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Seattle University School of Law

Spring 2013 Class Assignments

Class assignments are listed alphabetically by course name. All will be posted as received. If you do not see the assignments you are looking for, check TWEN, your professor's personal homepage or return to this web page to check again later.

Administrative Law A (ADMN-300-A)

Professor Kirkwood

Please read pages 1-15 of the casebook (background material for the introductory lecture).

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Administrative Law E (ADMIN-300-E)

Professor Sherman

Read casebook pp. 1-12, and the materials on Regulating Marijuana posted under the Course Materials tab on TWEN.

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Advanced Constitutional Law: Civil Rights /Civil Liberties (CNLW-320-A)

Professor Siegel

  • For the first day, please review the Constitution's text (reprinted at the front of the text), with an eye towards identifying the individual rights provisions.
  • Then please read pp, 523-547.

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Advanced Evidence (EVID-350-A)

Professor Mitchell

Register on TWEN for Advanced Evidence [EVID-350-A], and review the materials preceding the syllabus.

W 1/16
  • Familiarize yourself with the Freck Point case file (following the syllabus on the TWEN site).
    • Watch plaintiff and defense opening statements on the Freck Point trial movie DVD (which is included with your Comp. Trial Advocacy text).

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Basic Real Estate (PROP-300-E)

Professor Bender

1-13TH 1/17Overview of Lawyer's Role in Real Estate Conveyancing and Broker Competition17-37

T 1/15 Introduction The Nature of Modern Real Estate Transitions

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Bioethics and the Law (HLTH-300-A)

Professor Clark

W 1/16 Please read pp. 3-67 in the casebook for our first class.

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Business Entities A (BUSN-300-A)

Professor Powell

Chiappinelli's Business Entities: Cases and Materials Read Chapters 1 and 2

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Civil Procedure II (CIVL-325-E

Professor Clark

W 1/16 Please read pp. 371-97 in the casebook, along with 28 US.C. 1331 (federal question statute) and Article 3 of the U.S. Constitution. The Louisville & Nashville RR v. Mottley case should be a review; we’ll focus on Merrell Dow and Grable

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Comparative Law: The Middle East (INTL-350-A)

Professor Powell

We will use Albert Hourani's A History of the Arab Peoples("H"), Reinhard Schulze's A Modern History of the Islamic World("S"), Abdullahi Ahmed An-Nai'im's Toward an Islamic Reformation("An-Naim") and the course pack available on TWEN, along with articles available on the web.

Tentative syllabi will be placed on TWEN

T 1/10 Hourani text Read pages 1-80

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Conflict of Laws E (CIVIL-300-E)

Professor Linehan

Please register on TWEN for this class on or after December 15th.

Read (before the first class) pages 2-39 from the required casebook Conflict of Laws (8th ed.)

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Corporate Finance (BUSN-315-A)

Professor Beatty

T 1/15 Reading Assignment:
T 1/17 Reading Assignment:
  • McDermott, Legal Aspects of Corporate Finance, pp. 91-94 and 112-132
  • In re Friedman v. Beway Realty Corp.
  • M.G. Bancorporation v. Le Beau

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Criminal Procedure Adjudicative (CRIM-300-A)

Professor Roberts

W 1/16 Read pp. 961-87 of our casebook: Criminal Procedure: Adjudication and Right to Counsel (eds. Allen, Stuntz, Hoffmann, Livingston, Leipold) (2011)

Please engage actively with the material, identifying and trying to answer any questions that it inspires. For each of the major cases, please be sure that you identify the legal rule9s0 announced, and the rationales underlying those rules.

Please also give thought to the following questions:

  1. P.965 - The Court states that "the mandatory nature of the 'required' as it appears in § 1987 is insufficient to convince a broad Congressional purpose to bar the exercise of executive discretion in the prosecution of federal civil rights claims..." How do you think the Court might support this statement?
  2. At top of p. 968 - "Are you persuaded that the political process also restrains appointed federal prosecutors?"
  3. P.978 - Why does Justice Stevens dissent? Who has the better of the argument?

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Criminal Procedure Investigative (CRIM-305-E)

Professor Halliburton

M 1/14 Please read pages 1-27 in the Chemerinsky and Levenson text

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Cybercrime and Cyberwar (CRIM-382-E)

Professor Koeppen

Please register on TWEN on or after December 15th.

