Spring 2024 Courses
First Year Courses
Instructor: Lenhart
Instructor: Solimine
Credit Hours: 3
Description
| This course continues issues first explored in Civil Procedure I. It opens with joinder of parties in multi-party actions, interpleader, class actions and intervention. Modern discovery procedures, the trial process, and post-trial motions are considered. The course ends with procedures governing appeals, alternative dispute resolution, and the effect of res judicata and collateral estoppels by judgment in prior litigation. Prerequisite: Civil Procedure I. |
Instructor: Thoreson
Instructor: Bryant
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
This required course covers individual rights and freedoms, including the incorporation of the Bill of Rights as against the States, freedom of speech and religion, due process, economic and personal liberties and state action. Prerequisite: Constitutional Law I.
Instructor: Whiteman
Instructor: Lavalais
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
This course deals with substantive criminal law, although its focus is on the various principles that apply to all crimes rather than on the elements of specific crimes. Homicidal crimes are given separate attention, however. The various defenses, including insanity, are reviewed.
Instructor: McCord
Instructor: Oliver
Instructor: Smith
Instructor: Lenhart
Instructor: McCord
Instructor: Oliver
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
The course is structured as a simulated law firm with students working on a case file to develop and apply advocacy skills. Students study and write one or more persuasive briefs to a court. The course culminates with students arguing a motion before a simulated judge. Students also continue their work on legal research and professionalism. Prerequisite: Lawyering I: Legal Research & Writing.
Instructor: Cogan
Instructor: Bai
Credit Hours:4
Description:
This course surveys the varieties of property interests and relations available in Anglo-American law, with an emphasis on tracing their development and evolution in modern American society. Discussion usually covers adverse possession, the traditional estates in land, future interests, landlord-tenant law, concurrent ownership, land use regulation and eminent domain, and easements and other servitudes.
Upper Level Courses
Instructor: Zingarelli
Credit Hours: 3
Description
| In 2015 the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Task Force on Access to Justice released its Report and Recommendations, noting that Ohio courts are “filled with individuals unable to secure legal representation in civil matters and are left with no choice but to navigate an unfamiliar, complex court system alone.” This class will examine the justice gap, where 86% of civil legal problems reported by low-income people received either no or inadequate legal help. The class will have three components: First, we will examine the justice gap in a variety of contexts—housing, criminal cases, immigration and family law matters—inviting in access to justice lawyers to lend their insights and expertise. We will then move towards access to justice interventions, including right to counsel, technology, self-help centers and court process simplification. A third component is an optional in person field placement at the Help Center that will give students a practical experience with access to justice lawyering. The class would convene 1 hr/week and require a 10-15 page paper. The field placement would consist of 31 hours in the Help Center. Representative Classes include: 1. Introducing the Justice Gap: Legal Services Corporation, The Justice Gap Report; American Bar Association, Report on the Future of Legal Services in the United States; Ohio Supreme Court Report and Recommendations on the Taskforce on Access to Justice. 2. Access to Justice Lawyering & Help Center Training: Duncan Kennedy, Legal Education as Training for Hierarchy; William P. Quiqley, Letter to a Law Student Interested in Social Justice, 1 DePaul J. for Soc. Justice; David F. Levi, Dana Remus, and Abigail Frisch, Reclaiming the Role of Lawyers as Community Connectors, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Jennifer Ching et al., A Few Interventions and Offerings from Five Movement Lawyers to the Access to Justice Movement, 87 FORDHAM L. REV. 186. 3. Housing: Excerpts from Matthew Desmond’s Evicted; Department of Sociology University of Cincinnati, "You are being asked to leave the premises": A Study of Eviction in Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Ohio. 4. Criminal: Excerpts from Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow. 5. Defining Terms: Rebecca L. Sandefur, Access to What?, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Robert W. Gordo, Lawyers, the Legal Profession & Access to Justice in the United States: A Brief History, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Robert H. Frank, How Rising Income Inequality Threatens Access to the Legal System, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1. 6. Lawyers’ Role (Rt. to counsel, mandatory pro bono, unbundled/limited legal help): Tonya L. Brito, The Right to Civil Counsel, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Benjamin Barton and Stephanos Bibos, Triaging Appointed Counsel Funding and Pro Se Access to Justice; John Pollock and Michael Greco, It’s Not Triage If the Patient Bleeds Out. 7. Partnerships with non-lawyers (legal tech., court navigators, pro se information/self-help centers): Tanina Rostain, Techno-Optimism & Access to the Legal System 8. Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Margaret Hagan, Participatory Design for Innovation in Access to Justice, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Deborah L. Rhode and Lucy Ricca, “Protecting the Profession or the Public? Rethinking Unauthorized Practice of Law Enforcement”, 82 Fordham L. Rev. 2587. 9. Procedural justice and court simplification: Anna E. Carpenter, Active Judging and Access to Justice (2017), Watch: Tracy Meares, Is Procedural Justice the Secret Ingredient? (2014), Simplified Courts Can't Solve Inequality, Colleen F. Shanahan and Anna E. Carpenter, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1. SPECIAL NOTE: There is a classroom component consisting of a one classroom credit class and an optional one credit field placement, which is in person at the Help Center at the Hamilton County Municipal Court. The Field Placement is optional beca |
Instructor: Zingarelli
Credit Hours: 3
Description
| There is a classroom component consisting of a one classroom credit class and an optional one credit field placement, which is in person at the Help Center at the Hamilton County Municipal Court. The Field Placement is optional because it is in person at a time when COVID-19 is still a threat and not all students may want to pursue an in person clinical experience. Students may take the 1-credit class and not the field placement. But students may not take the field placement without taking the one-credit class. In 2015 the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Task Force on Access to Justice released its Report and Recommendations, noting that Ohio courts are “filled with individuals unable to secure legal representation in civil matters and are left with no choice but to navigate an unfamiliar, complex court system alone.” This class will examine the justice gap, where 86% of civil legal problems reported by low-income people received either no or inadequate legal help. The class will have three components: First, we will examine the justice gap in a variety of contexts—housing, criminal cases, immigration and family law matters—inviting in access to justice lawyers to lend their insights and expertise. We will then move towards access to justice interventions, including right to counsel, technology, self-help centers and court process simplification. A third component is an optional in person field placement at the Help Center that will give students a practical experience with access to justice lawyering. The class would convene 2hrs/week and require a 15 page paper. The field placement would consist of 26 hours in the Help Center and 11.5 hours classroom time beyond the amount of time justifying the one credit classroom component. Representative Classes include: 1. Introducing the Justice Gap: Legal Services Corporation, The Justice Gap Report; American Bar Association, Report on the Future of Legal Services in the United States; Ohio Supreme Court Report and Recommendations on the Taskforce on Access to Justice. 2. Access to Justice Lawyering & Help Center Training: Duncan Kennedy, Legal Education as Training for Hierarchy; William P. Quiqley, Letter to a Law Student Interested in Social Justice, 1 DePaul J. for Soc. Justice; David F. Levi, Dana Remus, and Abigail Frisch, Reclaiming the Role of Lawyers as Community Connectors, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Jennifer Ching et al., A Few Interventions and Offerings from Five Movement Lawyers to the Access to Justice Movement, 87 FORDHAM L. REV. 186. 3. Housing: Excerpts from Matthew Desmond’s Evicted; Department of Sociology University of Cincinnati, "You are being asked to leave the premises": A Study of Eviction in Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Ohio. 4. Criminal: Excerpts from Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow. 5. Defining Terms: Rebecca L. Sandefur, Access to What?, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Robert W. Gordo, Lawyers, the Legal Profession & Access to Justice in the United States: A Brief History, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Robert H. Frank, How Rising Income Inequality Threatens Access to the Legal System, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1. 6. Lawyers’ Role (Rt. to counsel, mandatory pro bono, unbundled/limited legal help): Tonya L. Brito, The Right to Civil Counsel, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Benjamin Barton and Stephanos Bibos, Triaging Appointed Counsel Funding and Pro Se Access to Justice; John Pollock and Michael Greco, It’s Not Triage If the Patient Bleeds Out. 7. Partnerships with non-lawyers (legal tech., court navigators, pro se information/self-help centers): Tanina Rostain, Techno-Optimism & Access to the Legal System 8. Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Margaret Hagan, Participatory Design for Innovation in Access to Justice, Daedalus Winter 2019, Vol. 148, No. 1; Deborah L. Rhode and Lucy Ricca, “Protecting the Profession or the Public? Rethinking Unau |
Instructor: Mank
Credit Hours: 3
Description
| Government agencies increasingly regulate the marketplace, health and safety, and provide basic services. This course explores the constitutional powers and limitations on agency action, judicial review of agencies, and the procedures with which agencies must comply in regulating or providing benefits. |
Instructor: Bluett
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
The Advanced Domestic Violence Clinic is an opportunity for students who have successfully completed the Domestic Violence Clinic in the Fall of their 3L year to continue developing their skills and experience working with survivors of domestic violence. The Advanced Domestic Violence Clinic allows students to continue their clinical work, with the opportunity to participate in additional trials and possibly more complex cases. It also provides the Advanced Clinic student(s) with an opportunity to take more of a leadership role and mentor incoming Domestic Violence Clinic students. Students must have permission from the Clinic Director to enroll.
