Course Offerings

Examines law regulating distinctions in the employment relationship. The emphasis is on federal statutory law regulating race, sex, religion, national origin, age and disability discrimination in employment.

Employment Law surveys the law of the workplace for the U.S., with an emphasis on those areas which predominate the work of lawyers who represent employees and employers in 21st Century practice. While law school curricula include specific courses on employment discrimination, traditional labor law, workers’ compensation, employee benefits, and wage and hour law, this course will touch on all these areas and, because of their importance to day-to-day practice, emphasize some of them. This course will also introduce important rudiments, including the vast sweep of the employment-at-will doctrine, the bar posed by workers’ compensation and other preemptive provisions, the importance of the U.S. Constitution, and the ascendance of arbitration in contemporary practice. We will then consider negligence theory in employment law and general hiring issues including immigration and testing.

Employment Law surveys the law of the workplace in the U.S., with an emphasis on those areas which predominate the work of lawyers who represent employees and employers in 21st Century practice. This course examines the statutory and common law regulation of the employment relationship; focusing on the employment at-will doctrine, public policy and wrongful discharge, employment-contract issues (including restrictive covenants, arbitration agreements, and employment-specific contract provisions), employment-specific tort claims (negligent hiring and supervision), wage-hours-and-compensation issues, leaves of absences and their interplay with disability laws and policy, and benefits and ERISA.  This survey course includes a practice-oriented classroom and project approach.  Class discussions include how to advise and counsel clients about workplace issues.  In addition, students will work on projects that present hypothetical “client” issues. 

Students will learn about the fundamental elements of entertainment law, including: (a) basics of copyright, trademark, and right of publicity law; (b) how intellectual property rights are transferred and acquired; and, (c) how relationships within the entertainment industry are structured.

This course will introduce students to the foundations of U.S. environmental law, with particular attention to regulatory programs under the National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, and federal “Superfund” (CERCLA), pesticides control (FIFRA), and waste management (RCRA) statutes. The course will highlight environmental justice and the experience of legal practice throughout.

This course will use a case study approach to cover the types and purposes of writing found in an environmental law practice. Students will study and draft a number of the typical documents used in environmental rulemaking, public comments and rulemaking responses, transactional agreements, and environmental litigation. Students will be working from the perspectives of the variety of stakeholders found in environmental law - including property owners, industry, and the general public.

This course examines the various ethical issues that can arise in the context of civil and criminal litigation. Specific areas of coverage include competence, dealing with prospective clients, dealing with victims, pre-filing investigation, pleading and motion practice, discovery, witness interviews and preparation, negotiation and settlement, technological challenges, and duties as "officers of the court." Final grades will be based on the following: (1) assignments, (2) class participation, and (3) take-home final examination.  Law and Ethics of Lawyering is a prerequisite for this course.

Covers rules governing admission and exclusion of testimony, documents, exhibits, expert proof and experiments in criminal and civil cases. Also concerned with mechanics of proof, proper form of objections, order of proof, and burden of proof in criminal and civil trials. The subjects of hearsay, relevancy, character evidence and the law of witness impeachment and cross-examination are explored in detail.

Significant aspects of family law, including marriage, divorce, separation, custody, and non-traditional families.

This course will focus on the structure, jurisdiction, and powers of federal courts. Coverage will include: development of the federal court system; selection of judges; the judicial power under Article III; justiciability and the case-or-controversy requirement (standing, ripeness, mootness, political questions); the Erie doctrine; federal common law; challenges to jurisdiction; federal question jurisdiction; diversity jurisdiction; venue and transfer; special problems of removal jurisdiction.

We will examination the history and development of the writ of habeas corpus in the courts of the United States. Habeas corpus, known as the Great Writ, traces its history from the Magna Carta through the current term in the Supreme Court. It is the tool by which an imprisoned person petitions a court to review the lawfulness of his custody and to order his release. The building blocks of the course include constitutional law, criminal procedure, Congressional statutes, and Supreme Court precedents. We will learn the nuts and bolts of modern federal habeas practice by studying the tales of people imprisoned by English kings, American presidents, state court juries, and federal judges. Through the lens of habeas corpus, we will also confront questions central to today’s world, including race, immigration, crime-and-punishment, the death penalty, and war.

Introduction to policy and practice of federal income taxation of individuals, including determination of gross income, allowance of deductions and credits, sales and dispositions of property, capital gains and losses, and problems of attribution of income.