In the first week, you will be introduced to the nature and scope of the computer crime problem. Just what do we mean by computer crime? How is computer crime different from traditional crime? How should we draw analogies between physical space and the Internet? Should federal and state criminal law extend to the bits and bytes of the Internet, or should the Internet be governed by its own rules? Are computer crimes inherently less objectionable than their equivalents in physical space? Is the Internet inherently less conducive to a regime of civil liberties against law enforcement monitoring versus physical space, or more?

T 1/15
  • Kerr,Computer Crime LawChapter 2, Read 7-31
  • Optional Reading: Prosecuting Computer Crime 4-56
 Technology Topics: IP Addresses; Domain Name System; the Internet; the World Wide Web.

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Elder Law (ESTA-310-A)

Professor Brown and Professor Freeman

Week 1
T 1/10 Course Overview
  • Frolik pp.1-19
  • Get a head start on this week's and next week's assignment and the Hypothetical
TH 1/12 Introduction to Elder Law Continued Read and prepare Overview Hypothetical on TWEN
Week 2
T 1/17 Elder Law practice Ethical Issues / Client Capacity
  • Frolik pp. 35-68
  • Read RPC 1.2, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 1.14 & 1.15
  • Read "Who is the Client?" By Professor Morgan on TWEN
  • Read and Prepare Ethics Hypos on TWEN
TH 1/19 The Social Services Network Frolik pp. 19-34, 68-71; Continue Ethics Discussion
Week 3
T 1/24 Medicare Overview
  • Frolik pp. 195-219, 230-233
  • Read and prepare Medicare Hypos
  • Read Key Medicare Standards Jan. 2011 on TWEN
TH 1/26 Medicare Part A Discuss Medicare Hypos 1-3

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Employment Discrimination (EMPL-315-3)

Professor Martin

Hello. I look forward to meeting you all soon.

During the first week, we will have an Introduction to the course material.

I will post on TWEN a few short articles (2-10 pages each) that you should read by the end of the first week of class. The articles will be posted under the "Reference Materials" link.

Thank you.

Employment Law (EMPL-300-A)

Professor Branscomb

We study multiple causes of action in this course, and it's easier to focus on one at a time. We may study a case for what it teaches about consideration-based contracts, then circle back to it later to study its promissory estoppel discussion, and then again when we study defamation. As in the practice of law, you'll need to be prepared to articulate what the court held as to each of the different claims. Thus, it'll help you if you at least "shorthand brief" the cases. If you need help with that, see briefing tips, found in Course Packet in Bookstore; also on TWEN. To class, please bring your syllabus, text, case packet, and briefs to date. Just as with a litigated case, we may refer back to prior cases at any time, so do bring prior briefs to class.

Part I. The Individual & the Employer - Intro.

T 1/15
  1. Read Course Policies & briefing tips - Course Packet, Bookstore (also on TWEN)
  2. Hypo: Assume that Miguel is a bookkeeper in Compu-Lab, a "dot-com" business in Seattle, where he keeps track of accounts receivable. On a Friday, Miguel's boss Sharon accused Miguel of altering the company's books and embezzling funds and fired him on the spot. Two weeks later, another employee confessed to Sharon that it was he, not Miguel, who had done the book-altering and embezzlement. Sharon has decided not to contact Miguel or to rehire him, because while Miguel was good at what he did, she's not wild about him and she'd also like to find someone who is "outstanding." Think about who has an interest in the outcome of this situation, and what the interest(s) of that person or group are. Miguel obviously has an economic interest (receiving his weekly salary) but what other interests does he have? What other persons or entities have a stake in the relationship between Compu-Lab and Miguel?
    3.
  3. A modern view of the employment relationship: Wells v. Ormet Corporation. Which interests featured prominently for this court? Wells is in the Course packet (Bookstore), and also is on line at 1999 WL 159231 (OH App. 1999).
  4. An early view of the employment relationship: Text 1-8
TH 1/17
  1. An early view continued:Payne 8-14

    What "interests" featured prominently for these judges? It will help you be prepared for class if you at least brief in "shorthand" abbreviated form. See Course Policies. Book briefing is unlikely to assist you in an oral argument in law practice, nor in the class. For example, in Payne, the court gives about 6 distinct reasons for its disposition, and the dissent gives quite a few for its position as well. What "categories of argumentation" are driving each of these rationales? (See Course Policy and Briefing info.)

