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The University of Texas at Austin School of Law
  2. Course Schedule

SMNR: Business Scandal and Crisis Management: Case Studies in Compliance

  • Semester: Fall 2025
  • Course ID: 397S
  • Credit Hours: 3
  • Unique: 31045

Course Information

  • Course Type: Seminar
  • Grading Method: Pass/Fail Not Allowed
  • Cross-listed with other school

Registration Information

  • Upperclass-only elective

Meeting Times

Day Time
THU 2:30 - 4:20 pm

Evaluation Method

Type Date Time Location
Paper

Description

Many law school courses deal with the role of the “outside” lawyer in representing clients in a litigation setting or counseling clients with a view to potential litigation. This course is fundamentally different: it deals with the compliance function—described by one author as the function that establishes and confirms “conformity between . . . action and a rule or standard,” the latter being determined by law, regulation or an organization’s policies. The compliance role within an organization principally focuses on awareness of potential problems and establishing processes to avoid them, thereby avoiding resultant crises for the organization. The function is responsible for establishing policies and procedures designed to avoid, or detect at an early stage, instances in which personnel fail to conform to mandates established by law, regulation or organizational policies. As such, the function includes counseling personnel when questions arise and establishing “early warning” systems to detect and respond to instances of variance from required standards. It is also an organizational role that increasingly provides high-level, challenging employment opportunities for lawyers. The course will examine the role of the compliance function within a corporation or other organization and its relationship to other organizational roles and to regulatory agencies. It will also examine a number of current or recent situations in which problems—crises for the organizations involved—have been uncovered and will consider how more effective compliance programs might have unearthed them earlier, in time to avoid the crisis. Quite often (and contrary to the popular image), the best service a lawyer can perform for her client, but one that is invisible to public awareness, is to foresee a potential issue and counsel practices that avoid its occurrence. This course will provide tools that are important to that endeavor. The course is offered as a seminar for up to 16 students and will require a final paper submission (in lieu of an exam), as well as a short mid-course paper to provide an opportunity for earlier feedback. Course materials will be provided by the instructor and there will be no casebook.

Instructors

Headshot of Lorne, Simon Lorne, Simon
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