EXP: Justice By Design (Willis)
Faculty
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| Miguel Willis Innovator in Residence, Future of the Profession Initiative willism1@law.upenn.edu |
Additional Information
Experiential CourseYes
Skills Training
Oral Presentations
Team Projects
Drafting Legal Documents
Expository Writing
Grading
15% Participation,
35% Paper,
50% Other (Final Group Project & Presentation)
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.
- If you are absent due to illness or some other unavoidable circumstance, email me and I can make PowerPoint slides or other class materials available to you.
Meeting Times/Location
W 4:30PM - 6:20PM
Tanenbaum Hall 145
Category
Upper-Level
Credits
2.0
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Justice by Design: Legal Innovation is an interdisciplinary, experiential seminar and practicum that prepares law students to critically analyze—and collaboratively reimagine—the evolving relationship between law, technology, and justice. As algorithms, platforms, and digital infrastructures increasingly shape access to legal rights, distribute accountability, and influence public governance, students explore how these systems can both entrench structural inequality and be transformed into tools for equity and empowerment.
Rooted in critical legal theory, design justice, and the political economy of technology, the course introduces students to analytical frameworks and participatory methods for assessing and intervening in digital systems. Students engage in hands-on learning through case studies, stakeholder interviews, policy simulations, reflective writing, and design sprints. Throughout the semester, they examine core issues including algorithmic bias, surveillance governance, data extraction, and digital redlining—while developing skills in community-centered legal design, ethical reasoning, and collaborative problem-solving.
The course culminates in the Social Justice Hackathon, where students lead interdisciplinary teams to co-create legal empowerment tools, digital justice prototypes, or policy frameworks that are grounded in principles of equity, accessibility, and democratic accountability. This capstone experience reinforces the course’s commitment to “learning by doing” and positions students not only as legal analysts but as ethical designers and institutional changemakers.
By integrating legal education with real-world innovation and community collaboration, Justice by Design equips students with the knowledge, values, and skills necessary to lead transformative change in the legal profession and to build more just and inclusive digital futures.
ELIGIBILITY/PREREQUISITES: There are no formal prerequisites to take this course. Please come with a strong interest in how technology transforms the law, and for any non law students, a willingness to explain concepts from your respective fields to students with different backgrounds.
CONDUCT/EXPECTATION: Attendance is required. The classes will include participation in group exercises where the students will be expected to contribute. Students will treat each other with respect.
OFFICE HOURS: Instructors will be available for regularly scheduled virtual office hours. Students may contact the professors to schedule a Zoom or phone call to discuss the course at any time during the semester.
Skills Learning outcomes: Demonstrate an understanding of the individual course skill; Demonstrate the ability to receive and implement feedback; Demonstrate an understanding of how and when the individual course skill is employed in practice.
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.
Intellectual Property and Technology Law Learning outcomes: Demonstrate a core understanding of intellectual property law; Perform legal analysis in the context of intellectual property law; Communicate effectively on topics related to intellectual property; Demonstrate an understanding of the interconnection between technology and intellectual property, and how they affect other areas of law and society.
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.
Administrative and Regulatory Law Learning outcomes: Demonstrate a core understanding of administrative and regulatory law and the administrative process, including the role of statutory authorization and work of administrative agencies; Perform legal analysis in the context of administrative and regulatory law; Communicate effectively on topics related to administrative and regulatory law; Demonstrate an understanding of the role administrative and regulatory law play in our legal system and in society as a whole.
Professional Responsibility and Ethics 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.
Public Interest Learning outcomes: Demonstrate a core understanding of the varied legal aspects of public interest law; Perform legal analysis in the context of public interest law; Communicate effectively on topics related to public interest law; Demonstrate an understanding of how public interest law is connected to and affected by a wide variety of legal and regulatory structures and doctrines.
Equity and Inclusion Learning outcomes: Demonstrate a core understanding of the varied legal aspects of equity and inclusion; Perform legal analysis in the context of topics related to equity and inclusion; Communicate effectively on the legal aspects of equity and inclusion; Demonstrate an understanding of how equity and inclusion are connected to and affected by a wide variety of legal and regulatory structures and doctrines.