This course explores the practical and substantive aspects of using federal civil litigation to effect systemic change. The course covers the fundamentals of impact litigation, including an examination of the substantive requirements of specific constitutional and federal laws, as well as the unique considerations that arise in such lawsuits. Students also learn to analyze the feasibility of a particular trial in real-life situations. Finally, we will review the historical development of civil rights lawyers, including the work of lawyers that has led to landmark cases in our country`s history, and a discussion of the relationship between lawyers and social movements. This course covers the most important issues in cyberspace law. Students examine the application of traditional legal principles to this technology and examine issues of access regulation, the impact of code architecture on the regulation of behaviour, and legal issues (national and international). This course also covers the fundamentals of e-commerce, including digital certification/verification, UCITA, EDI, and EFI. The focus is on issues of privacy and indecent material on the Internet. Focuses on the role, function and use of tax treaties. Examines general aspects of contracts (policy, legal authority and negotiations), contract interpretation, and a detailed review of the provisions of the U.S. Tax Convention, the OECD Model Tax Convention, the United Nations Model Tax Convention on Double Taxation between Developed and Developing Countries, and certain provisions of applicable U.S. treaties.

Topics include: taxation of capital gains (i.e., interest, dividends and capital gains), taxation of royalties and royalties, treaty shopping; Limitation of performance, permanent establishment; taxation of personal income (i.e. personal services), distribution of income among related parties, non-discrimination against foreigners and recent developments in contracts. Cross-list with and equivalent to TA 350C. (Young Women students who wish to enroll must obtain approval from the program director.) Abstract: This article describes a new concept of legal ontology as well as an ontology development tool, the European Legal Taxonomy Syllabus (ELTS). The tool is used to model the legal terminology developed in the framework of the Uniform Terminology on EU Consumer Protection Law project as an ontology. ELTS is not a formal ontology in the strict sense, i.e. an axiomatic ontology formalized, for example, in descriptive logic. Rather, it is a lightweight ontology, i.e. a knowledge base that stores low-level legal terms linked by low-level semantic relationships and referring to linguistic models designating legal terms in several languages spoken in the European Union (EU).

In other words, ELTS is a multilingual and transnational terminological vocabulary enriched with concepts designated by vocabulary entries, with semantic relationships between different concepts. The choice of such an architecture is based on previous studies of comparative law and is motivated by the need to highlight the differences between national systems within the EU. The comparative literature of the past emphasizes that axiomatic ontologies freeze legal knowledge in an unreal permanence, that is to say, decouple it from legal practice. Much more flexibility is needed to make the knowledge base acceptable to lawyers. ELTS was developed in collaboration with lawyers on the basis of comparative European law. The Ontology Framework is intended to help professionals examine the meaning of national and European legal concepts and their relationship to the transposition of European directives into national law. The structure and user interface of ELTS lends itself to the construction of multilingual and transnational legal ontologies in a bottom-up and collaborative manner, starting with the description of legal terms by legal experts. It also takes into account the interpretation of norms, the dynamic nature of norms and the contextual character of legal concepts, as they are linked to their sources of law (legislation, jurisprudence and doctrine). The primary learning objective of this course is to understand human rights laws and mechanisms related to critical human rights issues in the United States. Key human rights issues are addressed, starting with “What are human rights?” and “Are they enforceable?” We will begin with the historic development of the UN human rights regime and the role of the United States in the creation of fundamental legal documents such as the International Bill of Human Rights. We will examine two types of human rights – traditional civil and political rights and economic and social rights, with concrete examples of rights-based issues in the United States, such as cross-border migration, women`s rights, poverty, and the right to health.

This course counts towards the completion of the upper division writing requirement as an academic writing course. This course examines the law and regulation of energy production, distribution, and use, with an emphasis on legal and policy issues at the intersection of energy law and environmental law. These issues will be examined in the context of the electricity and gas sectors, with particular attention to the legal and administrative framework of utilities and wholesale and retail energy markets. The class provides an introduction to national and national energy policy, comparing the local, regional and global impacts of fossil and renewable energy sources on climate change and the natural environment. Students interested in environmental law, natural resource law, water law, administrative law, and international law should consider this course. This seminar will examine the main legal issues related to women and children in an international context and the relevant responses of international law. Each week, we will address current international issues such as gender discrimination, violence against women, violence against women, religious or traditional practices, including female genital mutilation and forced child marriage, abortion, sex trafficking and prostitution, women in peacebuilding, women`s land and property rights, child labour, child soldiers and other war crimes affecting women and children in hostilities. This article examines the ambition to taxonomize the law and the different methods that a legal taxonomian might use. There are three possibilities. The first is a formal taxonomy that classifies legal documents according to rules of order and clarity.

Formal taxonomy is mostly conventional and has no normative impact on judicial decision-making. The second option is a function-based taxonomy that classifies laws according to their social functions. As a control mechanism, function-based taxonomy may indirectly influence legal decision-making, but does not provide decision-making standards for courts. Its purpose is to assist in the analysis and criticism of the law by providing an overview of legal doctrine. The third option is a reason-based taxonomy that classifies legal rules and decisions according to the moral principles, or “legal principles,” that are supposed to justify them. Such a reason-based taxonomy provides courts with a set of high-level decision-making rules derived from legal data. The goal is to help courts decide new cases and evaluate precedents. A primarily formal taxonomy facilitates legal analysis and communication. A functional taxonomy can help those who enact and enforce laws by providing a focused overview of the field. A reason-based taxonomy may be useful to legislators, but it is not useful when proposed as a guide to resolving disputes. This course provides an introduction to some of the most challenging human rights issues in different countries and the crucial role of democracy in protecting human rights. Throughout the semester, we will examine challenges to the enjoyment of traditional civil and political, economic and social rights in the United States, Hong Kong, India and Tunisia presented through the medium of film.

The content of the human rights film is analysed through a combination of lectures, textbook readings, PowerPoint presentations and group discussions. Topics covered include the history of the human rights regime, human rights laws and mechanisms, categories of human rights and the responsibilities of States to protect human rights. Students are asked to critically examine the factual information presented in each film, conduct individual research on each country, and identify specific rights-based human rights violations. They will continue to apply human rights laws and mechanisms in their legal analysis of any human rights violations. This course is designed to familiarize students with the concepts of international conflict law, their classifications, conduct during hostilities, applicable international legal instruments and the application of laws for the protection of persons. Through case studies, students are expected to examine the differences between human rights law and humanitarian law, the prosecution of violations in international forums, the role of third parties, and the role of the International Criminal Court.