Accounting for Lawyers
In this course students learn why financial accounting is a system for measuring and communicating the outcomes of business activities to parties outside the firm. The purposes of this course are to: (1) provide students with a basic understanding of the concepts and principles (i.e., the jargon) underlying financial accounting practices; (2) make students comfortable with financial data (in particular, opening a 10K or annual report); (3) enable students to have a conversation with accountants; and (4) provide students with the technical tools and references to analyze how a particular transaction affects a firm’s financial statements.CERT 901Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Administrative Law
This course is an introduction to the law of the administrative state—to the constitutional, statutory and judge-made rules governing what agencies may do, the procedures they must follow, and how they can be held to account. Topics include mechanisms for control of agencies by the legislative and executive branches; the constitutional basis for, and limits on, governance by agencies; the availability and effects of judicial review over agency action; and the features of agency rulemaking and adjudication.BAR 901Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Advanced Appellate Advocacy
The primary goal of this course is to prepare students to be effective appellate lawyers, in any practice setting as well as in moot court competitions. This upper-level advanced skills course focuses on appellate theory, standard of review, advanced appellate brief writing, and the art of appellate oral argument. The course is designed to build upon the legal research and writing skills learned in the 1L curriculum; to hone and refine writing, research, and oral advocacy skills; and to develop the judgment necessary to be exceptional appellate advocates. Students will work with a partner to prepare a simulated appeal, and will be responsible for analyzing a record on appeal, developing core themes, telling a persuasive story, crafting persuasive arguments, and presenting those stories and arguments in both an appellate brief and in an oral argument. Student work will culminate in a final appellate brief and a series of oral arguments.EXPSK 901Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 2
Advanced Clinic
Students who have successfully completed a clinic course may be eligible to apply for Advanced Clinic, with faculty approval. This second-semester clinic course is designed to significantly advance the student’s knowledge of the subject matter area studied in the first semester of clinic and to expand students’ knowledge of areas of practice in other clinics. Class sessions are devoted to case rounds discussions, and students take significant responsibility in crafting their own learning agendas. Acceptance to this course is limited and only permitted with faculty approval.EXPCL 905Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 4
Advanced Criminal Procedure
This course examines the constitutional, statutory and rule-based issues that arise in the formal processing of a criminal case. Subject include the decision to charge, prosecutorial discretion, grand jury and preliminary hearing, joinder and severance, bail and pretrial release, discovery, plea bargaining and guilty pleas, speedy trial, jury composition and selection, pre-trial publicity, confrontation, cross-examination and the privilege against self-incrimination.CERT 902Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Advanced Federal Income Taxation
This course examines the treatment of those taxation principles applicable to investment and business operations applicable to all taxpayers from a perspective that emphasizes tax planning and tax avoidance.BAR 902Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Advanced Torts
This course focuses on torts not involving physical injury, with substantive and procedural coverage of claims for misrepresentation, defamation, invasion of privacy, interference with contract, and injurious falsehood, along with affirmative defenses to these causes of action. These areas have increased in importance due to the emergence of electronic communications resulting in potential liability.BAR 903Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 2
Advocacy I
This course introduces the fundamental skills of trial advocacy applicable in civil and criminal trials in any jurisdiction. In keeping with the theory that trial advocacy is best learned by “doing,” each student will conduct written and oral exercises concerning the various stages of the trial process-pleadings, pretrial motions, discovery, settlement negotiations, trial preparation, jury selection, opening statements, direct and cross examination of lay witnesses, examination of expert witnesses, trial motions, and closing arguments. Students are able to evaluate their own progress through viewing videotapes of their performances. The class meets jointly for lectures, while the oral trial exercises are conducted in small sections.EXPSK 902Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 4
Advocacy II
Every week the entire class meets for a lecture and demonstration session, and also breaks into small group courtroom section meetings during which every student will present a trial exercise. The goals of the course are 1) to improve confidence in public speaking, 2) to learn how to prepare documents that conform to multiple sources of rules, and 3) to implement the unique protocol for factual, as opposed to legal, persuasion.EXPSK 903Credit Only: Y Anon Gr: NCredits: 3
