2018-2019 Graduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Dedman Law: Course Descriptions
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Dedman School of Law
Juris Doctor
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LAW 6100 - SMU Law Review Association
Credits: 1
Maximum of 5 credit hours. Preparation of comments on topics of current interest, notes on cases of significance, and editorial work incidental to publication of the “SMU Law Review” and the “Journal of Air Law and Commerce.” Students must be selected for participation before they may enroll. -
LAW 6108 - Patent Clinic Deputy
Credits: 1
Includes assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 6218 Patent Clinic. -
LAW 6109 - Crimes Against Women Clinic Deputy
Credits: 1
Includes assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 7642 -
LAW 6110 - Legal Practical Training II
Credits: 1
Offers practical training and experience in a law firm, corporate law department, government agency, or other law-related business. Students work on assigned projects under the supervision of lawyers who work at the placement. Activities vary and may include attending meetings, observing negotiations, conducting legal research, working on special projects, and otherwise gaining an understanding of how law is practiced within a business setting. -
LAW 6111 - Family Law Clinic Deputy
Credits: 1
Includes assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 7643 Family Law Clinic . -
LAW 6112 - Small-Business Clinic Deputy
Credits: 1
Assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation, including fact investigations and analysis, legal research and writing, litigation training, and court appearances. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 8202 Small-Business Clinic. -
LAW 6113 - Small Business and Trademark Clinic
Credits: 1
Student lawyers advise clients of the Small Business Clinic on the start-up of their businesses and assist in preparing necessary legal documents. The student lawyers will also research and provide advice to non-profit organizations and get experience working with transactional business law issues for clients. The Trademark Clinic is part of the Small Business Clinic and a member of the USPTO Law School Clinic program. Student lawyers gain specific experience in advising clients about basic trademark matters as well as drafting, filing and handling trademark applications with the USPTO. Prerequisites: LAW 6420 and LAW 8203 . Students must be in good academic standing and have completed 50 percent of all course requirements. -
LAW 6114 - Legal Practical Training III
Credits: 1
Offers practical training and experience in a law firm, corporate law department, government agency, or other law-related business. Students work on assigned projects under the supervision of lawyers who work at the placement. Activities vary and may include attending meetings, observing negotiations, conducting legal research, working on special projects, and otherwise gaining an understanding of how law is practiced within a business setting. -
LAW 6115 - Legal Practical Training IV
Credits: 1
Offers practical training and experience in a law firm, corporate law department, government agency, or other law-related business. Students work on assigned projects under the supervision of lawyers who work at the placement. Activities vary and may include attending meetings, observing negotiations, conducting legal research, working on special projects, and otherwise gaining an understanding of how law is practiced within a business setting. -
LAW 6117 - Government and Public Interest Externship Program
Credits: 1
The Government and Public Interest Externship Program is an academic program that combines a weekly public sector law class with hands-on fieldwork in nonprofit and government legal departments. Students who pass both the class and externship components receive one credit for the classroom component and 2-3 hours credit for their field work (depending on the hours worked at the placement). -
LAW 6118 - Actual Innocence Clinic Deputy
Credits: 1
Includes assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 6230 or LAW 7401 . -
LAW 6119 - Legal Practical Training V
Credits: 1
Offers practical training and experience in a law firm, corporate law department, government agency, or other law-related business. Students work on assigned projects under the supervision of lawyers who work at the placement. Activities vary and may include attending meetings, observing negotiations, conducting legal research, working on special projects, and otherwise gaining an understanding of how law is practiced within a business setting. -
LAW 6120 - Legal Practical Training VI
Credits: 1
Offers practical training and experience in a law firm, corporate law department, government agency, or other law-related business. Students work on assigned projects under the supervision of lawyers who work at the placement. Activities vary and may include attending meetings, observing negotiations, conducting legal research, working on special projects, and otherwise gaining an understanding of how law is practiced within a business setting. -
LAW 6126 - Argumentation in Ethical Debates
Credits: 1
Students are familiarized with the basics of informal logic: deductive arguments, inductive arguments, arguing by analogy, and common argumentative fallacies. Students reinforce their skills in ethical reasoning to discern good from problematic arguments, to build better oral arguments, and to write better argumentative essays. -
LAW 6130 - International Law Review
Credits: 1
Maximum of 5 credit hours. Law review experience involving preparation of comments on topics of current interest, notes on cases of significance, and editorial work incident to publication of “The International Lawyer,” “NAFTA: Law and Business Review of the Americas,” and “Yearbook of International Financial and Economic Law.” Students must be selected for participation before they may enroll. Available only for J.D. students. -
LAW 6136 - Directed Research
Credits: 1
Maximum of 3 credit hours. Research on legal problems in any field of law may be carried on with the consent of the instructor involved. A comprehensive, analytical, and critical paper must be prepared to the instructor’s satisfaction. Open to students who have completed more than one-third of the credit hours required for graduation. Before enrollment for directed research, the student must obtain, on a form supplied by the Registrar’s Office, written approval of the instructor for the research project. Students may not receive more than a total of 3 credit hours of directed research during law school. -
