San Joaquin College of Law offers between eight and fourteen different elective classes each year, the bulk being offered during summer sessions. Regularly offered electives are augmented by other electives. The regularly offered electives, offered at least once every two years, include: Administrative Law, Family Law, Civil Trial Practice, Civil Litigation (Pre-Trial) and Advanced Criminal Procedure. Other electives are offered based upon student need and interest as well as legal trends. The electives listed below have all been taught within the last four years.
L145 Basic Individual Income Taxation
This course is designed to introduce students to the fundamental concepts with regard to income taxation under federal law, with primary emphasis on individuals. The course more specifically examines identification of income subject to taxation, identification of the proper taxpayer, deductions allowable in computing taxable income, the proper year of inclusion of deductions, characterizations of income and deductions (capital gains and losses), deferral and non-recognition of income deductions, computation of taxable income and tax liabilities, and basic federal tax procedures. (3 units)
L156 Moot Court Competition
Upon recommendation of the Moot Court Director, students participating in external moot court competitions may receive academic credit. (2 units)
L201 On-Line Legal Research
This course focuses on the use of electronic resources to conduct general legal research. It will examine different effective means of performing legal research; explore searching methods for both Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw and examine other online materials and their use. The course will introduce students to some specialized research.
This is designed as a skills course. Students will complete a series of graded research assignments both during class and outside of class. Students will maintain a research log which records their research process. Course limited to those who completed Legal Research & Writing. (1 unit)
L202 Practice 99
Few consumers of legal services can afford to pay prevailing market rates. Some qualify for government-subsidized legal aid services such as Central California Legal Services (“CCLS”). But the other “99 percent” often go unserved, due to socioeconomic or geographical barriers. Practice 99 teaches law students how to start and grow a community-based law practice that serves modest means or “low bono” clients, commonly in rural areas. Students learn how to use law practice technology to market and deliver legal services and how to build a sustainable (profitable) practice, while also expanding access to legal services. Practice 99 focuses on community lawyering, and the four core areas of law practice management – marketing, technology, finance, and management. This includes cloud-based practice management platforms, online delivery of legal services, building streamlined revenue models, and grassroots marketing. Law students will leave Practice 99 empowered, with foundational tools for starting and growing a law practice of their own, and ready to serve the 99 percent. (2 unit)
L203 Legal Process
The course will focus on skills and knowledge useful for success on the California Bar Examination. Students will be exposed to bar-style essay exams, MBE exams, and Performance Exams. Students will also receive some substantive review in Torts, Contracts, and Constitutional Law. Enrollment will be limited to graduating students. (3 units)
L205 Administrative Law
Administrative Law addresses the practices and procedures by which administrative agencies act to implement governmental policies, as well as the rights citizens have to seek judicial review of agency actions. The course includes a review of the constitutional principles of separation of powers which determine the roles of the President, Congress and the Judiciary in overseeing administrative agencies. A particular focus is on federal administrative law and the operation of the Administrative Procedure Act, which govern the promulgation of rules and orders by federal administrative agencies, as well as the rights of citizens to challenge such agency action in court and seek monetary and injunctive relief. (2 units)
L206 Tribal Sovereign Immunity
This course explores the origin of tribal sovereign immunity, its evolution through the courts, and the effect that tribal sovereignty has had on the societal and business relationships with federally recognized tribes and their businesses. The course will examine and discuss some of the issues and concerns that a practitioner will have to address when representing clients who interact with federally recognized tribal governments. (2 units)
L207 Municipal Law
This course provides an overview of the form and structure of local government with an emphasis on decision-making, open government and ethics. Topics include home rule, open meeting laws, conflicts of interest, due process, and checks and balances. Case studies will include particular types of decisions such as land use, public works, and personnel. (2 units)
L208 Animal Law
