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Summer 2015 Class Descriptions: Electives

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Child Advocacy Clinic: Delinquency I & (LWVL503)

Instructor(s): Robert Fellmeth

2-4 credit(s), H/P/L/F Graded
Requirement(s): Skills
Concentration(s): Public Interest Law (JD)

tudents work with assigned attorneys from the San Diego Office of the Public Defender, representing juveniles in delinquency court proceedings. Students are exposed to a wide variety of experiences, such as interviewing their minor clients; preparing briefs and motions; participating in hearings and conferences; coordinating with probation officers, investigators, etc.; and making court appearances as necessary and appropriate. Delinquency Clinic students must commit 20 hours per week to their Clinic work, and there is an additional one-hour classroom component each week. Students must have completed or be enrolled in Evidence, Civil Procedure and Child Rights and Remedies. Clinic slots are limited; students must obtain a permission slip from Professor Robert Fellmeth or Elisa Weichel before registering for the course.

Note: This clinic may be applied as the required clinic for the Children's Rights Concentration (JD).

Comparative Law - Paris (LWYP528)

Instructor(s): Staff

2 credit(s), Letter Graded
Concentration(s): International Law (JD), Study Abroad (JD), International Law (LLMUS), LLM in International Law (LLMI)

Most courses in law school are about U.S. law. This course is different as it focuses on foreign law. Obviously, foreign law matters to all U.S. lawyers operating on the international scene, for example in international business or in international arbitration. And just as evidently, foreign law is very important within national law. Indeed, a huge quantity of legal situations in the U.S. involve foreign law (whether it be a contract entered into in New York governed by German law or a deceased person from San Francisco bequeathing real estate in France or the victims of a massive chemical explosion in India suing in U.S. courts). More controversially, there are those (including a number of U.S. Supreme Court Justices) who claim that, in an age of globalization when the U.S. is more interconnected with the rest of the world than ever before, U.S. law ought to derive inspiration from foreign law, for instance in constitutional litigation involving the death penalty or the rights of sexual minorities. This course will apply itself to this debate and discuss to what extent foreign law can or must act as persuasive authority. It will also consider two primordial questions. First, how could a U.S. lawyer get to know foreign law despite all the cultural differences arising across laws? Secondly, to what extent is meaningful understanding of foreign law possible? As regards these issues, various theoretical topics will be raised from an interdisciplinary perspective and some case-studies pertaining to human rights will be considered. The final exam will be held on Saturday, June 27, 2015 at 9:00 am.

Note: Class meets M,T,W, TH & F from 11:30 am – 1:10 pm

Evidence (LWLP529)

Instructor(s): Staff

4 credit(s), Letter Graded
Concentration(s): Civil Litigation (JD), Criminal Litigation (JD), Criminal Law (LLMUS), Criminal Law (LLMG)

The rules of evidence in judicial tribunals, focusing on the Federal Rules of Evidence and the California Evidence Code are addressed in this course. Also covered are issues relating to: (1) judicial control and administration - functions of judge and jury, judicial notice, burden of proof presumptions, problems of relevancy, circumstantial evidence, and unfair prejudice; and (2) witnesses - competency, privileges, principles of examination and cross-examination, impeachment and support, expert and lay opinion testimony. The hearsay rule and its exceptions, rules relating to writings, real and scientific evidence are also examined.

Intellectual Property & Business (LWIP572)

Instructor(s): Ted Sichelman

3 credit(s), Letter Graded
Requirement(s): Writing
Concentration(s): Business and Corporate Law (JD), Intellectual Property (JD), LLM in Business and Corporate Law (LLMB), Business and Corporate Law (LLMUS), Intellectual Property (LLMUS), Intellectual Property Law (LLMG)
Recommended Class(es): IP Survey or any course in patent law

The best intellectual property and tech-focused corporate lawyers have a thorough understanding of the ways clients use and are affected by IP in their daily business. This seminar will provide an introduction to how patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets (1) are used by IP owners to further their business strategies and (2) affect non-IP owners, who must often license IP rights at substantial cost. Specific topics include: the role of trademarks in promoting product “branding”; the use of patents in commercializing inventions; the effects of trade secrecy on R & D investment and employee mobility; IP and the emerging field of “microinnovation”; the effects of copyright on Internet business models; the use of IP by startup companies; private markets for buying, selling, and licensing IP rights; the role of patents in biotech deals; copyrights in the entertainment industry; and trademarks and “luxury” goods. The course will be co-taught by a law professor (Sichelman) and a business school professor (Saucet). The majority of the course will consist of lectures and classroom discussions. The only assignment is a paper, which students will present at the end of the course. Prerequisites: None. Either a course in intellectual property law or some work experience at a technology company is recommended, but not required.

International Business Transactions - London (LWYL539)

Instructor(s): Staff

3 credit(s), Letter Graded
Concentration(s): International Law (JD), Study Abroad (JD), International Law (LLMUS), LLM in International Law (LLMI)

National and international laws that apply to international business transactions, like international sales law, letters of credit, international litigation and commercial arbitration, import and export controls, intellectual property licensing and distributorships, and foreign direct investment. The final exam will be held on Friday, July 24, 2015 at 9:00 am.

Note: Class meets M,T,W, TH & F from 9:00 am – 11:15 am. This class may count as a required course for the International Law Concentration (JD)

International Commercial Negotiations - London (LWYF554)

Instructor(s): Allen Snyder

2 credit(s), Letter Graded
Requirement(s): Skills
Concentration(s): International Law (JD), Study Abroad (JD)

Skills and theory of both competitive and cooperative international commercial negotiating will be taught with simulations and discussions based on readings and current commercial disputes.  The final exam will be held on Saturday, July 25, 2015 at 9:00 am.

Note: Class meets M, T, W, Th & F from 11:25 am – 12:55 pm.

International Human Rights - Paris (LWYP550)

Instructor(s): Dustin Sharp

3 credit(s), Letter Graded
Concentration(s): International Law (JD), Study Abroad (JD)

In the brief span of 60 years, the idea of human rights has grown tremendously. What began as a marginal utopian discourse has today arguably become “the dominant moral narrative for thinking about world affairs.” At the same time, rights remain controversial and contested, and gaps in enforcement of human rights norms are conspicuous. This course examines the actors, organizations and ideas behind these developments, as well as the vast challenges we face today in attempting to enforce human rights norms globally. The course begins by examining the philosophical and political bases for the international human rights idea, probing the ongoing debate over universality, culture, and human rights. As part of this inquiry, we also examine the normative pillars of international human rights law. In the second part of the course, we will analyze various dimensions and challenges of human rights enforcement, including the main United Nations and regional human rights systems, prosecutions and transitional justice, the advocacy work of NGOs and human rights activists, and the new concept of the “responsibility to protect,” or R2P. In the final part of the semester, we will engage in a more in-depth examination of several distinct human rights issues, including torture and women’s rights. In all this, the course aims to provide students with knowledge of human rights at the level of intellectual theory and discourse, as well as a realm of concrete, “real world” action, controversy, and struggle.  The final exam will be held on Friday, June 26, 2015 at 9:00 am.

Note: Class meets M, T, W, TH & F from 9:00 am – 11:15 am