Legal Studies Pre-College Courses for Summer 2023

CIVIL RIGHTS & CIVIL LIBERTIES

Welcome to the Legal Studies Department! We are excited to offer, for the very first time, our Civil Rights and Civil Liberties courses during Summer Sessions' Session D. These courses will explore the ways in which the Constitution affects the relationship between us as individuals and the state; and they will ask what the appropriate role is for the Courts while policing that relationship.

Students will learn from UC Berkeley faculty and alongside other curious and engaged students. And because we believe that learning doesn't end at the classroom door, enrolled students will have the opportunity to explore the field of constitutional law through lectures and experiences with leading Bay Area lawyers and judges. The Civil Rights and Civil Liberties are designed for Pre-College students and college Freshmen and Sophomores, and they can be taken individually or in conjunction. 

Click here to see up-to-date information on course times and locations

These courses do not count towards the Legal Studies major.

For more info about pre-college courses at UC Berkeley, email precollege@berkeley.edu.

Session D 7/3/2023 - 8/11/2023

LS 10: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties: Equality and Autonomy Rights / 3 units 

What does it mean for the government to treat us equally? This course will focus on the 14th Amendment’s demand that the state provide us all equal protection of the laws, and that it not encroach on our substantive, fundamental rights without due process of the law.

Session D 7/3/2023 - 8/11/2023

LS 12: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties: First Amendment  / 3 units 

This course will focus on free speech and religion, especially in a school context. When can the government regulate speech?  What are the extent of students’ rights while on campus? Can governments support private, religious schools? The answers to these questions will help us understand the boundaries of constitutional speech and religion rights.