First Assignments - Fall 2017

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Insurance Law - Prof. Cady

The first day of class will be Wednesday, August 16, 2017. The assignment for the first day is the Introduction and Chapter 1 of the text, Robert H. Jerry, II, and Douglas R. Richmond, Understanding Insurance Law. 5th Ed. (2012). Please print all course materials posted on eCampus and bring them to each class.

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Torts I - Prof. Cady

The assignment for the first week of classes (Wednesday, August 16, 2017,and Friday, August 18, 2017 is Chapter 1 in the Prosser, Wade & Schwartz’s, Torts text, and pages 2-8 in A Concise Restatement of Torts. Please print all course materials posted on the College of Law eCampus and bring them to each class.

SPECIAL ASSIGNMENTS FOR SPECIAL STUDENTS

Jordan L. Adkins - will report on Marc Galanter, Why The “Haves” Come Out Ahead: Speculations On The Limits Of Legal Change, 9 L. & Socy. Rev. 95 (1974).

Rachel B. Armstrong - will report on Tom Baker, Blood Money, New Money And The Moral Economy Of Tort Law In Action, 35 L. & Socy. Rev. 275 (2001).

Ashley B. Ayers  will report on John C.P. Goldberg, Twentieth-Century Tort Theory, 91 Geo. L.J. 513 (2003).

Nathan T. Bennett - will report on Tom Baker, Liability Insurance as Tort Regulation:  Six Ways That Liability Insurance Shapes Tort Law in Action, 12 Conn. Ins. L. Rev. 1 (2005).

Samantha J. Berry - will report on Robert H. Mnookin and Lewis Kornhauser(t), Bargaining in the Shadow of the Law: The Case of Divorce, 88 Yale L. J. 950 (1979)

Amanda W. Greene - will report on Brown v. Kendall, p. 6 of the casebook.

Please watch and understand deeply John Grisham’s The Rainmaker (1997) before the first class on Wednesday, August 16.

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Business Transactions Draft - Prof. Cowan

All references are to George W. Kuney & Donna C. Looper,LEGAL DRAFTING: Process, Techniques, and Exercises (3rd Edition) (West Academic Publishing, 2017)

August 17- Introduction

• Preface (pp. iii-v); Chapter 1: A Philosophy of Drafting (pp. 3-18)
• Exercise 3 (p. 111): This exercise only asks you to think about the story from a drafter’s perspective. You are not asked to draft anything.
• Drafting Assignment: Two short drafting assignments will be handed out in class. These drafting assignments are due on Tuesday, August 22.

August 22 - Some Generalizations About Contract Drafting

• Chapter 2: Contract Drafting (pp. 19-42)
  
• Exercise 15 - Surety Agreement (p. 327): You only need to consider part (a) of this exercise. Again, you are only asked to think about the draft provision and to be prepared to critique it. You are not asked to draft anything.
• Drafting Assignment: A short drafting assignment will be handed out in class. This assignment is due on Thursday, August 24.

August 24 - The Form of Transactional Documents (no reading assignment)

• The Parts of a Contract (see Chapter 2 at pp. 28-39): Title; Introductory Clause; Recitals; Words of Agreement; Definitions; Action Sections; Representations and Warranties; Covenants and Rights; Conditions to an Obligation;  Discretionary Authority; Endgame Provisions; "Boilerplate”; Transition; Signatures; Exhibits and Attachments
• Drafting Assignment: Exercise 20 – Employment Contract (pp. 330-332). You are to prepare a checklist for the Employment Contract and draft the contract. You will need to turn in both the checklist and the contract. This assignment is due on Tuesday, August 29.  

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Business Organizations - Prof. Joshua Fershee

Read Chapters 1 & 2 in Unincorporated Business Entities, 5th ed., LexisNexis, (Ribstein, Lipshaw, Miller, and Fershee) (“UBE”). Chapter 1, Corporate Law (Bainbridge, 2d ed.) (“Bainbridge).

Create a new (fictional) LLC by filing out the West Virginia LLC forms posted on the TWEN site (please bring this to class). Make up anything you need to, but have a reason for your decisions.

Sign-up for class on TWEN

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Energy Law - Prof. Joshua Fershee

Chapter 1, pp. 1-22. NOTE: It is expected that students will have read the Notes & Questions for all assignments and will come to class prepared to discuss the questions asked.

Sign up for the Course on TWEN.