Instructor: Boland
Instructor: Dixon-Caldwell
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| Advanced Legal Research: Civil Litigation provides you with the research skills necessary to successfully practice law. This course builds upon the basic research skills and techniques learned in the required legal research and writing course but also explores advanced topics and sources in Civil Litigation. Its problem-solving approach gives you practical research experience that will enhance your understanding of the sources of legal authority and legal research principles. Students will learn to assess and respond strategically to legal research problems using available resources. The scope is (mostly) limited to researching United States federal and state law. |
Instructor: Russell
Instructor: Whiteman
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| Advanced Legal Research: Criminal Law & Procedure provides you with the research skills necessary to successfully practice law. This course builds upon the basic research skills and techniques learned in the required legal research and writing course but also explores advanced topics and sources in Criminal Law & Procedure. Its problem-solving approach gives you practical research experience that will enhance your understanding of the sources of legal authority and legal research principles. Students will learn to assess and respond strategically to legal research problems using available resources in print and digital formats. The scope is (mostly) limited to researching United States federal and state law. |
Instructor: Jones
Instructor: Kemen
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| Ohio Legal Research provides students with the research skills necessary to successfully practice law. This course builds upon the basic research skills and techniques learned in the required legal research and writing courses but also explores advanced topics and sources of Ohio law. Its problem-solving approach gives students a practical research experience that will enhance their understanding of the sources of legal authority and legal research principles. Students will learn to assess and respond strategically to legal research problems using available resources in print and digital formats. The scope is limited to researching Ohio law. |
Instructor: Bilionis
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This seminar will examine key constitutional challenges that the United States faces in the early 21st century – issues of public concern that have sparked significant debate about the proper role of constitutional values in contemporary American life. The topics that will be studied include: • Racial Justice in Criminal Justice • Constitutional Challenge and Change: The Case of Capital Punishment • Fraction and Friction in 21st Century American Political Life • Money, Speech, and Political Power • Presidential Authority in Times of Global Challenge and Political Polarization • The Changing Look of American Federalism • Conscience, Religion, and Constitutional Objection • Free Market Principles in Constitutional Law Examination of the topics will draw on a broad range of readings to inform class discussion. Each student will prepare a seminar length paper (minimum of 30 pages in length) on a topic of her or his selection after consultation with the professor. Each student also will deliver a presentation on the paper to the class for discussion. SPECIAL NOTE: Taking this course satisfies only one of the graduation requirements (seminar or writing). If you take this course and have not yet satisfied the seminar requirement, you will be deemed to have met the seminar requirement. However, if you take this course and you have already met the seminar requirement, you will be deemed to have met the writing requirement. Two, separate courses are required to satisfy both the seminar and writing requirements. No one course satisfies them both. |
Instructor: Lubans-Otto
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| This course will provide you with the fundamentals of asylum and refugee law in the United States, the policies underlying asylum and refugee law, and the federal agencies that implement and enforce those policies. The course will trace the history and development of the United Nations 1951 Refugee Convention, the 1967 Protocol, and the U.S. Refugee Act of 1980. Students will become familiar with the key actors in the asylum and refugee law arena, including the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, the U.S. Congress, the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice, and the federal courts. Students will gain an understanding of the refugee definition as interpreted in the U.S. The course will address the limits of refugee law and will assess the current asylum system from both a practitioner’s and a policy perspective – contextualizing asylum law within the need for international and domestic policymakers alike to meet obligations under international conventions while maintaining national security, including addressing the challenges of terrorism and transnational crime. |
Instructor: Burks
Instructor: Dicesare
Instructor: Stickley
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This course offers an introduction to the Bankruptcy Code. The course begins with brief coverage of non-bankruptcy debt collection; however, it primarily focuses on the basics of bankruptcy proceedings by consumer and business debtors under Chapters 7, 11, and 13 of the Bankruptcy Code. Topics covered include the creation of a bankruptcy estate, exemptions, the automatic stay, the trustee's avoidance powers, adequate protection, and executory contracts. Special Note: You must have taken Secured Transactions to take this class. However, if you have not taken Secured Transactions, it is the student’s responsibility to discuss this with Professor Kalsem to see if she will waive this prerequisite for you. |
Instructor: Malloy
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| Bioethics explores the development of American law as it relates to ethical and moral issues in the areas of health care and life sciences. Supplementing courses in health law and public health law, and law and biosciences, this course is intended to give students an appreciation of the ways in which the law’s regulatory powers have been used to guide decision-making in medicine and biomedical research, and, in turn, how theories of medical ethics and practice have informed modern legal developments. In this class, we will take up a range of issues including (but not limited to): end of life decisions, allocation of resources such as organs for transplantation, human reproduction, human subjects’ research, and developments in genetics and stem cell research and therapies. Bioethics raises difficult questions about the nature, meaning, and value of life and the importance and appropriate ethical and legal role of health care. Through an in-depth study and writing on these topics, I hope that you will develop and challenge our thinking about these issues. Students will be evaluated based on a final research paper. There are no prerequisites. |
Instructor: Jackson
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This course covers major topics in the law of agency, partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability companies and corporations, as well as selected aspects of the federal securities laws. |
Instructor: McMahon
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This course will cover the fundamentals of the federal income tax as it applies to businesses. Its focus will be on the tax treatment of the most common business entities: C corporations, partnerships, and S corporations. This course is intended to provide a basic understanding of these entities’ most frequent tax issues for those interested either in a career in tax law or representing business entities more generally. |
Instructor: Cook
Instructor: Helfrich
Instructor: Washington
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
| One of the most intrusive governmental actions is the removal of children from their families. The grounds for removal include abuse and neglect. These decisions are made by juvenile and family courts across the nation, resulting in nearly 500,000 children in the child protection system each year. The parties to a child protection action include county social workers, parents, best interests advocates known as Guardians ad Litem (GAL) and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA Volunteer), and the children. These parties are represented by attorneys in a variety of roles. This course is designed as an introduction to child protection actions and the roles of attorneys participating in them, and current practitioners. |
Instructor: Cook
Instructor: Helfrich
Instructor: Washington
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
One of the most intrusive governmental actions is the removal of children from their families. The grounds for removal include abuse and neglect. These decisions are made by juvenile and family courts across the nation, resulting in nearly 500,000 children in the child protection system each year. The parties to a child protection action include county social workers, parents, best interests advocates known as Guardians ad Litem (GAL) and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA Volunteer), and the children. These parties are represented by attorneys in a variety of roles. This course is designed as an introduction to child protection actions and the roles of attorneys participating in them, and current practitioners.
