R1B.1: Topic TBD, instructor TBD, 4 units, Area N/A
NOTE: R1B courses must be taken for a letter grade.
**This course is lower division and will not count towards the major.**
Description TBD
39D: Current Political & Moral Conflicts & the Constitution Frosh/Soph Seminar, Pomerantz, 2 units, Area N/A
**This course is lower division and will not count towards the major.**
Recent Supreme Court decisions have addressed and modified numerous rights and liberties once thought to be protected by the Constitution. People differ on the effect of these decisions, which is fundamentally a debate regarding the basis for the Court to entertain and decide them, and what should be the role of the Court. Some have argued that the Court’s role includes finding and protecting fundamental, constitutional rights based on an evolving understanding of the meaning of individual freedom, liberty and equality. Others argue that the role of the Court is to apply the Constitution as written, and where the Constitution is silent, or "neutral," the resolution of any dispute or the extent of protection from governmental abridgment should be left to the people and their democratically elected representatives. This seminar will examine the role of the Supreme Court and the conflict between fundamental, individual, constitutional rights that should be immune from governmental interference, and the power of the people - the majority- to limit, modify and (perhaps) extinguish them. Topics we will address include individual sovereignty including abortion, LGBTQ+ rights (including marriage equality and gender identity), privacy and morality; the issues caused by acts of the secular government mandating equal treatment that abridged the free exercise of religion and freedom of speech- and what is speech; and limitations on expressions and opinions including "hate” speech and college speech codes. The class will be conducted primarily using the Socratic method. We will read important historical and current Supreme Court cases, as well as political and legal commentary from across the political spectrum. The prime focus of the seminar is to encourage students to develop and defend their own views and opinions regarding the relevant topics and to enhance their critical thinking skills.
88: Crime and Punishment: Taking the Measure of the U.S. Justice System, Dag MacLeod, 2 units
**This course is lower division and will not count towards the major.**
NOTE: This Data Science Connector course is meant to be taken concurrently with Computer Science C8/Statistics C8/Information C8: Foundations of Data Science. Students may take more than one 88 (data science connector) course if they wish, ideally concurrent with or after having taken the C8 course.
100: Foundations of Legal Studies, Abbye J Atkinson, 4 units, Core (H, SS)
This is a liberal arts course designed to introduce students to the foundational frameworks and cross-disciplinary perspectives from humanities and social sciences that distinguish legal studies as a scholarly field. It provides a comparative and historical intro to forms, ideas, institutions, and systems of law and sociological ordering. It highlights basic theoretical problems and scholarly methods for understanding questions of law and justice.
103: Theories of Law & Society, Tomlins, 4 units, Core (H, SS) or Area II
Surveys leading attempts to construct social theories of law and to use legal materials for systematic social theorizing, during the period from the mid-eighteenth century to the early twentieth century. The course considers major discussions of such themes as the relationships between law, politics, society and economy; the connection between historical change and legal change; the role of law in the processes of social integration and social discipline; and the distinctive elements of legal ordering in the modern west.
107: Theories of Justice, Kutz, 4 units, Core (H) or Area II or III or IV
This is a lecture course in political philosophy, focusing on liberal political theory which emphasizes the protection of individual freedom as against social demands, the maintenance of social and economic equality, and the neutrality of the state in conditions of cultural and religious pluralism. By studying mainly modern authors, we will attempt to understand the importance of these goals and the possibility of their joint fulfillment. Attention will be paid to the work of John Rawls, to the problem of moral and political disagreement, and the relation between “ideal” thinking about justice and thinking about justice in conditions of racial, gender, and class hierarchies.
107WI: Writing Intensive Discussion Section 101 for Theories of Justice
This is one of the discussion sections for LS 107. It is a writing intensive discussion section. LS107WI section differs from the other sections for LS107 in that it is more demanding, and will serve as a forum for intense and iterative development of analytical writing and speaking skills. It is sponsored by the campus Art of Writing program. The 107WI section will generally be longer (up 10 1.5 hours long) and will feature weekly writing assignments and in-class debates (with out-of-class preparation). It is aimed at students anticipating careers in fields that require the deployment of complex arguments about politics and justice, including law, public service, and education. One further independent study credit will be available to students in the section. LS107 and 107WI share the same requirements for graded work, which will include 2 analytical papers, an editorial, an in-class final exam, and an ungraded, peer-reviewed take-home midterm.