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Family Law - Prof. Kendra Fershee

Please read "What Is Family Law?," Abrams text: 1-22

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Immigration Law - Prof. Friedberg

Textbook: IMMIGRATION AND CITIZENSHIP PROCESS AND POLICY, Aleinikoff (8th edition), with accompanying documentary supplement. 

First Assignment: Week 1 – August 22 – Read pages 151-183 and 188-195.

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International Law - Prof. Friedberg

Textbook: Janis and Noyes, International Law, West Publishing, 5th edition, 2014. 

First Assignment: Read pages 1-28 in textbook.

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Jurisprudence - Prof. Lofaso

Read pp 1-17 in required textbook, Gottlieb, Bix, Lytton & West, Jurisprudence Cases and Materials: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Law and Its Applications (3rd edition).

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Labor Law - Prof. Lofaso

The required text is Harris, Slater, Lofaso, & Garden, MODERN LABOR LAW IN THE PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SECTORS: CASES AND MATERIALS (2d edition). The first class assignment is pp.1-35.

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Professional Responsibility - Prof. Maxwell

Please read pp. 1-17 in the Casebook (Lerman and Schrag — Ethical Problems in the Practice of Law, 4th Ed.).

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Lawyers as Leaders - Prof. Hardesty

Read the entire syllabus. Also Read William Deresiewicz, Solitude and Leadership, posted on TWEN.

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Evidence - Prof. McDiarmid

August 17–Rules 101, 102, 103, 1101 and 1102: Twen flowcharts: unforeseen, foreseen by one side, and foreseen by both sides; Weissenberger & Duane, Federal Rules of Evidence, 7th Edition (ISBN: 978-1-4224-9563-4) (on-line pdf supplement available free from the Carolina Press Law School website under the listing for this book) (hereafter W&D), 25-47, 905-916; for all students who have not observed an actual trial (repeated episodes of Law & Order do not count), read, on reserve in the Library, Mauet, Fundamentals of Trial Technique, chapter 1

When one or more rules are the topic of discussion, you must read those rules and the advisory committee notes which accompany them. The text of the rules are found in the grey portion of W&D. The Advisory Committee notes are in Appendix A to W&D. So for today's assignment, in addition to the pages listed above, you should read the rules at W&D 4, 21-22 and the notes at W&D 919-927; 1171-1182.

We will be using CALI Quizwright this semester for in-class quizzes. To make this work, you need to do three things before the first class. 

Step 1: If you have not already done so, you need to register with CALI and get your credentials. This is free and the instructions for how to do so are available in the library. 

Step 2: You need to arrange to bring a computer, tablet or smart phone with you to every class. 

Step 3: I need to have an email address for you that will work during class. If you are using your Mix account, you need take no further steps. If you have blocked or otherwise disabled your Mix account or do not have access to it on the computer, tablet or phone which you will bring to class (see step 2 above), you need to fix that problem. 

If you cannot figure out how to do that, let me know. If anyone has trouble with any of these steps, see me in advance of the first class.

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International Human Rights - Prof. Martin

Review the syllabus (posted on TWEN). Come to class having read the assignment for that day (which are located on TWEN under Course materials.

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Introduction to Law and Forensic Science - Prof. Oliva

Assigned Readings:

1. Conley: SEE, Chapter 1, Introduction to Science and the Legal Process, 1-26 (TWEN) 
2. Radley Balko, Deputy AG Announces New Forensic Science Working Group But Still Doesn’t Grasp the Extent of Problem, WASH. POST (Aug. 7, 2017), https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2017/08/07/deputy-ag-announces-new-forensic-science-working-group-but-still-doesnt-grasp-the-extent-of-problem/?tid=ss_mail-amp&utm_term=.cad661eae1c9 (TWEN)
   
3. Robin Cooper Feldman, Law’s Misguided Love Affair with Science, 10 MINN. L. REV. 95 (2009) (TWEN)
   

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International Trade Law - Prof. Peck

Read pp. 1-43 in Chow & Schoenbaum. You can skip over all of the “Problems” except Problem 1-8 on pp. 30-31. Carefully read that Problem and the materials that follow and be prepared to discuss your answer in groups and with the class (even if you’re not sure of the answer). In addition, please identify one international trade issue that has been making headlines in 2017 (hint: there are LOTS OF THEM!). This should be a topic that interests you enough to follow its development throughout the semester.

