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Updated: February 2008
The Family and Juvenile Law Focus Area is structured consistently with our other focus areas: it has a set of required foundational courses, a required skills component, a set of electives to choose amongst for additional courses, and a set of related courses that do not count towards completion of the focus area but may be of interest to students intending to practice in the family law field. Where this focus area differs from most of the others is that it requires students to take a capstone course in their third year, either in the form of the Family Law Clinic, in which students represent actual clients on family law matters, or through a deeper exploration of conceptual issues in family and juvenile law, which takes the form of an independent study or advanced family law seminar.
Beginning in the fall of 2007, the basic family law course has been replaced by two complementary courses—Family Dissolution and Related Issues and Family Formation/Recognition. A student interested in this focus area must take one of these two courses as a foundational course. Either one may be taken for this purpose. The other may then be taken as an elective, but it is not required, and if both are taken, they may be taken in any order.
The newly-designed Family Dissolution course covers the topics of greatest importance in the day-to-day practice of family law. These are also the topics most likely to be covered on the Washington State bar exam. Any lawyer with a practice primarily devoted to family law will need to be conversant with these topics. By contrast, the Family Formation course devotes substantial time to constitutional law and also includes consideration of comparative law. It will be of greater interest to those desiring a more theoretical and critical consideration of family law topics.
A student deeply interested in family law would do well to take both of these courses. A student who expects to devote a significant amount of energy in practice to family law matters could benefit from both courses as well. Family Dissolution is the better choice for those wishing to attain basic familiarity with core concepts of family law, whether for the bar of for practice. For those wishing a greater exposure to constitutional law and policy issues that dominate the developing edges of family law, the Family Formation course is likely preferable.
This focus is very useful for those students wishing to develop a law practice focusing on family and juvenile law after graduation. It may also be helpful to those who expect to go into a more general small practice, as these practices often include the regular practice of family and juvenile law. Students who are interested in exploring the developing trends in family and juvenile law, even though they have no expectation of practicing in the area, may also benefit from this focus area.
| Janet Ainsworth | Child, Family and State |
| Deirdre Bowen | Family Dissolution and Related Issues |
| Melinda Branscomb | Dispute Resolution, Problem Solving I and II |
| Lisa Brodoff | Elder Law |
| Betsy Hollingsworth | Family Law Clinic |
| Lily Kahng | Individual Income Tax |
| William Oltman | Community Property, Trusts & Estates |
| Rafael Pardo | Bankruptcy |
| Julie Shapiro* | Family Formation/Recognition, Advanced Family Law Seminar, Law & Sexuality |
*Focus Area Chair
| Todd Carlisle | Poverty Law |
| Elizabeth Ford | Dispute Resolution |
| Joseph Henke | Community Property, Trusts and Estates |
| Shelby Hopkins | Family Dissolution and Related Issues, Family Law Drafting Lab |
| Jennie Laird | Domestic Violence |
| Elizabeth Schott | Public Benefits Law |
The focus area requires students to take three foundational courses, a skills component course, at least two courses chosen from an approved list of electives, and a capstone course. Plan the completion of your focus area with a focus area tracking form.
Family Dissolution and Related Issues (3 cr) or
Family Formation/Recognition (3 cr)
plus
Community Property (2 cr)
Dispute Resolution (3 cr)
Problem Solving I: Client Interviewing, Counseling and Negotiation (3 cr)
Problem Solving II: Mediation and Collaborative Law (3 cr)
Family Law Drafting Lab (1 cr)
Bankruptcy (3 cr)
Child, Family and State (3 cr)
Domestic Violence (2 cr)
Elder Law (3 cr)
Family Dissolution and Related Issues (3 cr)
Family Formation/Recognition (3 cr)
Gift and Estate Tax (3 cr)
Individual Income Taxation (4 cr)
Poverty Law (3 cr)
Public Benefits Law (3 cr)
Trusts & Estates (3 cr)
Family Law Clinic (6 cr)
Advanced Family Law Seminar (2-3 cr)
Independent Study in Family Law (2 cr)
The following courses do not count towards the completion of the family law focus area, but may be of interest to students planning careers in the family and juvenile law area.
Gender and Justice (3 credits)
Immigration Law (3 credits)
Law and Sexuality (2 credits)
Pensions and Employee Benefits (3 credits)