R1B.1: Law in the Knowledge Economy, Matthew Cannon, 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.
100: Foundations of Legal Studies, Kyle Deland, 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.
106: Philosophy of Law, Kutz, 4 units, Area IV or V
This course explores philosophical themes bearing on the nature of the law and its relationship to morality: e.g., What is law—does its claim rest only on social processes or does law necessarily embody moral claims? Do we have an obligation to obey the law? What are the moral limits of legal punishment? The course will sharpen students’ skills in practical reasoning through the analysis of logical argument. The materials consist of readings from the assigned text and additional readings available on bCourses. The format will be a combination of lecture and classroom discussion, with a substantial number of ungraded group debates and simulations.
106WI: Writing Intensive Discussion Section 101 for Philosophy of Law
This is one of the discussion sections for LS106. It is a writing intensive discussion section. LS106WI section differs from the other sections for LS106 in that it is more demanding, and will serve as a forum for intense and iterative development of analytical writing and speaking skills. The purpose of this Writing Intensive discussion section is to spend extra time working together to practice all stages of the writing process, including drafting, revising, and editing. Through additional writing assignments, workshops of your ideas and paper drafts, and structured in-section debates, you will confront not only the course materials but also yourself as thinker. You will be asked to offer reflections on the readings, on your own writing, and on your classmates’ writing. The aim of these exercises will be to develop your ability to articulate clear and compelling arguments—both in your own writing and speech, and in providing feedback to others.
One additional Legalst 199 independent study unit will be available to students in the section.
The lecture component of the two courses is identical (same room, same time, same lectures). Only this LS106WI section differs. You should enroll in LS106WI if, and only if, you are willing to put in extra work (and reap corresponding benefits) in this course to develop your writing and speaking.
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?
122: Cybersecurity in Context, Hoofnagle, 4 units, Area I
We will explore the elements that shape the playing field on which cybersecurity problems emerge and are managed, emphasizing how ethical, legal, and economic frameworks enable and constrain security technologies and policies. We will look at macro-elements (national security considerations and interests of nation-states) and micro-elements (behavioral economic insights into how people understand and interact with security features). Topics include policymaking (on the national, international, and organizational level), business models, legal frameworks (duties of security, privacy issues, law enforcement access issues, computer hacking, and economic/military espionage), standards making, and the roles of users, government, and industry.
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.
132AC: Immigration and Citizenship, Christina Lee and Lisa Knox,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.
134: International Courts and Human Rights, Lisa Reinsberg, 4 units, Area IV or V
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.
***Canceled***135: Law, Judicial Politics, and Rights in Latin America, Monica Castillejos Aragon, 4 units, Area IV or V
This course introduces the study of comparative constitutional law in Latin America and will prepare students to acquire substantial training on the existing legal traditions in the world: the common law and the civil law systems. We will study how political, social, and historical dynamics shape the work of state actors, such as the executive, legislative, judicial powers, as well as the legal profession, and civil society groups to mobilize legal and social change. ***Canceled***
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.
144: Law & History of Economic Institutions of Capitalism, Veronica Santarosa, 4 units, Area III
This course is an intro to historical and institutional underpinnings of capitalism by examining the development of key markets and economic organizations from early modern Europe to modern global economy. Topics include efficiency and legitimacy of private ordering systems; the role of trust, culture, and social norms in supporting exchange and coordination; evolution of commercial law; property rights regimes and the rule of law; the rise of banking and capital markets; legal organization of business enterprises; mechanisms for enforcing sovereign debt; and the emergence of global governance and financial architecture.
145: Law & Economics I, Bruno Meyerhof Salama, 4 units, Core (SS) or Area III
This course introduces economics as a tool for analyzing, evaluating and interpreting the legal framework that underpins a market economy. The first part examines the most basic legal foundations of markets, namely property, contract, corporate, tort, administrative and criminal law. The second part introduces relevant topics in the regulation of markets. It covers a few conceptual questions (the role of efficiency considerations in law and policy, the concept of regulations and the role of courts, and the dilemma between growth and distribution) as well as applied topics such as insurance, bankruptcy, labor, family, antitrust, and intellectual property law.