The lecture component of the two courses is identical (same room, same time, same lectures). Only this LS 107WI section differs. You should enroll in LS107WI if, but only if, you are willing to put in extra work (and reap corresponding benefits) in this course to develop your writing and speaking. Places are limited. If you are principally interested just in learning about theories of justice, you should enroll in LS107.
Students will sign up for LS 107WI and attend the same lecture as those enrolled in LS 107.
109: Aims & Limits of Criminal Law, Perry, 4 units, Area I
This course focuses on the analysis of the capacity of criminal law to fulfill its aims. What are the aims of criminal Law? How are they assigned relative priority? What principles can be identified for evaluating the effort to control disapproved activities through criminal law?
113: Feminist Social Movements, Abrams, 4 units, Area I or IV
This course will survey recurrent dynamics of feminist social movements in the United States, while exploring in depth two contemporary social movements that aim to move the law in toward greater gender equality: the #MeToo Movement, and the movement to restore reproductive rights and advance reproductive justice after Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The primary focus of the course will be on disputes within feminist movements about focus and reach of efforts to combat sexual violence and reproductive restriction: specifically, whether such movements serve primarily to advance the interests of the most privileged women, or whether they ground their work in intersectional analyses that respond to the lives of those impacted by other forms of discrimination. However, the movements, ideologies, and assumptions that work against feminist change in these areas will also be articulated and discussed.
123: Data, Prediction & Law, Marshall, 4 units, Area I or V
Data, Prediction, and Law allows students to explore different data sources that scholars and government officials use to make generalizations and predictions in the realm of law. The course will also introduce critiques of predictive techniques in law. Students will apply the statistical and Python programming skills from Foundations of Data Science to examine a traditional social science dataset, “big data” related to law, and legal text data.
***Note: students should complete Foundations of Data Science, or complete equivalent preparation in Python and statistics, before enrolling in this course.
131: Forced Migration, Tilman Jacobs, 4 units, Area IV, V
This course will introduce you to key concepts, issues, and legal frameworks around forced migration from legal, sociological, and normative perspectives. Using historical and contemporary examples, interdisciplinary scholarship, legal cases, media depictions of forced migration, and the voices of persons experiencing displacement, we will critically examine narratives about and responses to population displacement in international and domestic contexts.
In the past century, increasing numbers of people around the world have been forced from their homes by interlinked factors, including persecution, armed conflict, human rights violations, natural disasters, development, and socio-economic deprivation. Are states obligated to provide protection to these “forced
migrants” and, if so, what exactly are they obligated to do and are there any limits? Forced migration places into sharp relief the question of how to balance the rights of sovereign states and their citizens against the claims of foreigners in need of support and safety. In 1951, the enactment of the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees ushered in a new era of international protection for refugees, and, together with a constellation of other treaties formed what is known as the “International Refugee Protection Regime.” With the number of refugees, internally displaced persons, and other forced migrants worldwide reaching over 100 million for the first time in the post-World War II era, the international refugee protection regime is proving inadequate to protect the rights of displaced people. With the exception of the recent response to refugees from Ukraine, states are increasingly exercising their sovereignty to close their borders and detain or deport forced migrants, rather than offer them protection. This course provides an interdisciplinary introduction to key concepts, narratives, and legal frameworks around the phenomenon of forced migration. We will critically examine legal and policy responses to population displacement in the international and domestic spheres, and explore some important aspects of forced migration, through both topical and geopolitical lenses.
132AC: Immigration and Citizenship, Christina Lee, 4 units, Area II or IV
We often hear that America is a “nation of immigrants.” This representation of the U.S. does not explain why some are presumed to belong and others are not. We will examine both historical and contemporary law of immigration and citizenship to see how law has shaped national identity and the identity of immigrant communities . In addition to scholarly texts, we will learn to read and analyze excerpts of cases and the statute that governs immigration and citizenship, the Immigration and Nationality Act.
138: The Supreme Court & Public Policy, Kyle Deland, 4 units, Core (SS) or Area IV or V
This course examines a number of leading U.S. Supreme Court decisions in terms of what policy alternatives were available to the Court and which ones it chose. Prospective costs and benefits of these alternatives and who will pay the costs and who gets the benefits of them are considered. Among the areas considered are economic development, government regulation of business, national security, freedom of speech and discrimination. Readings are solely of Supreme Court decisions.
