Course Descriptions
[A-B, C-D, E-F, G-H, I-J, K-L, M-N, O-P, Q-R, S-T, U-V, W-X, Y-Z]
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Accounting for Lawyers (2)
502
Concentration(s):Corporate Law
(Formerly DCL 508)
Accounting for Lawyers covers the basic topics in accounting that are relevant to a business lawyer's practice and to other practice areas as well. The class covers principles of double-entry bookkeeping and accrual accounting, GAAP and GAAS. The basic financial statements are studied and basic financial statement analysis is reviewed. More detailed analysis is made of revenue recognition and expense, contingencies and intangibles. Finally, drafting of legal documents using accounting concepts is explored. This course is designed for those students with little or no prior accounting training or experience.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Administrative Law (3)
532
Concentration(s):Env., Health, Intell Prop
(Formerly DCL 300)
This course involves the study of the administrative process, delegation to administrative agencies of legislative power, procedure before such agencies and judicial review of their actions.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Administrative Law: Food Safety and Labeling (2)
Concentration(s):
Course description forthcoming.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Admiralty Law (3)
547
Concentration(s):Int'l & Comparative Law
(Formerly DCL 305)
This course will provide an overview of Admiralty law and jurisdiction, with special emphasis on issues related to maritime personal injury, collision, carriage of goods by sea and the creation and enforcement of maritime liens. Attention will be given to maritime practice and procedure, focusing on such issues as removal to federal court, right to jury trial, vessel seizure and attachment, and the perfection of in rem jurisdiction.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
ADR in the Workplace (3)
505D
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 598)
STUDENTS WHO HAVE ALREADY TAKEN ARBITRATION (LABOR) ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO ENROLL IN THIS COURSE. Arbitration of disputes arising out of collective bargaining agreements has come to be the model for resolving statutory and common law disputes that arise in the nonunion worlplace. Growing reliance on mediation and arbitration hybrids alters the role of advocates and even the definition of employee's legal rights. This course will focus on a wide range of topics-arbitrability determinations, injunctions, duty of fair representation, the doctrine of deferral, the role of external law and whether arbitrators should follow the federal law, the role of precedent in labor and employment law, discipline and discharge, past practice, seniority, management rights, subcontracting, union security agreements and their enforceability, and arbitration in the public sector. We will also examine the current criticism of labor arbitration-its efficiency, honesty and underlying ideology. Finally, we will cover the spectrum of topics associated with individual employment arbitration-judicial application of "Gilmer" and its progeny, the merits and demerits of compulsory arbitration, grievance mediation, and peer review systems.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Advanced Chapter 7 Practicum (4)
506G
Concentration(s):
This course has both a classroom and an externship component. The course builds on the knowledge obtained in the Consumer Bankruptcy course and provides students with the opportunity to understand and apply the Bankruptcy Code in the context of an ongoing case. In addition, student will explore professional and ethical dilemmas created by the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act (BAPCPA) that are not addressed in the Consumer Bankruptcy course. Through the externship, student will be placed with a local practitioner to assist a chapter 7 debtor on a pro bono basis.
Prerequisite(s): Consumer Bankruptcy
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Advanced Copyright Law (2)
533X
Concentration(s):
This course looks at advanced copyright issues from the perspective of the management of legal risks in a variety of industries that either hold and rely on rights in copyright works, or which have regular exposure to copyright liability. Thus, rather than simply looking at litigation outcomes, the course will look at copyright disputes and consider what the parties might have done, substantively or procedurally (from a copyright perspective, not a litigation perspective), to achieve a different or more certain outcomes. This class will thus assume basic knowledge of copyright law.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Advanced Legal Research (2)
586
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 509)
The course will focus on the process and goals of legal research. Special emphasis will be placed on Internet research, but instruction will be based on function rather than format. Students will learn how to find information through the Web, on Lexis and Westlaw, and in paper. By contrasting form, speed, cost and accuracy, students will learn how to integrate these sources for the most comprehensive and economical research product. Equal emphasis will be placed on conceptual structure and practical application.
