Courses

• LAW JD 885: Research and Writing Seminar
  Small-group instruction in legal research and writing, with emphasis on developing legal research techniques, writing abilities, and legal problem-solving abilities. (Required First Year, spring semester.)
• LAW JD 886: Law and Sports (S)
  This seminar will survey a range of legal issues presented by sports in America. There are no pre-requisites. However, students should be prepared to learn and apply basic principles of antitrust law and labor law. Intellectual property law, constitutional law, administrative law, anti-discrimination law, contract law and tort law also will be applied. Topics will include the regulation of the professional sports labor market. The course also will treat the regulation of agent representation of athletes, the regulation of sports franchises and sports leagues, and the regulation of intercollegiate sports, with special attention to the NCAA. Students may satisfy the Upperclass Writing Requirement or write several shorter papers. Grades based on papers and class participation; no examination. ** A student who fails to attend the initial meeting of a seminar, or to obtain permission to be absent from either the instructor or the Registrar, will be administratively dropped from the seminar. Students who wait list for a seminar are required to attend the first seminar meeting to be considered for enrollment.
• LAW JD 887: Taxation of Corporations and Shareholders
  Federal income tax considerations have major implications for planning in the corporate area. This course focuses on income tax issues in transactions between corporations and shareholders, including distributions, exchanges, reorganizations and capital contributions. PREREQUISITE: INTRODUCTION TO FEDERAL INCOME TAXATION.
• LAW JD 889: Introduction to Federal Income Taxation
  The income tax is a pervasive feature of life in the United States and lawyers encounter tax issues in virtually every field of practice. This course introduces students to the fundamental principles of the federal income tax, and its impact on a wide range of matters, including employment, tort claims, divorce, retirement, and especially business activities and investments of all types. Topics include: the concept of income, determination of gross income, allowance of deductions and the determination of taxable income, identification of the taxpayer, taxable periods and timing, the determination of gain or loss (including realization and recognition) from dealings in property, the concept of income tax basis, and the process of change in the tax law. GRADING NOTICE: Professor Faulhaber's section of this course does not offer the CR/NC/H option.
• LAW JD 890: National Security and Foreign Relations Law
  This course will examine the framework of constitutional, statutory, and international law, which both authorizes and constrains the U.S. government's conduct of foreign relations and national security policy at home and abroad. We will cover, among other issues, (i) the respective powers and roles of each branch of the federal government in the realm of foreign relations and national security law; (ii) the use of force; (iii) selected counter-terrorism issues and controversies; and (iv) individual liberties and civil rights in wartime; (v) issues raised in transnational public litigation, including international human rights litigation and actions involving foreign states; (vi) the role and limits of treaties in the U.S. constitutional system; and (vii) extraterritorial application of the Constitution.
• LAW JD 892: Torts
  Principles of civil recovery for injury, including strict liability, negligence, and the intentional torts, with emphasis on the social, economic, and moral underpinnings of the doctrines.
• LAW JD 893: Research and Writing Seminar
  This two-credit Legal Research and Writing seminar is required for LL.M. students in the American Law program. It is specifically designed to introduce foreign lawyers to the basic principles of American legal writing. In small class settings and individual conferences, students receive guidance on drafting and editing memoranda and agreements. Their work is critiqued and rewritten. The research component of the seminar trains students to locate cases, statutes and secondary material through indexing systems and the latest computer technology. Research assignments are integrated into writing assignments -- exposing students to the methods of US legal analyses -- so that by the end of the term, students obtain the skills needed to write memoranda appropriate for submission to US law firms.
