students engage in a number of activities focusing on the British legal profession and system of advocacy. Students are required to attend a lecture series in the fall semester to prepare for the visit. In the spring semester, they are required to submit a 15 page research paper. Completion of Trial Practice I is recommended. Applications for the program are due each April and the program faculty selects the participants. There are always far more applicants to the program than available space. (Faught)
461 - Education Law and Policy (3). This seminar will explore the difficult legal, political and practical issues currently confronting American education. The course will begin with an analysis of the fundamental political and philosophical principles underlying the American educational system. Students will then be challenged to apply these principles to difficult areas of education law, such as: (1) the limits of compulsory education; (2) the relationship between public education and religious institutions and practices; (3) the nature of a constitutional right to education; (4) the adequacy and equity of school funding; (5) the balance between federal control through statutes, like the No Child Left Behind Act, and state control over curriculum; (6) school governance; (7) the rights and responsibilities of students; (8) traditional and novel torts in the educational environment; and (9) the rights and responsibilities of educators. Students will be required to participate actively in class, to facilitate class discussion of a selected topic, and to submit a paper which analyzes critically an important issue raised in the class. There will be no final examination. (Kaufman)
463 - Advanced Torts (3). This course will focus on many of the most rapidly developing areas of tort law. Topics addressed will be selected from the following: defamation, rights of privacy and publicity, harm to family relationships, interference with contracts, unfair competition and other business torts, and damages. (Locke)
465 - Law and Education Seminar (2). This seminar will explore the following difficult legal, philosophical and practical issues confronting education in America: (1) the uncertain boundaries between public and private education, including church-state relations, vouchers, prayer in schools and the Pledge of Allegiance; (2) the constitutional and statutory rights of students, including equal protection, desegregation, discrimination in the classroom, speech-codes, political speech and the education of students with exceptional needs and talents; (3) the constitutional and statutory rights of teachers, including employment discrimination, collective bargaining and tenure; and (4) the structure of educational governance, including the role of the federal government, local control, school board powers and even strategic planning. Students will be asked to help facilitate the class discussion of each of these topics, and will be required to prepare a meaningful research or analytical paper. There is no final examination. (Kaufman)
468 - Comparative Education Law (1). This course begins with an exploration of the legal and political structure of American education, including issues such as: (1) the role of government in mandating education; (2) the relationship between state and religion in the educational process; (3) the governance of educational institutions and the shaping of curriculum; and (4) the rights and responsibilities of teachers and students. The American legal system's resolution of these difficult issues are then compared to the resolution of these same issues by legal systems in other countries. Finally, students are asked to question the fundamental assumptions underlying the American educational system based on their understanding of different assumptions underlying the educational systems in other nations. Students are required to help to facilitate class discussions and to prepare a paper that analyzes critically an issue raised in the class. (Kaufman)
469 - Perspectives in Tort Law (3). We all know that it is not possible to cover the many problems in Tort law in the first year. This course permits us to explore those topics not covered in depth in the introductory freshman course, including Products Liability and Misrepresentation, among others. More significantly however, we will also consider difficult ethical and business problems confronted in practice. The readings for the semester include, in addition to the Prosser casebook, carefully selected essays, many of which are highly critical of the status quo. We will also hear from practitioners, members of the legislature, and the judiciary, as well as those charged with regulating the safety of consumers. I am particularly pleased that Mr. Curt Rodin, a distinguished practitioner who has previously taught at the law school, will be joining us again this semester. The course is intended to be integrative and reflective. Students will have the opportunity to do research in an area of specific interest, and to present their findings to the class. (Appel)
472 - Advanced Writing for Legal Practice (2). This course emphasizes legal analysis and concise forceful writing. Assignments include document interpretation and drafting, memorandum writing, and various law practice writing assignments. (Ehrhart, Spevack)
473 - Complex Litigation (2). This course emphasizes the advanced skills and knowledge required of a successful modern litigator. Special attention is devoted to handling public interest cases and class actions including securities problems, truth in lending issues, employment discrimination claims and mass torts claims. The course stresses the ability to successfully recognize and resolve those difficult discovery, trial, judicial management, and res judicata issues frequently encountered in cases of this nature. (Bronsteen, Michael)
476, 477 - Modern Civil Litigation I & II (2-2). Modern civil litigation has become increasingly complex due to the convergence of at least two trends. The first is the vast increase of public interest litigation; this trend requires litigators to be able to properly handle civil rights to habeas corpus cases they may take on a pro bono basis. The second trend arises because the nature of much of private litigation is much more complex than it once was; this nature usually has a nexus with many states and often creates difficult choice of law problems. (Michael)
478 - Real Estate Transactions (3). You will learn the applicable law regarding the real estate broker relationship, selling and buying real estate, financing acquisition and construction of real estate from a transactional, rather than a litigation, perspective. Our focus will be on the documents used in practice, rather than the appellate cases and statutes applicable to this field of law. The course will emphasize the commercial real estate 'deal,' although comparison with the typical residential transaction will be made in many instances.