  2. Aftermath of Payne: Employment at will, legislative response, economic theory 14-31

    If you're not an economics buff, don't spend an inordinate amount of time deciphering the graphs at 28-31. However, you need a basic understanding of the neo-classical economic model as discussed in the text. What are the limitations of the assumptions at p.21? What other limitations, imperfections, and market failures affect the usefulness of the model (see 25-30)?

  3. "Employee" for statutory and vicarious liability (respondeat superior) n.1-3 & 6, p.41-45

    In n. 6, make a list of facts tipping towards the models being "employees" under the right-to-control test, and the facts tipping against. Then make a list of facts tipping towards, and against, their being "employees" under the economic realities test (not to hand in). [You may ignore the R3d of Agency at 41-42.]

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Evidence A (EVID-200-A)

Professor Mitchell

The course materials are:

  1. Merritt and Simons, Learning Evidence: From the Federal Rules to the Courtroom (West, 2009)
  2. Mitchell and Barron, Skills and Values: Evidence (Lexis Nexis, 2009).
  3. On-line materials on TWEN.
M 1/14
  1. Go on TWEN and register for "EVIDENCE A."
  2. Read all the text on the course TWEN page (Make certain you scroll past the list of 27 lessons and read the materials which follow, including the Attendance Policy).
  3. Now, go back to "Lessons," and click on "Lesson One." This will show the assigned readings from the Merritt text as well as provide links to the on-line materials for the class.

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Evidence B (EVID-200-B)

Professor Ahrens

Please read the Sklansky text, pp. 1-42. Also, please read Federal Rules of Evidence (F.R.E) 101, 102, 103, 104, 401, 402, and 403.

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Family Formation & Recognition (FAML-310-A)

Professor Shapiro

M 1/14 Please review the TWEN pages before this class. (These pages are currently under construction but will be available soon.) Documents

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Introduction to Feminist Legal Theory (JURS-150-B)

Professor Shapiro

T 1/15

There is a required text for this course. It is a paperback entitled Feminist Legal Theory: Readings in Law and Gender. The editors are Katherine Bartlett and Rosanne Kennedy. It is published by Westview Press and is rather old—copyright is 1991. We will be supplementing this with other readings I will assign as we go.

For the first class review the table of contents and read the introduction, pp 1-15. This is a small class and so even before we get to the readings we will begin by introducing ourselves. I’d like each of you to take a few moments to do that and perhaps to say a few words about what you would hope to get out of the class.

 Documents

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Intellectual Property: Law, Society & Technology (INTP-150-A)

Professor Chon

All first week assignments are posted on the class TWEN site.

T 1/15 Introduction to IP Law: read the summary materials in the LII portals for
  • Copyright
  • Patent
  • Trademark
  • Unfair Competition Laws[TWEN Web Links]
 Please read the syllabus when it's posted, and be prepared to sign up for two panels (one single alphabet and on double alphabet)
TH 1/17
  • Johnson oped [TWEN Web Links]
  • RSC Policy Brief [TWEN Course Materials]
  • Hannan, The New Cold War [TWEN Web Links]

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International Environmental Law (ENVL-340-A)

Professor Gonzalez

Required texts:

  1. Carlson, Palmer & Weston, International Environmental Law and World Order: A Problem-Oriented Coursebook (3rd ed. 2012).
  2. Carlson, Palmer & Weston, International Environmental Law and World Order: Supplement of Basic Documents (3rd ed. 2012).

 

Introduction to International Law Textbook pages 1-33;39-50;54-77 Anthony Anghie, The Evolution of International Law: Colonial and Postcolonial Realities (short article available on TWEN)

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International Trade (INTEL-340-A)

Professor Chinen

T 1/15 Jackson, Davey & Sykes (JDS) 4-28; 31-41 Questions for reading
TH 1/17 Review JDS 31-41 and read JDS 41-56

Supplemental Reading:
Andrew K. Rose, Do We Really Know the WTO Increases Trade?, 94 Am. Econ. Rev. 98 (2004) (available on JSTOR) (JSTOR is one of several electronic databases to which SU students have access either directly when on campus or through the Lemieux Library web portal. I will be assigning several scholarly articles throughout the semester, some of which can be accessed through these databases.)

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Mediation, Mediation Advocacy and Collaborative Laws §A & §E (ALDR-302-A & ALDR-302-E)

Professor Branscomb and Knapp

Assignments for 1/15/13 and 1/17/13. First assignments and book purchasing information are posted on TWEN. Note that two books are not available in the Bookstore and need to be ordered on line ASAP.

