LAW 663 - Legal Method

Credits: 1
Conditions: Graded Pass/No Pass. Third semester students only; limited enrollment.
Prerequisites: 2L class standing.
Description: This is a skills-development course that focuses on improving legal analysis and problem-solving skills. Students will complete a series of weekly assignments throughout the semester, each of which will take between one and two hours. Students will receive weekly feedback on these submitted assignments. Many of the assignments will be Multistate Performance Tests (MPTs) used in past bar exams. The MPT is essentially a self-contained, timed legal assignment which requires the test-taker to complete a specific written legal task (e.g., write a contract, write a complaint, write an opinion letter, write a motion for summary judgment, etc.) and includes all the facts and law necessary to complete the task. In addition, students will take at least one sample exam during the semester and analyze at least one exam from their previous semester. We will also have at least one assignment that deals with statutory interpretation. Class-time will be spent (1) analyzing these specific assignments together in the context of the legal method, which is essentially applying law to facts and effectively communicating the results of that analysis in a legal work product; and (2) discussing effective studying, learning, and exam-taking techniques.