LAW 6157 - Child Advocacy Clinic Deputy
Credits: 1
Assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation, including fact investigations and analysis, legal research and writing, litigation training, and court appearances. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. -
LAW 6160 - Advanced Legal Writing and Editing
Credits: 1
Designed for students who wish to improve their editorial and writing skills. Targets students who are already competent writers, but it requires no in-depth knowledge of grammar or rhetoric. Covers issue framing, readability, and writing efficiently. -
LAW 6162 - Across the Finish Line: Sentence Reductions for Federal Commutees
Credits: 1
Teaches students how to use effective post-conviction strategies, including mitigation investigation, negotiation, and motion practice, in the context of federal criminal defense. Students interview clients, family members, and brainstorm negotiation tactics. Students then assist counsel in writing judicial motions for formerly life-sentenced drug offenders who received term commutations from President Obama, but whose sentences were not completely excised. Lawyers for the Decarceration Collective have final responsibility for filing client motions in court. -
LAW 6177 - Moot Court Board
Credits: 1
Satisfactory work as a member of the Moot Court Board. Maximum of 1 credit hour. Students who are selected to draft the Jackson Walker moot court problem and briefs may be eligible for an additional 1 credit hour, which will count toward the general writing requirement. Students must be selected for participation before they may enroll. -
LAW 6180 - Moot Court Competition
Credits: 1
Participation as a member of an appellate advocacy team representing Dedman School of Law in one of several interschool competitions in which the school participates each year. Allows 1 credit hour for each competition, up to a maximum of 2 credit hours. Students must be selected for participation on a competition team by the faculty coach before they can register for credit. -
LAW 6183 - Mock Trial Competition
Credits: 1
Participation as a member of a mock trial team representing Dedman School of Law in one of several interschool competitions in which the school participates each year. Allows 1 credit hour for each competition, up to a maximum of 2 credit hours. Students must be selected for participation on a competition team by the faculty coach before they can register for credit. -
LAW 6200 - SMU Law Review Association
Credits: 2
Maximum of 5 credit hours. Preparation of comments on topics of current interest, notes on cases of significance, and editorial work incident to publication of the “SMU Law Review” and the “Journal of Air Law and Commerce.” Students must be selected for participation before they may enroll. -
LAW 6204 - Advanced Legal Research
Credits: 2
An experiential learning course that builds on the legal research systems and methods covered in the first-year legal research course. Through a series of assignments and in-class research simulations, students will develop proficiency in locating and evaluating statutes, case law, secondary authority, administrative regulations and decisions, legislative history, court rules, and local law. Emphasizes advanced research strategies and processes to build research skills in a variety of legal practice areas. -
LAW 6205 - Law, Literature, and Medicine
Credits: 2
Seminar for law students and medical students that provides an opportunity to read and discuss novels, poems, plays, and short stories concerning the two professions, including ethical dilemmas encountered in legal and medical practice and a variety of client and patient experiences. Readings also focus on the professional and academic aspects of the humanities in law and medicine. Students have joint assignments and projects throughout the term and are required to complete a research paper or comparable final project. -
LAW 6206 - Aviation Law
Credits: 2
Introduces aviation law covering regulation of domestic and international aviation; deregulation of domestic aviation; the legal regime of the airspace, aircraft, and users of the airspace; the liability of the insurance for the airman, manufacturer, services, airline, and U.S.; aviation litigation fundamentals and focused issues; criminal law specific to aviation; and legal issues governing aviation transactions, aviation labor, and the law of space. -
LAW 6207 - Administrative Law
Credits: 2
A focus on legislative authority and administrative agencies, with special emphasis on administrative process and judicial review. -
LAW 6208 - Advanced Legal Reasoning
Credits: 2
This course provides a basic understanding of the contents of the bar exam, strategies for exam success, and development of exam skills. Students have the opportunity to practice answering exam questions in selected subjects tested on the bar exam. The course is intended to supplement but not replace participation in a commercial bar review course; students are strongly encouraged to take a commercial bar preparation course to enhance their chances of passing the bar exam. Limited to students in their last year before graduation. -
LAW 6209 - Due Diligence in Business Transactions
Credits: 2
Introduces basic due diligence principles and standards, and covers the relevant diligence-related case law. The primary goal is to expose students (through practical skills exercises) to the various components of effective due diligence in real-world transactional settings similar to those they are likely to encounter after entering the practice. Topics include the definition of due diligence; effective due diligence leadership and staffing; the constituents of reasonable due diligence as defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the courts; the importance of tools such as forms-driven processes and written memoranda; the significance of red flags in the diligence process; and the responsibilities of buyers, sellers, underwriters, issuers, and their respective diligence team members, including legal counsel. -
LAW 6210 - Legal Research and Writing for International LL.M. Students
Credits: 2