143: Law, Technology & Entrepreneurship, David Grewal, 4 units, Area III or IV
Entrepreneurship plays an increasingly essential role in today’s global economy. New companies and startups play valuable roles in the formation of new industry, also spurring established incumbent companies towards further growth. This course is designed to explore the role of law in facilitating the development of entrepreneurial enterprises, paying special attention to the complex interaction between innovation and regulation. The purpose of this course is to provide students with a thorough foundation for understanding the role that law plays in the construction and growth of entrepreneurial enterprises.
149: Law, Technology & Entrepreneurship, Sonia Katyal, 4 units, Area III
Entrepreneurship plays an increasingly essential role in today’s global economy. New companies and startups play valuable roles in the formation of new industry, also spurring established incumbent companies towards further growth. This course is designed to explore the role of law in facilitating the development of entrepreneurial enterprises, paying special attention to the complex interaction between innovation and regulation.
158: Law and Development, Bruno Meyehof Salama, 4 units, Area III or IV
Focusing on developing countries, this course considers the relationship between legal institutions and rules – including informal and traditional ones – and develpment – defined by different actors by economic growth, education, health, or a wide spectrum of freedoms. It examines efforts by national leaders, international organizations, foreign aid agencies, and NGOs to “reform” law to promote development , along with the resistance and unplanned consequences that often ensue.
160: Punishment, Culture, & Society, Jonathan Simon, 4 units, Core (H,SS) or Area I or II
This course surveys the development of Western penal practices, institutions, and ideas (what David Garland calls “penality”) from the eighteenth-century period to the present. Our primary focus will be on penal practices and discourses in United States in the early 21st century. In particular we will examine the extraordinary growth of US penal sanctions in the last quarter century and the sources and consequences of what some have called “mass imprisonment.” To gain some comparative perspective the course will also take up contemporary penality (or penalities) in Europe, South Africa, Central America, and Asia, as well as US penality and society at some earlier conjunctures.
In our analysis of penality, we will draw upon a range of social science theories with general relevance but with particularly rich application to the study of punishment. These theories provide the “tool kits” we will use to interpret and analyze multiplex implications of punishment and its relationship to changes in economic, social, and political relations associated with modernization and more recently the globalization of modern capitalism. The course will examine many examples of penal practices and the ideas associated with them including mass imprisonment, the death penalty, and restorative justice. In the last portion of the class we will examine the recent crisis in California’s juvenile prisons through the lenses both of different social theories and the examples of different national and historical penal patterns.
165: Truth, Justice & Reconciliation, Julie Shackford-Bradley, 4 units, Area Area I or IV
How do people and communities envision and enact justice in response to state-sponsored and state-sanctioned violence? How have TRCs (Truth and Reconciliation Commissions) and analogous approaches taken shape in the United States, in response to state-sponsored violence, including “legal violence”? With South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission as a foundational model, this course will examine an array of community- based strategies for surfacing truths about historical harms, pursuing accountability through apologies and reparations, and restoring relationships, communities, artefacts, and lands. We will also address the many challenges that arise in establishing official commissions, reaching out to communities, and following through with recommendations, especially when working with the same governmental and political structures that perpetrated or enabled the violence, and when the violence is ongoing. The course will “think globally and act locally” by presenting examples of TRCs around the world and in the US, and engaging students in research on the possibilities of TRC approaches for the Berkeley campus and Bay Area.
170: Crime & Criminal Justice, Nicole Linahl-Ruiz, 4 units, Area I
This course introduces scholarly frameworks for thinking about crime and criminal justice, and traces through case law and scholarship the evolution of these earlier conceptions into today’s policy debates. It examines the scope and nature of crime in the United States from a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective, focusing on the uses and limits of the criminal justice system. The course will introduce concepts of criminal process and the main elements of the criminal justice system, including police, courts, and corrections. It will consider the main institutional features, problems, and critiques of the processes through which suspects are apprehended, tried, sentenced, and punished. Past and current trends and policy questions will be discussed.