Agricultural Law
This course will survey agricultural law issues including labor issues, land and water use, and food animal production and welfare. In addition, the course will focus heavily on the regulation of food production, food safety and food labeling. Finally, the course will review the emerging agriculture of medical cannabis and industrial hemp production.ELECT 901Credits: 3
Antitrust
This course is principally an examination of antitrust law and policy in the U.S. as evolved through prosecutions by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission. There is brief coverage of leading market regulatory schemes such as those affecting marketing of foods, drugs, textiles, toxic substances, securities, and consumer products. In the antitrust area, commercial conduct alleged to violate price fixing, market allocation, tying, exclusive dealing, asset acquisition, and price discrimination norms are considered at length with some attention to state antitrust law.ELECT 902Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Arbitration: Domestic and International
This course provides an introduction to the domestic and international law and practice of arbitration. It assesses the statutory and decisional law basis for arbitration, especially the provisions of the Federal Arbitration Act. It investigates the central doctrinal issues in the field: the enforceability of unilaterally-imposed arbitration agreements, the arbitrability of statutory rights — in particular, civil rights matters, and the use of contract to establish the law of arbitration between the arbitrating parties. Emphasis is placed upon practical problems that have emerged in the practice of arbitration law: the selection of arbitrators, the use of discovery and evidence-gathering in arbitral proceedings, and the content of arbitration agreements.CERT 903Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Banking Regulation
This course will focus on banks as financial intermediaries and compare them to both the securities and insurance industries. The dual banking system of state and federal regulation will be explored as to bank formation, supervision and regulation. The course will explore the ownership and control issues affecting banks and the supervision and regulation of bank holding companies and their subsidiaries engaged in nontraditional banking activities. The causes of the financial crisis of 2007-2009, together with the reaction of financial institutions, the states, the U.S. Congress and the regulators to the crisis, will also be examined. The course will include an assessment of the deposit insurance system and the problems associated with troubled and failed banks. The course will emphasize the potential administrative enforcement, civil and criminal exposure of both regulated entities and individuals involved within those industries.ELECT 903Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 2
Bankruptcy
The rights, duties, and remedies of both debtor and creditor are examined. The course covers the collection process, enforcement of money judgments, and insolvency proceedings. Federal bankruptcy law is emphasized.ELECT 904Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Basic Federal Income Taxation
The focus of this course is the federal income tax law and the tax policy considerations that inform the design of the structure of the law.BAR 904Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Business Entities I: Unincorporated Business Entities
This course surveys the law of unincorporated business entities. The agency law part of the course will focus on the agency relationship and, more specifically, the duties and obligations of principals and agents to one another and to third parties. Agency law concepts apply to LLCs, partnerships and other business entities. The partnership law part of the course will cover the fiduciary obligations of partners, partners’ management and property rights, and partnership dissolutions. The final part of the course will examine limited liability entities, with emphasis on the formation, organization, and dissolution of limited liability companies.BAR 905Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Business Entities II: Corporations
This course provides an introduction to the basic principles of corporate law. The primary emphasis of the course is the body of state law that regulates the activities and internal affairs of business corporations. The course will focus on traditional state law principles of corporate governance, including the fiduciary duties of loyalty and care, the business judgment rule, and shareholder derivative suits. In addition to state corporate law, the course will cover some federal laws that regulate the activities of corporations, focusing on the disclosure requirements and antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws. The course has two complementary objectives: (1) to provide a strong foundation in corporate law for students who intend to enter practice without taking further courses in corporate and securities law; and (2) to prepare students who plan to take Federal Securities Regulation and other advanced courses in anticipation of a career in business law. Business Entities I: Unincorporated Business Entities (BAR 906) is strongly recommended as a prerequisite to this course.BAR 906Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Child Welfare Law and Policy Seminar