Introduction to the general principles of U.S. law research, legal analysis, and objective writing. Successful completion of this course enables students to 1) recognize and distinguish primary and secondary levels of authority; 2) locate, read, and understand rules of law available in constitutions, judicial opinions, and statutes; 3) demonstrate the ability to update all types of legal authority, including the process of Shepardizing; 4) demonstrate the ability to recognize and use acceptable citation forms for legal authority; and 5) complete legal research/writing assignments to explain the law pertaining to a legal question. -
LAW 6212 - Intellectual Property Licensing
Credits: 2
Focuses on intellectual property licensing, with a particular emphasis on the generation and identification of licensable rights, traditional and online licensing structures, underlying legal principles, international considerations, licensing in a standards body, and the terms of specific license agreements and their negotiation. Students explore licensing concepts and trends through current case law, relevant statutes, and selected articles. Includes discussion of licensing copyrights, trademarks, patents, technology, multimedia, software, and general online content. -
LAW 6213 - Advanced Contracts Workshop
Credits: 2
Limited enrollment, practice skills seminar designed to build upon the lessons learned in first-year contracts (LAW 8290 ) and first-year torts (LAW 7391 ) and to apply those lessons to the world of transactional lawyering. Students study real-world agreements (e.g., LOIs, IOIs, term sheets, NDAs, and side letters) entered into at the early stages of an M&A transaction in order to comment upon, draft, and negotiate examples of some of those agreements in class. While the course is geared toward the M&A world, the contract drafting skills covered are applicable in any transactional practice. Students prepare initial drafts of transactional agreements, review agreements in which errors or lack of clarity in contract drafting gave rise to disputes requiring judicial determination, and read current and classic cases to analyze the “contort” common law that forms the basis for interpreting and enforcing each contractual agreement draft. Class attendance, preparation, and participation are critical to a student’s learning experience and to that of his or her classmates, as well. Grades are based on a combination of class performance and/or classroom exercises, and either a short paper or a few short memos prepared about specific drafting issues. -
LAW 6214 - Construction Law
Credits: 2
Addresses the legal aspects of the construction process, with emphasis on the provisions of standard form contracts and the liability issues that arise out of relationships among design professionals, contractors, and owners. Includes bidding, types of contracts, pricing variations, the rights and obligations of parties involved in the process, construction documents, bonds, insurance, changes, scheduling, delays, unforeseen circumstances, risk allocation of defective work, payments, and remedies for breach. -
LAW 6215 - Professional Responsibility for International LL.M. Students
Credits: 2
An analysis of principles and rules governing the conduct of lawyers. Topics include the client-lawyer relationship, competence, confidentiality, loyalty, the roles of lawyers as counselors and advocates, public service, advertising, admission to practice, and professional discipline. -
LAW 6216 - Corporate Counsel Externship Program
Credits: 2
Integrates a weekly corporate counsel class with hands-on experience in corporate legal departments. Provides a broad yet comprehensive overview of substantive areas encountered in an in-house legal department and the ethical responsibilities of in-house counsel, as well as professional skills such as working with outside counsel, managing conflicts, drafting contracts, and conducting internal investigations. Chief legal officers, general counsels, and senior managing attorneys guest lecture in certain classes. In addition to the class component, students are assigned to corporate legal departments where they work approximately 10 hours per week, for a minimum of 120 hours for the term. Student activities vary depending on the corporation but may include attending meetings, observing negotiations, conducting legal research, working on special projects, and otherwise gaining an understanding of how law is practiced within a business setting. The externship component is pass/fail, and the class component is graded; students must pass both to receive credit (total of 4 credit hours for this class plus 2 credit hours for the externship, which is a separate registration). Students may not enroll in this program and another externship or clinical program during the same term. Admission is competitive, and an application does not guarantee admission. Prerequisites: LAW 6420 Business Enterprise and GPA of 2.7 or higher. -
LAW 6217 - Oil and Gas Taxation
Credits: 2
Focuses on U.S. federal income taxation of domestic oil and gas transactions, and references and contrasts certain international tax aspects of the oil and gas business. Examines taxation associated with the operational life cycle of oil and gas operations, including exploration, development, production, and abandonment. Students study transactions involving oil and gas interests to analyze acquisition, disposition, structuring, and investment. They also study the historical context and development of oil and gas provisions in U.S. tax law as a basis for understanding the applicable laws and regulations that apply today. Current tax legislative proposals and/or final legislation affecting the oil and gas industry are addressed, as warranted. -
LAW 6218 - Patent Clinic
Credits: 2
Students provide pro bono legal services to individual and small-business clients seeking to protect their inventions using the patent system. This work may involve counseling clients regarding patent-related matters, conducting inventor interviews, conducting patentability searches, preparing patentability opinions, drafting and filing patent applications, and drafting and filing responses to office actions received from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. -
LAW 6219 - Labor Law
Credits: 2
Law regulating the employment relationship studied in connection with various forms of group conflict and organizational activity. The course covers rights and duties of individuals and institutions in the labor-relations context; concerted activity, including strikes, picketing, and boycotts; negotiation and enforcement of collective agreements; employee-union relations; and problems of jurisdiction and accommodation among courts, boards, and arbitrators. The course emphasis is on the substantive and procedural law of the Labor-Management Relations (Taft-Hartley) Act. -