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Civil Procedure - Prof. Rhee

Required materials:

1. Joseph W. Glannon, Andrew M. Perlman, & Peter Raven-Hansen, Civil Procedure: A Coursebook (3d ed. 2017 & Supp. 2017) (“Coursebook”) and bundled LawClassFeedback Software (“LCF”), ISBN 9781454891437 for both. You must buy the new third edition (incorporating important recent changes) and the new LawClassFeedback Software. We shall be using LCF for graded out-of-class questions. By buying LCF, you also will already have access to ExamSoft, a software program most students use to take exams on their laptops.

2. American Law Institute-American Bar Association Committee on Continuing Professional Education, Skills and Ethics in the Practice of Law (2d ed. 2000), ISBN 0831810033 (“S&E”).

3. David Benjamin Oppenheimer, Molly Leiwant, Rebecca Schonberg, and Sam Wheeler, Patt v. Donner: A Simulated Casefile for Learning Civil Procedure (2014), ISBN 9781609304317 (“PvD”).

4. A current copy of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. You can access one online here: http://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/rules-of-civil-procedure.pdf. I recommend the compact LegalPub.coma, 2017 Federal Civil Rules Booklet (2017), ISBN 9781934852330 (“FRCP”).

First Class Assignment:

1. Enroll in the class TWEN page.

2. Read Coursebook, Chapter 1: An Introduction to American Courts, and Chapter 2: A Description of the Litigation Process and Sources of Procedural Law.

3. Bring a device (e.g., laptop, smart phone) on which you can access a webpage using the College of Law’s wireless internet. If you don’t have access to such a device, let me know and I shall obtain one for you to use.

Questions? Feel free to email me at william.rhee@mail.wvu.edu. Thank you.

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Firearms Law and Policy Seminar - Prof. Rhee

Required books:

1. Firearms Law and the Second Amendment: Regulation, Rights, and Policy (Nicholas J. Johnson, David B. Kopel, George A. Mocsary & Michael P. O’Shea, eds. Aspen Publishers, 2012 & Supp. 2015), ISBN 9781454805113 (“Casebook”). I shall post the supplement on the course TWEN page.

2. Stephen V. Armstrong & Timothy P. Terrell, Thinking Like a Writer: A Lawyer’s Guide to Effective Writing and Editing (Practicing Law Institute 3d ed. 2009) (also available online for free through Bloomberg Law), ISBN 9781402411281 (“TLAW”). You can purchase a copy or use the online Bloomberg Law version.

First Class Assignment:

1. Read Casebook, Chapter 9: The Supreme Court Affirms an Individual Right to Arms. Focus on Heller and McDonald. Be prepared to tell the class your working paper topic. For starters, think of how weapons/firearms might intersect with any area of law in which you are interested. Law can be defined quite broadly. Although you can write a traditional law reform paper concerning legal doctrine, feel free to examine more interdisciplinary legal topics beyond the formal “law in the books.” For example, a paper about how Hollywood depictions of armed vigilantes have influenced firearms regulation (a topic I just made up without any previous research) would be an acceptable paper topic provided your final paper satisfied the class requirement.

2. Enroll in the class TWEN page.

3. Try to obtain the Casebook by the first class. I shall post a PDF of the first week’s readings on the TWEN page to give you until the second week to obtain the Casebook.

Questions? Feel free to email me at william.rhee@mail.wvu.edu. Thank you.

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Water Law - Prof. Richardson

Thompson, Leshy, Abrams Textbook pp. 1-27

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Criminal Procedure I - Prof. Taylor

Check your Mix email for your first-day assignment.

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Criminal Law - Prof. Trychta

We will use “Criminal Law: Cases and Comments” (10th edition) with the Casebook Plus feature by Ashdown, Bacigal, & Gershowitz.  You may use the 9th edition, if you wish, so long as you purchase the additional “casebook plus” feature.

Please note, however, that the syllabus will follow the 10th edition’s pagination.

You are solely responsible for ensuring that you prepare the correct material for class, should you opt to use the older edition.

Before our first class, you should:

1. Subscribe to the “Criminal Law” Westlaw TWEN page associated with this course.

2. Read the syllabus which I distributed during our mini-class and posted to TWEN.

3. Skim Chapter 1 (pages 1-18). You don’t need to memorize all this information, but you should become familiar with criminal procedure, generally. We will not overtly discuss this information in class during the first week, but the topic will come up periodically throughout the semester.