This seminar will provide critical analysis of child welfare policy, law and practice related to abused and neglected children. The course will also include analysis of other disciplines that work with abused and neglected children, through participation of faculty members of related Penn State Units, such as psychology, human development and medicine. The course will review the role of federal, state and local agencies, as well as non-governmental organizations in addressing the needs of abused and neglected children and their families. Students will evaluate the effectiveness of social welfare policies which address child abuse and neglect in a historical and cultural context. Students will develop an understanding of how policy is formulated. There will be an emphasis on critical thinking and analysis of policy processes, policy implementation, and impacts on diverse populations.SEMNR 901Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 2
Children’s Advocacy Clinic
This course will provide instruction to students in the legal representation of children in various civil matters, including dependency, adoption, and custody actions. Students will be managing a caseload of clients. Students will meet directly with their clients, and correspond with agencies and opposing counsel. Students will appear at all court appearances with a supervising attorney. The supervising attorney will meet with students individually on a regular basis for case reviews. The classroom component of the course will focus on various substantive and skills issues, including lectures on child interviewing skills and lectures from physicians on the medical aspects of child abuse. Students may also choose to focus their work on legislative and policy issues related to children’s advocacy by drafting legislation and policies on local, state, and national levels.EXPCL 901Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 4
Civil Liberties Litigation
Traditional courses in constitutional law analyze the boundaries of rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution. This course begins with the premise that constitutional rights have been violated, and examines the additional veneer of doctrines that determine whether a remedy will or will not be afforded for deprivation of those rights. In the course of analyzing these doctrines, the course will address advanced issues of constitutional law and theory, statutory interpretation, case analysis and litigation strategy for counsel for the civil liberties plaintiff as well as the lawyer representing the government and its officials.CERT 904Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Civil Procedure
Civil Procedure concerns the rules, statutes, Constitutional provisions, and principles that govern the litigation of a civil case in federal court. The course begins with procedural due process, then familiarizes the student with the stages of a civil lawsuit including: pleading; structuring the lawsuit; discovery; termination of a lawsuit without trial (including settlement and use of dispute resolution processes); trial; and actions that may be taken after a jury verdict or bench trial. The course then addresses systemic issues related to how and where a lawsuit is filed including: personal and subject matter jurisdiction; venue; notice; removal; and which substantive law — state or federal — should apply in federal court. Although reference is made to state rules and laws, the course concentrates on the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.REQ 901Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 4
Client Counseling
This course introduces students to the dynamics of a productive attorney-client relationship, the goals of interviewing and counseling, and structures and techniques that can be used to achieve those goals. The focus is on developing students’ skills in interviewing and counseling. Instruction consists of assigned reading, problem-solving exercises, group discussion, and practice through simulations.EXPSK 904Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 2
Community Law Clinic
This is a civil litigation clinic that focuses in the areas of family, disability, housing, and public benefits. Students will participate in civil hearings and traditional courtroom litigation, along with various opportunities for mediation and negotiation. Students will be exposed to issues including divorce, support, custody, adoption, protection from abuse, guardianships, social security and supplemental security income claims, special education, American with Disabilities claims, civil rights actions, health care directives, landlord/tenant, and public benefits. Cases will be selected based on educational value to students and expertise of the clinical faculty. Students who select a family law emphasis in their clinic work will enroll in the Family Law course as a pre- or co-requisite. Students who select a disability law emphasis in their clinic work will enroll in the Administrative Law course or Law of Individuals with Disabilities as a pre- or co-requisite. Preference may be given to students who have already taken either course.
