Public Interest/Civil Rights/Civil Liberties

This course will explore a variety of topics related to sexuality and the law. This course is intended as a survey of some of the major legal issues related to sexual orientation and gender identity law, including the right to engage in sexual conduct and the right to be free from discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. The course will discuss discrimination in a variety of contexts, including discrimination in health care and educational settings. The course will also explore different approaches to same-sex relationships, including the right to marry.

This course will explore modern concepts of family formation for individuals and couples utilizing IVF fertility procedures with third party surrogates, egg donors or sperm donors to form their families. The lecture-style course will include guest fertility industry specialists as well break-out sessions for practical experience drafting and negotiating reproductive law contracts. Ever-changing policies and concepts will be explored related to the LGBTQI community, fertility challenges, psychological issues and socioeconomic impacts.

Education Law: K-12 Students and Civil Rights is a seminar courses focusing on constitutional and statutory sources of law designed to protect the individual liberty, equality, and equity interests of K-12 students in both public and private U.S. educational environments. Students must complete and present a 30-page original work of publishable quality on the related topic of their choosing, with the direction, guidance, and supervision of the instructor.

In addition to the federal constitution, each state has its own constitution.  State courts do not interpret their state constitutions identically to their federal counterpart, and in many cases in exactly the opposite way.  State Constitutional Law explores the distinctive doctrines involving state constitutions developed by both state and federal courts.  Topics considered include: constitutional amendment and revision, individual rights, federalism, and the separation of powers.

This seminar explores the ways contract law interacts with social issues. Conventional conceptualizations of contract law portray it as unrelated to such issues, depicting it, instead, as focused on (minimal) regulation of the relationships between the contractual parties, regardless of who they are. This position has critical consequences, which the reading materials and class discussions will uncover and explain, helping students develop individual papers that illuminate how relevant and impactful the law of contracts can be to the project of building a healthier society.

This course offers a comprehensive exploration of public interest law. Students will delve into a wide range of public interest law issues, including immigrant rights, civil rights, environmental justice, worker’s rights, and criminal justice reform. By examining diverse models of legal advocacy, such as impact litigation, direct legal service, policy advocacy, community organizing, holistic defense, students will gain a comprehensive understanding of the various strategies employed to advance social justice.

For over a century, the United States has wrestled with how to treat youth in the juvenile justice system, and many have questioned its effectiveness. This struggle centers on the tension between recognizing youth as developmentally distinct from adults, thus deserving of second chances and rehabilitative services, and historically and culturally driven notions of accountability, justice, and safety.

Spanish for Lawyers reinforces and enhances students existing Spanish communication skills for legal practice. Class instruction, course readings, and assignments are primarily in Spanish. Students are expected to have a working level of Spanish language fluency (written and oral) to enroll in the course. Native-like or "advanced placement" levels of fluency are not required; however, a student should feel prepared to speak, read, and write in Spanish throughout the course.

The proposed Clinic provides Southwestern Law Students with the opportunity to learn lawyering skills and provide high quality legal assistance to a vulnerable and underserved population in a community-based learning environment. Under the close supervision of an adjunct faculty member, students will offer legal advice and counsel to clients in the area of asylum law. Students will apply the research and writing skills learned in LAWS and build on those skills by researching country conditions and other evidence required in an asylum case.

Introduces fundamentals of refugee and asylum law, policies underlying the law, and the practice of refugee and asylum law in the United States. Focus on women and children escaping gang violence and gender-based harm. Explores what leads people to flee and countries' response to those seeking refuge.