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Occupation, Law and Politics (JURS-327-A)

Professor Spade

Please go on the TWEN site for your first assignment.

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Patent and Trade Secret Law (INTP-305-E)

Adjunct Professor Al-Salam

Adjunct Professor Arnett

Textbook: Understanding Patent Law, Amy L. Landers (2nd ed.2012)
Print ISBN: 978-0-7698-5276-8 eBook ISBN: 978-0-3271-8118-7

M 1/14 Intro to the Patent System 1-17
W 1/16 The USPTO: Obtaining a Patent 19-34

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Products Liability 2013 (TORT-300-A)

Professor Gordon

M 1/14

Introductory Lecture: What is the most complicated (and interesting(?)) thing in the Universe? Review of syllabus and website.
Readings: Casebook 1-16

 Writing Assignments: Problem No.1 [Mandatory] due Wed. 1/18. Check Table of Deadlines at the end of the syllabus regarding all other problem, quiz, assignment deadlines.
W 1/16

Lecture: Products Liability: Where the Rubber Meets the Road. Class Debate: Public v. Private Regulation of Risks
Readings: Casebook 16-40; Anthology 105-120

 Online Quiz: Quiz No.1 due next week Wed. Check Table of Deadlines at the end of the syllabus regarding all other problem, quiz, assignment deadlines.

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Professional Responsibility (PROF-200-A)

Professor Martin

T 1/15 & TH 1/17
  1. READ Pages 1-12 (top) in the course text: Nathan M. Crystal, Professional Responsibility, Problems of Practice and the Profession (FIFTH Edition). Additionally, READ Deborah L. Rhode, The Profession and Its Discontents, 61 OHIO ST. L.J. 1335 (2000). You can skim Patrick J. Schiltz, On Being a Happy, Healthy, and Ethical Member of an Unhappy, Unhealthy, and Unethical Profession, 52 VAND. L. REV. 871 (1999). (You can find the articles on Westlaw or Lexis).
  2. A copy of the film, To Kill a Mockingbird, is on reserve under my name in the library. Please view the film by the second week of class (January 24, 2013). If you have a chance to review it before that will be great as we will discuss it and refer to it during the first weeks of class. You may check it out and view it at your convenience or check your video store. The film is about two (2) hours in length. This is a twentieth century American classic so you may have read the book or seen the film before. However, please review it again to refresh your memory in preparation for the discussion next week. Interestingly, July 2010 marked the fiftieth anniversary of Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a Mockingbird.” The story will provide a framework for discussion of several professional responsibility issues over the course of the semester, significantly, the lawyer’s role in society and the development of a philosophy of lawyering.
  3. Read/skim the text of the Rules of Professional Conduct. It is not necessary to memorize the rules or dig deeply into the comments at this point. I merely want you to familiarize yourself with the essence of the rules of professional conduct that govern the legal profession.

I look forward to meeting you all soon!

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Professional Responsibility (PROF-150-A & PROF-200-E)

Professor Strait

T 1/15
  • Go to TWEN and register for this course. Then read your syllabus and CALI Folder Materials
  • TEXT: Ethical Problems in the Practice of Law, 3rd by Lerman and Schrag (hereafter referred to as LS). READ: LS Introduction. pp. 1-13; Ch. 1, The Regulation of Lawyers, pp. 19 – 45
  • Go to the CALI Folder on TWEN. Read the CALI Student Instructions sheet and follow them for submitting your first CALI exercise to the CALI Assignment Drop Box
  • Do CALI exercise: Sources of Law Regulating the Practice of Law (40 hour) and submit a screen capture to the drop box per your CALI Student Instructions sheet in the CALI Folder on TWEN.
TH 1/17

LS Ch. 1, The Regulation of Lawyers, pp.45-79, Admission to Practice

  • In Re Wright
  • Wright Jimi Petition

For class discussion:

  • WA Admission to Practice Rule (APR) 3 and WA APR 21-24
  • Universal Bar Exam Application for Bar Examination
  • Application Instructions to the WA ST Bar and URL Link Sample WA ST Bar Application Form

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Property A (PROP-100-A)

Professor Weaver

Please register for this course on WestLaw at your earliest convenience. The materials mentioned in this assignment are in the Course Materials Folder.

This course is somewhat different from your other courses in that there will always be some thing (not something) involved in the relationship between the parties. It will, for this course, usually be land but sometimes we may talk about other forms of property.