174: Comparative Constitutional Law: The Case of Israel, Masua Sagiv, 4 units, Area IV or V
The seminar will provide an introduction to the comparative study of constitutional law through the lens of Israeli constitutional jurisprudence – a jurisprudence built explicitly on the foundations of a variety of other constitutional systems, reflecting the diversity of approaches to constitutionalism. Through this comparative framework students will learn basic constitutional theory as well as explore some of the major constitutional debates in Israeli contemporary law. The constitutional theory part of the course will discuss the formation of Israeli constitution in comparison with the structure of other constitutions such as the U.S. Constitution and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This framework will introduce the central notions of constitutionalism – the ideas that that constitutions can (and should) limit government; the role of the judiciary in interpreting and enforcing the constitution; and the importance of constitutional rights. Among the constitutional debates that the class will explore are topics such as freedom of expression and freedom of association, equality, the right of human dignity, due process, social rights, freedom of occupation, freedom of religion etc. These topics will also be looked at from a comparative perspective drawing upon different constitutional regimes such as the Canadian Charter and the constitution of South Africa.
177: American Legal & Constitutional History, Kyle Deland, 4 units, Core (H) or Area II or III or V
This course explores the history of American legal institutions and doctrine from colonial times to the present. It deals both with the history of American constitutional law (through the study of major U.S. Supreme Court opinions) and with the development of certain important bodies of non-constitutional law, such as the law of property, the law of torts (civil wrongs), and criminal law. In exploring how American law has developed over time the course may serve as something of an introduction to our current legal and constitutional order.
184: Sociology of Law, Kristin Sangren, 4 units, Core (SS) or Area IV
This introductory course explores major issues and debates in the sociology of law. Topics include theoretical perspectives on the relationship between law and society, theories of why people obey (and disobey) the law, the relationship between law and social norms, the “law in action” in litigation and dispute resolution, the roles of lawyers, judges, and juries in the legal system and in society, and the role of law in social change. The course will examine these issues from an empirical perspective.
190.1: Liberty, Equality, Privilege & the Constitution, Alan Pomerantz, 4 units, Area IV
The course will examine current Supreme Court decisions that address the conflict between individual liberty and governmental mandated equality as informed by privilege. Specifically, recent Supreme Court decisions have addressed and modified numerous rights and liberties once thought to be protected by the Constitution, based on the Court’s current reasoning that when the Constitution is silent, or "neutral," the extent of protection from governmental abridgment of personal liberty and individual sovereignty should be left to the people and their democratically elected representatives. Recent topics have included woman’s equality including abortion; LGBTQ+ rights including marriage equality and gender identity; the conflict between privacy and collective morality; religious exercise and state sponsorship of religious institutions; speech and expression; racial profiling; affirmative action; and voting. The class will be conducted primarily using the Socratic method. We will read important historical and current Supreme Court cases, as well as political and legal commentary from across the political spectrum. The prime focus of the seminar is to encourage students to develop and defend their own views and opinions regarding the relevant topics and to enhance their critical thinking skills.
190.2 Comparative Arbitration Law, Bruno Meyerhof Salama, 4 units, Area III
The second part of the course focuses on international arbitration, with a primary emphasis on international commercial arbitration. This field has significantly expanded due to economic globalization, which has increased the demand for resolving cross- border business disputes through neutral adjudicators. International arbitration provides binding resolutions that are enforceable worldwide, backed by established legal frameworks and institutions. The complexity and high stakes of international transactions have led to a rise in transnational disputes with considerable public policy implications. Additionally, to attract foreign investment, developing countries have developed specialized arbitration mechanisms to resolve disputes between private investors and states.
190.3 Courts, Politics, and Judicial Independence, Mónica Castillejos-Aragón, 4 units, Area IV or V
This seminar incorporates a worldwide perspective to reflect on and discuss the greatest challenges of the principle of judicial independence, which is as a crucial tenet that protects democracy and the rule of law around the world. From a regional perspective, this seminar will address ways in which the judiciary and external actors protect and promote the principle judicial independence; various challenges and threats experienced while upholding the rule of law and protecting the rights and liberties of citizens around the world, as well as factors that can lead to the survival of judicial independence in the face of sustained political attacks. This seminar analyzes and discusses a variety of case studies from North America, the Americas, Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, where the principle has been undermined and, even, eroded.
