Introduction to U.S. Law and Methods

4.5 units

This course is designed to introduce distinctive aspects of the U.S. legal system. The goal is to learn how law is found, made and changed in the U.S., rather than to focus on any particular area of law. The objective is to learn largely through assuming the role of a lawyer resolving a practical client problem with U.S. legal sources, methods and institutions. The course is organized by various sources of law: common law; statutes and regulations; constitutional law and case law; and interpreting and applied enacted law. In addition, the jury trial and the importance of procedure are covered. In each subject, the class formulates what appears to be distinctive in the U.S. system.