Prerequisite(s): Advocacy, Research, Writing and Advocacy I, Research, Writing and Advocacy II, Research, Writing & Analysis
Top
Advanced Legal Writing - Pretrial Litigation (3)
586A
Concentration(s):
This course emphasizes advanced legal writing, research and oral presentation within the litigation context. The course structure and substantive material would parallel the litigation process from the client interview and drafting of pleadings through the motion for summary judgment. Students will gain experience in the types of writing that attorneys typically engage in during the pretrial phase of civil litigation. Coursework will involve research, initial drafts and final revisions of documents, in-class discussion of litigation strategies and peer review of written materials. Students will also be exposed to practical considerations and ethical issues that may arise in the course of civil litigation. Documents students may draft include a demand letter, a complaint, answer to complaint, and discovery documents such as interrogatories, document requests, and responses to interrogatories and document requests. Students will draft a motion for summary judgment (and response) and possibly a settlement agreement. A portion of the course will also be reserved for oral skills such as arguing a summary judgment motion and/or the taking of depositions. Students enrolled in the TPI are not eligible to take this course.
Prerequisite(s): Advocacy, Research, Writing and Advocacy I, Research, Writing and Advocacy II, Research, Writing & Analysis
Top
Advanced Mediation (2)
587G
Concentration(s):
Students will be selected based on their potential to be excellent teammates, to work hard, and to represent Michigan State University College of Law. This course allows students to develop their mediation and representation skills in an intensive, skills-based format. Preparing for two regional mediation competitions, students will develop skills in the areas of problem analysis, mediation preparation, communications skills and strategies, and reflection and improvement. Through competition, students experience what it is to be a professional, competent, and ethical mediation advocate and third-party neutral. If successful, students will advance to compete at an international mediation competition. In addition to participation in regional competitions, the course will provide skills building, mediation simulations, and debrief sessions.
Prerequisite(s): Mediation Advocacy and Domestic Relations Mediator Training
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Advanced Patent Law (2)
533A
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 430)
This seminar course analyzes advanced patent practice including litigation, prosecution before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, opinion preparation and recently developing topics. A research paper is required. No technical degree is necessary.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Advanced Securities Regulation (2)
503
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 546)
This course will address evolving market structures; broker-dealer regulation and inter-relationships with brokerage firms, issuers and customers; investment adviser regulation; advanced issues in private placement; recent developments in SEC investigations, enforcement proceedings and related criminal actions; public company regulation; and professional obligations for attorneys and accountants.
Prerequisite(s): Securities Regulation I
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Advanced Topics in Indian Law (2)
635A
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 563)
Provides an opportunity for in-depth discussion and examination of current legal issues of federal and tribal law in Indian country including tribal gaming and economic development, tribal policy and governance, treaty rights, international indigenous peoples, and other contemporary topics.
Prerequisite(s): Business Enterprises, Federal Law and Indian Tribes
Top
Advanced Topics in Indian Law: Indian Gaming (2)
635A
Concentration(s):
This course will introduce students to the unique legal issues that govern Indian gaming activities. Indian Gaming has been the largest economic development tool available to Indian tribal governments over the past 30 years. Today, the Indian gaming industry generates more than $25 billion per year, nationwide. Students in this class will learn about the federal and tribal regulatory structures that govern tribal gaming, the interplay of federal, state, tribal, and local laws in this regulatory structure, the process by which tribes and states negotiate gaming compacts, and the nuanced classification of tribal gaming activities. It is highly recommended that you have taken Federal Law and Indian Tribes as a pre-requisite. See Prof. Fletcher for an override if you have not taken this course.
Prerequisite(s): Federal Law and Indian Tribes
Top
Advanced Topics in Indian Law: Indian Child Welfare Act (2)
635A
Concentration(s):
This course will be focused on the implementation, interpretation and understanding of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). ICWA, a federal statute interpreted almost entirely in state and tribal courts, applies to all "non-voluntary" termination of parental rights if the child involved is considered an Indian child. This law was passed in 1978 in response to the overwhelming numbers of Indian children in foster care and adopted away from their tribes and families. ICWA is one of the most important statutes in federal Indian law and even those not in the Indian law field will likely encounter it.
Prerequisite(s): Federal Law and Indian Tribes
Top
Advanced Topics in Indian Law: Native American Natural Resources Law (2)
635A
Concentration(s):
This course explores issues relating to property rights, environmental protection, and natural resources in Indian country. The topics addressed will include land use and environmental protection; natural resources development; water rights: tribal, cultural and religious relationships with the land; and land ownership and property rights of tribes.
Prerequisite(s): Federal Law and Indian Tribes
Top
Advanced Topics in Indian Law: Tribal Law (2)
635A
Concentration(s):
This course provides in-depth coverage of the laws of American Indian nations, including tribal court jurisprudence and practice, tribal constitutional law, tribal economic development, and tribal customary and traditional law.
