Required Course Descriptions

Constitutional Law (4 units).
This course is an examination of the American constitutional system. Principles and practices of judicial review and interpretation in constitutional cases are studied with particular reference to the decisions of the United States Supreme Court. There is an examination of selected Congressional Powers, the authority of the President, and constitutional limitations on the exercise of governmental powers and the distribution of power between the federal and state governments. The course also focuses on the guarantees of individual rights, with an intensive coverage of freedom of expression, religious liberty, due process, and equal protection of the laws.

Contracts (5 units).
This is a basic study of the principles that govern the creation, interpretation, enforcement, and termination of private agreements. Coverage includes formation and interpretation of contracts, breach of contract, defenses to the enforcement of contracts, and remedies available for breach. Attention is given to the Uniform Commercial Code and other relevant statutes.

Criminal Law (3 units).
This course examines the basic doctrines structuring the state's punishment of undesirable conduct. Among the topics addressed are: the definition of criminal conduct, the defenses based on justification or excuse, the scope of criminal liability, and the relationship between crime and punishment.

Criminal Procedure (3 units).
A critical examination of the law governing the method by which persons who are accused of committing crimes are processed through the criminal justice system. Coverage focuses on the limits imposed by the U.S. Constitution on the procedures used in both state and federal criminal prosecutions.

Evidence (4 units).
An analysis of the nature of judicial proof and a study of the theory and application of the rules regulating the admission and exclusion of testimonial and documentary proof by judicial tribunals in adversary and non-adversary proceedings. Consideration is given to both the California and Federal rules of evidence.

Legal Ethics and the Practice of Law (3 units).
A review of the ethical principles behind the basic California and ABA rules through a discussion of actual practice problems. Ethical principles are introduced through these problems as they actually occur in practice as real-world ethical dilemmas. This course, usually offered in a seminar format, also emphasizes the practical and economic realities that can affect a lawyer's behavior, the tensions between traditional notions of ethical behavior, and society's larger sense of morality, and the conflict between the duty to advocate for the client and to act for the public good. Students may satisfy the ethics course requirement by completion of either Professional Responsibility or Legal Ethics and the Practice of Law.

Legal Research, Writing and Analysis (5 units).
A program designed to teach first-year law students to think and write as lawyers, focusing on legal analysis and problem solving, as well as on writing and research skills. In the first semester, students are required to draft at least ten assignments, ranging in difficulty from a simple case brief to a relatively complex objective memorandum of law. Students learn the following skills: understanding the legal writing and legal analysis process; applying the law to the facts of a particular situation; researching primary and secondary sources; organizing and outlining research materials; comparing objective writing to persuasive writing; and thinking as a lawyer. In the second semester, emphasis is on research (using both traditional research sources and computer assisted legal research), on writing longer and more sophisticated documents, and on writing persuasively. Students research and write demand letters and complex memoranda of points and authorities. Students are also prepared for the Moot Court exercise.

Moot Court (1 unit).
Small group and individual instruction in research, writing, and oral skills related to brief writing and oral arguments. At the conclusion of the course, students argue before a panel of attorneys and/or judges.

Professional Responsibility (3 units).
A course examining the Rules of Professional Conduct, the roles and functions of lawyers in society, responsibilities involved in representing clients, and the organization and function of the bar. This course uses concrete problems drawn from real life practice contexts to illustrate in a practical way the complex moral dimensions of a lawyer’s professional life. Students may satisfy the ethics course requirement by completion of either Professional Responsibility or Legal Ethics & the Practice of Law.

Property (4 units).
The core Property course introduces the fundamental concepts and principles underlying the legal system’s allocation of property rights; defines the features of differing types of property interests (through the law of estates, future interests, and concurrent interests).; introduces selected issues in landlord-tenant law; introduces the law governing private agreements people make about the use of each other’s property (through the law of easements, covenants, and equitable servitudes).; and addresses selected issues in public land use regulation.

Torts (4 units).
A study of the law of civil injuries, including the concepts of fault-based liability and strict liability. The course explores alternative bases of liability for the interference with personal and property interests as well as defenses and damages.

Upper Level Research and Writing (0 units).
Under the supervision of the faculty, each student is required to demonstrate competence in legal research and writing by preparing a paper that evidences a significant amount of original research and analysis. Specifics on fulfilling this requirement are outlined in the Handbook of Academic Policies.