Course Descriptions
503 - Legal Analysis and Writing Enhancement (1).
This is a skills course in which students are introduced to analytical and writing techniques for taking both the essay portion and performance portion of the bar exam. This course also addresses practical tools for taking the bar exam. During this seven-week course, students write both essays and performance questions under time constraints and receive written feedback on their answers. In-class discussion of the questions is an important part of the course. Although there is no required text, class participation is necessary. This class is recommended for students in their last year of law school, but is open to anyone. (Reddick)
504 - Comparative Perspectives on Patent Law, Policy & Health Care (2-3). This course will explore the intersection of patent policies and policies that promote health care and research. The fundamentals of national patent laws and international agreements will be discussed, as well as how they are applied to areas that impact health care directly or indirectly, including patents on drugs and devices and methods of treating patients.
506 - Patent Prosecution Seminar (2). This course offers an introduction to the art and science of preparing patent applications and prosecuting patent applications in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. While a discussion of selected statutory requirements and Patent Office rules will be incorporated in the lectures, the focus of the course will be on hands-on drafting and strategy. In-class exercises and homework assignments include drafting claims and various parts of a patent application, as well as preparing responses to Office Actions. There are no pre-requisites for this course, although a technical background or comfort with describing technology would be desirable. (Hetz/Genin)
The federal courts play a central role in upholding the rule of law in this country. They galvanized the civil rights movement, and they continue to protect the most vulnerable members of society by virtue of their independence from political pressures. But unlike state courts, federal courts hear only certain cases -- the ones they are authorized to decide under Article III of the U.S. Constitution -- and the limits of federal courts' jurisdiction are a topic of intense dispute. Whether people have broad or narrow access to these courts deeply affects the extent to which important rights are protected. We will explore this issue first by considering the "case or controversy" requirement of Article III and its attendant doctrines of standing, ripeness, and mootness. We will then address sovereign immunity, a doctrine that limits lawsuits against the federal and state governments. In addition, we will cover abstention, the idea that courts should choose not to resolve some of the cases that fall within their Article III powers. These and other topics will help us reach informed judgments about the proper extent of access to the federal courts. (Bronsteen, Michael)
514 - Virtual Justice (3). This course examines the ways in which technology, particularly the electronic media; alter the structure of legal reasoning. The switch from printed cases to the Internet and from the oral testimony of an eyewitness to video recordings of an actual event typifies these changes. By combining jurisprudence with media theory we will discover: how changes in scientific theory and media affect a jury's perception and judgement; how technology affects the role of judges, juries and lawyers; and whether the choice of media favors the plaintiff or the defendant.
We will dissect the use of video, audio and graphic evidence in significant cases, and apply the principles of media and perception in short individual projects that document legal or factual issues in a variety of legal specialties. Small teams of students will produce a 2-5 minute video1 concerning an assigned case or statute. The video project includes script writing, other preproduction activities, document drafting, elements of design, acting, soundtrack creation and editing.
The class is not a traditional course concerning the rules of evidence. Students who think visually, and those with backgrounds in science, art, acting, broadcasting, journalism, film, computer technology, or an interest in how people process information and make judgments will find the course helpful. The grade is based on a take home final, the class projects and the video. (Lepow)
1Video production requires a group effort. Thus, class members will participate in the video projects of others as well as their own. We will not necessarily create artistic works but will learn how to work with non-lawyers in creating demonstrative evidence as well as when to object to the submission of an opponent's graphic or video evidence.
516 - Victim's Rights (2). "Justice must not be for one side alone, but must be for both." - Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962)
This course explores the legal rights and remedies of people victimized by violent crime in our society with an emphasis on adult victims of violent crime. First, students will discuss the history of the victims' rights movement and the creation of statutory and constitutional rights of victims of crime at both the state and federal level. Understanding these rights, students will focus on how these rights are afforded to victims and enforced by the justice system. The last section will focus on victim interface with law enforcement, prosecution, courts and corrections, compares the experiences of victims of specific crime types and identifies services needed to assist victims, and their families, in rebuilding their lives. (Kuhn)
519 - National Security Law: Terrorism, Intelligence, and Law Enforcement (2).
This course is an introduction to several topical areas of national security law. Students will first learn the fundamentals of the government’s national security powers, which include issues surrounding separation of powers and government roles implicated by foreign relations. The next phase of the course focuses on the origins and evolving limitations of intelligence operations. The intelligence component of the course includes identifying the roles of various intelligence agencies, such as the DIA and NSA, as well as analyzing legal problems connected to the intelligence field. Encompassed in the intelligence component is discussion about law enforcement’s role as related to intelligence and about access to national security information. The intelligence component segues into the coordination of terrorism investigations and related issues, such as the criminalization of terrorism, material support crimes, and Fourth Amendment considerations. The class will not require a final exam, but will include a ten-page final paper. (O'Malley)
521 - International Sales Law (1).