Instructors: Honkonen
Description:
| This course will examine federal civil rights statutes (primarily 42 U.S.C. § 1983), relevant case law, and practical issues concerning civil rights litigation. Students will gain an understanding of the legislative history of § 1983, its textual interpretation, and the scope of relief available under the statute. Through class exercises, discussion, and submitted case briefs on course materials, students will analyze the constitutional rights enforceable under § 1983 and other civil rights statutes, defenses and immunities in civil rights actions, and available damages, with a particular focus on underlying theories and policy determinations. Students will apply their knowledge in a final paper on topic covered in or related to the course. |
Instructor: Mangan
Credit Hours:2
Description:
| In this course, students consider the lawyer-client relationship in the context of realistic scenarios, examining the basic strategies and skills a lawyer must master in the lawyer-client relationship. Students will practice and demonstrate the skills of effective client communication and practice management. The instruction and simulations will be set in the business transaction context. This is a required course that must be taken in the second year, unless you have met the requirement in another way. Students who participate in other experiences in the second year may have met the Client Counseling Requirement and are not required to take this course. These students, along with 3L’s who have not taken a client counseling course, will be permitted to take this Client Counseling class only if seats remain after students are placed in the sections of the course who must take it. |
Instructor: Mamo
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Most lawyers agree that practicing law would be much simpler without (autonomous) clients. But then, practice would be without purpose: whom would we represent? This course focuses on the realities of working with clients, from the initial lawyer-client interview through the challenges of counseling the fully informed client toward wise and ethical decision-making. Short exercises, presentations, video, and role simulations will focus upon how to communicate legal concepts, conduct interest-based inquiry and advice, work with client emotion and psychology, and introduce basic risk analysis. We will touch upon effective use of voice, gesture, and body language in the lawyer-client counseling context. Finally, we will address the most difficult counseling challenge: how to give a client bad news while maintaining client rapport, trust, and confidence. The instruction and simulations will be set in legal dispute contexts. This is a required course that must be taken in the second year, unless you have met the requirement in another way. Students who participate in other experiences in the second year may have met the Client Counseling Requirement and are not required to take this course. These students, along with 3Ls who have not taken a client counseling course, will be permitted to take this Client Counseling class only if seats remain after students are placed in the sections of the course who must take it.
Instructor: Block
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
In this course, students will learn the skills necessary to effectively conduct client interviews, counsel clients, and negotiate in the public sector. Students will explore real-life scenarios of a government attorney and demonstrate the skills of effective client communication and practice management. This course is practical and problem-oriented.
Instructor: Armstrong
Description:
| This course tackles the legal issues surrounding computer technology, including the protectibility of computer software; the misappropriation of computer technology; software licenses, support, distribution, and development agreements; ownership of online "content"; privacy in a computer age; and liability for tortious acts and computer crimes. |
Instructor: Bluett
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
This course examines the nature of gender-based violence (GBV) in the U.S. and around the world and provides students with an opportunity to advocate for legal and/or policy changes aimed at enhancing state1 response to GBV. Through selected readings and class discussions, students will be asked to think critically about the strengths and weaknesses of current state responses to GBV, either through legislation or the criminal or civil justice system.
Students will identify, in consultation with the instructor, a current issue related to GBV in the first weeks of classes and will develop throughout the semester policy papers and/or legislative proposals on that issue. Students working individually will prepare a 12 to 15 page written submission: students working in teams will prepare a 25-30 page written submission.
Instructor: Ford
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| This course focuses on the problem of choosing which jurisdiction's law should govern transactions, relationships, or events with contacts to more than one jurisdiction. The course also explores the law governing recognition of sister - state and foreign judgments, and the jurisdictional and choice-of-law problems posed by cyberspace. The course will provide students with the opportunity both to become familiar with and to criticize the various approaches to these problems adopted by U.S. jurisdictions (especially Ohio). |
Instructor: Rosenberg
Description:
| This year-long course provides, during the first semester, an overview of the different legal frameworks applicable to Conflict-Related Sexual Violence (CRSV) with a focus on the relevant sources of law (including conventions and their protocols, customary law, the jurisprudence of international courts and tribunals, and General Comments/Recommendations, Decisions/Views, Concluding Observations and other material of the relevant UN treaty bodies and regional human rights bodies) and their enforcement mechanisms. In the second semester, students will monitor developments in the law applicable to CRSV and participate in updating the “Legal Guidebook on State Obligations for Conflict-related Sexual Violence.” Students will engage with leading legal experts, as well as with members of civil society and survivors of CRSV to better understand the real world challenges to eliminating the use of sexual violence in conflict. |
Instructor: Cogan
Credit Hours:2
Description:
| In this year-long course, students will assist the professor in producing the “Contemporary Practice of the United States Relating to International Law” (CPUS) section of the American Journal of International Law (AJIL), the preeminent peer-reviewed international law journal. Students will track current developments in U.S. practice related to international law, foreign relations, and national security, and class discussions will focus on these current events. Students will assist the instructor in drafting short essays that analyze and contextualize current developments. Essays may focus on, for example, domestic and international litigation, uses of force, the making or terminating of international agreements, and U.S. policy with respect to international organizations. |
Instructor: Owens
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This course examines copyright law in detail, with particular focus on the Copyright Act of 1976, its history, and its ability to respond to recent developments in technology. Copyright law offers protection for works considered to be within the "fine arts" (music, paintings, photographs, sculpture) and "literature" (books, stories, plays) as well as more mundane works, including commercial, i.e., applied art and even data directories. Copyright also covers architectural works and works reliant on technology, such as computer software. Students will gain an understanding of copyright law generally, as well as an understanding of how that law might apply to emerging technologies. |
Instructor: Dye
Instructor: Reed
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
This course will explore how the state legislative process works, using the Ohio General Assembly as model. Additionally, the course will highlight the relationships between the branches of state government, community composition, and organizing/education strategies to buttress legislative initiatives that impact the legislative process. By the end of the course, students will not only understand these processes but be able to analyze and articulate barriers to effective legislative advocacy and will have developed advocacy, writing, and investigative skills in legislative advocacy.