Also, this course will be distinguished from other law school courses in that the skills needed by transactional attorneys will be emphasized. Interviewing, Negotiations and Drafting skills are essential to successful practice here.
479 - Transnational Dispute Resolution (3). We live in a world where parties from different countries frequently are forced to litigate against each other in the United States. This can be a business dispute between parties in different countries or a tort action where a U.S. citizen has been injured from a product manufactured overseas. In the alternative, federal, state, or local governmental actors may be seeking to hold accountable foreign parties through the antitrust, securities, environmental, or other regulatory laws because their conduct abroad affects the United States market and its citizens.
This course is an advanced litigation course which deals with civil cases in the United States state and federal courts that involves one or more parties from outside the United States either as plaintiff or defendant. We examine such topics as service of process, subject matter jurisdiction, personal jurisdiction, forum non conveniens, discovery, enforcement of judgments, special defenses involving foreign governments and their agents and publicly owned corporations as defendants, and alternatives to transnational litigation such as arbitration. In addition to analyzing how to deal with such issues as they arise in litigation we also take a planning perspective how to avoid many of the difficulties of transnational litigation in the first place. There are no prerequisites other than a willingness to revisit certain doctrines already discussed in Civil Procedure.
The course will focus on the problem method and use the cases, rules, and other materials to solve hypothetical and real world problems associated with litigation involving non-US parties. Each student will act as a litigant or a judge for at least one problem over the course of the semester and will submit a four page written analysis of the problem following the class room discussion of that topic. There will be a traditional in-class final exam at the end of the semester which will count for approximately 80% of the grade. The in-class problems, the written analysis, attendance and other class room performance will account for the remainder of the grade.
The required books are Baldwin, Brand, Epstein & Gordon, International Civil Dispute Resolution: A Problem Oriented Coursebook and the accompanying Document Supplement. There is a also a TWEN site for this course for which you must register. Handouts, announcements and discussion threads for the course will be posted on the TWEN site and it will be your responsibility to check the TWEN site on a regular basis. Participation in discussions on the TWEN site will be considered the same as class participation for grading purposes. (Waller)
480 - Business Planning (2).
481 - Employee Benefits Law (2). This course examines areas from pension and profit sharing plans to executive compensation arrangements to health and medical plans. It analyzes the tax, corporate, labor, bankruptcy, and securities consequences both to the employee and the employer and focuses upon the various considerations of which the attorney should be aware when designing plans, as well as when advising clients in the context of employee benefits litigation and corporate acquisitions and divestitures. (London)
483 - Federal Tax Clinic (4). The purpose of the Federal Tax Clinic is to educate the student in the practice of federal tax law and dispute resolution before the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the United States Tax Court. The tax clinic is neither exclusively a "skills center" nor a "theory center." Instead, all the numerous components of tax law practice are integrated in the curriculum of both classroom study and legal practice with actual clients. Some of the subjects include client interviewing and counseling, negotiations, and tax litigation. Students handle cases at the IRS and Tax Court level on a clinical basis and, with the clinic attorneys, prepare all appropriate written responses to the IRS, prepare Tax Court petitions, and litigate tax cases. Federal Income Tax is a prerequisite, and Tax Procedure and Litigation is a pre- or co-requisite. (Pavlik)
For more information about the Federal Tax Clinic, click here.