In this course, students will discuss a series of topics that relate to animals and law in various environments. The course will cover a wide array of animal law issues, including the legal classification of animals as property, constitutional standing to sue on behalf of animals, laws and enforcement relating to commercial uses of animals, and criminal and civil action that affect animals such as animal anti-cruelty laws and private causes of action such as loss of companionship/emotional distress. This course will focus on the evolution, interpretation, and enforcement of laws relating to the use and treatment of animals in our society, evaluation of whether, how and why such laws should be modified, the possible ramifications of such change, and the practical impact that lawyers can have in representing clients on animal-related issues. The course grade will be based on a final examination. (2 units)
L209 Species Protection Policy and Law
This course introduces students to environmental law and policy through the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), arguably the most powerful and the most controversial environmental statute in the world. Lectures and readings will cover the policies behind the ESA; trace the statute's step-by-step species protection scheme; examine key administrative rules and caselaw; and explore both sides of the public policy debate. Students will be evaluated based on small-group presentations, periodic short writing assignments, and a final paper. (2 units)
L210 Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is designed to provide students with a fundamental understanding of basic bankruptcy law. The class will cover federal statutes giving rise to bankruptcy law, the Bankruptcy Code and Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure, and the main participants in bankruptcy cases. The various chapters under the Bankruptcy Code will be discussed with particular emphasis on debtor and creditor rights in Chapter 7 and 13 cases. The course will also cover trustee's duties, avoidance actions under the Bankruptcy Code, property of the estate, exemptions, the automatic stay, payments of claims under the priority scheme set out under the Bankruptcy Code, discharge, objections to discharge and the nondischargeability of certain debts. (2 units)
L211 Education Law
This course will provide students with an introduction to key issues facing California Public Schools. Topics will include many areas of constitutional law such as: Student free speech controversies and dress codes in an era of social media; employee rights to speak on controversial issues; the role of religion on campus, including prayer at school board meetings, religious clubs and student and staff religious liberty rights; student searches; non-discrimination laws affecting students and staff such as Title IX; educating students with disabilities; student discipline proceedings, the rights of immigrant students; collective bargaining and the role of unions in public schools; personnel issues and the rights of school district employees; and laws governing the management of school districts such as California’s open meeting law and the Public Records Act. (2 units)
L212 Private Labor Law
The course focuses primarily on the rights of employees, employers, and labor organizations under the National Labor Relations Act and related statutes, primarily in the areas of organizing and representation. The curriculum includes both a general study of the Act and specific decisions of the courts and NLRB interpreting the Act, as well as in-depth case studies of certain key areas of law developed under the Act. (2 units)
L213 Public Labor Law
The course will examine Constitutional and statutory considerations pertaining to employment relations issues concerning public employees, unionized and non-union, with particular emphasis on California law, and particularly the right to organize, bargaining rights, and the administration of finalized agreements containing terms and conditions of employment applicable to state, county, and other governmental employees. (2 units)
L215 Employment Law
This course provides an overview of various legal issues arising out of the employment relationship and the termination of the employment relationship. There will be an emphasis on employment discrimination, wrongful termination and related torts, together with wage and hour issues, all from the perspective of the California practitioner. (2 units)
L217 Civil Rights Litigation
This course will examine the jurisprudence, preparation, and practical application, through trial, of civil rights claims and defenses of constitutional and related torts redressable under the Federal Civil Rights Act, including related state law claims. The identification, formulation, presentation and perfection of such claims through appropriate governmental entities followed by preparation and filing of a complaint, the answer, and other pleading stage issues will be considered. All aspects of the prosecution and defenses of constitutional torts, through jury trial, including the full panoply of remedies and defenses available will be treated. Emphasis will be placed on preparation for and trial of such cases. (3 Units)
L220 Law Practice Management
