Bill of Rights (Finkelstein)
Faculty
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| Claire Finkelstein Algernon Biddle Professor of Law and Professor of Philosophy; Director, Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law cfinkels@law.upenn.edu |
Additional Information
Skills Training
Expository Writing
Grading
80% Exam,
20% Other (Class participation will count for 20% of the grade, which includes contributing to the Discussion Board and to class discussions.)
Exam
Multiple Choice,
Essay,
,
(Student notes compiled personally by the student or in conjunction with a study group may be brought into the exam room. Exam software must be used to screen out access to the internet.)
With Permission of Instructor
Class meets in person.
Course Continuity
Students are encouraged to stay home if you are ill or experience flu-like symptoms. If you miss a class for any reason, it is still your responsibility to make up the work missed.
I offer the following to students who miss class due to illness:
- Class sessions are regularly recorded. If you are absent due to illness or some other unavoidable circumstance, email me and I can send you an email with instructions for accessing the recording for the class session(s) you missed.
Meeting Times/Location
MW 3:00PM - 4:20PM
Tanenbaum Hall 253
Category
Upper-Level
Credits
3.0
This course will consist in a systematic exploration of the first ten Amendments to the United States Constitution, first set out in a separate document by James Madison known as The Bill of Rights at the time of the founding. Major legal, political and moral battles have been fought over a number of the provisions of the Bill of Rights. The First Amendment alone contains five important rights within it: the free exercise of religion; freedom of speech; freedom of the press; freedom to peaceably assemble; and freedom to petition the Government. Almost all of the First Amendment rights have been the subject of intense debates, in courtrooms, in the halls of Congress, and among armies of scholars and commentators whose understanding of the doctrines continues to change over time. Major battles have been fought over many of the other amendments, such as the Fourth Amendment Prohibition on "unreasonable search and seizures;" the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination rule, as well as the federal due process requirement; the Sixth Amendment right to a trial by jury; the Eighth Amendment prohibition on Cruel and Unusual Punishment; and of course the Second Amendment guarantee of the "right to bear arms." .
The course will explore these critical debates over the scope of individual rights as they occurred at the founding as well as at various points in US. history. We will read the major federal court decisions interpreting each of the provisions of the Bill of Rights, as well as explore some of the secondary literature these court battles spawned. At each stage in the evolving interpretation of the various amendments, debates about the scope of individual rights has been coupled with parallel debates about the appropriate role of Article III courts in enforcing such individual rights.
We will begin by examining a handful of historial sources to understand the intent of the framers in proposing the inclusion of the Bill of Rights within the U.S. Constitution. The debates between the Federalists and the Antifederalists will prove instructive about the major fault lines in the history of individual rights in the United States. The Antifederalists favored the inclusion of a bill of rights in Constitution as a way of limiting the power of the federal government. They also wanted power to reside significantly in the states and saw both individuals and states as under threat from the newly formed centralized government, particularly from the executive branch. The early debates about the Bill of Rights will prove instructive for current day politics surrounding individual rights and the question whether a strong central government works in favor of or against the protection of individuals in society.
Students are expected to write an in-class final exam. Students may write a final paper in lieu of the exam with permission from the instructor. This course may be used to meet the senior writing requirement with permission of the instructor.
Constitutional Law Learning outcomes: Demonstrate a core understanding of constitutional law; Perform legal analysis in the context of constitutional law; Communicate effectively on topics related to constitutional law; Demonstrate an understanding of constitutional law affects other areas of law.
Courts and the Judicial System Learning outcomes: Demonstrate a core understanding of both substantive and procedural issues in the operation of our legal system; Perform legal analysis in the context of procedural issues and the judicial process; Communicate effectively on topics related to procedure and the judicial process; Demonstrate an understanding of how procedural issues and the judicial process affect all other area of our legal system.
Perspectives on the Law Learning outcomes: Demonstrate an understanding of how the law affects, and is affected by, the individual course topic; Perform legal analysis in the context of the individual course topic; Communicate effectively on the legal and other aspects of the individual course topic; Demonstrate the ability to use other disciplines to analyze legal issues relevant to the individual course topic, including economics, philosophy, and sociology, as appropriate.
Textbooks
"The Bill of Rights: Creation and Reconstruction" by Akhil Reed Amar |