Course Schedule

Standard-form agreements purporting to bind consumers and employees are the most common form of contracts that exist in the United States. These contracts often contain provisions like arbitration clauses, exculpatory clauses, non-compete agreements, non-disparagement agreements, liquidated damages clauses, privacy waivers, and more. Each of these contract terms has generated term-specific case law and regulation. Students will learn about these clauses and the applicable law governing their enforceability, while critically evaluating both. The course requires each student to participate in an end-of-term “writer’s workshop,” which in turn requires students to present their ideas to the class. The workshop aims to provide constructive feedback to students on their work product before they submit their final papers.

This writing seminar considers advanced topics in professional responsibility, meaning the law governing lawyers such as lawyer disciplinary rules and procedures as well as other topics regarding lawyer conduct and liability.    Completing a writing seminar is required for graduation.  A writing seminar serves several purposes. First, a writing seminar develops your advanced research and analytical writing skills. Second, when you present your paper for discussion and discuss other student’s papers, a writing seminar strengthens your oral presentation skills. Third, a writing seminar allows you to work closely with a faculty member and in a small student group. Half your grade will be based on your research paper and half on your oral presentation and class participation.  For class, a copy of Martyn, Fox, & Wendel, The Law Governing Lawyers (2021-2022 Edition), will be useful.   

Professor McCown will help each student pick a topic and develop a thesis; the student will make an oral presentation of their draft paper; then the student will prepare a final draft based on feedback.  Having already taken PR will be helpful. 

This new seminar will examine major aspects of food production and consumption in the  United States, with a consistent emphasis on both market-driven and regulatory features. Special emphasis will be placed on the state-based and regional shaping--regulatory and otherwise--of the life-cycle of industrial-scale food production, from its intensive demands on soil and water; its extensive geographies; and its pollutive atmospheric conditioning to its prevalent end-state as methane-enhancing food waste.

Topics within the scope of inquiry may include, by example: state versus federal authority over food regulation; rising challenges to food safety; fertilizer and pesticide use and their regulation; induced preference formation for food products; "ultra-processed" (or "hyper-processed") foods; MAHA-policy influence; shrinkflation; the science and regulation of "novel" proteins; the use of treated frack water as irrigation water; the biodigestion of agricultural waste; food equity; and locovorism. 

Assessment methods will include a paper requirement. There will be no final exam.

Given the course's inter-disciplinary focus, cross-registrations from other departments will be welcome.

This course is designed to complement the seminar on the federal regulation of food safety being offered by Professor Tom McGarity this term.

Alternative asset classes, particularly hedge funds and private equity funds, play an increasingly central role in the global economy. Total alternative assets under management surpassed $10 trillion in 2020, a more than threefold increase from 2008, and are expected to surpass $17 trillion by 2025. Hedge funds and private equity funds represent approximately 75% of these assets. This explosive growth has been accompanied by an increased institutionalization of the industry, an advanced regulatory environment and a significant rise in public scrutiny.

This course will provide a comprehensive review of the legal and regulatory framework related to hedge fund and private funds, particularly in relation to structuring, documentation, disclosures, tax considerations and compliance.  Areas of focus will include relevant federal securities, tax and pension plan laws, case history and agency actions. This course also will include a critical analysis of related policy issues and topics, including insider trading, environmental/social/governance (ESG) investing, preferential tax treatment, the rise of cryptocurrencies and the economic and societal impacts associated with the alternative investment industry. In addition, the course will analyze the various roles lawyers play throughout the industry.

Alternative asset classes, particularly hedge funds and private equity funds, play an increasingly central role in the global economy. Total alternative assets under management surpassed $10 trillion in 2020, a more than threefold increase from 2008, and are expected to surpass $14 trillion by 2023. Hedge funds and private equity funds represent approximately 75% of these assets. This explosive growth has been accompanied by an increased institutionalization of the industry, an advanced regulatory environment and a significant rise in public scrutiny.