• LAW JD 894: Trial Advocacy
  This course introduces the student to the structure of the trial process and the skills used by trial lawyers. The topics covered range from opening statements to closing arguments, including conducting direct and cross-­examination of witnesses, making and meeting objections, introducing documents and discovery into evidence, and using hypothetical questions with expert witnesses. Students must perform simulated exercises and will try one or more civil or criminal cases before a jury. Visit the web for more information on the instructors. PREREQUISITE: EVIDENCE. Students taking TRIAL ADVOCACY in the second semester of their third year may take EVIDENCE as a COREQUISITE. Students who have already taken a trial advocacy class as part of the civil or criminal clinical programs may not subsequently enroll in a second basic trial advocacy class. Students may take the Advanced Trial Advocacy course or the Pretrial Advocacy: Civil and Criminal course. NOTE: This class satisfies the upper-class professional skills requirement. ** A student who fails either to attend the initial meeting of a section of Trial Advocacy, or to obtain permission to be absent from either the instructor or the registrar, WILL BE administratively dropped from the section. Students who are on a wait list for a section are required to attend the first section meeting to be considered for enrollment.
• LAW JD 895: Children and the Law
  This course examines legal issues relating to children and how various legal, political, social, and economic institutions shape childhood and child development. A central focus is the allocation of authority among the child, the family, and the state: how the legal system attempts to reconcile commitments to the fundamental constitutional liberty of parents, state authority for promoting the well-being and protecting the interests of children, and the rights and interests of children themselves. Topics considered include: the scope of parental liberty as a constitutional right, children's rights (including human rights) and obligations and the debate over children's rights, education (including student speech and anti-bullying laws), defining and creating the parent-child relationship (including adoption), parental discipline of children, child abuse and neglect, foster care, medical treatment of and medical decision-making by children, child pornography and "sexting," sexual and reproductive rights and responsibilities of adolescents, juvenile delinquency and the juvenile justice system, and the legal representation of children. Students have two options for the written requirement: a final exam or three papers on assigned topics. There is also a limited research paper option (the paper will satisfy the Upperclass Writing Requirement). In addition, there will be one pass/fail skills exercise and reflection paper. NOTE: This course satisfies the Upper-class Professional Skills requirement.
• LAW JD 896: Transnational Litigation
  This course is designed to expose students to aspects of civil litigation in the federal courts that has a transnational or foreign component, such as a foreign defendant, events abroad, or the interpretation of foreign or international law. It will examine the statutes, case law and treaty law that shape how courts deal with these cases. It encompasses issues related to international business transactions and international human rights litigation, including, for example, issues of the extraterritorial application of U.S. laws, service of process abroad, personal jurisdiction, foreign sovereign immunity, the taking of evidence abroad and the enforcement of judgments and arbitral awards.
• LAW JD 898: Criminal Trial Practice II/Defenders (C)
  THIS CLASS IS RESTRICTED to 3L students who have applied to and been accepted into the Criminal Clinical Program and who will begin the program in Fall 2012. This course will meet in the second semester for those students who have completed Criminal Trial Practice I. Students in the Defender Program will be assigned to represent indigent defendants charged with criminal offenses in either the Boston Municipal Court or the Boston Juvenile Court. In both locations, the students will act as defense counsel under the supervision of a clinical professor. The work in court will provide students with exposure to lawyering experiences such as investigation, interviewing, counseling and trial advocacy. Primary emphasis is on the development of trial skills, and students will spend the first part of the semester acting as defense counsel in misdemeanor cases of increasing complexity. Later in the semester, representation in felony cases is possible, as well as exposure to a number of other aspects of the criminal justice system. At all times, of course, case assignments are based upon an individual assessment of a student's progress and demonstrated competence. Students in the Defender Program must be available to be in court two days a week, from Monday through Thursday. NOTE: The Criminal Clinical Program satisfies the upper-class professional skills requirement.
• LAW JD 899: Criminal Trial Practice II/Prosecutors (C)
  THIS CLASS IS RESTRICTED to 3L students who have applied to and been accepted into the Criminal Clinical Program and who will begin the program in Fall 2012. This course will meet in the second semester for those students who have completed Criminal Trial Practice I. Students in the Prosecutor Program will act as prosecutors in the Quincy District Court, for the Norfolk County District Attorney's office. The students will have responsibility for all aspects of the cases they are assigned, under the supervision of the clinical professor. Students will be exposed to a wide variety of experiences, including investigation, interviewing and trial advocacy. Students will spend the first part of the semester representing the Commonwealth in misdemeanor cases of increasing complexity. Later in the semester, representation in felony cases is possible, as well as having an opportunity to appear before a six-person jury session. At all times, of course, case assignments are based upon an individual assessment of a student's progress and demonstrated competence. Students in the Prosecutor Program must be available to be in court two days a week, Monday through Thursday. NOTE: The Criminal Clinical Program satisfies the upper-class professional skills requirement.
