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***Please make your personal health a top priority!***UL Counseling and Testing Center 482-6480, 2nd Floor of Olivier Hall
Suggested list of self-help books
SYLLABUS The syllabus handed out in-class.
EXAM INFO I highly encourage you to study together for exams. Permanent-ink pen and bluebooks are required for exams. Study Guide for all exams ***Note: This is the material for the entire course. Be sure to note in class specifically which of this material is covered on each individual exam!!!Model Exam Answer Sample exam question with model answer.
ASSIGNMENTS (Don't forget due dates as listed on the syllabus!) Term Paper "What is Distributive Justice?" Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy A scholarly peer-reviewed resource to get you started. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy Another scholarly peer-reviewed resource to get you started. Plagiarism Definition of plagiarism with examples. Political Science Citation Style Guide Guide to proper citation format. A PDF reader is required.
WEB-BASED COURSE READINGS
Course Outline
***WARNING this is merely an outline of our in-class discussions; this should NOT be relied upon as the ONLY source of course information--e.g in-class discussion and notes, and course readings, are also essential to succeed in this course.***Judicial Process Outline Part I Judicial Process Outline Part II Judicial Process Outline Part III Background info for reading the course material:
How to Read Court Cases Handout on understanding the basic elements of court cases. In each reading, besides the questions below, spot the facts, issue, holding, and reasoning, and consider how the case fits into the "Rule of Law." Be able to explain and defend your answer in detail.
Natural Law versus Positive Law
Summa Theologica by Thomas Aquinas. What is "natural law"? McFall v. Shimp Did the court follow positive law or natural law? Riggs v. Palmer Did the court's majority follow positive law or natural law? What about the dissent? Pavlinko Will Did the court's majority follow positive law or natural law? What about the dissent? Weber v. Kaiser Is Judge Gee following positive law or natural law? Natural Law in American Constitutional HistoryDoes the U.S. Constitution incorporate natural law? Natural Law by Lysander Spooner. How does Spooner attempt to define "natural law"? Does he succeed? The Rule of Law
The Nuremburg Trials Did the Nuremburg Trials enforce the Rule of Law or did they violate the Rule of Law? Does the immense gravity of the crimes make a difference? Also, is your answer the same or different for defendant Goering as opposed to defendent Jodl? U.S. v. CalleyAssuming Lt. Calley was telling the truth that he had been given an order to kill everyone, did he nevertheless violate the Rule of Law, or did his conviction violate the Rule of Law? Jawish v. Morlet Does the decision in this case follow the rule of law?
Obedience to the Law
Be sure to notice the difference in views between King, Thoreau, Spooner, and Leibman.John Locke, Second Treatise on Government What is the State of Nature? What rights (if any) do people inherently possess, even in a state of nature? What is the Civil Society, and why is it formed? What purpose does the government serve in a Civil Society? Where does that government get its authority to rule? What are the limits of that authority? What may the people rightfully do if the government exceeds those limits? Mayflower CompactHow is this a social contract? Martin Luther King, Jr., Letter from a Birmingham Jail When may a person disobey the positive law? Henry David Thoreau, Civil Disobedience When may a person disobey the positive law? Lysander Spooner, No TreasonAlso re-read "Natural Law" by Spooner. When may a person disobey the positive law? Morris Leibman, Civil Disobedience When may a person disobey the positive law? U.S. v. DorrellWhat is the difference between the necessity defense and civil disobedience? Queen v. Dudley Was this a situation of legal "necessity"? Democracy
Plato's Critique of Democracy From Republic, Book VI Distributive Justice and Equality
In the following readings, compare how the theories of distributive justice differ.
Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics Book V What is Aristotle's theory of distributive justice? John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism What is Mill's theory of distributive justice? Karl Marx and Frederick Engles, Communist ManifestoWhat is Marx and Engle's theory of distributive justice? Clarence Darrow, Address to the Prisoners in the Cook County Jail What is Darrow's theory of distributive justice? Harrison Bergeron, by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. A science fiction short story written in 1961. What theory of distributive justice does Bergeron's society follow? What theory of distributive justice might Vonnegut favor? Rights and Liberty
In the following readings put in chronological order, notice how the concept of "rights" has expanded over time.
Thomas Hobbes, LeviathanWhat rights do human beings possess? John Locke, Second Treatise on GovernmentWhat rights do human beings possess? U.S. Declaration of Independence What rights do human beings possess? U.S. Bill of Rights What rights do human beings possess? French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of CitizenWhat rights do human beings possess? Jeremy Bentham, Critique of the Doctrine of Inalienable, Natural Rights What rights do human beings possess? United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights What rights do human beings possess? Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union What rights do human beings possess? Ideology
Worlds Smallest Political QuizTake and read about "The World's Smallest Political Quiz." What are the various ideologies and how does each believe the positive law should be designed? Ideology A detailed summary of the concept of political ideology.
Legal Realism and its Variants
In each reading, also consider how a legal realist and a CLS theorist would comment on the reading.