This course covers the skills of managing a law practice and provides a basic understanding of the skills needed to succeed in the practice of law. The course will cover the organization and management of legal work as well as practical knowledge about how law firms really work. The class will divide into “law firms” and produce projects in various areas. The course will cover a number of topics involving the business side of law practice, such as management and planning skills, as well as legal issues that impact law firms, such as partnership law, labor and employment law, leasing, pension law and malpractice. The course will also explore financial issues, marketing and technology, as well as principles of professional responsibility in these areas. (2 units)
L225 Civil Trial Practice
This course covers civil trial preparation and presentation, including file summary and organization, voir dire, direct and cross examinations, and opening and closing arguments. Rules of evidence and trial objections are included. Extensive class participation including the mock trial of a civil action is required. (3 units)
L227 The Death Penalty
This advanced criminal law course is offered to students as an introduction to 8th Amendment jurisprudence with a survey of the death penalty in America and its status in other countries. Students will learn about how capital punishment has been upheld against systemic challenges to its consistency and reliability under the “Cruel and Unusual Punishment” Clause, and how courts apply “super due process” to death penalty cases. Students will receive an overview of the unique aspects of death penalty litigation under California’s Briggs Initiative (1977), familiarizing themselves with “death eligible” crimes, prosecutorial charging decisions, motion practice, and problems generated by pretrial publicity in high-profile capital cases. Students will review jury questionnaires and “death qualification” jury selection in a local capital case, and explore some special “guilt phase” dynamics, and the impact those strategies may have on the “penalty phase” of trial, including the presentation of “aggravation” and “mitigation” evidence. Course materials utilize judicial decisions and legislation, philosophical and religious essays, law review articles, award-winning films, and case examples from the professor’s practice in trial and post-conviction proceedings. Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure (6 units) are pre-requisites. (2 units)
L229 Academic Legal Writing
This class in academic legal writing is designed for students interested in learning how to write and publish a law review article. It can be used in place of Advanced Research and Writing if the final paper for the course is published in an external law review, law journal or other external and established legal publication forum. The course will meet once a week and in addition, each student will have a one-on-one meeting with the instructor once a week. To ensure progress toward publication, students are expected to meet clear, weekly, research and/or writing goals, as mutually agreed upon between instructor and student, tailored to each individual writing project. (3 units)
L230 Federal Courts and the Federal System
This course is an advanced seminar analyzing select issues relating to federal court jurisprudence. Topics will include the authority of Congress to restrict the jurisdiction of the federal courts, justiciability (standing, mootness, ripeness, etc.), subject matter jurisdiction of federal courts, the Eleventh Amendment, federal common law, abstention and federal civil rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Completion of this course will give the student a greater sense of confidence in practicing before federal courts. (2 units)
L231 Selected Issues in Contracts
The course will provide a review of first-year Contract Law, with an emphasis in the Uniform Commercial Code sections tested on the California Bar Exam. In addition, the course will make use of MBE questions, bar-exam style essay questions, and real-world examples to help prepare students to pass the California bar exam and to provide insight into what common types of contract issues arise in legal practice. (1 unit)
L232 Prisoner Rights
Approximately 25% of the civil cases filed in Ninth Circuit are prisoner civil rights cases. This course objectively surveys the constitutional law that applies to those cases. What constitutional rights do prisoners have once they have been sentenced and confined to an institution? The course will examine U.S. Supreme Court case law regarding constitutional rights such as the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment as it applies to excessive force, failure to protect, conditions of confinement and medical care; the First Amendment's protection of freedom of speech as it applies to access to mail, publications and the courts; the Fourteenth Amendment's due process clause as it applies to disciplinary proceedings and solitary confinement; and other legal issues arising in such cases. The course will develop skills useful for all attorneys by evaluating precedent to tailor claims and arguments in court. It will also give students sufficient familiarity to take on a prisoner case pro bonoafter being admitted to the bar, no matter what their practice area may be. Finally, it will ask students to grapple with the difficult questions about what rights can and cannot be taken away by the government and how a society should treat those who have lost their freedom. (2 units)
L233 Homicide
The law of homicide: Is there sufficient evidence to ethically prosecute this case?