• LAW JD 901: Appellate Advocacy Program Director
  This class is restricted to third-year students who applied and were accepted as directors of the BU Law Moot Court programs (Esdaile, Stone and Albers). NOTE: This class satisfies the Upper-class Professional Skills requirement.
• LAW JD 903: Supreme Court 2012 Term: Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure and Habeas Cases (S)
  This course will focus on criminal procedure and criminal law cases that are currently on the docket of the Supreme Court. Each week, the class will read a substantial amount of materials in preparation for one case, including its lower court opinion, the briefs from each party, two sets of amicus briefs, and a Supreme Court opinion drafted by a member of the class. Students will also be expected to read the most significant Supreme Court precedents involving each case. Prior to each class session, each student will be responsible for writing a 3-5 page memo critiquing the readings of the week. Students will also be responsible for drafting one 20-25 page Supreme Court opinion to be distributed to and discussed by the class. NOTE: Criminal Procedure is not a prerequisite for this course. NOTE: This seminar satisfies the upper-class professional skills requirement. ** A student who fails to attend the initial meeting of a seminar, or to obtain permission to be absent from either the instructor or the Registrar, will be administratively dropped from the seminar. Students who wait list for a seminar are required to attend the first seminar meeting to be considered for enrollment.
• LAW JD 904: Deals: The Economic Structure of Transactions and Contracting
  This course analyzes the structure of complex transactions and contracts -- deals -- from both a positive and normative perspective. We investigate the contracting patterns that have emerged with respect to different types of transactions, e.g., mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and financings, and consider whether more effective contracting arrangements could be achieved. The course is divided into two parts. The first half of the semester introduces students to the tools and concepts needed to evaluate alter¬native transactional structures, including transaction costs, information economics, risk sharing and incentives, property rights, and finance. The second half applies these tools to real world transactions. The class is divided into teams, each of which is assigned a deal and given a full set of transaction documents. Two class meetings are allocated to each deal. A student team presents their analysis of the transaction during the first class. In the second class, the lawyers and/or clients who actually participated in the transaction make a presentation. Students then have the opportunity to test how the classroom approach corresponds to the way those who actually "did the deal" understood it -- and, in particular, how common problems are addressed in different transactional settings. NOTES: 1) Deals is a capstone course within the Transactional Law Program. 2) Preference in enrollment will be given to students who have completed Contract Drafting. 3) This course satisfies the Upper-class Professional Skills requirement. RESTRICTION: Students may not take Deals after having taken any other Transactional Law Program capstone course. GRADING NOTICE: This course does not offer the CR/NC/H option.
• LAW JD 905: Entertainment Law (S)
  This course will focus on the varied legal doctrines that influence both the business and practice of Entertainment Law. Some of the primary topics include issues involving publicity rights and the use and control of image, celebrity and promotion issues, defamation and free speech, invasion of privacy, copyright including infringement and dispute and other general contractual relations surrounding the entertainment field. The course will also explore the practical aspects of entertainment law such as complicated litigation issues involving jurisdictional and venue concerns, client counseling and negotiations and other ethical concerns raised in the course of representation of your client. This course will not focus on sports entertainment or any other specific labor-related organizations. There will be no final exam. Grades will be based upon papers and class participation. NOTE: This seminar satisfies the Upper-class Professional Skills requirement. LIMITED WRITING REQUIREMENT OPTION: A limited number of students may be permitted to satisfy the upper-class writing requirement with the approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. OFFERING PATTERN: This class is frequently offered in alternating years. Students are advised to take this into account when planning their long-term schedule. ** A student who fails to attend the initial meeting of a seminar, or to obtain permission to be absent from either the instructor or the Registrar, will be administratively dropped from the seminar. Students who wait list for a seminar are required to attend the first seminar meeting to be considered for enrollment.