Johnson and Graham's Lessee v. M'IntoshWhat was the legal dispute, who won, and why? How does the Court respond to the argument that the practice of conquest and robbery violates natural law? Madison v. Ducktown Sulfer, Copper & Iron Co. What was the legal dispute, who won, and why? Why was the outcome of Ducktown Sulfer different than the outcome in Susquehanna Fertilizer? Poletown Neighborhood Council v. City of Detroit What was the legal dispute, who won, and why? If "jobs" and "tax revenues" are "public purposes" then when can a private home not be taken and given to a business? American Booksellers Assocation v. Hudnut How did the law define pornography? What was the legal dispute, who won, and why? Brown v. City of Oneonta What was the legal dispute, who won, and why? Why not investigate all white men in town if a suspect is a white male? Page v. Hollingsworth How economically efficient is the court's ruling? Is there a solution that offers more net economic benefits? Constitutional Interpretation
Publius, Federalist 78 Why will the Supreme Court not have a dangerous amount of power? Why should Supreme Court justices have life terms? Will the Supreme Court have the power of judicial review? How does the power of judicial review relate to social contract theory? Publius, Federalist 81 Why won't the Supreme Court abuse it's power of judicial review over the legislature? Brutus Nos. 15 and 16 Why will the Supreme Court be dangerous? Why won't the threat of impeachment prevent the Supreme Court from abusing its power of judicial review? Griswold v. Connecticut What differing methods of interpretation did the majority , concurrence, and dissents each use? Lawrence v. Texas What differing methods of interpretation did the majority , concurrence, and dissents each use? U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton What differing methods of interpretation did the majority and dissent each use? Interpretation of Statutes
Louisiana Animal Cruelty Statute What impact does section D have on potential criminal liability? Why might this section have been added? Re-read Riggs v. Palmer (from the second week of class). How did the majority and dissent each interpret the meaning of the statute? Nix v. Hedden How did the court interpret the meaning of the statute? Smith v. U.S. How did the majority and dissent each interpret the meaning of the statute? Church of the Holy Trinity v. United States How did the court interpret the meaning of the statute? Caminetti v. U.S. How did the majority and dissent interpret the meaning of the statute? Is Caminetti consistent with Church of the Holy Trinity? United Steelworkers v. Weber How did the majority and dissent each interpret the meaning of the statute? Interpretation of Caselaw
Planned Parenthood v. Casey How did the majority and dissent interpret stare decisis? Lake v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. How does the majority determine the common-law rule? Why did the dissent disagree? Interpretation of Custom
Swift v. Gifford Why was custom allowed to override the written law? UCC "Custom and Usage"Who determines whether a "custom" is impliedly included in a contract? Court Organization and Civil Procedure
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Brief excerpts of key steps in federal civil case procedure. Mayo v. Satan and his Staff What are the required elements for a class action lawsuit? Seals v. Morris What are the specific elements of negligence? Specifically how did Morris's actions violate each of those elements? Criminal Procedure
Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Brief excerpts of key steps in federal criminal case procedure. Terry v. Ohio What are the limits on warrantless search and seizure of individuals? U.S. v. Ross What are the limits on warrantless search and seizure of stopped automobiles? U.S. v. Quinones Why is the death penalty constitutional? When does a defendant on death row have a right to present evidence of innocence? Marles v. State What is the test whether evidence is "relevant" to the question of guilt? Criminal Responsibility
Model Penal Code What are the different types of mental culpability? Durham v. U.S. What is the M'Naghten (right-wrong) test? What is the irresistible impulse test? What is the new Durham Rule (the product test)? Why do you think the federal government and states which adopted the Durham rule all later returned to the earlier tests?
Participants in the Legal System
Lawyers, Police, and Prosecutors
The career of law Description of the practice of law, from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook Frasher v. Board of Law Examiners On what "moral fitness" grounds may a person be denied a license to practice law? Model Rules of Professional Conduct by the American Bar Association Wayte v. U.S. What are the specific limits of prosecutorial discretion? Cook v. State What is the role of a prosecutor? Why do you think the prosecutors and police did what they did in this case? The career of police and detectives Description of the career of police and detectives, from the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook. 42 U.S. Code Section 1983 What does this statute prohibit, and what are the possible remedies against police or prosecutors? Juries and Judges
Duncan v. Louisiana What purpose do juries serve? When does a defendant have a right to a jury trial? Dougherty v. U.S. What is jury nullification? Do juries have a right to be told about it? What are the advantages and disadvantages of it? Is Dougherty consistent with Duncan? U.S. v. Thomas Does a juror have a right to engage in jury nullification? Why are jury deliberations kept secret? Is Thomas consistent with Duncan? Purkett v. Elem What is the standard for determining whether a juror has been dismissed because of race? Skidmore v. Baltimore and Ohio Railroad CompanyWhat are the disadvantages of a general verdict? What is its advantage? The career of judges Description of the career of judging, from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook The Federal Court System What is the basic organizational structure of the federal court system? Over what types of cases does the federal judicial power (jurisdiction) extend? How are federal judges appointed and what is their term of office? What is the power of judicial review? Publius, Federalist 78 Why will the Supreme Court not have a dangerous amount of power? Why should Supreme Court justices have life terms? Will the Supreme Court have the power of judicial review? Publius, Federalist 81 Why won't the Supreme Court abuse it's power of judicial review over the legislature? Brutus Nos. 15 and 16 Why will the Supreme Court be dangerous? Why won't the threat of impeachment prevent the Supreme Court from abusing its power of judicial review? Republic Party of Minnesota v. White Can an elected judge be "impartial?" Can any judge be "impartial"?