The First Amendment Clinic defends and advances the rights of free speech, press, assembly and petition via direct client representation and advocacy, particularly on behalf of individuals or organizations who may not otherwise have access to counsel with First Amendment expertise. The Clinic also serves as an educational resource for organizations, journalists, students, government employees, and members of the public regarding issues of free expression, open access, and protection of newsgathering and reporting. The clinic will provide law students with the opportunity to learn substantive areas of First Amendment law and develop concrete lawyering skills in the context of Constitutional litigation. Such skills may include any combination of: client interviewing, case evaluation and research, negotiating with opposing parties, drafting pleadings and discovery requests, taking and defending depositions, participating in discovery and settlement conferences, identifying and coordinating with experts, motion practice, and oral advocacy. In addition, students in the Clinic will have the opportunity to increase public awareness and understanding of the First Amendment. This may include developing presentations to bring issues of free speech, press, petition, and assembly rights to non-lawyers; drafting writings that contribute to the public debate on matters implicating First Amendment freedoms; and helping to educate public officials and private citizens about the importance of protecting free expression and newsgathering. The weekly seminar component of the clinic provides the opportunity to examine topical legal and legislative developments and debates relating to the rights of free speech, press, petition, and assembly. The seminar also provides students with litigation skills training and will periodically be used to conduct "case rounds," allowing students to discuss and collaboratively problem-solve issues related to their client work. This is a one-semester clinic and is awarded 4 credits (2 graded and 2 pass/fail).

Examines how U.S. law both constrains and is constrained by U.S. foreign relations and the foreign policy-making process. The course considers issues relating to separation of powers, federalism, individual rights, and the influence of international norms on US constitutional development.

An introduction to legal reasoning, fundamental law and policy argumentative tools, the various types of legal institutions, the administrative state, and the interpretation of statutes and the Constitution. Foundational study will lead to legally sophisticated analyses and discussion concerning recently argued or decided Supreme Court cases.

Students earn credit while working full-time at law offices and judicial chambers not within travel distance of Athens.

This course is designed to give the student working familiarity with how a merger or acquisition transaction is negotiated and structured, from inception to post-closing, with a heavy emphasis on how the major deal documents allocate risks between the parties through pricing structure, representations, covenants and conditions. This course will be graded pass/fail.

The specifics of family law in Georgia, including divorce, modification, contempt, and legitimation. Covers the life of a divorce case from initial consultation through final hearing.

A hands-on exploration of Georgia legal research resources. The course will cover primary and secondary sources, advanced searching skills, topical research and cost saving strategies. Students will complete research for simulated client matters: preparing civil and criminal cases for trial, completing a business transaction and representing a client in an administrative hearing.

An advanced course in Civil Procedure. Explores in depth the Georgia Civil Practice Act and Long-Arm Statute, as interpreted by Georgia appellate court decisions, along with selected constitutional and statutory provisions allocating jurisdiction among trial courts, venue, and validity of judgments.

Georgia Trial Court Practice is designed to introduce the fundamental skills of trial practice in Georgia for both civil and criminal practice. Subjects include trial preparation, organization, jury selection, opening statements, direct and cross examinations of witnesses, introducing and handling of exhibits, expert witnesses, closing statements, motions practice, courtroom etiquette, decorum and personal mannerisms. Emphasis will be placed on Georgia trial practice through lectures, demonstration, performance of techniques and procedure through mock trial exercises. Each session includes a classroom instructional component, specific to Georgia court rules and procedure as well as opportunity for student performance integrating doctrine, theory, skills, and legal ethics.

This seminar will focus on the legal and regulatory principles that underpin entities’ handling of personal data. Rather than a survey of various privacy laws, this seminar will rely on the framework, rights, and obligations of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) as a foundational benchmark. While establishing the core legal treatment of data privacy, this seminar will additionally provide insight into the practical application and operational approach to global compliance. At the conclusion of this seminar, you should be materially prepared for the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) Certified Information Privacy Professional - Europe (CIPP/E) certification exam. This class is pass/fail.

In a globalizing world, the range of issues with cross-border implications only expands, from finance to trade, environment to human rights, food safety to sports. This upper-level course in International Law examines how and why different legal regimes have developed to govern these issues and when they succeed or fail.

During the Global Governance Summer School, students will engage with guest speakers and visit sites of historic and contemporary significance. This course will allow students to deepen their understanding of important issues in global governance and the context in which international legal institutions function. Students will critically reflect on these experiences through reflective papers and group projects.

Examination of selected topics in global governance. Introduces actors and legal institutions that are involved in addressing issues of transnational or global significance and critically evaluates the role of various actors, legal regimes, and institutions in responding to those issues. The particular focus of the Global Governance Summer School will vary from year to year based on the Supervising Faculty Member’s area of expertise.