190.4 International Courts & Human Rights, Lisa Reinsberg, 4 units, Area IV or V
In this seminar, we will discuss the modern system of international human rights protection, its history, its various components, its successes, and its shortcomings. Using primary legal texts and case decisions, as well as textbook excerpts and scholarly critiques, we will examine which rights are considered fundamental and how the interpretation of those rights has expanded over time. We will compare the courts and quasi-judicial bodies that protect human rights, including their jurisdiction, competencies, and impact. Finally, we will discuss the roles and strategies of the various actors involved, including grassroots
activists and elected judges.
190.5 Global Supply Chains and Labor Regulation, Sanchita Banerjee Saxena, 4 units, Area III or V
This class will focus on how global businessesshouldapproachaddressing and improvinglabor conditions in their supply chainsin the context of a new and evolving regulatory frameworkWe will explore whichprivateinterventions havealreadybeen tried, but whichapproaches might be more impactful.How can companies respond to the various pressures they are facing (i.e.soft law guidelines,new regulations, investor pressures, consumerdemands) and address
these issues more effectively? And how can global corporations make adjustments to a business model,whichitself often perpetuates poor labor conditions and a lack of human rights throughout the supply chain?We will also examine legal “innovations,” like binding agreements and responsible contracting to improve human rights in the supply chain.We will use examples from a wide range of industries, including technology, apparel, retail, mining/ extractives, agriculture,seafood/fishing, and mega sporting events
190.6 Game Theory, Law, and Politics, Adi Ayal, 4 units, Area II
We will focus on social interaction in private and political life, with special emphasis on how laws and social norms shape our interaction. We’ll separate between methods of devising policy, and methods of devising ‘rules of the game’, such as representation, voting mechanisms, separation of powers, speech governance, and the like. A special emphasis will be placed on interactive learning through participating in games (both online and in-class) and discussion of the dynamics of decision-making present within each game.Towards this purpose, students will be asked to register to a course-specific website through which problem sets will be posted. Participation in games should facilitate learning – both in pushing students to tackle strategic questions within each game, and in requiring thought
as to real-life situations in which similar dynamics arise. Students will be encouraged to tease out how people of opposing views might interpret and answer similar questions differently. Finally, students will be asked to devise conversational norms that would allow productive discussion of contentious issues they are familiar with. We’ll stress the difficulty of respecting opposing views and life experiences, while debating the issues and deepening understanding
190.7 Legal Anthropology, Kristin Sangren, 4 units, Area II
This course aims to introduce students to the ways that anthropologists understand the place of law in human cultures and social organizations in historical and cross-cultural perspective. We will also investigate the roles that anthropologists have had in legal processes. Throughout, we will challenge ourselves to relativize our own culturally particular assumptions about rational modes of social organization and control, power, authority, vulnerability, and justice.
CANCELLED*** 190.9 Family Policing & Defense, Meredith Wallis, 4 units, Area I CANCELLED***
This classis onthelaw, practiceandhistoryofState removal of childrento foster care, with family defense in California dependency serving as a case study.The course focus is not whetherthe system is good or bad,but whattype of assumptions, familiar notions, and ways of thinking have contributed tofamily separationas an accepted practice for the protection of childrenand promotion of their wellbeing.Child welfare courtsin Californiaare considered nonadversarial—in fact they are called “collaborative”—and are technically civil (or at least quasicivil), but the closest analog to the actual process is criminal law, i.e.adults receive charges from the Statewhich, after adjudication, could result in the indefinite removal of a family member. Given this, the class would
likelybe primarily interesting to those looking to learn more about criminal defense in a parallel system, one which deals inmanagingrisks, mostly those posed bypoverty,substance use,and intimate partner violence. CANCELLED***
H195B: Legal Studies Honors Thesis, Your Supervising Professor, 3 units, can be counted towards the Area in which two courses are taken.
Study of an advanced topic under the supervision of a faculty member leading to the completion of a senior honors thesis. These units are designed for students who began the Honors Program in the Fall.
H195C: Legal Studies Honors Research and Writing Seminar, Morrill, 2 units, Areas not applicable.
The goal of the seminar is to provide Honors students additional support as they conduct the research for and write their senior honors theses, and prepare presentations for the Spring Studies Undergraduate Research Conference. Honors students enroll in the two unit LS H195C seminar during the second semester of the Honors Program along with the three units of LS H195B.