This course will cover the California law of homicide from lawful self-defense through vehicular homicide all the way to death penalty prosecutions including theories of liabilities and defenses. The focus of this course will be on whether or not a homicide can be ethically prosecuted in light of the evidence that is presented and the current status of California homicide law. Students will be evaluated based on in class participation, a writing assignment and a group presentation project. Extensive class participation is required. (2 units)
L234 Dependency Law
The main objective of this two unit course is to help law students understand the legal aspects of dependency law (Family/CPS area of law). Further, with goal of establishing a foundation of knowledge in dependency law so that the students can be equipped to practice in this area. (2 units)
L235 Constitutional Law Research Seminar
Students will engage in collaborative research on a very focused constitutional law topic selected by the instructor. Completion of Constitutional Law may be helpful but is NOT required. Class time will include lecture material on the research topic, discussion and analysis of research results, and ongoing reformulation of research strategies. Grade is based on the quality of the student's research and contribution to classroom discussions. (2 units)
L237 First Amendment
The meaning of the First Amendment is a topic of great controversy today, including whether the rights to free expression include the right to withhold certain services from certain groups, whether the prohibition against establishment of religion mandates separation of church and state or is a prohibition against preferring one religion over another, whether social media sites and postings on them can or should be constrained. This course will review the history behind the First Amendment, seminal Supreme Court cases, and current litigation. The goal is to better understand the law regarding the First Amendment and form a better understanding about how it influences our world today and should influence it in the future. (2 Units)
L239 Contract Drafting
This course provides introductory drafting methods for various types of business contracts and alternative dispute resolution clauses. The specific practice areas to be examined will vary from year to year, but may include, for example: employment contracts, personnel policies, real estate purchase agreements, title insurance policies, loan and collateral documents, deeds of trust, security agreements, assignments, processor/grower contracts and leases, various UCC agreements, and settlement agreements. (2 units)
L241 Land Use
This course will provide an overview of the relative rights the individual and government concerning the use and regulation of land. Course topics will include nuisance law, eminent domain, community planning, zoning, local land use entitlements, subdivision maps, environmental regulations, development fees, inverse condemnation, and judicial review. (2 units)
L242 Community Lawyering
Community Lawyering is the second of three substantive courses in SJCL’s new Practice Program, and explores what it means to be a "community lawyer” and why we do it. Think of Community Lawyering as the “why” complement to the “how” of Practice 99. The course will discuss theories of community lawyering, competencies and skills for effective community lawyering, modes of social justice lawyering, and sites for community lawyering. After completion of the course, students will be ready to implement what they’ve learned in Practice 99. (2 units)
L243 Environmental Law
This course provides an overview of the constitutional and common law foundations for environmental law, and then presents a survey of the statutes and agencies that currently address various environmental concerns, including air quality, water quality, wildlife, land use, and more. The course will investigate the interplay of various levels of government (federal, state, and local) in addressing environmental issues. Along the way, the course will address some of the practicalities surrounding environmental compliance from the industry or business perspective. (2 Units)
L244 Water Law
This course examines the development of water law from English and Eastern riparian theory, through the California and Western prior appropriation doctrine, and then to present day institutional, statutory, and judicial water resource governance. (2 units)
L245 Family Law
This course is an introduction to the legal regulation of the family in California’s family law courts. The course focuses on contemporary legal issues such as: domestic violence and child abuse; pre-marital agreements; the rights and obligations of spouses; same-sex marriage and parenting; terminating the marital relationship; child custody and visitation; grandparents rights; and the financial consequences of dissolution such as spousal support, child support, and litigation fees and costs. Special emphasis is paid to the practical application of the law, the role of the lawyer in family law and the increasingly sophisticated and multidisciplinary nature of family law practice. (2 units)
L246 Human Trafficking