The course focuses on the law governing the international sales of goods, with a particular emphasis on the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sales of Goods (the "CISG"). Topics including the scope of the CISG, contract formation under the CISG, buyers' and sellers' performance obligations under the CISG are compared and contrasted with corresponding approaches under British and American law (particularly with regard to Article 2 of the American Uniform Commercial Code). Attention is also paid to risk-of-loss issues arising in relation to the International Chamber of Commerce's commercial delivery terms ("incoterms"). (Williams)The aim of this seminar is to see what can be learned about the law from literature; that is, to study the law poetically. The assigned readings vary, but the following have been used in past offerings: Sophocles, Antigone; Plato, Apology, Meno; Shakespeare, Measure for Measure, The Merchant of Venice; Melville, Billy Budd; Arthur Miller, The Crucible; Robert Bolt, A Man For All Seasons, The Pentateuch; Milton, Paradise Lost. Papers are written; there is no final examination. No prerequisites. (Berlin)
This course concentrates on Articles 2 and 2A of the Uniform Commercial Code and other state and federal statutes covering the sale or lease of goods. In addition, the course examines selected provisions of the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG). Among the topics are the formation of contracts, including offer and acceptance, statute of frauds, and the "battle of the forms"; terms of sales contracts, including express and statutory terms, price, quantity, payment, delivery, and risk of loss; warranties, express and implied; disclaimers of, and defenses to, warranties; acceptance, rejection, revocation; buyers' and sellers' remedies for breach. (Breen, Krivinskas-Shepard, Williams)
527 - Government Regulation and the Marketplace (2)
. This seminar examines the legal aspects of regulatory/deregulatory theory and practice. Regulation "in the public interest" involves, among other things, law, economics, science, and consumer protection. It ranges from the normal rules of commerce to detailed government systems which manage major industries (telecom, energy, pharmaceuticals, finance, etc) or aspects of industries (environmental protection). Influenced by international events (the privatization of former European government-run businesses) and changes in social thought (e.g., the "Chicago School" of economics) traditional regulation has gradually been replaced by forms of "regulation-lite" (combinations of antitrust law, market based "incentive" schemes and other innovative methods). Some claim these trends produce vast efficiency gains and consumer benefits; others point to the devastating economic and social costs of the spectacular failures of the Savings and Loan industry, Enron and Worldcom. This seminar explores the fundamentals of regulation, its operation, its innovations and their results. The first ten weeks will cover basic concepts and feature prominent guest speakers. Students will prepare research papers, applying the concepts to actual industry examples and present their analysis to the class. (Bloom, Waller)
532 - Law and War: Regulating Conflict (2).
This seminar investigates whether and how the laws of war constrain different actors. This class will provide a brief historical overview of the development of the laws of war as well as an exploration of its multiple and sometimes competing purposes. Questions about enforcement, compliance, and the role of law in influencing state behavior will likely predominate. Each week, we will explore these questions in the context of American involvement in recent disputes such as Iraq and Afghanistan and its war against terrorism more broadly. We will also look at domestic implementation of the laws of war with a focus on American statutes, court cases, and military manuals.
539 - Legal History of Civil Rights.
This seminar explores various topics in the ancient and recent history of civil rights law. The primary emphasis is on considerations of law, policy, and culture surrounding issues like race, gender, immigration, and children's rights. In considering the various areas of study, careful attention is given to the role of the three branches of government in protecting the liberty and equality of citizens. The assessment includes a careful analysis of the implications of federalism to determining the extent of governmental authority. The course also analyzes whether civil rights advances are primarily pragmatic or principled. (Tsesis)
542 - Trademark Law Seminar (2).
This course builds upon the trademark concepts discussed in the intellectual property survey class. The focus of the class will be an advanced and applied understanding of trademark law. The course will cover various areas of trademark law and practice, including clearance and prosecution of trademarks, as well as infringement, dilution and licensing. The final grade will be based upon class participation, and assignments, including a final project; there will be no final exam. Prerequisite: Intellectual Property or permission of instructor. (Nanette Norton)
554 - Family Law Practicum (1).
