INTRODUCTION TO LAW
POLS Y211; Section 21674
IUPUI
Dr. David L. Weiden Spring 2008
Office: Cavanaugh 503E T 6-8:40 p.m.
Office phone: 278-7558 Cavanaugh 227
Office hours: TR 4-5:30 p.m., or by appointment
Course Description
This course will critically examine the American judicial system and the legal process. We will study the organization of the judicial system, major actors in the system, trial and appellate processes, and basic principles of civil and criminal law. Basic legal analysis, research, and writing will also be emphasized.
A mixture of lecture and discussion formats will be used in this course. Active learning will be stressed and participation by all will be required in order for the class to be successful.
Readings
There is one required textbook and one optional book:
Required: Introduction to Paralegal Studies: A Critical Thinking Approach, Katherine A. Currier and Thomas E. Eimermann, 3rd edition, Aspen Publishers 2007. ISBN: 0-7355-5755-1.
Optional: ALWD Citation Manual, Association of Legal Writing Directors and Darby Dickerson, 3rd edition, Aspen Publishers 2006. ISBN: 0-7355-5571-0.
Course Requirements
Your grade will be determined as follows:
-Midterm exam: 20%
-Observation 20%
-Legal memorandum 25%
-Final examination: 25%
-Class participation: 10%
Midterm Exam
The midterm examination will consist of multiple choice, short answer and essay questions. The exam will account for 20 percent of your final grade.
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Observation
The legal observation involves attending and observing a legal proceeding in the area. You could observe a criminal or civil trial or an appellate argument. You may observe any local, state or federal legal matter. You do not need to observe the entire proceeding if it is lengthy; you are only required to watch for one hour. After you have completed your observation, write a paper addressing the following items: (1) Names of the parties involved in the legal proceeding; (2) Date of the hearing or trial; (3) The purpose of the proceeding; (4) Type of law involved in the matter; (5) Summary of the main points made by the lawyers or litigants; (6) Your analysis of the arguments-- which side did you think made the better arguments and why? (7) Include a section where you explain what you learned from observing these proceedings--something that you did not know or had not realized.
If you are not able to observe an actual legal proceeding, then, as an alternative, you may listen to recorded oral arguments made before the U.S. Supreme Court and write your paper on them. Go to the Oyez site on the Internet, located at http://www.oyez.org/. Select Acases@ and you will be able to search for particular cases by name, date or subject. Choose any case that contains the recorded oral arguments and listen to the arguments. After listening to the oral arguments, write a paper containing the following: (1) The name of the case; (2) Date that the oral arguments were made; (3) Names of the lawyers arguing the case; (4) Summary of the main points made by each lawyer; (5) Summary of the most important questions and comments made by the justices; (6) Your analysis of the argumentsBwhich side did you think made the better arguments and why? (7) Include a section where you explain what you learned from listening to these proceedings--something that you did not know or had not realized.
The paper should be no less than five and no more than ten double-spaced pages, using standard font and margin size. This assignment will account for 20 percent of your final course grade.
Legal Memorandum
The legal memorandum will require each student to analyze legal materials that will be provided by the instructor and write a memorandum based on those materials. More information on this assignment will be provided later. The open memo will count for 25 percent of your final grade.
Final Examination
The final exam will be cumulative and cover material from the entire course. It will consist of multiple choice, short answer and essay questions. The final will count for 25 percent of your final course grade.
Class participation
All students are expected to have done the reading before class and to actively participate in class discussions. Your class participation grade will be based on both the frequency and quality of your participation, as well as attendance. Class participation will account for 10 percent of your final course grade.
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Grading Policy
Here are the grading standards that will be used:
A+ (98-100%)
A (93-97%)
A- (90-92%)
B+ (87-89%)
B (83-86%)
B- (80-82%)
C+ (77-79%)
C (73-76%)
C- (70-72%)
D+ (67-69%)
D (63-66%)
D- (60-62%)
F (<60%)
A: Demonstrates exceptional preparation for class; class leader in discussion. Exhibits excellent synthesis of course work and original thinking on course themes on exams and assignments. Superior performance.
B: Demonstrates thorough preparation for class; active participant in class discussions. Shows solid understanding of course work and ability to effectively analyze course themes on exams and assignments.
C: Demonstrates adequate preparation for class and frequently participates in class discussions. Exhibits good basic understanding of course work and major themes on exams and assignments.
