Law Studies
Coordinator: Omar Swartz (MHMSS), JD, Duke University; PhD, Purdue University
Telephone: 303-315-3567
E-mail: Omar.Swartz@ucdenver.edu
Overview
The law studies minor at CU Denver is an interdisciplinary course of studies intended to help students become intelligent and critical scholars of legal and political discourse. While the minor may be useful for students contemplating law school, it is also intended to appeal to a wider group interested in issues relating to law and society and careers in public policy-related fields. The minor is designed to achieve the following three interrelated goals:
- to introduce students to the major areas of law that affect life in the United States and important legal issues that influence current events;
- to enable students to become familiar and fluent with a legal vocabulary and legal reasoning; and
- to better prepare students with the analytical and conceptual tools to be critical citizens in our constitutional democracy.
In addition to these goals, students who complete the minor with the intention of attending law school may find themselves more prepared than they otherwise would be for the often mystifying and rigorous first year of law school. To help these students, the program contains an advising component which assists students who are contemplating law school to provide them with a realistic appraisal of law school and of the legal profession. The counselors will aid students with the law school application process.
Click here for more information about the Minor in Law Studies.
Social Sciences (SSCI)
SSCI 3939 - Internship (1-12 Credits)
Designed experiences involving application of specific, relevant concepts and skills in supervised employment situations. Prereq: Students must have junior standing and at least a 2.75 GPA and must work with Experiential Learning Center advising to complete a course contract and gain approval. Term offered: fall, spring, summer. Repeatable. Max hours: 12 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 12.
Prereq: Junior standing or higher and at least a 2.75 cumulative GPA
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
SSCI 4025 - Legal Advocacy/Engagement (3 Credits)
This course is an introduction to litigation practice skills in the context of cutting-edge litigation to create social change. Students will participate in mock litigation activities including conducting legal research, writing briefs, deposing witnesses, and making oral argument. The course will assist students in understanding basic legal advocacy while exploring the ways in which the legal system facilitates or stymies social change. The class is designed to be highly interactive, with a strong emphasis on learningby-doing and collaborative problem-solving. It is intended for students with a strong interest in attending law school who are committed to preparing themselves for that experience by working with material that maybe initially unfamiliar or daunting. If students undertake that challenge, they can expect to leave the class better prepared for law school and knowledgeable about how law is used to achieve social change. Note: Law Studies students should take this course as one of the last courses for the minor. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
SSCI 4050 - Special Topics in Law Studies (3-6 Credits)
These topics courses are concerned with specialized aspects of the study of law within the social sciences from various theoretical and research perspectives. These courses are interdisciplinary and serve as a forum for discussion specific to students interested in law studies. Term offered: fall, spring. Repeatable. Max hours: 6 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 6.
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring.
SSCI 4060 - Topics in Law Studies: Constitutional Thought (3-6 Credits)
These topics courses are concerned with specialized aspects of the study of constitutional thought as related to law studies. These courses are interdisciplinary and serve as a forum for discussion specific to students interested in law studies. Term offered: fall, spring. Repeatable. Max hours: 6 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 6.
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring.
SSCI 4070 - Topics in Law Studies: Social Context of Law (3-6 Credits)
These topics courses are concerned with specialized aspects of the study of the social context of law. These courses are interdisciplinary and serve as a forum for discussion specific to students interested in law studies. Term offered: fall, spring. Repeatable. Max hours: 6 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 6.
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring.
SSCI 4251 - Introduction to Legal Studies (3 Credits)
A survey of the United States legal system, including lawmaking powers, jurisdiction, court procedures, professional ethics and major principles of business law, contracts, estates and probate, family law, property and torts. Cross-listed with HUMN 4251/HUMN 5251/SSCI 5251. Term offered: fall. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Typically Offered: Fall.
SSCI 4325 - First Amendment: Theory and Context (3 Credits)
First Amendment jurisprudence including free speech/responsibility, sedition/seditious libel/dissent, prior restraints, time/place/manner restrictions, hate/intimidating speech, defamation, privacy/security tensions, intellectual property/public good, advertising, corporate speech, sexual expression, and public status of religion. Cross-listed with HUMN 4325, HUMN 5325, SSCI 5325, PSCI 4325 and PSCI 5325. Term offered: spring. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Typically Offered: Spring.
SSCI 4770 - Viewing Empire: The Art of Imperial and Colonial Propaganda (3 Credits)
Western empires disseminate political, social, economic & cultural practices through complex interplay of cultural practices. Visual production is a complex site for meaning making within imperialism. Examines how visual discourses operated to create meaning for audiences, through focus on postcolonial critique. Cross-listed with HUMN 4770, HUMN 5770, IDST 5770, IDST 4770, SSCI 5770, WGST 5770, WGST 4770, SJUS 4770, SJUS 5770. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring.
SSCI 4840 - Independent Study (1-3 Credits)
Directed study based on a specific subfield of social sciences. Note: Students must submit a special processing form completely filled out and signed by the student and faculty member, describing the course expectations, assignments and outcomes, to the CLAS undergraduate advising office for approval. Term offered: fall, spring, summer. Repeatable. Max Hours: 6 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 6.
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
SSCI 4880 - Directed Research (1-6 Credits)
Students will engage in original research projects supervised and mentored by faculty. Students must work with faculty prior to registration to develop a proposal for their project and receive permission to take this course. Note: Students must submit a special processing form completely filled out and signed by the student and faculty member, describing the course expectations, assignments and outcomes, to the CLAS undergraduate advising office for approval. Term offered: fall, spring, summer. Repeatable. Max Hours: 6 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 6.
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.