Prerequisite(s): Federal Law and Indian Tribes
Top
Advocacy (2)
530J
Concentration(s):
(Formerly LAW500K) Students learn the art of persuasive argumentation by drafting a 30-page appellate brief on a topical legal issue, complying with appellate court rules and then presenting a simulated oral argument to members of the bench. During the semester, students also attend appellate arguments or trial court motion sessions and prepare brief synopses of cases heard. Prerequisite: Research, Writing and Analysis, OR Research, Writing and Analysis: Intellectual Property Perspective, OR Research, Writing and Advocacy I, OR Research, Writing and Advocacy I: Intellectual Property Perspective.
Prerequisite(s): Research, Writing and Advocacy I, Research, Writing & Analysis
Top
Advocacy for Foreign-Educated Lawyers (3)
804C
Concentration(s):
This course is designed to provide an opportunity for lawyers who obtained their law degrees in countries other than the United States to practice their public speaking skills in an American law school environment. Course components include the study and practice of the elements of oral advocacy, including critical analysis and the development of effective public speaking techniques. This is primarily an experiential learning course with a focus on the delivery and critique of short oral exercises. The course structure follows possible pre-trial developments in a fictional legal case; students will be asked to step into the roles of parties and participants and advocate their positions through presentations, negotiations and oral argument. Students must complete two practice arguments which may fall outside of normal class hours, and must attend and observe at least one hour of argument in a local courtroom. While some written work will be assigned, the focus of this course is on the oral elements of advocacy. The credits earned in this course cannot be used toward the minimum credits needed to satisfy graduation requirements.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Agriculture Law (2)
566N
Concentration(s):
Students will learn about the regulatory framework of the food and agriculture sector at the federal, state, and local levels and how the application of this framework impacts all citizens. This includes the production, processing, and distribution of food, fiber, and other products that make up a large portion of the economies of the nation and the State of Michigan. Students will learn about the origins and impacts of these regulatory components and how evolving trends and public opinion are changing the food and agriculture sector
Prerequisite(s):
Top
American Constitutional Law for LL.M. (3)
806A
Concentration(s):
This course is for LL.M. students only. The course is designed to acquaint students with the fundamentals of the United States Constitution by surveying the Constitution’s approach to governmental structure and individual rights. Major topics include Federalism, Separation of Powers, Due Process, Equal Protection, and Freedom of Speech. Students who have taken Constitutional Law I or II are not eligible to enroll in this course.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
American Legal History Seminar (3)
636
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 552)
This seminar will analyze the tension between the rights of the individual and the role of government in society as the central theme in the development of the American legal system. Rather than a strict chronological review, the course will consist of a series of studies of the development of legal and political institutions and their effect on the citizenry. Classes will be discussion-based and will rely on extensive reading of original sources. Students should gain an understanding of how the evolution of legal rules reflects institutional change, and should learn to see law as a dynamic process rather than a collection of static concepts.
Fulfills ULWR
Prerequisite(s): Constitutional Law I
Top
Analytical Methods for Lawyers-Corporate Finance (1)
637C
Concentration(s):
Condensed principles of corporate finance to serve as a primer that provides law students the tools necessary to succeed as 'lawyers' in the various legal fields that use these principles.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Analytical Methods for Lawyers-Game Theory (1)
637D
Concentration(s):
(NEW course as of Spring 2006)
Condensed principles of game theory to serve as a primer that provides law students the tools necessary to succeed as 'lawyers' in the various legal fields that use these principles.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Analytical Methods for Lawyers-Microeconomics (1)
509A
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 607A)
Condensed principles of microeconomics to serves as a primer that provides law students the tools necessary to succeed as 'lawyers' in the various fields that use these principles.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Analytical Methods for Lawyers-Statistics (1)
509B
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 607B)
Condensed principles of statistics to serve as a primer that provides law students the tools necessary to succeed as 'lawyers' in the various legal fields that use these principles.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Animal Law (3)
565A
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 501)
A survey of animal legal issues including property status, zoning, and cruelty laws. Paper required.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Antitrust Law (2)
504
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 310)
This course will explore problems respecting monopoly, price fixing, horizontal and vertical restraints on trade, mergers and the impact of patents. It also will examine regulation of price discrimination under the Robinson-Patman Act.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Appellate Practice (2)
589
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 544) Appellate Practice is a course designed to consider procedural issues that typically arise from the conclusion of trial proceedings and through the appellate process. It will cover appellate issues
chronologically, beginning with finality of judgments at the trial court level, and cover such topics as standards of appellate review, interlocutory appeals, preservation of error, and other issues that are important for appellate practice.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Applied Evidence (2)
590A
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 453)
One of the biggest observed deficiencies of many trial attorneys is their lack of understanding of how to use the rules of evidence. This course is an intensive exploration of evidentiary principles as they are played out in the context of a trial. This course gives the student experience at both making and arguing objections. It will benefit any student intending to be a litigator.