Instructor: Bilionis
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This introductory course deals with the constitutional aspects of various police practices, focusing primarily on the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments to the US Constitution. The course specifically addresses the right to counsel; arrest, search and seizure; wiretapping, electronic eavesdropping and the use of secret agents; police interrogation and confession; and the scope and administration of the exclusionary rules. |
Instructor: Godsey
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This course covers the basic rules for post-arrest criminal litigation. Sources include constitutions, statutes and court rules, ethical codes, performance standards, research data, and appellate decisions interpreting these primary materials. Topics include the right to counsel; charging decisions; pretrial detention; discovery and investigation; plea bargaining; speedy trial and double jeopardy; jury selection; additional trial rights, including compulsory process and confrontation of witnesses; sentencing; and appeal/post-conviction procedures. The goal is clear understanding of the rules, their underlying theories, and their real-world consequences. SPECIAL NOTE: This course covers completely different material than that covered in Criminal Procedure I. Criminal Procedure I is not a prerequisite for this course, but it is recommended that Criminal Procedure I be taken first. |
Instructor: Gallagher
Instructor: Crouse
Instructor: Eckes
Description:
| This class will concentrate on developing trial skills with a focus on the trial of a criminal case taught in an actual courtroom . Beginning with developing the Theory of the case and exposing students to all aspects of criminal trial work, including pre-trial motions, making and responding to objections, and each component of a criminal trial. The goal of the class is to provide an introduction to the zealous and effective presentations in a criminal case. |
Instructor: Houh
Description:
This course explores the foundations and central tenets of Critical Race Theory (“CRT”), a scholarly movement that emerged in the 1980s as an offshoot of Critical Legal Studies (“CLS”). Since then, CRT has developed into an expansive and diverse field of scholarship in its own right. Most, however, would characterize CRT as centrally concerned with (1) using critiques of liberalism and colorblind ideology to expose how racism (and, particularly, white supremacy) is structurally and discursively embedded in and perpetuated by the law, and (2) generating and applying more inclusive and liberatory modes of legal analysis, such as intersectionality, to effect lasting social change. CRT scholars over the last 30 years have produced a diverse range of robust CRT spinoffs, such as LatCrit, QueerCrit, AsianCrit, and ClassCrit (and, to be certain, several other “—Crits”); in fact, since its inception CRT has arguably overtaken CLS within the legal academy. CRT’s interdisciplinary reach and impact during the past three decades likewise cannot be overstated, as it has been widely influential across many fields, including (but not limited to) education theory, sociology, anthropology, psychology, and American studies. This course will begin with an exploration of CRT’s origins in Critical Legal Studies, as well as an introduction to “racial formation theory,” which was contemporaneously introduced in the mid-1980s in the fields of sociology and ethnic studies. Following the introductory study of CRT’s origins and key aspects of racial formation theory, several weeks will be spent reading and discussing foundational CRT texts, primarily comprising “first generation” works (in their full and unedited forms) from 1976-1993, as well as a few later writings. After mastering CRT foundations, the course will move on to the more difficult question of CRT “praxis.” That is, how can CRT insights be used to engage more effectively in social justice advocacy and lawyering? How does one navigate the difficult terrain between CRT praxis and conventional legal practices, both as a student and as a lawyer?
Instructor: Caster
Description:
| Over the past decade several efforts have been made to reform the American criminal legal system, with varying degrees of success. This course will focus on the current state of that system, proposals for reform, and analyses of the benefits and costs of such proposals. Students will also synthesize their own propose reforms to the criminal legal system. |
Instructor: Omarova
Description:
| The purpose of this course is to provide a broad overview of the key trends in, and public policy issues raised by, the ongoing digitization of money and the rise of crypto-finance. We will explore a variety of “hot” topics – including, for example, the dynamics of so-called “decentralized finance” (DeFi), the pros and cons of stablecoins, and potential role for central bank digital currencies (CBDC) – from an explicitly macro-systemic, structural perspective. Unpacking the familiar rhetoric of transactional efficiency and inclusiveness, we will focus on fundamental shifts in the structure, complexity, and governability of tech-driven financial markets. The course will place these issues within a broader conceptual framework for understanding how modern financial systems work. Students will be evaluated based on a take-home examination essay of 1500 to 2000 words. |
Instructor: Bluett
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| As part of collaboration with the Legal Aid Society of Cincinnati, students act as advocates for victims of domestic violence. Advocacy includes interviewing and counseling clients, helping clients in civil protection order cases as well as issues as they relate to family law. Second-year students, who cannot be licensed as legal interns in Ohio, participate in interviewing, case preparation, and other aspects of clinic work. |
Instructor: Bluett
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
| 2L Domestic Violence & Civil Protection Order Field Placement. You must also enroll concurrently in the 2L DV&CPO Class (IRTS 7039). As part of collaboration with the Legal Aid Society of Cincinnati, students act as advocates for victims of domestic violence. Advocacy includes interviewing and counseling clients, helping clients in civil protection order cases as well as issues as they relate to family law. Second-year students, who cannot be licensed as legal interns in Ohio, participate in interviewing, case preparation, and other aspects of clinic work. |
Instructor: Bluett
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| You must register concurrently in 3L DV&CPO Class (IRTS 7037). As part of collaboration with the Legal Aid Society of Cincinnati, students act as advocates for victims of domestic violence. Second-year students, who cannot be licensed as legal interns in Ohio, participate in interviewing, case preparation, and other aspects of clinic work. Third year students must apply for and obtain an intern license before the start of the semester. Under the direct supervision of a supervising attorney, students will represent clients in court. |
Instructor: Bluett
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| As part of collaboration with the Legal Aid Society of Cincinnati, students act as advocates for victims of domestic violence. Second-year students, who cannot be licensed as legal interns in Ohio, participate in interviewing, case preparation, and other aspects of clinic work. Third year students must apply for and obtain an intern license before the start of the semester. Under the direct supervision of a supervising attorney, students will represent clients in court. |
Instructor: Van Nice
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| Electronic discovery plays an important and increasingly high-profile role in modern litigation. This course will provide a comprehensive study of electronic discovery issues, blending an in-depth analysis of legal principles with the study of their application in practice. No special technological background or expertise is necessary for success in the class. In addition to the professors (a litigation partner who leads the ediscovery practice at an international law firm and a former general counsel of a Fortune 500 company who is the chair emeritus of The Sedona Conference), class instruction will include presentations by guest speakers from the ediscovery field (in-house counsel, technology professionals, and judges). The goal for the class is to provide students with a thorough understanding of legal issues in ediscovery and, for those who may pursue a litigation practice, the practical ability to apply that understanding in actual cases. |
Instructor: Mangan
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| Students will also be concurrently enrolled in BCL7038. In this course, students will staff the Entrepreneurship and Community Development Clinic (ECDC), obtaining “hands on” experience representing local businesses and entrepreneurs on transactional legal issues critical to their success, including assistance and counseling on entity selection and formation; regulatory compliance and licensing; trademark/copyright protection; lease review and negotiation; contract preparation/review/negotiation; tax-exempt applications; and other legal issues confronting small businesses, both for-profit and nonprofit. Students also will learn how a small law office operates, including procedures for client intake, file maintenance, project tracking, timekeeping, and scheduling. In addition to attending the weekly class, students will be expected to spend approximately 10-12 hours per week on their clinic work, with a minimum of 3 of those hours spent working in the clinic offices at the law school. The ECDC will represent primarily clients of limited financial means who cannot afford the services of the private bar and will not represent clients in litigation or in proceedings before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. SPECIAL NOTES: Interested students should look for email announcements regarding information sessions about the Clinic and how to apply. |
Instructor: Mank
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This course will focus on issues related to climate change and related energy law issues. If there is time, the professor may address additional environmental topics. Students may write a paper on a wide range of environmental topics, not just those related to climate change. SPECIAL NOTE: Taking this course satisfies only one of the graduation requirements (seminar or writing). If you take this course and have not yet satisfied the seminar requirement, you will be deemed to have met the seminar requirement. However, if you take this course and you have already met the seminar requirement, you will be deemed to have met the writing requirement. Two, separate courses are required to satisfy both the seminar and writing requirements. No one course satisfies them both. |