Faculty approval is required.EXPCL 902Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 4
Comparative International Tax Law
This course treats the unique problems of Home country taxation of foreign income and operations of resident persons and enterprises and Host country taxation of foreign persons and enterprises from the perspective of many nation’s perspectives.ELECT 906Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 2
Conflict of Laws
In modern business and personal life, significant events frequently involve more than one state or nation. What law applies to multi-jurisdictional transactions? Which court has the authority to adjudicate any dispute that develops? This course examines the legal rules that have developed for resolving these conflict-of-law problems. Specific topics include: domestic jurisdiction, international jurisdiction, domestic choice of law, extraterritorial application of national law, conflicts between state and federal law, and enforcement of judgments.BAR 907Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Congressional Investigations Seminar
This seminar will examine the law and procedures governing congressional investigations through a series of case studies. Case study topics will include the Teapot Dome scandal, the 1929 stock market crash Pecora hearings, the House Un-American Activities and Senate McCarthy committees, Watergate, Iran-Contra, and Whitewater, as well as an examination of special investigative commissions which will include the Roberts Commission’s investigation of the Pearl Harbor attack, the Warren Commission’s investigation of President Kennedy’s assassination, and the 9-11 Commission’s investigation of the 9-11 terrorist attacks. These case studies will be the vehicles for studying the substantive law and legal procedures that govern the conduct of congressional investigations, including congressional subpoena power and its limits, privileges available to witnesses, testimonial immunity grants, assertions of executive privilege, contempt sanctions, perjury and false statements sanctions, and the role of counsel in congressional investigations. In addition to making a case study presentation, students will write a seminar paper on a legal topic relating to congressional investigations and will make an in-class presentation on their seminar paper topic.SEMNR 903Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 2
Constitutional Law I
This course examines the roles assigned by the Constitution to the executive, legislative and judicial branches of the federal government and how federalism limits state and local authority.REQ 902Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Constitutional Law II
This course examines the development of due process and equal protection law under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. It includes examination of the structure of the Constitution’s protection of civil rights and civil liberties, as well as substantive and procedural due process, equal protection, and fundamental rights.BAR 908Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 2
Construction Law
This course examines the peculiar legal problems encountered on construction projects. It covers contract, tort and statutory law as adapted specifically to the construction industry. It analyzes the perspectives of an owner, developer, architect/engineer, contractor, subcontractor and bonding company, both in the context of private and public construction projects, commercial and residential. The principal areas of inquiry are contract structure, public bidding, theories of liability, payment and security mechanisms, claims related to time, disruption and extra work, and claims arising from construction defects.ELECT 907Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 2
Contracts
Contracts is concerned with the formation of contracts. The traditional offer and acceptance are analyzed in light of problems presented by modern bargaining techniques. Voidability of contracts formed by fraud, mistake, illegality, and unconscionable advantage is also stressed. The performance of contracts and the parol evidence rule are discussed.REQ 903Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 4
Copyrights
Copyright law is founded on the tension between incentivizing authors to create and disseminating information as widely as possible. The course will explore the legal and societal difficulties this creates along with emphasizing familiarity with doctrinal issues through practical exercises.CERT 905Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 3
Corporate Compliance
This course will introduce students to the growing field of compliance. Students will learn why compliance programs are necessary in the corporate environment, as well as how they can be structured and enforced. Students will learn about assessing risk and the different roles that boards and management play in compliance programs, and will learn about conducting investigations, taking corrective actions and communication with internal and external stakeholders.CERT 934Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Counterterrorism Law
This course will take an in-depth look at counterterrorism. The course will examine competing conceptions and definitions of terrorism at the national and international level and the institutions and processes relevant to operational counterterrorism. This course will include the study of the balance between national security interests and civil liberties found in the following topical areas: relevant Supreme Court decisions in the surveyed nations, legislative provisions in response to acts of terrorism, operational counter-terrorism considerations (including targeted killing), intelligence gathering (including interrogations), policy recommendations, the use of military tribunals or civil courts in trying suspected terrorists, the emerging law regarding enemy combatants and their detention, and the arguable need for new self- defense doctrines at the global level.CERT 906Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Criminal Law
Criminal Law is an introduction to the legal principles of criminal law. The course is taught by analyzing actual criminal cases involving crimes including: murder, conspiracy, hate crimes and crimes of sexual violence. The course also examines legal defenses such as justification and psychiatric excuse defenses. The course also incorporates principles of statutory interpretation.REQ 904Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Criminal Procedure
This course explores part of the interface between the criminal justice system and the United States Constitution. It introduces students to constitutional analysis by examining the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amendments as apply to investigation of wrongdoing and police interrogation as well as to circumstances in which indigent defendants are guaranteed the assistance of counsel.BAR 909Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Cyberlaw in Practice
“Cyberlaw” is a loosely used term that means different things to different attorneys, but understanding cyberlaw is essential for practitioners. Cyber or online activities occur in every facet of modern human life, and this ubiquity of cyber or online activity in business and personal life demands every attorney, regardless of practice area, be familiar with the melded body of laws that compromise cyberlaw.