LAW 6220 - Corporate Taxation
Credits: 2
The formation of corporations, corporate capital structure, earnings and profits, dividends, distributions, redemptions, partial liquidations and complete liquidations, and Subchapter S corporations. -
LAW 6221 - Banking Law and Regulation: Domestic and International
Credits: 2
Introduces the federal laws governing commercial banking activities, with primary emphasis on the regulation (and deregulation) of national banks and related policy considerations. Lecture topics vary from year to year but generally include key domestic, regional, and international issues with respect to banking, the banking industry, and the overall financial services industry. Uses interdisciplinary subject matter in economics, finance, and business, and may use comparisons to regulation of other financial institutions. When taught as a regular course, assessment may be by examination and/or paper or series of papers satisfying the general writing requirement. When taught as an edited writing seminar, course structure and assessment are consistent with other LAW courses described as edited writing seminars. -
LAW 6222 - Constitutional Law I
Credits: 2
Examines methods of constitutional interpretation, the role of judicial review, federal power, separation of powers, federalism, and justiciability. -
LAW 6223 - Representing the Entrepreneurial Client
Credits: 2
An introduction to the legal problems encountered in an entrepreneurial setting, either as lawyers for the enterprise or as owners of an equity position in the enterprise. Interactive discussions provide tools for future attorneys to guide entrepreneurial clients through the challenges of economic pressures, legal liability, technological change, and globalization in the 21st century. -
LAW 6224 - International Protection of Human Rights
Credits: 2
Selected topics, including the protection of individuals and groups against violations by governments and private institutions of their internationally guaranteed rights, and the promotion of these rights. May require the presentation and discussion of student papers. -
LAW 6225 - Mergers and Acquisitions
Credits: 2
Introduces the fundamentals of and critical topics in mergers and acquisitions law, as well as the key financial and transactional issues they present, with a focus on the documentation and negotiation of acquisitions of privately held businesses. Also, the key drivers of M&A activity and the business incentives of the parties to the transactions. Touches on securities, tax, antitrust, and regulatory issues. Students review and analyze case law and deal documents (or portions of such documents) and learn how an acquisition agreement’s core provisions are negotiated to create value for and allocate risks among the parties. -
LAW 6226 - International Intellectual Property
Credits: 2
When intangible property crosses imagined borders, it becomes subject to competing cultural concerns, economic interests, and protective regimes. This seminar focuses upon the international regulation of intellectual property and the resolution of disputes through institutions such as the World Intellectual Property Organization and the World Trade Organization, multinational and regional treaty agreements, and national responses. Policy issues include the perspectives of developing and industrialized countries, problems generated by emerging biotechnologies and the growth of cyberspace, and future trends in harmonization of IP protection. -
LAW 6228 - Oil and Gas Contracts
Credits: 2
A survey of basic oil and gas contracts used in exploration and production operations in the United States and internationally. Includes support agreements, farmout agreements, operating agreements, gas contracts, gas balancing agreements, division orders, concessions, production sharing, participation agreements, and technical agreements, with a focus on fundamental principles and current issues. Drafting solutions and alternatives are explored. -
LAW 6229 - Government Procurement
Credits: 2
Explores the basic elements of the $500 billion federal procurement market and the state and local markets estimated to be of roughly equal size. Public contracting presents unique and highly challenging legal issues spanning acquisition planning, bidding, contract performance, administrative law, fraud, litigation, corporate compliance, and complex transactions. Students gain a practical understanding of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, competitive solicitation requirements, sole source awards, and bid protests for application to real-world practice environments. Draws upon Texas and potentially other state procurement laws for comparative purposes. Examines the relationships between private contractors and various government customers, with emphasis on the defense industry and conflict of interest concerns. -
LAW 6230 - Actual Innocence Clinic
Credits: 2
The investigation or litigation of actual innocence claims by persons convicted of serious crimes involves unique and highly challenging legal issues. Students assist in a wide range of postconviction case investigation activities, including any or all of the following: locating and reviewing original trial records, searching for any identifying remaining evidence, analyzing cases for viability, submitting evidence for additional testing, interviewing potential witnesses, communicating with clients, meeting face-to-face at least once with clients in the county jail or the assigned prison unit, interacting with assigned personnel from the District Attorney’s Office, and identifying and communicating with potential experts. Also, drafting briefs, motions, and proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law. -
LAW 6231 - International Oil and Gas Negotiations
Credits: 2
Covers transactional law and negotiations in an international oil and gas context through lectures and discussions on negotiation topics. Provides hands-on, practical negotiation experience through participation in a series of simulated negotiations where the student role-plays a lawyer representing a client on one side of an acquisition of oil and gas exploration rights in a foreign country. -
LAW 6232 - Corporate Planning
Credits: 2