Instructor: Noel
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| This course explores the fundamental principles of estate planning, trust, and probate law, including the disposition of probate vs. non-probate property, estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax fundamentals, and planning for the transfer and protection of wealth. The tax planning focus will include the study of various estate planning techniques, charitable planning, and other tax savings strategies. The non-tax planning covered will include the lawyer’s role and ethical duties, drafting wills and trusts for non-tax reasons, powers of attorney, and estate planning documents relating to health care matters and end of life decisions. |
Instructor: Brewer
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Instructor: Tomain
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
We often hear that “the Government” is either doing too much or not enough. We also often feel that government regulations are everywhere and intrude on our lives or that they are not providing enough support for them. There is truth to those propositions. What is also true is that government regulation has always been a part of any government of any complexity. Further, it is also true that contemporary problems, such as climate change, the interference of privacy by social media, COVID-19 responses and the like may well require a government response. Government Regulation is a course about government and about how government conducts its business. More specifically, it is about the legal rules, principles, and institutions by which the government operates. We all experience the fact that our daily lives are heavily affected by government rules and regulations from speed limits to securities regulations and from local zoning to national and international energy and environmental laws. Consequently, government regulation may well seem ubiquitous. Government regulation may also seem unduly complex. During the semester we will explore various topics including: (1) the history and structure of government regulation; (2) the economic and non-economic reasons for government intervention into private markets; (3) the regulatory tools that government uses when it intervenes in private markets; (4) instances of regulatory failure; and (5) responses to those failures. One of the lessons of the course is that even though government regulation is extensive, there are only a handful of reasons that the government uses to justify its regulations and when government does intervene in private markets it uses only a handful of regulatory tools. Consequently, understanding the reasons for interventions and the use of those tools will enable you to understand how government regulation operates. Once you understand the principles of regulation, then you will be able to apply those principles to new areas of concern as they arise. Indeed, regulatory issues are reported virtually every day in the news. Consider, as examples questions about whether government should regulate Uber, Airbnb, Facebook, Google, GMOs, vaping, marijuana, or veggie burgers as “burgers,” and the like.
Instructor: Lockwood
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
Editor Position: By permission of Instructor. Participating students engage in the selection and editing of articles for publication in the University of Cincinnati Human Rights Quarterly. The Registrar will enroll students selected to participate in the necessary class through the registration system.
Instructor: Lockwood
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Participating students engage in the selection and editing of articles for publication in the University of Cincinnati Human Rights Quarterly. The Registrar will enroll students selected to participate in the necessary class through the registration system.
Instructor: Lockwood
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
This course examines the development of human rights and the substantive principles and practices of human rights as set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other instruments. This course also reviews the regional and international procedures for the implementation of human rights.
Instructor: Vazquez
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
Participating students engage in selection and preparation of articles for publication in the Review. Students also write notes and comments for publication in the Review. Students will be scheduled by the Registrar.
Instructor: Vazquez
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Participating students engage in selection and preparation of articles for publication in the Review. Students also write notes and comments for publication in the Review. Students will be scheduled by the Registrar.
Instructor: Dunnington
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
Through the Office of the Hamilton County Public Defender, students provide representation to indigent criminal defendants in misdemeanor cases. Each student is closely supervised by a licensed attorney and handles all aspects of the case, from the initial client interview and investigation to motions practice and trial advocacy. During the year-long program, students must commit 15 hours each week to the clinic, including participation in a weekly Thursday evening classroom component. This is a continuation of the Clinic from fall semester; accepted and enrolled students commit to both semesters of their third year. Limited to students who participated in the Clinic in the previous semester; 3L’s only; students must qualify for the Ohio Student Intern License to enroll in this clinic.
Instructor: Silverstein
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
Concurrent enrollment required in LITG 7051. Through the Office of the Hamilton County Public Defender, students provide representation to indigent criminal defendants in misdemeanor cases. Each student is closely supervised by a licensed attorney and handles all aspects of the case, from the initial client interview and investigation to motions practice and trial advocacy. During the year-long program, students must commit 15 hours each week to the clinic, including participation in a weekly Thursday evening classroom component. This is a continuation of the Clinic from fall semester; accepted and enrolled students commit to both semesters of their third year. SPECIAL NOTES: Limited to students who participated in the Clinic in previous fall semester; 3L’s only; students must qualify for the Ohio Student Intern License to enroll in this clinic.
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
Under the direct supervision of a member of the faculty, upper-level students engage in original research and prepare for credit a substantial written work product. The research project is selected jointly by the student and faculty member. Customarily, the final product will be a research paper, and, in that case, the paper must be 10-15 pages long for one credit, 20-30 pages long for two credits, and 35-50 pages long for three credits. SPECIAL NOTE: Students must register for the course and present a completed contract by the last day of the drop/add period. Contracts must be turned in on time or students will be dropped from the class. You are limited to five total credits of Individual writing per academic year.
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| Under the direct supervision of a member of the faculty, upper-level students engage in original research and prepare for credit a substantial written work product. The research project is selected jointly by the student and faculty member. Customarily, the final product will be a research paper, and, in that case, the paper must be 10-15 pages long for one credit, 20-30 pages long for two credits, and 35-50 pages long for three credits. SPECIAL NOTE: Students must register for the course and present a completed contract by the last day of the drop/add period. Contracts must be turned in on time or students will be dropped from the class. You are limited to five total credits of Individual writing per academic year. |
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
Under the direct supervision of a member of the faculty, upper-level students engage in original research and prepare for credit a substantial written work product. The research project is selected jointly by the student and faculty member. Customarily, the final product will be a research paper, and, in that case, the paper must be 10-15 pages long for one credit, 20-30 pages long for two credits, and 35-50 pages long for three credits. SPECIAL NOTE: Students must register for the course and present a completed contract by the last day of the drop/add period. Contracts must be turned in on time or students will be dropped from the class. You are limited to five total credits of Individual writing per academic year.
Instructor: Bergeron
Instructor: Caster
Instructor: Godsey
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| The Ohio Innocence Project (OIP), a part of the Rosenthal Institute for Justice, harnesses the energy and intellect of students to identify inmates in Ohio prisons who are innocent of the crimes they were convicted of committing. Innocence is often determined by DNA testing, but can include other types of new evidence such as new witnesses, new expert testimony, or evidence of police misconduct. Once an inmate's innocence has been established through investigation, the OIP sends the case back to court and litigates in the hope of obtaining the inmate's freedom. SPECIAL NOTES: Enrollment by permission of instructor; full year commitment required; must complete year if participated in the fall of 2018. |
Instructor: Bergeron
Instructor: Godsey
Instructor: Caster
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
In this course, students examine the various types of evidence that might lead to the wrongful conviction of innocent persons. They will also consider the roles police, prosecutors, and defense lawyers play in the criminal justice system, with an emphasis on discovering how errors can lead to the conviction of the innocent. SPECIAL NOTES: Field Study in the spring semester is required. The Registrar will enroll students selected to participate in the necessary class through the registration system.