Cyberlaw in Practice defines what cyberlaw is, identifies the sources of cyberlaw and teaches students to understand how these manifold sources of law – integrated together – comprise “cyberlaw.” The course addresses by subject/practice area how and why cyberlaw is now an essential component in practicing law, including but not limited to electronic evidence issues.CERT 936Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Cybersecurity Law & Policy Seminar
This course is designed to give students an accessible and foundational understanding of the legal and policy issues associated with cybersecurity. Cybersecurity is the protection of electronic data and systems from attack, loss or other compromise. Electronic data and systems include governmental records, and investor and private firm information, and the hardware and software systems used to generate and maintain that data.SEMNR 916Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 2
Death Penalty Practice
This course examines the death penalty from a trial lawyer’s perspective. Three main topics will be featured with an in-depth examination of death as the “ultimate punishment”; the relevant constitutional provisions and death-penalty case law; the theoretical research associated with the cost, demographics, and imposition of the death penalty; and the death-penalty trial strategy, from the initial notice of intent to seek the death penalty to the final appeal. Students will engage in mock trial exercises to simulate the lawyer’s decision-making process in a capital murder trial.EXPSK 905Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 3
Education Law
This course covers the basic premises of compulsory education; issues concerning exclusion of students; school control of student behavior and curriculum; teacher employment problems; and issues of funding, minority rights, and school liability. The course will also examine the law applicable to higher education.ELECT 908Credit Only: N Anon Gr: YCredits: 3
Elder Law Capacity: Advance Directives
Advance Directives — Strengths and Weaknesses. There are three basic types of written advance directives traditionally offered by lawyers to older clients the option of designating agents, in anticipation the clients will someday not have capacity to make their own decisions: General Durable Powers of Attorney, Health Care Decision-Making Directives, and End-of-Life Directives (also known as Living Wills). Consumers can purchase inexpensive versions of these documents from Legal Zoom and similar Alt-Law internet sites, or they can obtain customized documents for a higher price from experienced lawyers. I have collected sample documents and key cases we can use to explore use of such tools, while addressing legal principles such as agency law, personal autonomy and fiduciary duty law. This course will provide students with timely opportunities to explore topics faced by lawyers in a wide variety of transactional contexts.TBDCredit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 1
Elder Law Capacity: Guardianships
When individuals are unable or fail to plan in advance for the possibility of incapacity, it may be necessary for loved ones (or public officials) to seek appointment of a formal legal guardian of the person and/or the estate. On the one hand, a third-party may be appropriate to protect the individual from physical or financial harm; on the other hand, the process is often intimidating and can severely limit the individual’s autonomy and enjoyment of life. We will examine the legal standards for formal court appointments, the rules government oversight and accountability, and potential alternatives, including the concept of “supported decision” now recognized by statutes enacted in some states, including Texas and Delaware. This module will provide students with a practical opportunity to consider specific steps associated with filing or terminating a guardianship in the practice-state of their choosing.ELECT 937Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 1
Elder Law Comparative: Filial Support Laws
