Advanced Legal Research
[3 credits ] Team taught by three research attorneys
Prerequisite: Lawyering.
Limited enrollment. Satisfies the writing requirement.
This seminar teaches cutting-edge research techniques to prepare students for practice in the law office of the future. It focuses on desktop electronic legal research and covers U.S., international, and foreign law, as well as multidisciplinary research. It is designed to teach students, whose careers will begin in a period of information transition, how to handle traditional and electronic sources and formats and make efficient choices.
Introduction to French Law
[3 credits ] Claire Germain
Not available to students with significant knowledge of civil law system. Limited enrollment. Satisfies the writing requirement.
Introduction to the French legal system from a comparative law perspective, with a focus on civil law methodology and French legal institutions. Topics studied include French law sources and authorities, such as legislation, court decisions, and scholarly writings; the relationship between French law and the European Union; the French court structure in civil, criminal, and administrative law matters and its major procedural features; and the organization of the legal profession.
Advanced Legal Research - International and Foreign Law
[2 credits ] Thomas Mills
Limited enrollment.
Globalization has led to the internationalization of the practice of law. This course provides an overview of research resources, methods, and strategies for international and foreign law. Topics to be covered include both public and private international law, the European Union, and the United Nations. The course will include lectures followed by computer lab and library training sessions. Selected readings will be available online and on reserve; there is no required textbook. There will be seven assignments of equal weight on material covered in class, but no final exam.
Advanced Legal Research in Business Law
[1 credit ] Jean Callihan
Prerequisite: Lawyering.
Course meets first 6½ weeks of the term. Limited enrollment.
This course will introduce students to print and online sources for finding corporate business information. Sessions will cover materials generated by the business entity, filings with state and federal agencies, materials issued by regulators and courts, financial, market, and industry information produced by third parties, and end with a look at current "hot topics." The focus will be on research strategy and the evaluation of resources.
Law Practice Technology
[1 credit ] Julie Jones
Course meets first 6½ weeks of the term. Limited enrollment.
Technological advances are dramatically altering the lives of practicing attorneys. This course introduces students to a variety of technologies and software applications they will use in the practice of law, integrated with advanced legal research strategies. Focus will be placed on both present and future trends, and the resulting alteration of the legal landscape. Topics addressed include law practice management, the paperless law office, e-discovery, courthouse technologies, and underlying ethical issues.
Advanced Legal Research - U. S. Legal Research for LL.M. Students
[1 credit ] Matt Morrison, Charlie Finger
Graduate program grading: H, S, U. Limited to graduate students. Course meets first 6½ weeks of the term. Limited enrollment.
This course will introduce LL.M. students to basic legal research in U.S. materials that will be valuable to them in their course work at Cornell and in practice. The focus will be on understanding and finding primary legal sources, including statutory codes, session laws, administrative regulations, and court decisions, as well as explanatory materials, such as law reviews and treatises. To a large extent, instruction will use online materials that are most likely to be available to the students in their future careers. There will be short introductory lectures, as well as hands-on computer lab and Reading Room sessions. Students will complete five assigned exercises using the resources learned in class, and there is no final exam. The final grade will be based on the five assigned exercises (20% each).
Online Legal Research
[1 credit ] Thomas Mills
Course meets first 6½ weeks of the term. Limited enrollment.
With the development of the Internet, web-based legal research skills have become increasingly important. This half-semester course will help students become effective and efficient researchers by developing students' general online research skills and strategies, and exploring when and how to use electronic resources in conjunction with paper resources. Problem sets will cover both free and subscription Internet resources.