Students in this practicum will administer a skills component of the traditional Family Law foundational course, focusing specifically on the drafting of an antenuptial agreement in a complex case hypothetical. Practicum students will serve as clients in the drafting exercise. In this capacity, students will meet face-to-face with the collective group of student attorneys representing each client and engage in ongoing, timely and detailed electronic communication with student attorney teams throughout the course of the skills exercise. Practicum students will also assist in evaluating the client counseling facet of the exercise, and in reviewing each prenup for its substantive terms. Each practicum student will spend approximately 40 hours engaged in work related to the exercise. Students may enroll in this practicum only with permission from the instructor. (Coupet)
555 - Patents, Academic Research, Health and Public Policy (2). Academic research has a critical role to play in the biomedical innovation of today and the healthcare interventions of tomorrow - this relationship, and the laws and policies intended to facilitate it, is what this course fundamentally aims to explore. This course examines the legal and cultural issues involved with a changing environment in academic research, as well as the impacts those changes have on innovation, as well as access, with a special focus on healthcare products and services. The laws and policies of the United States, as well as the practices of university technology transfer offices will be considered and contrasted with the actual and proposed laws and practices of other countries.
This course should be of interest to students with an interest in how health care products are developed beyond the private sector, students interested in domestic patent law, as well as students with an interest in comparative law.
Students will be graded based on class participation, as well as written and oral projects and presentations. There will not be a final examination.
556 - Alternate Dispute Resolution (2).
Class focus will be on the mediation and collaborative law aspects of Alternative Dispute Resolution, emphasizing collaborative law as a cutting edge direction in ADR, in particular the application of these techniques to the area of family law. This course will provide students with the opportunity to gain practical knowledge and familiarity with these methods as alternatives to litigation, information that can be extrapolated to all areas of the law in which disputes may be resolved. Classes will include lectures, role-playing, and outcome-based actual case studies. (Coupet, Moritz)
557 - The Law of Risk Management (3). In ways that vary from federal assistance to hurricane victims, to governmental health care programs to commercial insurance, risk management has become a vital component of the American economy. Life insurance, Medicare, FEMA and commercial litigation all represent components of an extensive public undertaking to manage risks of financial loss. To counsel and represent clients appropriately in connection with this part of the economy, it is often necessary to view issues from an unusual perspective, to "follow the loss" rather than "follow the money." This course provides a broad overview of the law of risk management, introducing students to ways in which the quantification of financial risks, the spreading of financial risk and other insurance concepts have been employed by courts and other governmental authorities to manage the financial risks faced by citizens.
This course will require students to review and discuss certain case law, as in many law school courses. It will also require students to review certain statutes and to acquire a facility in the analysis of statutes separately from case law. And it will require students to examine certain executive orders and the history of such orders. Some of the evaluation of each student's performance will be based on one or more short papers assigned during the term, and some will be based on a final examination. (Herbert)
568 - European Union Law (3). The course is designed as a general introduction to the legal system of the European Union. It covers both its constitutional and institutional structure and focuses on specific key areas of substantive law. It starts by introducing the history and sources of the European Union's legal order, and then moves into the EU's legislative process, where it concentrates on the political and legislative functions of the various institutions and the division of competences between the EU and its Member States. The course pays particular attention to the role of the judiciary in shaping the EU's legal order. The European Court of Justice developed the fundamental notions of direct effect and supremacy of European law. Those notions, through which rights are created for European citizens, are examined, and the course subsequently turns to how those rights can be enforced. The course will also examine the ongoing effort to adopt a constitution for Europe. Throughout, the class explores policy, as well as legal considerations, and comes in close contact with EU cases and materials.
569 - Securities and Exchange Commission Enforcement Procedures Seminar (2). This course will examine the enforcement of the federal securities laws from the perspectives of both the Securities and Exchange Commission and defense counsel. We will examine the SEC's investigative process, including the taking and defending of testimony; and will examine selective types of securities fraud investigations, including accounting fraud, insider trading, and stock options back dating. We will also evaluate the role of auditors and in-house counsel in detecting and preventing securities fraud, and remedies available to the SEC; the settlement process; and collateral actions by other civil and criminal authorities.
The required weekly reading will consist of recent enforcement cases, rulemaking, related statutes, law review articles and other commentary. Most classes will begin with a short discussion of recent developments. Standard reading materials will be supplemented with additional handouts in class as significant developments occur throughout the semester. Guest instructors may be used to address specific topics throughout the semester. (Cunningham/Wiggins)
577 - Employment Law Counseling (3).
