Course Description
Designed to introduce foreign lawyers to the basic principles of American legal writing and American legal research. Assignments include writing exercises, research assignments, and legal memoranda. Students receive extensive guidance and attend one-on- one conferences on their work.
Athena Title
LLM Legal Research and Writing
Semester Course Offered
Offered fall
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
Students will be able to: • Understand the United States legal system and lawyers’ roles in that system • Read, understand, and use case and statutory law to construct legal arguments • Write clear, concise, and effective legal memoranda • Understand the United States legal system and lawyers’ roles in that system • Conduct legal research using both print and electronic resources
Topical Outline
I. United States legal system a. Structure, components, and functioning b. Sources of federal and state law c. Concept of stare decisis II. Construct effective legal arguments using both case and statute law a. Brief cases b. Synthesize multiple case holdings c. Theories of legislative interpretation d. Relationship between cases and statutes III. Legal citation a. Bluebook b. Court rules IV. Legal research a. Find and retrieve legal texts in both print and electronic format b. Build a research plan c. Develop efficient skills in basic legal databases (Bloomberg Law, Lexis, and Westlaw) V. Legal memoranda a. Organization and structure b. Effective communication