Planning and problem course in corporate, tax, securities, accounting, and related fields. Students draft instruments and supporting memoranda in solution of a variety of questions in corporate organization, financing, operation, acquisition, and reorganization - a fairly typical sequence of high-tech company growth and development. Student solutions and simulated negotiations are presented for class critique, and in most instances, for comparison with actual solutions to similar problems. -
LAW 6233 - The Expert Witness in Civil Litigation
Credits: 2
Addresses the role of the expert witness in civil litigation, with emphasis on the development of practical skill in the selection, designation, discovery, direct examination, and cross-examination of experts. Considers examples from trial practice in state and federal courts, as well as expert testimony in the context of tort and commercial litigation. Students participate in drafting Daubert/Robinson motions and in mock examination of experts. Prerequisite: LAW 8355 or LAW 8455 Evidence. -
LAW 6234 - Ethics and Compliance for the Global Enterprise
Credits: 2
The field of ethics and compliance has emerged as a new legal focus area with significant opportunities for legal practitioners, and the discipline has taken on an international aspect because of global enforcement and the growing convergence of standards. Regulators have stepped up enforcement of guidelines in key areas such as anticorruption, export, and trade sanctions. It is imperative that U.S. corporations comply with the United States Sentencing Commission’s guidelines for organizations and establish risk management programs and processes to demonstrate their compliance. Using the framework of an overarching hypothetical, this course provides hands-on experience in identifying and reviewing key compliance issues and developing workable tools and solutions to address them, with a focus on the expected components of an effective corporate compliance program, drawing from important statutes, case law, and international treaties. Prerequisite: LAW 6420 Business Enterprise. -
LAW 6235 - Securities Regulation
Credits: 2
A study of the securities laws (primarily federal but also state, especially Texas) and the activities and industry they govern, with emphasis on the regulation of issuance, sale, resale, and purchase of securities. Also, disclosure requirements generated by registration, reporting, proxy, tender, and antifraud provisions. Includes civil liability (express and implied), government enforcement, exemptions from registration (especially private placements), insider trading, the meaning of “security,” and the functions of the SEC and state securities administrators. May cover broker-dealer and market regulation if time permits. -
LAW 6236 - Directed Research
Credits: 2
Maximum of 3 credit hours. Research on legal problems in any field of law may be carried on with the consent of the instructor involved. A comprehensive, analytical, and critical paper must be prepared to the instructor’s satisfaction. Open to students who have completed more than one-third of the credit hours required for graduation. Before enrollment for directed research, the student must obtain, on a form supplied by the Registrar’s Office, written approval of the instructor for the research project. Students may not receive more than a total of 3 credit hours of directed research during law school. -
LAW 6237 - Wildlife Law
Credits: 2
Explores the complex body of federal and state laws that protect and regulate wildlife, including those that protect ecosystems and habitats. Wildlife law is centuries old and the course covers its interesting history from English common law to the statutes, policies, and regulations that predominate today. Includes cases, statutory laws, and regulations and addresses enforcement of the laws and the constitutional and tribal issues that arise in wildlife cases. -
LAW 6238 - Data Privacy and Cybersecurity
Credits: 2
Introduces key concepts associated with information privacy and security law and covers how these concepts apply to corporate organizations. Information security and its attendant privacy implications have dominated recent headlines in the wake of electronic intrusions at some of the country’s largest and most respected institutions. Broadly reviews the origins and evolution of U.S. information privacy and security law, from constitutional law to common law tort and contract principles as well as modern-day legislative and regulatory privacy and security frameworks. Addresses the latter in the context of recent controversies such as retail data breaches, social media, and domestic surveillance. -
LAW 6239 - Civil Rights Practicum: Police Misconduct Litigation
Credits: 2
Includes simulations where students represent hypothetical clients from actual civil rights cases that focus on police misconduct. Analyzes videos of police actions and recent civil rights cases highlighted in the national media (e.g., Ferguson, Baltimore, and the Waco biker shootout) to determine whether there was an abuse of force. Helps students develop lawyering skills such as client and witness interviewing, evaluation of damages, fact investigation and analysis, negotiation, and trial advocacy. -
LAW 6240 - Copyright
Credits: 2
A detailed study of the 1976 Copyright Act as well as other means of obtaining legal protection for literary, musical, and artistic works, including unfair competition, tort, and implied contract. -
LAW 6241 - Election Law
Credits: 2
Examines the laws that govern the political process in the United States. Topics include the right to vote, political representation, election administration, political parties, ballot initiatives, and campaign finance, with some coverage of tax issues, administrative and judicial enforcement, and ethics law. The goal of the course is to provide students with a solid foundation in the basic principles of election law in this country. -
LAW 6242 - Consumer Law
Credits: 2
A study of state and federal regulation of credit and noncredit consumer transactions. Special attention will be paid to state and federal legislation regarding unfair and deceptive trade practices embodied in the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Other areas of study include the federal Truth-in-Lending, Fair Credit Reporting, Equal Credit Opportunity, and Fair Debt Collection Acts, state and federal warranty law, as well as contractual and procedural devices designed to facilitate collection. Includes study of traditional private and public remedies and the means of achieving them as well as special problems and issues arising in connection with resolving consumer disputes in the world of e-commerce. -