This course will be an in-depth and comprehensive exploration of the complex issues related to the growing international and domestic problem of human trafficking. Covering both labor and sex trafficking, the material will explore current federal and state law, policy considerations, and significant legislative and societal changes related to the crime of human trafficking. The student will be introduced to the industries wherein cases of human trafficking are commonly found, recruitment tactics of traffickers, as well as the “profiles” of traffickers, victims and buyers. Through the lens of actual human trafficking prosecutions, students will examine the challenges found in the identification, investigation and prosecution of these cases. Student will be exposed to the unique dynamic between victim and trafficker, the perplexing occurrence of victims who become perpetrators, modern trends in human trafficking, such as the increase of female sex trafficker and the ever-changing use of social media, and victim centered approaches to prosecutions. The course will also address the psychological, physical and financial impact of human trafficking on victims. The teaching methods will include lectures, discussion and guest speakers. Case studies will be in a multimedia format. The student will be presented with actual communications captured between victims and traffickers. (2 Units)
L250 Advanced Criminal Law
This advanced criminal procedure course will explore current and practical pretrial issues in the criminal arena. Topics will include charging discretion, arraignment and bail hearings, preliminary hearings, discovery practice, pleas, plea bargains, case negotiation and sentencing considerations, pretrial case preparation and investigation strategies, motion practice and pretrial writs and appellate remedies. Course methodology will include traditional casebook learning coupled with regular in-class mock adversarial exercises. Pre-requisite: completion of criminal law/criminal procedure or extensive criminal law work background. (3 units)
L251 Criminal Trial Practice
This course will present a detailed analysis of the elements of each stage of a criminal trial. The conduct of a complete trial will be emphasized; however, trial preparation, sentencing and post trial responsibilities of counsel will be included. Practices in state trial courts will be emphasized. Class participation is required. (3 units)
L255 Juvenile Justice
This course will provide an overview of Juvenile Justice, focusing on delinquency issues. The course will explore the underlying and evolving policies and philosophies of delinquency proceedings. It will further examine the practical application of those policies in the juvenile courts. (2 units)
L257 Special Education Law
This course explores the rights of students who receive assistance through special education and the responsibilities of the school districts that educate them. The class will examine and discuss the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, California's related statutes, and related case law. (2 units)
L260 Pre-Trial Civil Litigation
This course is designed for law students interested in working in the civil litigation field. It involves training students in developing the skills to practice law as it relates to most aspects of civil pre-trial litigation (from the initial filing of Complaint up until the time of trial.) It includes lectures relating to responding to a Complaint, fact gathering, case management, written and oral discovery skills, pleadings, pretrial motion work, oral argument/court appearances and alternative dispute resolution. (3 units)
L264 Insurance Law
This course covers the basics of insurance law including the types of insurance policies used by individuals, corporations, and partnerships, how courts interpret insurance contracts, the insurer’s duty of good faith and fair dealing, and the insurer’s duty to defend and indemnify policyholders. This course addresses practical issues facing attorneys as they defend or litigate against insurance companies. (2 units)
L274 IP Litigation: A Practical Business Perspective
This seminar presents a case study of the long-standing dispute between Apple and its modem chip supplier, Qualcomm, as an illustrative example of the causes and impacts of intellectual property disputes between modern businesses. Students will be introduced to intellectual property and competition law issues as well as the procedural challenges of multi-jurisdictional litigation. Familiarity with intellectual property law is helpful but not required for this course. (2 Units)
L275 Law and the War on Terror
This course is an in depth analysis of federal and state law as they pertain to the study of terrorism. Topics include search and seizure issues, privacy laws, the U.S. Patriot Act, Constitutional debates in reference to terrorism investigation and prevention, and criminal procedure. An added component to this course is an examination of the historical, political, and ideological motivations behind terrorism for a more insightful understanding of the legal responses to the war on terror. (2 units)
L276 Legal Technology
Technology continues to shape and define the practice of law in ever-increasing ways. 28 states have adopted an ethical duty of technology competence for lawyers. Law schools must teach, and law students must learn, technology competencies in order to create productive members of the legal profession and meet the next generation of demands from law firms, clients, courts, and the legal marketplace. Legal Technology is a survey course covering diverse aspects of technology as they relate to the practice of law. Specific topics include cloud-based practice management platforms, paperless law offices, document management systems, hardware and software, cybersecurity, data privacy, and technology ethics. For 2022, this course will be updated to include blockchain, the use of digital evidence in courtrooms, Big Data, analytics, and artificial intelligence. Additional focus will be on current events and emerging technologies. (2 units)