D: Demonstrates poor preparation for class; infrequent participation in class discussions. Shows weak understanding and application of course principles and themes on exams and assignments.
F: Demonstrates inadequate class preparation and lack of understanding of course themes on exams and assignments.
Course Policies and Student Responsibilities
Students are expected to do all of the readings before class and to attend every class. I will touch on the readings and expand upon them but will not review them in class. So, it is extremely important that you have done the reading ahead of time and thought about the issues. Students are expected to participate in class discussions; there will be a friendly, relaxed atmosphere during the class sessions and all viewpoints will be respected.
PLEASE, turn off all cell phones before class and do not engage in text-messaging while class is ongoing. Also, you are welcome to use a laptop computer to take notes in class, but please do not surf the Web while class is in session.
I am here to help you, so please come see me during office hours if you are having difficulty in the course. Also, feel free to e-mail or call me with any questions.
Any student needing to arrange a reasonable accommodation for a documented disability should contact Adaptive Educational Services at 274-3241.
Cheating in any form, including plagiarism, will not be tolerated. Plagiarism has been defined as Arepeating another=s sentences as your own or presenting someone else=s line of thinking in the development of a thesis as though it were your own.@ It is your responsibility to know the standards regarding plagiarism and cheating; please refer to the IUPUI policy and the Student Code or see me if you have any questions about plagiarism or citation of sources. Serious offenses of cheating or plagiarism will result in failure of the course as well as possible University disciplinary action.
All written assignments must be original for this course. This means that all written assignments cannot be, or have been, submitted to other courses. If you have any questions on this, please see me.
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Late papers will be assessed a penalty of five percentage points per day that they are late. If you have a valid excuse, please see me in advance of the deadline. Although I will accept late papers electronically, please be aware that it is your responsibility to ensure that I receive the paper. In other words, if you send me a late paper by e-mail and I do not receive it for whatever reason, the late penalty will continue to accrue until I receive the paper. There will be no exception made for any computer or e-mail problems that you may claim to have.
The IUPUI attendance policy will be enforced. You are expected to attend each scheduled class, but you may miss three classes without any excuse or reason. You are expected to attend for the entire class period, if you do not stay for the entire time you will be counted as absent, unless you speak with me first. If you miss more than three classes without a legitimate excuse, your final grade may be lowered.
Technology Statement
All students must obtain an IUPUI e-mail address, because I will send any messages to your IUPUI account. Because of past difficulties with the Oncourse system, I will use Oncourse only to post course documents, such as the syllabus. Please do not send e-mail to me via Oncourse or post messages there for me; rather, please e-mail me directly.
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Course Schedule
This schedule should be viewed as a rough guide only. Inevitably, some adjustments will be made during the semester.
IPS = Introduction to Paralegal Studies
ALWD = ALWD Citation Manual
Date Topic Reading Assignment
Week One:
1/8 Syllabus/Overview
Week Two:
1/15 Introduction to the Legal System IPS, Ch. 1, 2; Optional: ALWD, pages 3-10
Week Three:
1/22 Sources of Law IPS, Ch. 3, 4
Week Four:
1/29 Federal and State Courts IPS, Ch. 5
Week Five:
2/5 Civil Litigation IPS, Ch. 6, 7
Week Six:
2/12 Civil Litigation, Continued IPS, Ch. 8, 9; Optional: ALWD, Ch. 1, 2, 3
Week Seven:
2/19 Criminal Law IPS, Ch. 10
Week Eight:
2/26 MIDTERM EXAM
Week Nine:
3/4 Introduction to Legal Research IPS, Ch. 12, 13; Optional: ALWD, Ch. 12, 14
Week Ten:
3/11 NO CLASS—SPRING BREAK
Week Eleven:
3/18 Legal Analysis IPS, Ch. 15
Week Twelve:
3/25 Legal Ethics IPS, Ch. 11
Observation due 3/25
Week Thirteen:
4/1 Video and discussion
Week Fourteen:
4/8 Comparative Perspectives
Week Fifteen:
4/15 Evidence and Investigations IPS, Ch. 16, 17
Week Sixteen:
4/22 Evidence, Continued IPS, Ch. 18
Legal memorandum due 4/22
FINAL EXAMINATION: Tuesday, April 29, 5:45-745 p.m.
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