This will be a practical class designed to develop counseling skills in the representation of employees and employers, with an emphasis on assisting employers in complying with the major state and federal laws governing the workplace. The goal is to prepare you to provide clear and considered advice to clients in an effort to minimize the personal and business risks and costs associated with employment litigation. Topics covered include: (1) interviewing and counseling employment law clients; (2) recognizing the legal and practical aspects of employment issues to help clients make appropriate decisions; (3) identifying alternative solutions to workplace problems; (4) reviewing and drafting key employment documents, including handbooks, contracts, and personnel records; (5) handling discipline and termination cases; (6) managing the workplace crisis, including counseling employers on how to investigate and respond to whistle-blower complaints or complaints of harassment and discrimination; (7) training employees and managers on employment law compliance issues; and (8) strategies for dealing with common issues under state and federal worker protection laws such as the ADA, FMLA and FLSA. (Cripe)
583 - Externship - ChildLaw (2, 3). A student who has completed 51 semester hours may receive one or two hours of credit per semester for supervised work done in an approved placement site which will enhance the student's understanding of legal issues as they relate to children. Click here to download the Externship Packets. (Adobe PDF)
584 - Externship - Health Law (2, 3). Students who have completed 51 credit hours are eligible to serve as Health Law externs. The Loyola Health Law Externship Program is designed to provide students with practical experience under the supervision of a practicing attorney or health care professional dealing with legal matters and a supervising attorney from the School of Law. Click here to download the Externship Packets. (Adobe PDF)
585 - Externship - Corporate (2, 3). A student who has completed 51 hours may receive two or three hours of credit per semester for supervised work done in an approved placement site which will enhance the student's understanding of corporate legal issues. Click here to download the Externship Packets. (Adobe PDF)
587 - Externship - Criminal (2, 3). A student who has completed 51 hours may receive two or three hours of credit per semester for supervised work done in an approved placement site which will enhance the student's understanding of criminal legal issues. (Faught) Click here to download the Externship Packets. (Adobe PDF)
588 - Externship - Government/Agency (2, 3). A student who has completed 51 hours may receive two or three hours of credit per semester for supervised work done in an approved placement site which will enhance the student's understanding of the practice in state or federal government offices or in a variety of public service agencies. Click here to download the Externship Packets. (Adobe PDF)
589 - Externship - Judicial (2, 3). A student after the first year may receive two or three hours of credit per semester for supervised work done in chambers under the supervision of a federal judge and his or her clerks. (Faught) Click here to download the Externship Packets. (Adobe PDF)
592 - Independent Research (1 or 2). With the consent of a faculty member supervising the research, a student may earn one or two units of ungraded credit. The scope and subject is arranged between the student and the faculty member. It is expected that for each hour of academic credit the student will produce a scholarly work of publishable quality of approximately 30 pages in length. The project that is the subject of the Independent Research must be completed during the semester in which the registration occurs. (For additional requirements see the associate dean.) Click here to download the Independent Research approval forms. (Adobe PDF)
594 - Directed Study (1-2). A student may earn up to two units of ungraded credit for undertaking a research project for a faculty member. The scope and subject is chosen by the faculty member, who exercises control over the project. It is expected that for each hour of academic credit the student will engage in substantial legal work for at least sixty (60) hours during the semester. The project that is the subject of the Directed Study must be completed during the semester in which the registration occurs. (For additional requirements see the associate dean.) Click here to download the Directed Study approval forms. (Adobe PDF)
595 - Community Law Center Clinic (4). The Community Law Center Clinic (LUCLC) course is designed to teach students the essential skills involved in the practice of law, including client interviewing and counseling, hearing advocacy, negotiation and practice management. These skills are taught in conjunction with the representation by students of clients in civil cases under the supervision of the law school's clinical faculty. The Law Center is located in Room 202 of the law school.
Students who enroll in the clinic course must be available to be in the clinic either one morning or one afternoon each week (Monday-Friday). The course also has a classroom component that meets each Wednesday from noon to 2 p.m. The purpose of the classroom component is to provide students with a theoretical overview of the lawyering skills that they perform at the clinic. In addition to regular clinic hours and classroom work, clinic students work on their cases during an additional 6 hours a week, most of this work done on the student's own time. Any student who has completed the first year of law school can enroll in the clinic course.
Students in the LUCLC represent clients in civil cases involving landlord/tenant, family and elder law problems. Many of LUCLC's clients are low income persons. Serving persons who cannot afford legal services sensitizes students to the special ways that the law affects the lives of the indigent.
Another important aspect of the LUCLC course is the opportunity for students to develop their own sense of the lawyer's professional role. Students experience the complexity of the attorney-client relationship and the myriad ethical dimensions of lawyering. Students are exposed for the first time to the conflicts, frustrations and rewards inherent in legal practice.
Enrollment in the Community Law Center Clinic course also helps students prepare for the performance tests that have been added to many state bar examinations, including Illinois. The skills that these performance tests measure are the same skills that students learn through their client representation.
The Community Law Center Clinic course is an excellent bridge from the law school classroom to the law office. It allows students to begin to learn how to practice law in a reflective environment. (Ceko)
- For more information about the Community Law Center Clinic, click here.