L277 Consumer Law
This course will introduce students to the breadth and depth of California state and federal consumer protection laws, precedential effects, interrelationships with contract, tort, bankruptcy, elder abuse, and other areas of law. The course will address statutory construction, public policy, legislative intent, and consumerism, in additional to big business influence on how the courts see the merits of consumer cases. The course will also focus on consumer remedies, statutory fee provisions, and the realities of contingency fee structures. The goal of this course is to introduce the student to a specialized area of civil litigation intended to protect the everyday consumer, give insight into the successful practice of consumer protection law, and provide an understanding of how consumer law can play a key part in other practice areas. (2 units)
279 Patent Law
This course provides an overview and introduction to the substantive law of patents. The course examines the doctrines of novelty, utility, and obviousness in the context of the application process; disclosure, claiming and statutory bars; the scope of protection afforded by patents; infringement, enforcement, remedies and defenses. (2 units)
280 Intellectual Property
This course provides an overview and introduction to the substantive law of patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and related matters. The course examines methods of obtaining protection, what constitutes infringement, and what remedies are available in each of these substantive areas. (3 units)
281 Copyright/Trademark Law
This course provides an overview and introduction to the substantive law of copyrights and trademarks under federal law. The course examines the protections afforded through copyrights and trademarks, application processes, practice before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB), infringement, enforcement, remedies and defenses. (2 units)
L285 Interactive Media
NFTs and cryptocurrencies, Twitch and YouTube streamers, personal information privacy, video games, and the metaverse are all regulated by the laws of the United States and nations around the world. Interactive Media Law is an exploration of the legal challenges and conflicts arising in these rapidly growing areas of digital media. Over the course of this survey class, we will consider how each is bound by tort, contract, intellectual property, privacy, and entertainment laws and regulations. (2 units)
L286 National Security Law
This course is an in-depth analysis of select laws and issues pertaining to national security; including search and seizure issues, privacy laws, PATRIOT Act, constitutionality of certain terrorism investigation/prevention measures, criminal procedure, and water and food production security. An additional course component is the examination of the historical, political, and ideological motivations behind terrorism for students to better appreciate some of the legal instrumentality involved in national security matters. The required text for this course is Wayne McCormacks’ Legal Responses to Terrorism (First Edition), which can only be purchased from the Professor. John Esposito’s Unholy War: Terror In The Name of Islam (Oxford Univ. Press 2002) is to be read prior to the first day of class. (2 units)
L287 Immigration Law
This course provides an introduction to immigration and citizenship law. We will discuss general immigration policy issues and how those policies are implemented. We will also spend a substantial amount of time discussing the practical side of immigration. Throughout the semester, we will ask and attempt to answer numerous important and complex questions involving our immigration policies and their effect on people, both inside and outside the United States. (2 units)
L288 Human Rights and Immigration
This course will examine human rights and immigration law with emphasis as to where the two areas intersect. The primary text is a case book that explores human rights from both domestic and international law perspectives. Areas examined will include asylum and refugee status, civil rights in the United States, international criminal law before and after the establishment of the International Criminal Court and detention in the United States immigration system. Historical examples of genocide and gross human rights violations such as the Holocaust, Armenian, Cambodian , Rawandan and Sudanese genocides will also be discussed and analyzed. In addition, discussion through a human rights lens of very recent events in Syria and at the United States border with the influx of unaccompanied minor children will also be part of the reading requirements and class discussions for the course. In addition, to the text students will be required to read excerpts from Immigration Law Stories as well as a course reader with supplemental articles. (3 units)
L291 Secured Transactions