• LAW JD 906: Current Issues in Employment Law (S)
  This seminar focuses on selected developments in employment law as seen from the perspective of a practitioner. The course will examine how the common law notion of the workplace has changed over time, how tort theories of job protection have expanded, and how privacy and free speech issues are looked at in the age of Facebook and the Internet. The course will also review employment discrimination issues involving a protected status such as age, sex, gender, race, religion and disability. The grade for the course will be based on weekly comments to problems, a paper and class participation. PREREQUISITE: A prior course in labor or employment law, or permission of the instructor, is required. LIMITED WRITING REQUIREMENT OPTION: A limited number of students may be permitted to satisfy the upper-class writing requirement with the approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. NOTE: This seminar satisfies the Upper-class Professional Skills requirement. OFFERING PATTERN: This class is frequently offered in alternating years. Students are advised to take this into account when planning their long-term schedule. ** A student who fails to attend the initial meeting of a seminar, or to obtain permission to be absent from either the instructor or the Registrar, will be administratively dropped from the seminar. Students who wait list for a seminar are required to attend the first seminar meeting to be considered for enrollment.
• LAW JD 907: Representing Life Sciences Companies: Biotechnology, Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices (S)
  Biotechnology and Pharmaceuticals are two of the fastest growing industries in the U.S., and the legal issues that arise in connection with representing them are complex and evolving. This seminar will focus on the transactional, intellectual property, and regulatory legal issues that challenge lawyers working with clients in these industries. We will begin with an overview of these industries, including a basic review of the sciences underpinning them (intended for non-scientists). We will then delve into complex legal issues such as licensing, collaborations, and consortium building; academic-industry interactions; the drug and biologic regulatory approval process; issues arising in clinical trials; and legal issues arising in the manufacture and distribution of life sciences products. If time permits, we will also examine the medical device industry and the ways in which that industry differs from the biopharmaceutical industry. In lieu of an exam, students will prepare a 25 page, journal-worthy article addressing a legal topic of the student's selection. PREREQUISITE: No scientific background will be required, but students will benefit from prior or contemporaneous coursework in intellectual property. ENROLLMENT LIMIT: 20 students. LIMITED WRITING REQUIREMENT OPTION: A limited number of students may be permitted to satisfy the upper-class writing requirement with the approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. NOTE: This seminar satisfies the upper-class professional skills requirement. OFFERING PATTERN: This class is frequently offered in alternating years. Students are advised to take this into account when planning their long-term schedule. ** 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.
• LAW JD 908: Judging in the American Legal System (S)
  This seminar explores the professional role of judges, both state and federal, in our American legal system. It invites analysis of the distinctive features of our judiciary, its multiple roles in legal determinations under stare decisis , in statutory interpretation, in fact finding (both at trial and in other contexts), in the many interactions with the direct democracy of the American jury, in administration and case management, and in contacts with the legislative and executive branches. LIMITED WRITING REQUIREMENT OPTION: A limited number of students may be permitted to satisfy the upper-class writing requirement with the approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. ** A student who fails to attend the initial meeting of a seminar, or to obtain permission to be absent from either the instructor or the Registrar, will be administratively dropped from the seminar. Students who wait list for a seminar are required to attend the first seminar meeting to be considered for enrollment.
• LAW JD 912: American Constitutional History (S)
  This seminar will investigate constitutional history, from the years leading to the American Revolution through Reconstruction, from several different angles, including presidential leadership, legislative mandates, and judicial interpretation. We will also consider popular constitutionalism and how society at large debated and helped to shape constitutional interpretation and development. Topics to be covered will include the constitutional impact of the break with Britain, the Founding of the Republic, Lincoln's constitutionalism, the redefinition of American citizenship during Reconstruction, as well as changes in the rights of the individual and developments as to federalism and the nature of the Union during the time period covered in this course. No prior history background is necessary. LIMITED WRITING REQUIREMENT OPTION: A limited number of students may be permitted to satisfy the upper-class writing requirement with the approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. OFFERING PATTERN: This class is frequently offered in alternating years. Students are advised to take this into account when planning their long-term schedule. **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.

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