This course will provide a comprehensive review of the legal and regulatory framework related to hedge fund and private funds, particularly in relation to structuring, documentation, disclosures, tax considerations and compliance.  Areas of focus will include relevant federal securities, tax and pension plan laws, case history and agency actions. This course also will include a critical analysis of related policy issues and topics, including insider trading, environmental/social/governance (ESG) investing, preferential tax treatment, the rise of cryptocurrencies and the economic and societal impacts associated with the alternative investment industry. In addition, the course will analyze the various roles lawyers play throughout the industry.

Alternative asset classes, particularly hedge funds and private equity funds, play an increasingly central role in the global economy. Total alternative assets under management surpassed $10 trillion in 2020, a more than threefold increase from 2008, and are expected to surpass $14 trillion by 2023. Hedge funds and private equity funds represent approximately 75% of these assets. This explosive growth has been accompanied by an increased institutionalization of the industry, an advanced regulatory environment and a significant rise in public scrutiny.

This course will provide a comprehensive review of the legal and regulatory framework related to hedge fund and private funds, particularly in relation to structuring, documentation, disclosures, tax considerations and compliance.  Areas of focus will include relevant federal securities, tax and pension plan laws, case history and agency actions. This course also will include a critical analysis of related policy issues and topics, including insider trading, environmental/social/governance (ESG) investing, preferential tax treatment, the rise of cryptocurrencies and the economic and societal impacts associated with the alternative investment industry. In addition, the course will analyze the various roles lawyers play throughout the industry.

Thomas Aquinas is regarded by more than a few scholars as one of the two or three greatest philosophers and theologians in Western history, as well as one of the most illuminating students of Augustine and Aristotle.  His Treatise on Law is the locus classicus of the natural law tradition, and indispensable for anyone seriously interested in ethical philosophy, political philosophy, jurisprudence, natural law, or the interaction of faith and reason in each of these areas.  Though it is brief, as treatises go, it is not the sort of book one can browse through in an evening, and requires close reading.  I welcome students from a variety of disciplines.

Written in the form of a scholastic disputation, the Treatise takes up 19 disputed questions, for example whether there is such a thing as natural law and whether one may disobey unjust laws.  We will closely study each of the first eight (qq. 90-97), as well as a few selections from the other eleven (qq, 98-108), taking them up in sequence and in context.  I say “in context” because the Treatise is but a single part of a much larger work, the Summa Theologiae, which takes up a variety of related matters including the ultimate purpose of human life, the nature of human acts, the passions, the virtues, and the vices.  I do not expect you to be familiar with the whole Summa; we will explore the connections as necessary.

The scope of this class is both domestic and international and crosses multiple disciplines and fields of law. The course touches many aspects of the processes of creating art, buying and selling it, using it, or displaying it in a museum. Additionally, the course covers the more nefarious legal issues in art and cultural property, including forgery, theft, illegal movement, and art in war, focusing on art stolen in the Holocaust.

The scope of this class is both domestic and international and crosses multiple disciplines and fields of law. The course touches many aspects of the processes of creating art, buying and selling it, using it, or displaying it in a museum. Additionally, the course covers the more nefarious legal issues in art and cultural property, including forgery, theft, illegal movement, and art in war, focusing on art stolen in the Holocaust.

The scope of this class is both domestic and international and crosses multiple disciplines and fields of law. The course touches many aspects of the processes of creating art, buying and selling it, using it, or displaying it in a museum. Additionally, the course covers the more nefarious legal issues in art and cultural property, including forgery, theft, illegal movement, and art in war, focusing on art stolen in the Holocaust.

The scope of this class is both domestic and international and crosses multiple disciplines and fields of law. The course touches many aspects of the processes of creating art, buying and selling it, using it, or displaying it in a museum. Additionally, the course covers the more nefarious legal issues in art and cultural property, including forgery, theft, illegal movement, and art in war, focusing on art stolen in the Holocaust.