149: Law, Technology & Entrepreneurship, Bruno Meyerhof Salama, 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.
160: Punishment, Culture, & Society, Kristin Sangren, 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 Lindahl-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.
177: American Legal & Constitutional History, Dylan Penningroth, 4 units, Core (H) or Area II or III or V (also listed Sp26 as Hist 129A see NOTE below)
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.
***NOTE: If you enroll in History 129A, it will count as a Core (H) or Area II or III or V.
If for some reason you have to enroll in History 129A for Sp26, we won't count it towards your two allowed law-related courses, this JUST FOR SP26.***
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 Democracy, Legitimacy, and Authoritarianism, Chris Kutz, 4 units, Area IV or V
This seminar examines the theoretical foundations of democracy, questions of political legitimacy, and the historical and contemporary challenges posed by authoritarianism. Students will engage with classical and contemporary political theory, detailed case studies of Hungary, Turkey, and Venezuela, and current debates about democratic backsliding and authoritarian resurgence. The course aims to develop critical thinking skills about political systems, strengthen
analytical reading and writing abilities, and foster citizenship.
190.5 Global Supply Chains and Labor Regulation, Sanchita Banerjee Saxena, 4 units, Area III
This class will focus on how global businesses should approach addressing and improving labor conditions in their supply chains in the context of a new and evolving regulatory framework. We will explore which private interventions have already been tried, but which approaches might be more impactful. How can companies respond to the various pressures they are facing (i.e.soft law guidelines, new regulations, investor pressures, consumer demands) and address
these issues more effectively? And how can global corporations make adjustments to a business model, which itself 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 Environmental Law, Lindsay Walter, 4 units, Area III or IV
This course will introduce students to the statutes and regulations governing the protection of natural resources and challenge students to think about how the legal, political, and theoretical structures advance or detract from the protection of our natural resources and for whose benefit. We will examine tensions within environmental law, and the readings and class discussions will require you to think critically and communicate verbally and in writing about complex ideas and laws. You will scrutinize environmental statutes, regulations, and policy documents; analyze seminal environmental law cases; read literature and journal articles from the social sciences; and develop an understanding of the practice and theory of environmental law.
***Canceled*** 190.7 Black Critical Traditions, Asad Rahim, 4 units, Area I or IV***Canceled***
This course will provide students with an opportunity to engage Black critical thought on issues related to law and inequality. Students will consider contributions from Black thought leaders on structural racism (in employment, education and policing,amongothertopics),communityorganizingandcommunity empowerment. To explore these areas, the course will rely on scholarship, film and guest speakers. Through readings, discussion, and weekly reflections, students will critically engage modern Black theory, Black activism, and empirical scholarship. This class seeks to make racialized structures legible and facilitate dialogue not only about what is, but also what could be. ***Canceled***
190.8 Intro to International Criminal Law, Monica Castillejos Aragon, 4 units, Area I or V
With a “Justice on Screen” approach, this seminar aims at introducing the students to the practical application and challenges of international criminal law. Based on recent geopolitical developments, a group of documentaries will present a historical context and current developments that includes the nature and scope of the core crimes under international law: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. The documentaries
assigned during lectures are essential tools for education as they address challenges of international criminal justice, while placing each lecture topic in context. At the end of the semester, students will acquire a general understanding of how international criminal law ensures and sometimes not justice to victims of international crimes.
190.9 Law, Technology, and Art, Sonia Katyal, 4 units, Area II or III
This course explores the evolving legal landscape surrounding art in the digital age. Students will examine how technological innovations challenge traditional legal frameworks governing artistic creation, ownership, distribution, and preservation. Topics include copyright in the digital realm, NFTs and blockchain technology, AI-generated art, cultural heritage digitization, online art markets, and the intersection of intellectual property with emerging technologies.
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, Cal Morrill & Cristina Violante, 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.