LAW 360P - Legislation Practicum: Use of Military Force.

This course is a semester-long, simulated exercise in which students play the role of lawyers working on a hotly contested, high stakes legislative debate. Each year the practicum will use a different policy issue. In the Spring of 2015, the subject for the practicum will be legislation authorizing the use of military force.

Students will be divided into groups of lawyers working on the legislation. The groups the students will be divided into will be lawyers from the executive branch (the White House, Department of Defense, Department of Justice, and intelligence agencies), lawyers who work for congress, and lawyers from non-profits and “think tanks” with a stake in the outcome of the legislative debate.

The course will open with several weeks of background on substance. This review will include constitutional, legislative, and judicial law on the use of force. The background will also cover political, policy, and historical issues with an impact on the debate.

Students will be responsible for preparing for and conducting a mock U.S. Senate hearing and for lobbying for proposed legislation. They will also prepare memos on legislative strategy and legal/policy options.

The primary learning dynamic of the course is use class to replicate the experience of participating in a legislative battle. Students are expected to spend considerable time outside of class, working in teams, to prepare for class. Class discussions will focus on simulations of real lawyering and role playing. Five hours. Martel DC Program.