Instructor: Briggs
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| This course provides an overview of the U.S. insurance industry and its regulation. Specifically, we will learn what insurance is, how insurance is developed and sold, and the history, purpose and scope of insurance regulation. We’ll apply insurance regulations to common insurance activities and events and consider how we help our clients meet regulatory requirements. We’ll demystify life insurance, annuity, and property/casualty product terminology and explore the continuing evolution of insurance consumer protections applicable to those products. We’ll identify common areas of regulatory non-compliance, enforcement tools available to regulators, and ways insurers, agents and brokers can resolve regulatory problems. We’ll focus on concepts and issues most commonly arising in both claims and non-claims litigation and learn basic principles of insurance policy interpretation. |
Instructor: Bennett
Instructor: Linden
Description:
| The goal of this course is to introduce students to the ins and outs of what new lawyers practicing in the area of intellectual property are likely to be exposed to in private practice or a corporate setting. Particularly, this course will focus on many areas of intellectual property including patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets and will include discussions and projects related to these IP topics, including for example, recognizing your client’s IP rights, understanding how to protect those IP rights, and advising clients with respect to enforcement of IP rights. This course will also address numerous other practical issues for the new lawyer, such as, for example, the importance of client development, how to balance your workload, and do’s and dont’s in the law office setting. |
Instructor: Bernay
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| This course is intended to prepare students to represent clients in a variety of business transactions that contain international elements. The emphasis is on the formation and enforcement of agreements between private commercial parties and on the anticipation and recognition of issues that are peculiar to, or are especially prevalent in, international business. The course follows a sequence of increasingly complex transactions, from the isolated purchase and sale of goods, to sales through agents and distributors, license and franchise agreements, and foreign direct investment. Topics include: the formation of the basic commercial transaction; financing the international sale of goods; agency and distributorships; licensing of intellectual property; establishing and operating a foreign investment; prohibitions on corrupt payments; and dispute settlement. Although discussed in summary, the international regulation of national trade laws, through the WTO and regional agreements such as the NAFTA, is the subject of a separate course on International Trade. |
Instructor: Behlen
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
| This course will examine the fundamentals of Criminal Law and International Law. It will consider the development of international criminal tribunals from the Nuremberg Tribunal to the International Criminal Court. The course will explore comparative criminal procedure and sentencing, principles of jurisdiction, the extraterritorial application of U.S. criminal statutes, and immunities. It will cover U.S. Constitutional rights in a transnational context, obtaining evidence abroad, and extradition. Next, the course will explore transnational crime: organized crime, trafficking, money laundering, corruption, and terrorism. Finally, the course will examine the International Criminal Court; modes of participation; defenses; international crimes: crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes, the crime of aggression, torture, sexual violence; and alternatives to prosecution, such as truth and reconciliation commissions. |
Instructor: Levey
Description:
| The purpose of this course is to examine the U.S. taxation of transactions undertaken by foreign individuals or entities in the United States, as well as the U.S. taxation of transactions undertaken by U.S. individuals or entities abroad. The former – foreign individuals or entities coming here – are referred to as inbound transactions, and the latter – U.S. individuals or entities going abroad – are referred to as outbound transactions. |
Instructor: Szydlowski
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
The classroom component of the Judicial Extern Program covers writing for judges and professional conduct for judges and judicial clerks. The work performed in the judicial extern field placement is similar to that performed by a law clerk to a judge. It usually involves preparing memoranda on cases, reviewing case files, drafting opinions and orders, and attending court and conferences. The precise tasks performed, however, depend upon the type of court and the style of the judge. SPECIAL NOTES: Concurrent enrollment in Judicial Externship class and field placement required. Complete the Judicial Externship Survey in the Symplicity “Job Postings” section. Upload your completed survey along with your current resume and transcript to be matched with a judicial extern placement. Students may not enroll concurrently in Extern programs. Taking Evidence simultaneously or previously is strongly preferred and may be required for some placements.
Instructor: Szydlowski
Description:
| The classroom component of the Judicial Extern Program covers writing for judges and professional conduct for judges and judicial clerks. The work performed in the judicial extern field placement is similar to that performed by a law clerk to a judge. It usually involves preparing memoranda on cases, reviewing case files, drafting opinions and orders, and attending court and conferences. The precise tasks performed, however, depend upon the type of court and the style of the judge. SPECIAL NOTES: Concurrent enrollment in Judicial Externship class and field placement required. Complete the Judicial Externship Survey in the Symplicity “Job Postings” section. Upload your completed survey along with your current resume and transcript to be matched with a judicial extern placement. Students may not enroll concurrently in Extern programs. Taking Evidence simultaneously or previously is strongly preferred and may be required for some placements. |
Instructor: Orlando
Description:
| This seminar will focus on the inequities in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems by examining the structures of these systems along with a real world application. |
Instructor: Newport
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
This course examines labor unions and labor-management relations from both a legal and a social perspective. The course will utilize traditional legal materials such as statutes, regulations and judicial opinions, which will be complemented by social research such as theoretical perspectives and empirical studies from the social sciences. The course aims to provide students with an overview of significant issues and doctrines in labor law; to introduce students to theory and research on labor unions and labor-management relations; and to encourage students to consider how insights from social theory and research can inform legal practice.
Instructor: Suder
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Critical consideration and discussion of the federal, state, and regulatory framework applicable to land use controls, including the origins and contemporary application of law and policies concerning land use planning, zoning, historic preservation, eminent domain, transportation-oriented development, inclusionary housing, environmental review, the interaction of those laws with private property rights, and the legislative and administrative settings within which land use disputes are fought.
Instructor: Margolis
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
This course focuses on ensuring students’ readiness for post-graduation bar preparation. Students will receive instruction, practice, and strategies for the Uniform Bar Exam; the skills will translate to state specific bar exams as well. Students will practice these skills using model and previously administered essays from the Multistate Essay Exam (MEE) and Multistate Performance Tests (MPTs) and will received detailed, personalized feedback. Students will also practice Multi-State Bar (MBE) style questions throughout the semester. Although students will review some core legal concepts, the focus of this course will be on practicing and developing the skills necessary to pass a bar examination and enter the legal profession. This course is not a substitute for a bar preparation course taken after Hooding. Instead, this course will build a strong foundation in the skills necessary to be successful on a bar exam.
Instructor: Rucker
Instructor: Vander Laan
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
In this course students consider the lawyer-client relationship in the context of realistic scenarios, evaluating the complete choices an ethical lawyer must make to establish an effective lawyer-client relationship. Following an examination of the ABA Model Rules and the Ohio Rules of Professional Conduct, students consider the ethical components of the lawyer-client relationship, with an emphasis on competency, confidentiality, and conflicts of interest. The course also includes substantial instruction in the history, goals, structure, values, and responsibilities of the legal profession and its members.
Instructor: Smith
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
In this course, students consider the lawyer-client relationship in the context of realistic scenarios, evaluating the complex choices an ethical lawyer must make to establish an effective lawyer-client relationship. Following an examination of the ABA Model Rules, students consider the ethical components of the lawyer-client relationship, with an emphasis on competency, confidentiality, and conflicts of interest. The course also includes multiple skills application exercises to introduce students to Performance Tests and Professional Responsibility Exams required by state bar examiners.
Instructor: Szydlowski
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
The classroom component of the Legal Extern I Program emphasizes practical lawyering competencies and ethical issues encountered in the practice of law. In their field placements, legal externs work under the supervision of attorneys in local, state, and federal agencies, non-profit organizations, and in businesses and law firms in the private sector. SPECIAL NOTES: Concurrent enrollment in Legal Externship I class and field placement required. Complete the Legal Externship Survey in the Symplicity “Job Postings” section. Upload your completed survey along with your current resume and transcript. Spots are limited and students will be chosen based on preferences and availability. Students may not enroll concurrently in Extern programs.