4. Thoroughly read and brief pages 19-41 (Hinkle, Fox, and Miranda). Bring a paper copy of your briefs with you to class on Thursday.

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Art Law - Prof. Riley

Textbook Information

There is no casebook for Art Law Fall 2017. The LexisNexis Web Course (LNWC) for Art Law Fall 2017 will contain the readings, or citations to cases which can be accessed through Google Scholar, LexisNexis or Westlaw. Some citations to webcasts will also be posted.

The Art Law Nutshell is not helpful. However, I found a book, Arts Law Conversations, which I highly recommend. It is not the textbook and we will not march through it. But, it does cover many of the topics we will discuss and it will be helpful for understanding several topics, particularly copyright. It will also be an excellent exam study aid. It is only available now for purchase for Kindle on Amazon for $25. However four paper copies we bought several years ago have been placed on Library Course Reserve.

There is an earlier edition of the book, Art Law Conversations, (the titles are slightly different) which sells at Amazon for $5 -$10. The old book contains some of the same information as the new edition but the new edition is much more thorough. I have put 4 copies of the new book on Course Reserve in the Library.

Two types of reading are posted on the web course: "Core", which are the assigned readings and "More", which provide background and context, or are recent articles relating to the topic. "Core" readings are posted with green headings and "More" readings are posted with black headings. You will be expected to read all of the “Core” materials. Most of the “More” articles are one or two pages in length.

Web Course

Please join the LexisNexis webcourse, Art Law Fall 2017. Course readings, policies and supplemental materials will be posted here.

First Class Assignment

We will begin the course examining how difficult it can be to define exactly what art is. Andy Warhol’s art provides a particularly interesting example but its problematic aspects are not unique. Please watch all 7 segments of Andy Warhol Authentication, a program in the BBC Imagine series. All 7 segments will take an hour to watch. The YouTube link is in Module 1 of the LNWC.

If you have trouble accessing the program, you can go directly to YouTube. To find the program, type andy warhol authentication into the YouTube search box. It may be entitled Andy Warhol Denied.

Also, please read the CORE articles in MODULE 1 Introduction to Art Law/What is Art? It looks like a lot of material but most of the article are only one page in length.

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Cyber Law - Prof. Riley

Textbook Information

This semester I selected a different casebook for Cyberlaw. It is Internet Law: Cases and Problems by James Grimmelmann. It is in PDF format and is available for download for $30.

Instructions can be found at http://semaphorepress.com/students.html

As we will not cover every chapter in the book in class, I recommend waiting until after the first class to print out only the chapters we will cover.

Web Course

Please join the LexisNexis webcourse, Cyberlaw Fall 2017. Course policies and supplemental materials will be posted here.

First Class Assignment

Please read pages 9 – 14 in the casebook and be prepared to discuss the material in class.

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Essay Writing Workshop - Prof. Trychta

We will use a specialized Themis online bar review program. Before our first class, you should:

1. Subscribe to the “Bar Preparation 2018” Westlaw TWEN page associated with this course. 

2. Read the syllabus which I posted to TWEN. 

3. Signup for your Themis account and pay the $50 book fee online. 

4. See your email for a personalized registration link.

5. Watch the “Introduction of the Bar Exam” Themis video lecture online.

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Torts I - Prof. Weishart

Read pp. 1-14 in Best, Barnes, & Kahn-Fogel, Basic Tort Law: Cases, Statutes, and Problems (4th ed. 2014).

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Wealth Transfers - Prof. Wilson

1. Sign up for TWEN

2. Review syllabus on TWEN

3. Contemporary Trusts and Estates (CTE)
   a. Read pages 1-19 (esp. the problem on pages 18-19)
   b. SKIM pages 19-46

4. Write down somewhere, in a general non-technical way, who you would want to get your stuff if you died.

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Federal Income Tax - Prof. Wilson

1. Sign up for TWEN
   
2. Review syllabus on TWEN
   
3. Donaldson & Tobin:
   a. Read the preface and pages 1-10 and
   b. Read pages 175-177 (on timing)
4. Internal Revenue Code Section 1(a) through 1(f) and give 1(h) a look (don’t be scared…
   
5. Andrews & Wiedenbeck, Tax Policy Reading, posted under Course Materials on TWEN (about 5 pages)