484 - Senior Tax Seminar (3). The purposes of this seminar are to develop federal tax research skills, to refine analytical abilities previously developed in earlier federal tax and other law courses, and to improve the legal writing skills of students nearing graduation. The primary goal is to prepare a manuscript of publishable quality with respect to a particular substantive issue in the federal tax field. Students submit an outline and multiple drafts at designated points during the semester and make a presentation at the end. Permission of the instructor is required. (Kwall, Rhodes)
488 - Advanced Issues in Domestic Relations Law (). This course addresses the practical application of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act and related statutes. Topics will focus on developing the skills necessary to excel in domestic relations practice such as strategic planning for a dissolution of marriage case, complex financial analysis, developing and maintaining the attorney client relationship, practical drafting skills, and oral argument skills. (Vaughn)
489 - Jurisprudence: Perspectives on the Law and Justice (2). Many students are attracted to law school and to the practice of law because they want to do good - because they are committed to advancing the cause of justice. At the same time, many students find that their interest in justice is not nurtured during the course of their legal education. Indeed, particularly in the first-year of study, students are taught to distance themselves from many of their own deeply held beliefs concerning justice and fairness. They are trained to put to one side (if not to entirely disregard) these beliefs when reading cases, statutes, and legal rules.
The critical distance achieved by bracketing one's own beliefs serves an important pedagogic goal in that it allows the student to focus on the technical aspects of legal doctrine in a dispassionate way - to grasp the legal principle at work, and to see how it relates both to other principles and to the facts of the case at hand. At the same time, however, many students understandably find this process to be disconcerting. They experience a jarring sense of intellectual dissonance in that their legal education seems to separate them from the very reasons that led them to law school in the first place.
The goal of this course is to serve as an antidote for this disconnect. In it, students will have an opportunity to examine in a rigorous fashion some of the most basic questions about the nature of justice and its relationship to law: What is the nature of law and legal obligation? Where do rights come from? What is the relationship between law and morality? How do legal institutions affect the disposition of justice? How can the law reconcile the desire for greater individual freedom with the need for public order?
The means through which we will examine these and other questions will be through a careful reading of materials drawn from a variety of schools of legal thought: Law and Economics, Legal Realism, Legal Positivism, Critical Legal Studies, Liberal Legal Theory and the Natural Law Tradition. Indeed, the authors that we will study include the most influential thinkers in the development of law and legal theory.
The course will not, however, be a rote history of Western legal philosophy or a mere exercise in the study of abstract ideas. Law is a practical art, and legal concepts and theories have meaning in application. Indeed, they are best understood when their consequences are laid bare. Thus, in conjunction with the various works of legal theory described above, students will also read a number of cases that will help them examine the meaning of these theories in concrete terms. Thus, students should emerge from the course not only with a better understanding of justice, but with an understanding of what their beliefs might mean in the practice of law. (Breen)
496 - Client Counseling and Negotiations (2). This course is designed to develop skills used by lawyers in their roles as client interviewer, counselor and negotiator. Emphasis is on class participation. The first hour of each class is devoted to lecture/discussion of the covered topics. During the second hour students participate in practice problems which emphasize the skills taught in the first hour. Students are graded on the following: written paper, one videotaped out of class problem, and class participation. Because of the heavy emphasis on class participation, the class is limited to 16 students. (Suder)