Instructor: Szydlowski
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
COURSE DESCRIPTION: The classroom component of the Legal Extern I Program emphasizes practical lawyering competencies and ethical issues encountered in the practice of law. In their field placements, legal externs work under the supervision of attorneys in local, state, and federal agencies, non-profit organizations, and in businesses and law firms in the private sector. SPECIAL NOTES: Concurrent enrollment in Legal Externship I class and field placement required. Complete the Legal Externship Survey in the Symplicity “Job Postings” section. Upload your completed survey along with your current resume and transcript. Spots are limited and students will be chosen based on preferences and availability. Students may not enroll concurrently in Extern programs.
Instructor: Szydlowski
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
The classroom component of the Legal Extern II Program expands upon the practical lawyering competencies addressed in Legal Externship I. In their field placements, legal externs work under the supervision of attorneys in local, state, and federal agencies, non-profit organizations, and in businesses and law firms in the private sector. SPECIAL NOTES: Concurrent enrollment in Legal Externship II class and field placement required. Complete the Legal Externship Survey in the Symplicity “Job Postings” section. Upload your completed survey along with your current resume and transcript. Spots are limited and students will be chosen based on preferences and availability. Students may not enroll concurrently in Extern programs. Prerequisite: Legal Externship I.
Instructor: Szydlowski
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
The classroom component of the Legal Extern II Program expands upon the practical lawyering competencies addressed in Legal Externship I. In their field placements, legal externs work under the supervision of attorneys in local, state, and federal agencies, non-profit organizations, and in businesses and law firms in the private sector. SPECIAL NOTES: Concurrent enrollment in Legal Externship II class and field placement required. Complete the Legal Externship Survey in the Symplicity “Job Postings” section. Upload your completed survey along with your current resume and transcript. Spots are limited and students will be chosen based on preferences and availability. Students may not enroll concurrently in Extern programs. Prerequisite: Legal Externship I.
Instructor: Pao
Description:
| This course introduces students to different levels of legal authorities, from the legislative bodies to administrative agencies, and to the court system. Students will learn the relationship between federal and state authorities, and the hierarchical structures within the federal and state court systems. The course will also teach methods for identifying and locating the right authority on an issue of consideration. The course will allow students to hone their writing skills with an emphasis on formulating well documented legal positions in a clear and concise style. |
Instructor: Landrum
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
This course will teach students the skills and strategic analysis necessary to successfully fulfill the role of neutral third-party mediator. Students will undertake a series of mediation role plays, and will receive intensive feedback on techniques, skills and intervention choices. Video-taping will be used to enable students to calibrate perception and reality of their own mediation style and effectiveness. The class will also view and critique the techniques used by other experienced mediators (on video-tape and through in-class demonstration), permitting us to see a range of mediator presence, styles and choices. In addition, this course will be valuable for students who may not plan to be a mediator, but who will represent clients in mediation. The course will provide the mediation advocate with an understanding of how the mediator operates, the role of the lawyer in mediation and what choices the mediation process offers for parties and lawyers. This course requires each student to recruit 1-2 volunteers to serve as parties in the Saturday class mediation simulations.
Instructor: Stephani
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
This course will focus on the private sector health care issues that arise frequently in mental health law. Issues to be covered include: guardianship, psychiatric malpractice and informed consent, mental health law confidentiality and privilege, duties to warn and other duties to third parties, the right to refuse treatment, the right to treatment and the influence of the ADA, the admissibility of mental health professional expert testimony, brief coverage of ERISA and the right to die.
Instructor: McMahon
Instructor: McCord
Description:
| This course introduces students to deal structures of corporate mergers, important actors and their roles in the deals, defensive measures toward hostile takeovers, duties of the board and rights of shareholders of the target companies under state laws, federal regulations such as the Williams Act, the proxy rules and stock registration, and key provisions of a merger agreement. |
Instructor: Oliver
Instructor: McCord
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
Prerequisites: Moot Court Honor Board. Participating students represent the College of Law in various intercollegiate moot court competitions. Students will be scheduled by the Registrar.
Instructor: Oliver
Instructor: McCord
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
Prerequisite for Moot Court Executive Editor and other positions. Participating students represent the College of Law in various intercollegiate moot court competitions. Students will be scheduled by the Registrar.
Instructor: Oliver
Instructor: McCord
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Prerequisite for Moot Court Executive Editor and other positions. Participating students represent the College of Law in various intercollegiate moot court competitions. Students will be scheduled by the Registrar.
Instructor: Oliver
Instructor: McCord
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
Prerequisites: Moot Court Honor Board. Participating students represent the College of Law in various intercollegiate moot court competitions. Students will be scheduled by the Registrar.
Instructor: Oliver
Instructor: McCord
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Prerequisites: Moot Court Honor Board; students in their fourth semester. Participating students represent the College of Law in various intercollegiate moot court competitions. Students will be scheduled by the Registrar.
Instructor: Lawrence
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
In this course students learn the "science and art" of negotiation. Students are introduced to significant literature and theory in negotiation and have the opportunity to practice negotiating through a sequenced series of negotiations simulations.
Instructor: Mangan
Instructor: Wagner
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
This course has been developed by the College of Law in conjunction with Ildiko Szegedy-Maszák, a professor of international trade law at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana located in Bogota, Colombia. The course is a one week short course that will take place in Bogota during the College of Law’s spring break. Prior to the Bogota trip, UC Law students will be assigned articles related to Colombian business law, the Colombian peace process, and the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Bogota. Also prior to the trip, UC law students will be paired in teams with Javeriana law students and tasked with negotiating a simulated transaction in which an American equity firm invests in a Colombian startup. During the week in Bogota, UC law students will spend their mornings in classes taught by Javeriana professors. The individual classes will include Colombia business law, the Colombian peace process, international trade, and similar topics. In the afternoon, students will embark on a cultural activity or visit related to these topics. The week will culminate with a joint presentation by each American-Colombian team as to the terms of their simulated investment. Following the week in Bogota, students will submit a ten-page paper on a legal topic of interest related to the Colombian experience. Students will also complete a self-assessment that will explore the challenges of international travel, conducting legal business across cultures, and working in teams.
Instructor: Gastright
Instructor: Hurst
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
In this course, students will work at the University of Cincinnati College of Law’s Patent and Trademark Clinic (PTC), obtaining “hands on” experience representing local business owners, aspiring entrepreneurs, and inventors in identifying, protecting, and commercializing their intellectual property, focusing on work to be performed in the patent and trademark areas, as well as transactional documents relating to intellectual property. Services for individual clients may include completion of patent applications (provisional and non-provisional); completion of federal trademark applications; analysis and opinions on patent and trademark registrability; analysis and opinions on patent, trademark, and/or copyright infringement; assistance on responding to office actions from the USPTO; preparation, review, and/or negotiation of IP licenses and other related agreements; and general IP advice. The PTC will not represent its clients in litigation/dispute resolution or on foreign applications. The PTC will be structured to simulate practice in a law firm, and will provide insight and experiences in PTC students also will learn how a small law office operates, including procedures for client intake, conflict checks, file maintenance, project tracking, timekeeping, scheduling, coordination, and client communications. Students will perform all work at the PTC under the close supervision of its directors and volunteer-lawyers with relevant expertise. Students will be expected to average 8-12 hours per week working on clinic matters. The PTC will share the offices of the Entrepreneurship and Community Development Clinic. The PTC will represent onlyprioritize representation of clients of limited financial means and/or local entrepreneurs, means who cannot afford the services of the private bar and will not represent clients in litigation related matters..