This seminar offers students of all backgrounds an analytical toolkit to become thought leaders on major legal issues that Asian Americans are either invoked to resolve difficult debates on or implicated in, from citizenship eligibility to language rights to affirmative action.

In the first portion of the semester, “Frameworks,” each week we will examine a foundational legal question provoked by paying close attention to Asian Americans and the law. For example, does litigation in the name of Asian American group interests inherently have collateral effects on how law impacts people who identify as being part of other groups? When, if ever, should the experiences of Asian Americans be invoked to resolve debates on legal issues? In the second portion of the semester, “Dialogues,” each week we will put two areas of law in conversation with each other—including property law and federal Indian law, voting rights and citizenship law, and national security and hate crimes law—to explore the themes of “power,” “voice,” and “protection” as central concerns of Asian American jurisprudence. The third portion of the semester will be devoted to group workshops of student research projects and one-on-one meetings with the instructor to discuss projects.

Grades will be based on [1] thoughtful participation in class sessions; [2] completion of four short responses (as short as 50 words) on weekly reading assignments; [3] a final analytical/argumentative paper involving original research (around 6500-8500 above-the-line main text words) with a rough draft due before the end of Fall Break; and [4] completion of low-stakes mini assignments designed to develop the final paper throughout the semester.

Economic theory has had a large impact on legal thinking. Behavioral Economics seeks to identify predictable patterns of behavior that do not fit into the rational-choice paradigm; its ultimate goal is to improve the predictive capacities of social science. This seminar will explore Behavioral research on framing effects, loss aversion, risk compensation, mental accounting, time-inconsistent preferences, self-serving biases, perceptions of fairness, and happiness. Several of these behavioral patterns can be used to suggest that, in certain situations, peoples' autonomous choices may not result in outcomes that are best for them even under their own theories of "best." Accordingly, we will also discuss potential policy responses and the appropriate limits of paternalism.

Economic theory has had a large impact on legal thinking. Behavioral Economics seeks to identify predictable patterns of behavior that do not fit into the rational-choice paradigm; its ultimate goal is to improve the predictive capacities of social science. This seminar will explore Behavioral research on framing effects, loss aversion, risk compensation, mental accounting, time-inconsistent preferences, self-serving biases, perceptions of fairness, and happiness. Several of these behavioral patterns can be used to suggest that, in certain situations, peoples' autonomous choices may not result in outcomes that are best for them even under their own theories of "best." Accordingly, we will also discuss potential policy responses and the appropriate limits of paternalism.

Economic theory has had a large impact on legal thinking. Behavioral Economics seeks to identify predictable patterns of behavior that do not fit into the rational-choice paradigm; its ultimate goal is to improve the predictive capacities of social science. This seminar will explore Behavioral research on framing effects, loss aversion, risk compensation, mental accounting, time-inconsistent preferences, self-serving biases, perceptions of fairness, and happiness. Several of these behavioral patterns can be used to suggest that, in certain situations, peoples' autonomous choices may not result in outcomes that are best for them even under their own theories of "best." Accordingly, we will also discuss potential policy responses and the appropriate limits of paternalism.

Economic theory has had a large impact on legal thinking. Behavioral Economics seeks to identify predictable patterns of behavior that do not fit into the rational-choice paradigm; its ultimate goal is to improve the predictive capacities of social science. This seminar will explore Behavioral research on framing effects, loss aversion, risk compensation, mental accounting, time-inconsistent preferences, self-serving biases, perceptions of fairness, and happiness. Several of these behavioral patterns can be used to suggest that, in certain situations, peoples' autonomous choices may not result in outcomes that are best for them even under their own theories of "best." Accordingly, we will also discuss potential policy responses and the appropriate limits of paternalism.