I will be using a rolling syllabus over the course of the semester as I get used to a more concentrated week of classes with you. I will post on each Thursday or Friday what I will cover in the following week and probably a short forecast of where we will be going in the week following that.

We will begin with a coverage of Adverse Possession and you should read the material in the text beginning on page 116 and reading through page 150. You should also read the Peters case on the TWEN page and the item marked "AP in Colorado" which will also be on the TWEN page.

Be ready to start with the Van Valkenburg case, then Manillo, then the Peters case, and then Howard v. Kunto.

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Property C (PROP-100-C)

Professor Bender

Readings below are from Singer text unless otherwise indicated

T 1/15
  • Overview of Course
  • Introduction (What is Property?), xliii-lvi
  • Right to Exclude, 3-8, 12-13 (Notes 1-3), 15 (Note 15), 16 (Problem 1)
TH 1/17
  • Alien Land Laws and Other Restrictions, 82-84
  • Right to Exclude and Immigrants, 59-72 (Bender, Tierra y Libertad book)
  • Farm Worker Housing, 29-35 (Bender, Tierra y Libertad book); State v. Fox, 510 P2d 230 (Wash. 1973)
  • Homelessness, 66-69

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Property E (PROP-100-E)

Professor Slye

M 14
  1. Register with the TWEN course associated with the class. To register, go to lawschool.westlaw.com, and register for "Property E." Course assignments, supplementary materials, and other materials related to the course will be posted on the TWEN site. In addi@on, you should feel free to use the discussion function to raise questions not raised in class, or to pursue in more depth issues only briefly raised in class.
  2. The Syllabus for the class is posted on the TWEN site.
  3. Reading Assignment: (1/15) 3-33, (1/17) 33-35

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State and Local Taxation (TAXI-355-E)

Professor Petteys

M 1/14 Skim Chapter 1 of the text (Hellerstein, et al., State and Local Taxation
W 1/16 Chapter 2, pp. 22-50

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Torts (TORT-105-B)

Professor Gonzalez

Assignment for the first two weeks of class:

Compensatory Damages for Personal Injury
  1. Medical expenses: Pages 583-596
  2. Lost Earnings and Impairment of Earning Capacity: Pages 596-615
  3. Pain, Suffering and Other Intangibles: Pages 615-626

After we have completed the discussion of the readings on damages, every student will participate in a negotiating exercise based on Problem 36: pages 626-649. The class will be divided into teams of four students (two representing the plaintiff and two representing the defendant) that will conduct a negotiation in an attempt to settle the tort claim brought by Sidney Rothman against Tompkins Department Store. Each team will receive detailed instructions and a confidential information packet prior to the exercise. You will also need to re-read pages 148-158 on vicarious liability in order to prepare for this exercise.

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Tribal Governmental Gaming Law (INDL-330-A)

Professor Eberhard

T 1/17 The assignment for the first class is: Read and be prepared to discuss US v. Sosseur, 181 F.2d 873 (7th Cir. 1950); US v. Farris, 624 F.2d 890 (9th Cir. 1980); Seminole Tribe of Florida v. Butterworth, 658 F.2d 310 (5th Cir. 1981) and Barona v. Duffy, 694 F.2d 1185 (9th Cir. 1982).

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Trust & Estates §A & §E (ESTA-300-A & ESTA-300-E)

Professor Eason

A TWEN site has been created for this course, is listed under Professor Eason, and should be accessible by Thursday morning. You should sign-up for/add this TWEN site to your courses - this is very important, as most future communications will occur exclusively in class or via the TWEN site. Among the items that will be posted on the site are class assignments for the first few classes Washington statues, and any other handouts for class. An "Assignment syllabus" covering the full semester, will be posted during the first week of classes.

Required Course Materials

  • Dukeminier, et.al, Wills, Trusts and Estates (8th ed. 2009), Aspen Publishers
    *Used copies avilable from many sources, like Amazon.com and Textbooks.com
  • Registration on the course TWEN site

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U.S. Races and the Justice System (JURS-360-A)

Professor Delgado & Professor Stefancic

M 1/14 Please take a few minutes to skim the casebook, Race and Races (Perea, Delgado, Harris, Stefancic & Wildman, 2d ed. 2007) and formulate your impression of its general coverage and content. In addition, please read closely pages 1-6, 19-40 on defining racism and race. Which of the approaches ring truest to your experience?

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