Because this course duplicates the content of courses in the Geoffrey Fieger Trial Practice Institute program, students in the FTPI may not receive academic credit for this course.
Prerequisite(s): Evidence
Top
Arbitration (3)
505A
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 569)
A course dealing with all aspects of arbitrating disputes under collective bargaining agreements, including judicial review of arbitration procedures and analyseis of the concepts applied by arbitrators in reaching their respective decisions. Students will have an opportunity to observe an actual arbitration in process and participate as an advocate in a mock arbitration.
Prerequisite(s): Evidence
Top
Arbitration (Labor) (2)
505B
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 315)
STUDENTS WHO HAVE ALREADY TAKEN ADR IN THE WORKPLACE ARE NOT ELIGIBLE TO ENROLL IN THIS COURSE. The study of current thinking of arbitrators interpreting collective bargaining agreements including techniques of opinion writing and advocacy before labor arbitrators. The course focuses on collective bargaining agreements, whether an issue is subject to arbitration, timelines for filing an arbitration, the burden of proof, quantum of proof, the concept of discipline and just cause, as well as contract interpretation. Students will participate in mock trials and will be responsible for drafting an arbitration opinion as a class assignment.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Arbitration Advocacy (0)
505G
Concentration(s):
Students will be exposed to the following topics: mandatory versus voluntary arbitration, including persuading opposing counsel to participate, preliminary pre-arbitration considerations (stages of the arbitration process: initiation, preparation, pre-hearing, hearing, decision-making, and award), selecting cases for arbitration, attorney ethics, considering site inspection and audiovisual aids, selecting expert witness, arbitrator ethics, pre-hearing advocacy (preparing the arbitration demand, drafting motions and responses, drafting position statements), the preliminary hearing (arbitrability issues, joinder of parties, witness lists, hearing exhibits, order of evidence, sequestration of witnesses, burdens of proof, subpoenas, nature and form of award), preparing for the arbitration hearing (designing a persuasive "trial story," preparing the client, and preparing witnesses/exhibits), advocacy during the arbitration hearing (procedural rules, opening statements, presentation of facts, comments on opposition's case, summary and request for relief, evidentiary rules, direct examination, cross-examination, impeachment, expert testimony, evidentiary foundations, and persuasive use of exhibits), post-hearing advocacy (drafting post-hearing briefs, motions to re-open proceedings, enforcing the award, and challenging the award).
The primary objectives of the course are to better understand the nature and practice of commercial arbitration; and to develop advocacy skills by providing "hands-on" training in commercial arbitration.
This course is restricted to students selected for the ABA Commercial Arbitration Competition.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Assisted Reproductive Technologies Seminar (2)
558N
Concentration(s):
This seminar will examine the legal, medical, and ethical issues surrounding assisted reproductive technologies.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Basic Bankruptcy (3)
506C
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 572)
This course provides students with understanding of bankruptcy law, bankruptcy code and debtor/creditor relations.
*This course is being replaced by Consumer Bankruptcy (506E) and Chapter 11 Reorganization (506F) beginning Fall 2009.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Basic Income Taxation (4)
501K
Concentration(s):
Like Basic Income Taxation A, this course introduces the basic concepts of federal income taxation. Basic Income Taxation , however, goes beyond a survey course by a rigorous examination of technical tax issues, including a focus on solving complex tax problems. This course is ideal for students interested in pursuing legal practice in the tax or business fields. Students will be exposed to the same topics covered in Basic Income Taxation A, but will also study additional topics, such as business and profit-seeking expenditures, capital expenditures, depreciation, the home-office deduction, tax planning for divorce, non-recourse debt, including issues relating to basis and amount realized, and anti-tax abuse provisions limiting tax shelters, including at-risk rules and active participation requirements. In resolving problems, students will have ample opportunity to develop facility in interpreting complex statutes and in applying law from various additional sources. Moreover, the themes studied will allow students to understand that tax legislation is a dynamic process in which the law evolves as a result of taxpayers devising new strategies and from policymakers' responses. Students that enroll in Basic Income Taxation are ineligible to enroll in Basic Income Taxation A.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Basic Income Taxation A (2)
501A
Concentration(s):Tax
(Formerly DCL 249)
A survey course introducing the basic concepts of federal income taxation.
