CURRICULUM

Course Descriptions: Constitutional Law and Civil Rights

380 Constitutional Law II (3 or 4) 
Barron, Colby, Dienes, Rosen

Individual rights and liberties in the U.S. constitutional scheme and the differ-ent judicial methods of reconciling majoritarian governance with individual freedom. Privileges and immunities of national citizenship, due process of law, equal protection guarantees, freedom of expression and of religion, rights of privacy and association. Credit may not be earned for both Law 380 and 381. (Examination)


382 The First Amendment (3) 
Barron

The rights of expression, association, and religious freedom recognized by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Categories of unprotected ex-pression (e.g., obscenity) and less-protected expression (e.g., commercial speech). Issues of time/place/manner regulation, speech in public fora, regu-lation of political campaigns. Constitutional burdens and benefits unique to religion. Material includes Supreme Court decisions and secondary literature on these subjects. (Examination)


383 Counterterrorism Law (2) 
Letter

Analysis of legal mechanisms in the fields of criminal, civil, military, immi-gration, and administrative law used by the U.S. government to combat domestic and international terrorism. The effectiveness of government ac-tions and alternatives for achieving public safety goals; the effect of such actions on U.S. citizens and citizens of other countries; and the reaction of federal courts and Congress to executive branch actions. Credit may not be earned for both Law 383 and 386. (Take-home examination)


384 Law of Separation of Powers (3) 
Peterson

An examination of the law that governs the interrelations of the three branches of the federal government. Topics include the constitutional history of our governmental structure, the immunities of members of Congress and of executive officers, impeachment, congressional power over federal juris-diction, executive orders and the limits of presidential “lawmaking,” presiden-tial and legislative vetoes, executive privilege, executive and congressional oversight of policy through supervision of the bureaucracy, controls on spending including impoundment, limits on presidential discretion to enforce the laws (e.g., special prosecutors), Congress’s and the president’s roles in foreign affairs (executive agreements, claims settlements, treaty powers), and congressional and presidential war powers. Emphasis will be placed on the role of the lawyer as government adviser, a role performed by many at-torneys at all levels of government. (Examination)


385 U.S. Foreign Relations Law (2 or 3) 
Anderson

The nature and origins of the federal government’s foreign relations pow-ers; cooperation and competition between the executive and legislative branches; the role of the courts in foreign affairs; limitations on state pow-ers touching on foreign affairs; treaties, executive agreements, and cus-tomary international law and their relationship to U.S. domestic law; the extraterritorial application of U.S. law; and sovereign and official immuni-ties. Credit may not be earned for both Law 385 and 399. (Examination)


386 National Security Law (2 or 3) 
Raven-Hansen

U.S. law (and incorporated international law) affecting national security, including the use of armed force abroad (general war, defensive war and reprisal, peace and stabilization operations); intelligence operations abroad (history, organization and oversight, legal issues in the field); counterterrorism (criminalization of sedition, terrorism, and material sup-port, screening and profiling, investigation and surveillance, apprehen-sion, detention, interrogation, prosecution, uses of the military, conse-quence management, bioterrorism, continuity of government); and access to and protection of classified information (classification, FOIA, state se-crets privilege, leak control, prior restraints on publication). Credit may not be earned for both Law 383 and 399. (Examination)


387 Voting Rights Law (2) 
McCrary, Pershing

Cases and materials on the right to vote in the United States. Major deci-sions on apportionment, political participation, and race as an issue in rep-resentation. Emphasis on the Voting Rights Act of 1965, including minority vote dilution litigation under Section 2, federal review of voting procedures under Section 5, and recent constitutional challenges to voting rights reme-dies. Other topics include partisan gerrymandering, the initiative and refer-endum processes, alternative election systems, the changing law of redis-tricting, the impact of shifts in census policy, and the litigation over the 2000 presidential election. (Examination)


388 Civil Rights Legislation (3) 
Overton

Examination of federal legislation protecting individual rights and liberties as well as the administrative and judicial implementation of that legislation. Remedial provisions for the enforcement of federal constitutional and statu-tory rights (e.g., 42 U.S.C. §§1983, 1985) and federal statutes prohibiting discrimination in housing, contractual relations, voting, education, and fed-erally funded programs. Prerequisite: Law 380 or 381. (Examination or take-home examination)


389 Higher Education Law (2) 
Bell

Examination of legal issues concerning institutions of higher education, including intellectual property, labor relations, privacy, affirmative action, and land use. Governance structures of public and private institutions, and the relationship between the institution and faculty, staff, students, the community, and state and federal government. (Take-home examination)


390 Employment Discrimination Law (2 or 3) 
Craver, Morris

Federal laws and executive orders relating to various types of discrimina-tion in employment, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Civil Rights Act of 1991, the Equal Pay Act, the Age Discrimination in Em-ployment Act, the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the Fourteenth Amendment, the National La-bor Relations Act, and Executive Orders 11,246 and 11,375 relating to government contractors; substantive rights, exemptions, and burdens of proof under the various laws and regulations. (Examination)


391 Asian Americans and the Law (2) 
Baldillo, Eng

How U.S. laws have affected the Asian American experience, and ways in which the Asian American experience has shaped U.S. law. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882; the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II; Immigration Act reforms of 1965. Issues of hate crimes, ra-cial profiling, bilingual education, and language rights. (Research paper)


392 Gender Discrimination and the Law (2) 
Ridder

An examination of the treatment of women in all areas of the law and legal remedies for sex discrimination. Emphasis on constitutional law, family law, and discrimination in employment. Enrollment limited to 30 students. (Examination or research paper)


394 Sexuality and the Law (2 or 3) 
Schaffner

Examination of the relationship between sexuality and the law, focusing primarily on the treatment of lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals in the areas of family law, employment law, constitutional law, and criminal law. Topics include how the legal system regulates and affects bisexual, lesbian, and gay sexual behavior; open expressions of lesbian, gay, and bisexual iden-tity; workplace effects; lesbian, gay, and bisexual relationships; and lesbian and gay parenting. (Examination)


395 Constitutional Law and the Supreme Court (2) 
Turley

Analysis of selected cases currently pending before the Supreme Court. Students read briefs and related materials (such as lower court decisions and controlling cases) in cases scheduled for oral argument, discuss the cases in class, vote on how they would decide the cases, and then draft opinions for class circulation and review. Each student will be required to draft two lengthy majority opinions, a concurrence, and a dissent. The course will also focus on how the Supreme Court works both as an institu-tional and practical matter. (Writing assignments)


396  Homeland Security Law and Policy (2) 
Koenig, Roberts, Whitley

Legal issues related to homeland security before September 11, 2001, and the adoption of the Homeland Security Act of 2002. Protection of criti-cal infrastructure; information sharing; liability for terrorist attacks; risk in-surance; attempts to prevent the use of weapons of mass destruction; threats to electronic infrastructure; and combating the financing of terror-ism. (Examination)


397 Federal Indian Law (2) 
Alexander

Basic legal principles that govern the relationship between American In-dian tribes, the federal government, and the state governments. Focus on jurisdictional disputes between those governments, the source and scope of Indian sovereignty, and recognition and enforcement of Indian land and treaty rights. (Examination or research paper with permission of the in-structor)


398 Law of Privacy (2) 

A review of the law of privacy as it has developed in constitutional litiga-tion, tort law, and state and federal statutes. Current developments and rationales
for further expansions of privacy rights are considered. (Research paper)


399 Constitutional Law Seminar (2) 
Duffy, Rosen, Ross, Gunn, Peck

Selected topics in constitutional law to be announced at the time of regis-tration. Enrollment is limited. (Research paper)