Recent scientific studies show that the world is on the brink of a sixth mass extinction, comparable to the one that wiped out the dinosaurs millions of years ago. But as disheartening as that conclusion is, the data also suggest that it’s not too late to avoid the extinction event by addressing the threats faced by animals and plants around the globe. This course explores law and policy around the broad themes of biodiversity, wildlife and habitat. We will examine a range of international and U.S. laws in place to conserve biodiversity and the gaps in protection that exist. We will focus on international conventions, statutes, including the Endangered Species Act, case law, environmental ethics and several current controversies to explore legal, scientific, and political strategies for protecting at-risk species and their habitats in an increasingly complex, interconnected world.

Most of the students' grade will be based on a paper on an approved topic and a presentation on the paper topic given to the class during one of the last weeks of the semester.  

Recent scientific studies show that the world is on the brink of a sixth mass extinction, comparable to the one that wiped out the dinosaurs millions of years ago. But as disheartening as that conclusion is, the data also suggest that it’s not too late to avoid the extinction event by addressing the threats faced by animals and plants around the globe. This course explores law and policy around the broad themes of biodiversity, wildlife and habitat. We will examine a range of international and U.S. laws in place to conserve biodiversity and the gaps in protection that exist. We will focus on international conventions, statutes, including the Endangered Species Act, case law, environmental ethics and several current controversies to explore legal, scientific, and political strategies for protecting at-risk species and their habitats in an increasingly complex, interconnected world.

Most of the students' grade will be based on a paper on an approved topic and a presentation on the paper topic given to the class during one of the last weeks of the semester.  

Recent scientific studies show that the world is on the brink of a sixth mass extinction, comparable to the one that wiped out the dinosaurs millions of years ago. But as disheartening as that conclusion is, the data also suggest that it’s not too late to avoid the extinction event by addressing the threats faced by animals and plants around the globe. This course explores law and policy around the broad themes of biodiversity, wildlife and habitat. We will examine a range of international and U.S. laws in place to conserve biodiversity and the gaps in protection that exist. We will focus on international conventions, statutes, including the Endangered Species Act, case law, environmental ethics and several current controversies to explore legal, scientific, and political strategies for protecting at-risk species and their habitats in an increasingly complex, interconnected world.

Most of the students' grade will be based on a paper on an approved topic and a presentation on the paper topic given to the class during one of the last weeks of the semester.  

This seminar will consider the ways in which different legal regimes and agencies shape innovation in the biopharmaceutical sector,  broadly understood to include therapeutic drugs, medical devices, and combination products such as GLP-1 injectors like Ozempic. Through readings comprised of scholarly articles, policy documents, and book excerpts, we will explore how various bodies of law—including patent, FDA, consumer protection, and antitrust—each influence the development of biopharmaceuticals.  We will consider what constitutes meaningful innovation in the biopharmaceutical sector.  We will study both moments when these systems operate in silos and when they collide, and consider how those dynamics affect innovation in the biopharmaceutical space.

Class discussions will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of different institutional approaches and explore what kinds of structures best promote innovation.  The course will also draw on select current events as case studies to illustrate the opportunities and challenges that arise when multiple institutions and domains regulate innovation simultaneously.  Throughout the semester, students shall engage in theoretical, economic, and policy analysis. 

Students will complete a final research paper on a topic agreed upon by the student and instructor.  Class time will also be devoted to instructor-student meetings on paper development as well as to student paper presentations.   No science background is necessary.  There are no prerequisites.

This workshop seminar will focus on cutting-edge research in business law and economics. Most weeks will feature a leading outside scholar presenting a work-in-progress relating to current issues in business law. The range of subject matter includes economically-oriented work on business law, securities regulation, tax, or commercial law. Many of the papers presented will likely deal with normative questions of private ordering versus public regulation, and will examine problems that arise in both the private and public law spheres. Similarly, it is expected that many of the papers will consider social welfare effects, such as the effect of law and regulation on entrepreneurship, innovation, capital formation, and financial markets. Students will be responsible for written assessments of the paper being presented, and will be evaluated based on their writings and their participation in the workshop. Students' critiques may be made available to the speaker.