Instructor: Bard
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
Public Health Law focuses on the use of legal tools to improve the public’s health. The course takes a transdisciplinary approach to public health law, conceptualizing public health law a process through which coalitions of lawyers, scientists, public health practitioners, and others work collaboratively to develop, advocate for, implement, and evaluate evidence-based legal reforms and interventions to prevent disease and reduce injuries. The transdisciplinary approach emphasizes that the entire process of legal change—from researching potential policy approaches to evaluating the effectiveness of legal interventions—requires careful examination, and that that each part of the process necessarily involves transdisciplinary collaborations.
Instructor: Lenhart
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
| This course covers all forms of ultimate relief in civil actions: damages, restitution, and equitable relief. The first portion deals with the damage remedies in tort, contract, real property, and personal property litigation. The second unit analyzes the alternative remedy of restitution, in law and equity. The course concludes with those cases governing specific relief in equity, specific performance in contract, and injunctions in tort. |
Instructor: Houh
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
This course deals primarily with contracts for the sale of goods under Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code. In it, we will master code‐reading and basic Article 2 doctrines. Students also examine how the law of the sale of goods differs from the common law of contracts, particularly with respect to the relevant law of warranties, performance, risk of loss, and remedies. Students explore the reasons, both practical and theoretical, for the substantive differences between Article 2 and common law contracts. Finally, the course examines, to varying degrees, the related law of leases of goods (under Article 2A of the UCC) and contracts for the international sale of goods (under the Convention of Contracts for the International Sale of Goods or “CISG”).
Instructor: Bailey
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
This course will examine how the law constructs and regulates gender and sexuality, including laws regulating and affecting the dignity, status, conduct, and relationships of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary, and queer persons. We will examine both legal restrictions and emerging developments in areas such as constitutional and statutory recognition and protection; the right to sexual expression; access to health care, including gender-affirming and reproductive services; education, including self-identity, gender-correct bathrooms, and athletics; equal employment, including protections against stereotyping or harassment and support for transitioning; free and safe access to public accommodations and public spaces; and family law, including recognition of nontraditional and nonmarital families, reproductive collaborations, protections for LGBTQ minors, and parent-child relationships. This course also will examine the dynamic role of social and political forces in marginalizing gender minorities, shaping and enforcing gendered roles and identities. and, recently, advancing more accurate and nuanced understandings of the spectrum of human sexuality and gender.
Instructor: Colvin
Instructor: Paulson
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Students from both the UC College of Law and the Salmon P. Chase College of Law will be participating. In this clinic, students will work on cases for indigent clients whose cases are on appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, a federal appellate court located in Cincinnati. Under the supervision of experienced attorneys, students will analyze trial records, identify arguments to be used in the appeals process, and write motions and briefs for their clients. This is an excellent opportunity for students to learn about federal courts, criminal law, appellate procedure, and improve writing skills. Students will also have the chance to learn from experienced lawyers, meet members of the federal bar, and meet federal judges. Students will be expected to attend oral arguments at the Sixth Circuit as well as present their own oral arguments in class. Some students have been able to argue before the Sixth Circuit, though such opportunities vary with timing and interest.
Instructor: Colvin
Instructor: Paulson
Credit Hours: 1
Description:
Concurrent enrollment in LITG 7043 is required.
Instructor: Combs
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
This course is designed to introduce students to the substantive and practical aspects of the law as applied to the business of sports and athletic competition. Students will be exposed to a review of current and selected past case law, discussion of current events in the business and law of sports, a review and interpretation of the legislation governing sports, and analysis of the various contractual relationships and structures that govern the operation of amateur and professional athletics.
Instructor: Ghiz
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Instructor: Eads Adkins
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Nationally, upwards of 80% of legal needs go unmet; this situation is even more dire in Hamilton County. The Legal Access Clinic is one effort to close the access to justice gap by representing people earning too much to qualify for Legal Aid but not enough to afford an attorney or who cannot access Legal Aid due to capacity or conflict issues. Under the supervision of the clinic director, students will conduct intake and represent clients in wills and estates, LGBTQ+ name and gender changes, divorces, evictions and habitability issues, and immigration.
Instructor: Eads Adkins
Credit Hours: 4
Description:
Concurrent enrollment required in LITG 7094. Nationally, upwards of 80% of legal needs go unmet; this situation is even more dire in Hamilton County. The Legal Access Clinic is one effort to close the access to justice gap by representing people earning too much to qualify for Legal Aid but not enough to afford an attorney or who cannot access Legal Aid due to capacity or conflict issues. Under the supervision of the clinic director, students will conduct intake and represent clients in wills and estates, LGBTQ+ name and gender changes, divorces, evictions and habitability issues, and immigration.
Instructor: Godsey
Description:
| This class will study psychological factors that lead to inaccurate outcomes in the legal system. Topics addressed will include memory malleability, implicit bias and overt racism, confirmation bias, junk science, demeanor evidence, tunnel vision, noble cause corruption, the banality of evil, and the human roots of systemic injustice, among others. Expert guest speakers will be a frequent feature to stimulate discussion on the various topics. Although the course will focus on the criminal setting, the principles are applicable to civil settings and life in general. |
Instructor: Krafte
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
This course examines the law governing trademarks and other means of identifying products and services in the minds of consumers. Instruction primarily will focus on the federal statute governing trademarks and unfair competition, the Lanham Trademark Act of 1946, but students will learn about state laws and state law doctrines in the field as well. Topics include the protectibility of marks, including words, symbols, and "trade dress"; federal registration of marks; causes of action for infringement, dilution, and "cybersquatting;" and defenses, including parodies protected by the First Amendment.
Instructor: Nestor
Instructor: Branch
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
To be a trial lawyer is to be a story teller, stage director, and character in drama where the audience determines the resolution. This course will review and provide practice in each aspect of trial, from working with facts and developing strategy and then, to structure and techniques for effective opening statements, direct and cross examination, and closing argument. We will focus on those elements that are also applicable to professional presentations in other contexts: communicating to render complexity accessible, build your own and witness credibility and audience trust, and persuade the audience using emotion as well as reason.
Instructor: Margollis
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
Students prepare for and participate in Trial Practice Competition Team events.
Instructor: Pinney
Credit Hours: 2
Description:
The Vis Competition has two components. The first component (for which 1 credit hour will be given for up to 4 students) is the researching and writing of two 30 to 35 page memoranda, the first supporting the position of a hypothetical international arbitration claimant and the second supporting the position of the respondent. (This component is expected to involve about 45 hours of work beginning in October and running through the end of January when the respondent’s memorandum is due.) The second component (for which 2 credit hours will be given for up to 4 students) will include supervising and editing the memoranda plus participating in the week-long virtual oral competition in Hong Kong and Vienna. (This component is expected to involve over 100 hours of work beginning October and running through the close of the competition in late March or early April.)
Instructor: Ziepfel
Credit Hours: 3
Description:
This course examines the special problems of proving a guilty mind and a guilty act in the context of business and government activities. Specific emphasis will be placed on corporate criminal liability, personal liability in organizational settings, conspiracy, mail fraud, false statements, perjury and false declarations, obstruction of justice, bribery of public officials, and RICO: The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. This course also contains a substantial criminal procedure component.