This seminar is designed to take students through a simulated criminal appeal, during which they will learn how to mold a cold record into a compelling brief procedurally, factually, and legally. The first portion of the course will focus on the mechanics and form of a criminal appellate brief. The course will then shift focus and deal with substantive criminal law. Students will be asked to read and critically analyze Supreme Court briefs (as well as the Court’s opinions) from a number of groundbreaking cases in criminal law. Additionally, students will be introduced to substantive issues of criminal law and criminal procedure that prosecutors and defense attorneys face daily in practice. Topics include challenges to the sufficiency of the evidence, prosecutorial misconduct, exculpatory evidence, ineffective assistance of counsel, unlawful search and seizure, and custodial interrogation. In the final portion of the class, the seminar will focus on the art of the oral argument and persuasive advocacy. Students will be given a record on appeal, which will consist of pleadings and transcripts, and will be required to write an appellate brief (either as prosecutor or defense). Students will then face off against their peers in an argument before a simulated appellate panel during which they must orally defend their positions. There will be no final exam for this course. Grades will be based on class participation, written assignments, and performance on the appellate brief and oral argument. ENROLLMENT LIMIT: The seminar will be limited to 20 students. NOTE: This seminar does not satisfy the Upper-class writing assignment.
A student who fails to attend the initial meeting of a seminar (designated by an (S) in the title), or to obtain permission to be absent from either the instructor or the Registrar, may be administratively dropped from the seminar. Students who are on a wait list for a seminar are required to attend the first seminar meeting to be considered for enrollment.
