Brief Introduction to U.S. Law: Course Syllabus

Chicago-Kent College of Law
Course: Introduction to U.S. Law
2015 Location: Shanghai Customs College

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Textbook

William Burnham, Introduction to the Law and Legal System of the United States (5th ed. 2011)

This book is available from Amazon or West.

Other Printed Materials

• Marbury v. Madison (U.S. 1803)
• How to Brief a Case
• Muscarello v. United States (U.S. 1998)
• Roberson v. Rochester Folding Box Co. (N.Y. 1902)
• Transcript of the Oral Argument in Dep’t of Health and Human Services v. Florida (2012)
• Sample Exam (Questions Only)
• Sample Exam (Questions & Answers)

Lecture Notes

• Intro to the U.S. Constitution
• Federalism and the Commerce Clause
• Sources and Hierarchy of U.S. Law
• Anatomy of a Judicial Decision
• Briefing Cases
• Stare Decisis
• Reasoning by Analogy
• Diagramming Rules
• The Common Law Method–Induction & Deduction
• Overview of the Court System
• Federal Rules of Evidence
• Adversary System
• Criticism & Defense of the Adversary System
• Exam Tips: How to Write an Essay

Videos

• Schoolhouse Rock, “I’m Just a Bill” (1975) (cartoon on the legislative process)
• Trial By Jury (video on trial procedure shown to jurors in Nashville, Tennessee)

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Syllabus:

Class 1

Course Overview

Intro to the Constitution
* Brief Constitutional History
* Gov’t Structure Per the Constitution
* Principles That Shape the Constitution

Reading Due:
* Burnham 1-18 (History and Governmental Structure)

Class 2

Intro to the Constitution (cont’d):
* Judicial Review
* Federalism and the Commerce Clause

Reading Due:
* Burnham 18-37 (History and Governmental Structure)
* Marbury v. Madison (U.S. 1803)

Class 3

Legal Methodology:
* Sources of Law and Their Hierarchy
* Anatomy of a Judicial Decision
* The Case Brief

Reading Due:
* Burnham 38-49, 73-79 (Legal Methodology)
* “How to Brief a Case” / Baxter v. Fugett (Okla. 1967)

Homework Due:
* Write your own brief of Baxter v. Fugett

Class 4

Legal Methodology (cont’d):
* Review case brief for Roberson v. Rochester Folding Box Co. (N.Y. 1902)
* Stare Decisis

Reading Due:
* Burnham 64-66 (Form and General Nature of Caselaw)

Homework Due:
* Write a case brief of Roberson v. Rochester Folding Box Co. (N.Y. 1902)

Class 5

Legal Methodology (cont’d):
* Induction/Deduction
* Analogies
* The Structure of Rules

Reading Due:
* Burnham 66-74 (The Legal Reasoning Process in Caselaw)

Class 6

Organization of the Court System:
* Trial Courts and Appellate Courts: Their Basic Characteristics and Interrelationship
* State and Federal Court Structure and Characteristics

Study Skills:
* Making a Class Outline
* Taking an Exam

Reading Due: Burnham 167-197 (Judicial System)

Class 7

The Adversary System and Jury Trials
* Intro to the Adversary System
* Jury Trials
* Video

Reading Due:
* Burnham 80-109 (Adversary System and Jury Trials)

Class 8

The Adversary System and Jury Trials (cont’d):
* Evidence Law
* Criticisms and Defense of the Adversary System

Reading Due:
* Burnham 109-126 (Adversary System and Jury Trials)

Closed Book Exam

How to Succeed in This Class / Grading

Tips for success in this class:

1. Do the reading and homework.
2. As you encounter legal terms you don’t know, look them up in a legal dictionary, such as Black’s Law Dictionary.
3. As you do the reading and homework, note questions & comments, then raise them in class.
4. Participate and volunteer in class.
5. Embrace ambiguity: There are ambiguities and gaps in rules, facts, and how the rules should be applied to the facts. Identify them.
6. Learn to analyze and argue from two (or more) sides.

Here is how your grade will be determined:

• 80% exam
• 20% class participation

What to Bring to Class

• Your textbook (both parts)
• All additional reading assignments you’ve completed. (We may refer back to them).
• All homework assignments you’ve completed. (We may discuss them in class).
• Feel free to bring English and legal English dictionaries