LAW 6243 - Trademarks
Credits: 2
This course teaches the essentials of U.S. trademark law including what constitutes a protectable trademark, trade dress marks and issues of distinctiveness and functionality, how trademark rights are acquired, how they are enforced in both infringement and dilution actions, and the remedies that are available, both legal and equitable. In addition, the course will cover the federal trademark registration process and the essential steps for filing an application and obtaining a registration. -
LAW 6244 - Trade Secrets and Business Torts
Credits: 2
Are these “secrets,” and if so, whose are they? What separates aggressive free enterprise from unfair competition? We explore in detail the use and protection of “ideas and information” in 21st-century business, particularly the law of trade secrets and confidential information. We also explore the boundary between fair and unfair competition (such as actions for tortious interference, defamation and commercial disparagement, false advertising, common law misappropriation, and conspiracy), and practice under the most prominent trade regulation statutes (such as Section 43(a) of the Lanham Act, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and other “Cybertort” statutes, RICO, the Anti-SLAPP Act, civil theft and commercial bribery acts, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and the Federal Trade Commission Act). Issues related to data use, contests, cause-related marketing, hidden endorsements, techniques for ethical investigations, and remedies may be included. No technical background is required. -
LAW 6245 - Patent Clinic Deputy
Credits: 2
Includes assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 6218 or LAW 6337 . -
LAW 6246 - Crimes Against Women Clinic Deputy
Credits: 2
Includes assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 7642 -
LAW 6247 - Family Law Clinic Deputy
Credits: 2
Includes assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 7643 Family Law Clinic. -
LAW 6249 - Immigration Practice and Advocacy
Credits: 2
Focuses on the “nuts and bolts” of the immigration litigation process, including proper courtroom practices, strategy, and case presentation. Taught with an emphasis on participation, development of advocacy skills in the immigration hearing process, and on obtaining a working knowledge of the procedural rules governing the immigration litigation process as well as relevant ethical standards. Immigration Law is not a prerequisite, but completion or concurrent enrollment in Immigration Law is recommended. -
LAW 6250 - Advanced Criminal Law
Credits: 2
A general writing course that examines hot topics in the criminal justice system such as excessive force and police misconduct, mental health, mass incarceration, and inadequate funding for defense counsel. Topics vary by term and may include recent and recurrent questions in criminal law and criminal procedure. Students write reflection papers on the readings and work in teams to develop concrete solutions to pressing criminal justice problems. -
LAW 6251 - LGBT Rights and the Law
Credits: 2
Covers the main legal and public policy issues affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in the U.S., including the history of the nation’s treatment of LGBT people. Addresses the criminalization and decriminalization of same-sex sexual intimacy, the military’s treatment of LGBT people, public and private employment discrimination, discrimination in public accommodations and housing, religious exemptions from LGBT antidiscrimination law, rights of speech and association for those supporting or opposing LGBT-rights initiatives, parenting by LGBT people, and the controversy over same-sex marriage. Readings include important statutory and constitutional decisions affecting LGBT rights, scholarly writing about LGBT issues, and theoretical discussions of sexuality and sexual identity. Considers a variety of perspectives, including the views of those supporting LGBT rights and those with religious and natural law views that are more traditional. Also addresses the intracommunity debate among LGBT rights supporters on matters like same-sex marriage and the need for antidiscrimination laws. Prerequisites: LAW 6222 - Constitutional Law I , LAW 8311 - Constitutional Law II . -
LAW 6252 - Estate Planning and Practice
Credits: 2
Functional examination of the integration of the federal estate and gift taxes; marital deduction planning and drafting; drafting the bypass trust; desirability of making lifetime interspousal transfers; gifts to minors and other dependents (including the grantor trust rules); techniques of income deflection and estate shrinkage for tax reasons; transferring ownership of life insurance, with emphasis on irrevocable life insurance trusts; and introduction to the generation-skipping tax. Recommended, previously or concurrently: LAW 8395 Wills and Trusts or LAW 6460 /LAW 8360 Income Taxation. -
LAW 6254 - Insurance
Credits: 2
Principles governing the nature of insurance law; the principle of indemnity, including insurable interest, measure of recovery, and multiple claims for indemnity (subrogation and other insurance); persons and interests protected; risks transferred, including nature of loss and its causes, warranties, representations, and concealment; limits and duration of coverage; rights at variance with policy provisions; claims processes; and insurance institutions. -
LAW 6256 - Eminent Domain and Condemnation Litigation in Texas
Credits: 2
Explores the history, procedures, issues, and central legal precedents of eminent domain litigation in Texas; namely, the conflicts that arise between condemnors who are trying to spend as little as possible to acquire private property, while still satisfying the Constitutional requirement to pay just compensation and conversely, the landowners who are trying to maximize their recoveries and obtain what they feel is fair compensation for their loss of private property. -
LAW 6257 - Child Advocacy Clinic Deputy
Credits: 2
Deputies help supervise clinic students preparing client representation, and provide assistance in areas such as fact investigations and analysis, legal research and writing, litigation training, and court appearances. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors; students may not enroll before being selected. -
