COVID and the Law
- Semester: Fall 2021
- Course ID: 396W
- Credit Hours: 3
-
Unique: 29735
Course Information
- Grading Method: Pass/Fail Not Allowed
- Cross-listed with other school
- Will use floating mean GPA if applicable
Registration Information
- Upperclass-only elective
Meeting Times
| Day | Time | Location |
|---|---|---|
| TUE, THU | 2:15 - 3:30 pm | TNH 2.124 |
Evaluation Method
| Type | Date | Time | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper |
Description
This colloquium-style course will explore the legal challenges and implications of the COVID-19 pandemic. Students will read a range of materials that will include law review articles and congressional testimony. This course is interdisciplinary and will feature guest lecturers who are professors at the University of Texas.
The pandemic affected a wide range of public and private laws. Topics we will explore include public health and science implications of COVID-19, how the pandemic exacerbated inequalities for marginalized or vulnerable populations, how privacy, criminal, election, or other public laws were re-examined (or revised) during the pandemic and how private relationships between landlords and tenants or banks and customers were affected during the pandemic.
We may also consider how federal and state tax, employment, and anti-discrimination laws protected or harmed people during the pandemic, how dispute resolution and judicial systems were derailed or re-imagined during the pandemic, and how emergency declarations (including stay-at-home or business shutdown orders) were crafted, applied (or struck down) during the pandemic.
Dickerson, Mechele