This course is designed to engage students in understanding and performing tasks relating to secured transactions–protecting the rights of the seller of goods or property without immediate payment therefor. The class will address real property transactions and personal property transactions, with the main focus on real property transactions. The goal of the class is to have students understand secured transactions and become capable of conducting any secured transaction upon course completion. (2 units)
L292 Race and the Law
The primary purpose of this course is to expose law students to the area of legal scholarship that engages the relationship between race and the law. Known as critical race theory, this scholarship promotes the critical engagement with certain assumptions at work in the American legal system that, unchallenged, operate to perpetuate racial inequality. Some of these assumptions are that (1) the law is “color-blind,” (2) race is biological, (3) racism is no longer a feature in American society, and (4) racism is not systemic but operates instead on an individualized basis through the actions of a few “bad apples” here and there. The goal of critical race theory is to untangle these assumptions, explore their origins, and provide new ways of approaching the ideas undergirding these assumptions en route to a legal system (and society) that operates more in the service of racial equality than is currently the case. We will cover the critical legal studies roots of critical race theory, a few important cases, some of the classic literature of critical race theory, selections of contemporary scholarship on the topic of race and the law, and explore select contemporary legal issues that lend themselves to critical race theory analysis. (2 units)
L294 Public Entity Liability
This course will examine the procedural and substantive law aspects of public entity civil liability in California. Legal and factual issues related to the prosecution and defense of civil actions against public entities and public employees, in both law and equity, will be addressed. The presentation of claims through appropriate governmental entities, followed by the filing of the complaint, the answer, and other pleadings will be considered. (2 units)
L295 International Law
This course surveys the foundations and principles of international law, including the nature and sources of international law; the role of NGOs, individuals and corporations; bases of jurisdiction; immunity; human rights; criminal law; law of the sea and environmental law. An additional course component is the examination of the historical, political, and ideological motivations behind international law for students to better appreciate the political instrumentality involved in international matters. (2 units)
L296 California Energy Law & Practice
This course will focus primarily on law and practice before the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC). It will cover the law relating to: (1) energy rates, charges, service and billing disputes; (2) utility facilities, such as municipal franchises, power line extensions, outages, sub-metering, damage caused by utility facilities, and facility construction, maintenance, and repair; (3) PUC procedure, including PUC jurisdiction; rulemaking, ratesetting, investigation and complaint proceedings; PUC decisions and appeals; and rate and tariff creation and modification, and (4) State energy policy, including legislative and PUC initiatives on renewable energy, energy efficiency, smart grid, demand response, electric vehicle infrastructure, and distributed generation.(2 units)
L297 Landlord Tenant
This elective course covers the theory and practice of real property law relating to landlord-tenant relationships, including relevant federal, state, and local case law, statutes, and regulations; the life cycle of the L-T relationship including types of tenancies, creation of a tenancy, issues during tenancy, and termination of a tenancy; common documents including applications, rental/lease agreements, and notices; summary unlawful detainer proceedings including prosecution and defense strategies, judicial council forms, pre-trial litigation, trial practice, and post-judgment matters; and local considerations and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on L-T relationships. Students should have a thorough understanding of contract law. Property law is helpful but not imperative. (2 units)
L350, L351 Clinical Program
Students work under the direction of an attorney in a variety of established settings, including: the District Attorney’s Offices in Fresno, Tulare, Madera, and Merced counties; the Public Defender’s Offices of Fresno, Tulare, and Merced counties; the Superior Courts of Fresno and Tulare counties; the California Court of Appeal for the Fifth District; the Federal District Court, Eastern Division; the U.S. Attorney General’s Office; the Federal Defender; the California Attorney General’s Office; County Counsel of Fresno County; Fresno City Attorney’s Office; Central California Legal Services; California Rural Legal Assistance. Students may also work in an arranged private legal setting with approval of the Associate Dean. (1 - 4 units)
L381 Directed Research in Legal Problems
Students may undertake in-depth research in particular fields of the law with the consent and direction of an instructor. The results of the research are embodied in a paper. Pass/Fail. (1 unit)
The School reserves the right to modify or withdraw courses of instruction, or to change instructors at any time.