Filial Support Laws — Why Are Some Jurisdictions Reviving Enforcement of these Elizabethan-Era Laws? During the last five years, Germany has initiated aggressive efforts to hold family members accountable for the cost of public services to indigent elders. In some instances, U.S. citizens are being asked to contribute to the costs for care of their indigent German-citizen family members, with German authorities threatening them with international enforcement through “support and maintenance treaties,” if they do not pay voluntarily. Other governments that are currently enforcing filial support laws on a domestic level include France and former Soviet countries (including Ukraine) – and Pennsylvania. This unit will allow the students to take a comparative law approach and examine modern examples of domestic and international efforts to enforce filial support laws that are being used by governments in an attempt to cover elder-care costs.TBDCredit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 1
Elder Law Comparative: Right to Die and End of Life Decision-Making
In the last fifteen years, a major shift in policies has occurred in many U.S. jurisdictions, either through statutory changes or case law, recognizing lawful means for individuals to choose to refuse or terminate life-sustaining measures and actively pursue assisted death. We will compare the different approaches to validating end-of-life choices and the barriers that may still exist. Students will have an opportunity to write a short, carefully considered policy piece, for or against the expansion of assisted-death.ELECT 938Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 1
Elder Law Financing: Long Term Care Insurance
Long-Term Care Insurance — Why Hasn’t It Been More Successful? During the last 25 years, the long-term care insurance (LTCI) industry has gone from being hotly touted as the “best” alternative to Medicaid and thus an answer to the predicted crisis for funding elder care, to just a handful of providers (or state guarantee funds) who are struggling with solvency, while still expected to service more than 7 million policyholders. This unit will allow us to explore traditional insurance and contract law principles, and examine how funding for “private insurance” contrasts with “public benefits.” There are several pending cases involving insolvency for LTCI providers, and states are challenged to cover the policyholders with guarantee funds. These cases offer the students with opportunities to write relevant analytical papers from a consumer, business or government perspective.TBDCredit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 1
Elder Law Financing: Medicaid Planning
Medicaid, a state-federally funded welfare program, continues to play an important role in the financing for facility-based “long-term” care, especially for skilled care settings (the dreaded “nursing home”). In some states, “waiver” programs have also significantly expanded the potential for funding for individuals who wish to avoid nursing homes and want to living in their own homes or in less restrictive, community settings. Access to these programs can be fact-specific, complicated, and document intensive, but, when available, offer the possibility of maximizing existing family resources for care, and reducing the potential for inadvertent impoverishment of the healthier spouse. We will examine specific, classic fact patterns where families may wish to consider “Medicaid Planning” options to maximize financial options.ELECT 936Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 1
Election Law
This course covers federal and state election law and will examine the constitutional basis for the regulation of elections, the development of the law in this area over the last 30 years, as well as criminal and civil enforcement of the law, the role of the Federal Election Commission, the formation and regulation of political action committees, as well as related federal tax law provisions impacting operation of political committees and advocacy organizations. The course will also examine the intersection of the election law with congressional ethics rules, lobbying regulations and representation of political candidates and entities in election law matters.CERT 907Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 2
Electronic Evidence Seminar
The seminar will cover the case law, procedural rules, evidence rules, and rules of professional conduct implicated by the unique attributes of information created and/or stored electronically, as well as the filing and courtroom presentation of documents in electronic format. There are three components to the course. The first part concerns the discovery of ESI, and covers the nature, sources, and terminology of ESI; the different formats of ESI and the implications for preservation and production of ESI attributable to the different formats; the evolution of the rules and case law regarding discovery of ESI; and the obligations of counsel with respect to the preservation of ESI.SEMNR 906Credit Only: N Anon Gr: NCredits: 3