Political Economy of Civil Litigation (Burbank)
Faculty
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| Stephen B. Burbank David Berger Professor for the Administration of Justice, Emeritus sburbank@law.upenn.edu |
Additional Information
Skills Training
Oral Presentations
Expository Writing
Other Professional Skills: Responding to constructive criticism of written work.
Grading
30% Participation,
70% Paper
Yes
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:
- When you are better, please make an appointment to meet with me and I will review/answer questions about what you missed.
Meeting Times/Location
T 1:00PM - 2:59PM
Silverman Hall 270
Category
Seminar
Credits
3.0
This seminar will undertake an in-depth examination of the roles of law, institutions, politics, and social or historical context in shaping power relations in civil litigation. It will focus in particular on attorney's fees, class actions, sanctions and other means of enabling or disabling private lawsuits. The seminar will be divided into two segments. During the first segment (ca. 11 weeks), we will discuss readings on a variety of topics that are salient to litigation finance and other means to allocate power in private litigation. For a few of these sessions we may be joined by scholars (or lawyers) who are expert in the particular area. During the second segment (ca. 3 weeks), students will present their works in progress for discussion by the group as a whole. Students will prepare their final papers in light of comments received from the instructor and at the seminar session. This schedule will require students to select a paper topic early in the semester. I will reserve a substantial block of time for student conferences to discuss possible paper topics. The syllabus for the seminar should help students identify areas of the litigation landscape in which they are particularly interested, and either on their own or through discussion at the conference, they should be able to identify an interesting and timely topic. Students will be evaluated on two criteria: their seminar papers and the quality of their participation in class.
Class Requirements Active and consistent participation by all students is of great importance in this seminar. Therefore, I have set a few ground rules. First, attendance is mandatory every week. I will view excuses for absence skeptically. Most important, I ask that you make every possible effort to schedule job interviews so as not to conflict with class. Although I will excuse absences that are unavoidable or truly necessary, my baseline expectation will be to have full attendance at every meeting. Second, for the last few sessions drafts will be due no later than noon on Friday of the week before the class in which they are to be discussed. Failure to meet this deadline would create problems for the instructor and other students, all of whom need to read the drafts in advance of their presentation.
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.
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.