LAW 6259 - Depositions - Questions Answered and Skills Learned
Credits: 2
This experiential short course on depositions is designed for students who plan to practice litigation, though it will also benefit the transactional lawyer by providing insight into the litigation discovery process. Focuses on the practical aspects of taking, defending, and preparing witnesses for depositions, including depositions of corporate representatives and expert witnesses. Students prepare for, take, and defend depositions using simulated cases. Students also review and comment on depositions of people in well-known cases. -
LAW 6260 - Actual Innocence Clinic Deputy
Credits: 2
Includes assisting in preparing and supervising clinic students in client representation. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors. Students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 6230 or LAW 7401 . -
LAW 6261 - Disability Law
Credits: 2
Covers the dynamic and pervasive statutory and regulatory system that touches every business and a growing number of individuals. Provides a broad overview of the widely varied laws concerning disability to help lawyers identify the challenges their clients may face, and to know where to look for more detailed information about those challenges. -
LAW 6262 - Across the Finish Line: Sentence Reductions for Federal Commutees
Credits: 2
Teaches students how to use effective post-conviction strategies, including mitigation investigation, negotiation, and motion practice, in the context of federal criminal defense. Students interview clients, family members, and brainstorm negotiation tactics. Students then assist counsel in writing judicial motions for formerly life-sentenced drug offenders who received term commutations from President Obama, but whose sentences were not completely excised. Lawyers for the Decarceration Collective have final responsibility for filing client motions in court. -
LAW 6264 - Contracts II
Credits: 2
The history and development of the common law of contract; principles controlling the formation, performance, and termination of contracts, including the basic doctrines of offer and acceptance, consideration, conditions, material breach, damages, and statute of frauds; and statutory variances from the common law, with particular attention to Uniform Commercial Code sections. -
LAW 6267 - Principles of Accounting and Finance for Lawyers
Credits: 2
Introduces key accounting and financial principles needed to effectively counsel and represent clients. Students learn to read, understand, and discuss basic accounting statements and basic financial asset valuation principles and methodologies. Also, basic financial instruments and their normal use in major capital markets. -
LAW 6271 - Payment Systems
Credits: 2
Introduces students to commercial paper and concentrates on legal problems that arise with negotiable instruments. Includes some coverage of consumer credit cards, bank-based electronic funds transfers (including debit and ACH), e-payments (such as Paypal), and commercial payments (wire transfers and letters of credit), but not in great detail. Teaches students to recognize and research payment problems as they arise. -
LAW 6275 - Franchising and Distribution Law
Credits: 2
There is a growing recognition and respect for franchising and product distribution domestically and around the world. Franchising had its start in the U.S. around the time of the Civil War, but its growth has been explosive during the last 10 years. Franchising no longer concerns only restaurants and lodging but has expanded to areas such as telecom and automotive. The course provides an overview of the law of franchising and product distribution, both domestically and internationally. -
LAW 6276 - International Environmental Law
Credits: 2
A study of the transnational law concerning environmental protection and the application of such laws to issues facing governments and businesses worldwide. Includes study of major international agreements addressing environmental issues utilizing a problem-oriented approach. -
LAW 6278 - Employment Law
Credits: 2
Legal regulation of work and the workplace in a nonunion environment. The course covers the expansion of employee rights against unjust dismissal; invasion of privacy and defamation; and government regulation of the workplace in areas of health and safety, wages, hours, and benefits. Also, briefly surveys employment discrimination law. -
LAW 6279 - Products Liability
Credits: 2
Covers the concept of recovery for injuries caused by products, the problems associated with hazard identification, and the process of evaluation of risk. Surveys civil actions for harm resulting from defective and dangerous products. Also, government regulation on dangerous and defective products, and current and pending legislation dealing with injuries and remedies in specific areas. -
LAW 6280 - Patent Law
Credits: 2
Introduces patent and trade secret law for the protection of inventions, technical know-how, and other proprietary intellectual property. Includes procedures and approaches to protecting high technology such as computer software, integrated circuitry, and genetic engineering. Also, the law and procedure of developing the rights, as well as licensing and litigation aspects. Trademark law is briefly covered. A technical background is not a prerequisite for the course. -
LAW 6284 - Patent Prosecution
Credits: 2
Substantive and procedural aspects of patent prosecution before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Practical exercises in prosecution practice, such as claim drafting, preparation of amendments, and other prosecution proceedings. Additional prosecution subjects, including dealing with inventors, developing invention disclosures, and preparing patent applications. Prerequisite: LAW 6280 /LAW 6383 Patent Law. -
LAW 6288 - Regulation of Securities and Commodities Markets
Credits: 2
A study of the securities laws as they relate to the securities industry itself. Focuses on the roles of broker-dealers, investment advisers, and stock exchanges within the scheme of self-regulation under federal law, and on activities of underwriters and specialists. Problems addressed include broker-dealer duties and liabilities to customers, market manipulation, price stabilization, margin regulations, and competition in the industry. Paper or examination. Prerequisite: LAW 6420 Business Enterprise. -
LAW 6293 - State and Local Tax
Credits: 2