Students will gain an understanding of the concepts of gross income, exclusions
from income, capital gains and losses, and deductions. Students will also be
exposed to tax issues that arise in the general practice of law, including for
example, tax consequences upon the sale of a residence, upon divorce and in
personal injury cases. Students will develop facility in analyzing both cases and
statutes.
NOTE: Students that enroll in Basic Income Taxation A are ineligible to enroll in Basic Income Taxation B.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Basic Income Taxation B (4)
501B
Concentration(s):Tax
(Formerly DCL 250)
Like Basic Income Taxation A, this course introduces the basic concepts of federal income taxation. Basic Income Taxation B, however, goes beyond a survey course by a rigorous examination of technical tax issues, including a focus on solving complex tax problems. This course is ideal for students interested in pursuing legal practice in the tax or business fields. Students will be exposed to the same topics covered in Basic Income Taxation A, but will also study additional topics, such as business and profit-seeking expenditures, capital expenditures, depreciation, the home-office deduction, tax planning for divorce, non-recourse debt, including issues relating to basis and amount realized, and anti-tax abuse provisions limiting tax shelters, including at-risk rules and active participation requirements. In resolving problems, students will have ample opportunity to develop facility in interpreting complex statutes and in applying law from various additional sources. Moreover, the themes studied will allow students to understand that tax legislation is a dynamic process in which the law evolves as a result of taxpayers devising new strategies and from policymakers' responses.
Students that enroll in Basic Income Taxation B are ineligible to enroll in basic Income Taxation A.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Basic Will Drafting (3)
540A
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 391)
This course is designed to familiarize students with the interviewing function and the drafting of wills and other basic estate planning vehicles for clients whose estates are not subject to federal estate tax. An evaluation of usable forms and discussion of when and how to use them intelligently will be a focus of the course. A client interview and drafting exercises, including an entire basic estate plan, are contemplated. Prerequisite: Decedents' Estates and Trusts
Prerequisite(s): Decedents' Estates and Trusts
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Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Patents (2)
534
Concentration(s):
Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Patents examines the law that governs patents of pharmaceutical and biotechnology inventions and their commercial applications. In order to understand how and why US patent law protects such inventions-and in what ways the law will evolve in this rapidly expanding and increasingly important field-the course will study in depth the policies that underlie the legal framework, exploring the scientific, economic, and political issues that inform the debates in this area. Finally, students will also learn about the different types of patent protection throughout the world, and about the increasing number of international agreements that are playing an important role in the evolution of the world economy. The purpose of this course is to give students a working knowledge of the domestic and international patent protections of pharmaceutical and biotechnology inventions so that they may effectively represent clients today or participate in the ongoing policy debates that will determine how these legal rights are defined tomorrow.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Biotechnology Law Seminar (2)
558S
Concentration(s):
This seminar will examine some of the many ways that biotechnology impacts the law and that the law has impacted biotechnology. Current biotechnology innovations or controversies will be used to explore the impacts of this technology on a wide variety of legal topics including intellectual property, business, federal regulations, property, criminal law and evidence, bioethics and international law. Students may use the paper as an opportunity to expand the range of legal topics discussed in class. Readings will consist of a mix of cases, scholarly articles and popular press pieces. No science background is required for the course. . The final grade will be based on a final paper and participation, including an in class presentation of each student's paper. The upper level writing requirement can be fulfilled in this class by individual consultation with the professor.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Business Enterprises (4)
500M
Concentration(s):
(Formerly DCL 409)
This course discusses issues relevant to the laws of agency, partnerships, sole proprietorships and closely held corporations.
Prerequisite(s):
Top
Business, Securities and Tax Planning (2)
507
Concentration(s):Tax
(Formerly DCL 440)
The course will deal with problems of corporations and, to a lesser extent, partnerships in the areas of organization, allocation of control, issuance of securities, use of debt and equity financing, dividends, acquisitions and sales of businesses, liquidation and dissolution, and mergers. Some drafting and legal research will be involved. The course will be taught both by lecture and through student participation.
EITHER Basic Income Tax A or Basic Income Tax B AND Business Enterprises fulflls the prerequisite.
Prerequisite(s): Basic Income Taxation A, Basic Income Taxation B, Business Enterprises
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[A-B, C-D, E-F, G-H, I-J, K-L, M-N, O-P, Q-R, S-T, U-V, W-X, Y-Z]
[View All]