Selected problems in state and local taxation of individuals and corporations, with particular reference to property, sales, and income taxes. Problems of constitutional authority, intergovernmental conflict and cooperation, economic impact, and administrative review processes. -
LAW 6299 - Federal Taxpayers Clinic Deputy
Credits: 2
Deputies help supervise clinic students preparing client representation, and provide assistance in areas such as fact investigations and analysis, legal research and writing, litigation training, and court appearances. Deputies are selected by the clinic instructors; students may not enroll before being selected. Prerequisite: LAW 7443 Federal Taxpayers Clinic. -
LAW 6300 - SMU Law Review Association
Credits: 3
Maximum of 5 credit hours. Preparation of comments on topics of current interest, notes on cases of significance, and editorial work incident to publication of the “SMU Law Review” and the “Journal of Air Law and Commerce.” Students must be selected for participation before they may enroll. -
LAW 6304 - Administrative Law
Credits: 3
A focus on legislative authority and administrative agencies with special emphasis on administrative process and judicial review. -
LAW 6305 - Election Law
Credits: 3
Examines the laws that govern the political process in the United States. Topics include the right to vote, political representation, election administration, political parties, ballot initiatives, and campaign finance, with some coverage of tax issues, administrative and judicial enforcement, and ethics law. The goal of the course is to provide students with a solid foundation in the basic principles of election law in this country. -
LAW 6307 - International Humanitarian Law/Law of Armed Conflict
Credits: 3
The essential concepts of international humanitarian law (also known as the law of armed conflict) as derived from international treaty law, customary law, and the experience of history, with a focus on the law applicable to today’s conflicts, whether internal, transnational, or international or whether involving armed opposition groups or the armed forces of nation-states. Students explore the law of armed conflict by surveying its history and sources and by examining its principles and application. The course covers specific areas of interest such as the obligations and protections afforded combatants and noncombatants, permissible means and methods of warfare, the law of occupation and neutrality, the definition and prosecution of war crimes, and the implementation of the law of war in U.S. domestic law and policy. -
LAW 6308 - Advanced Family Law Seminar
Credits: 3
Edited writing seminar that covers selected family law topics in greater depth. The topics may vary by term and may include international and comparative family law, adoption, assisted reproduction technology, and domestic violence. Students are required to write a paper on a family law topic within the covered material. Prerequisite: LAW 6347 Family Law, LAW 6495 Trusts and Estates, or LAW 8302 Children and the Law. -
LAW 6309 - Constitutional Criminal Procedure: Investigation
Credits: 3
Examines constitutional issues (e.g., search and seizure, interrogation, identification, the exclusionary rule, and the fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine) that may arise in the pretrial stage of a criminal case. Students taking this course may not take LAW 6320 Constitutional Criminal Procedure: Survey. -
LAW 6310 - Transnational Law
Credits: 3
An introduction to the international legal order as it presents itself to the legal practitioner at the beginning of the 21st century. Drawing on elements of public international law, private international law, and comparative law, the course lays the foundation for more specialized courses in these traditional disciplines. -
LAW 6311 - Alternative Dispute Resolution
Credits: 3
An examination and analysis of materials and skills used in dispute resolution other than litigation. Emphasizes the theory and practice of negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and mini-trials, with examples and problem simulations drawn from various fields of law. -
LAW 6313 - International Petroleum Transactions
Credits: 3
A survey of basic principles and contracts used internationally in petroleum exploration and production operations. Topics include concessions, production-sharing contracts, participation agreements, and technical agreements such as study and bidding agreements, confidentiality agreements, and dispute resolution agreements. Focuses on fundamental principles and current issues, and explores drafting solutions and alternative structures. -
LAW 6315 - Advanced Criminal Law
Credits: 3
An edited writing seminar that covers selected criminal law topics in greater depth. Topics vary by term and student interest, and may include recent and recurrent questions in comparative criminal law, professional responsibility in criminal law practice, and evidence in criminal law practice. Students write up to four papers on the same or different topics to fulfill the edited writing requirement. Prerequisite: LAW 8341 Criminal Law. -
LAW 6316 - Disability Law
Credits: 3
Covers the dynamic and pervasive statutory and regulatory system that touches every business and a growing number of individuals. Provides a broad overview of the widely varied laws concerning disability to help lawyers identify the challenges their clients may face, and to know where to look for more detailed information about those challenges. -
LAW 6318 - Banking Law and Regulation: Domestic and International
Credits: 3
Often conducted as a writing seminar. Introduces the federal laws governing commercial banking activities, with primary emphasis on the regulation (and deregulation) of national banks and related policy considerations. Lecture topics vary from year to year but generally include key domestic, regional, and international issues with respect to banking, the banking industry, and the overall financial services industry. Uses interdisciplinary subject matter in economics, finance, and business, and may use comparisons to regulation of other financial institutions. When taught as a regular course, assessment may be by examination and/or paper or series of papers satisfying the writing unit requirement. When taught as a third-year writing seminar, course structure and assessment are consistent with other LAW courses described as writing seminars.
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