1/12/01

Lawyering Skills I
Section A--Professor David E. Sorkin
Spring 2001

SYLLABUS

Overview

This course is designed to teach entering law students to research and analyze legal problems; to discern issues, relevant facts, and the contentions of both sides of a legal controversy; and to write the product of their efforts in an objective memorandum format.

You will prepare four office memoranda in this course. The first one, and a rewrite of that memorandum, will be based upon a packet of research provided to you. You will also learn about the basic materials used in legal research, including court decisions, statutes, and commentary sources. For the last two memoranda, you will complete the necessary research on your own in the law library.

The web site for this course is located at www.lawyeringskills.com.

Instructor

David E. Sorkin, Assistant Professor of Law
Office: 321 South Plymouth Court (CBA Building), room 1607
Telephone: (312) 987-2387
E-mail: david@sork.com
Office hours: Thursdays 12:00-2:00 pm

Textbooks

Required texts: There are three required textbooks for the course: Helene S. Shapo et al., Writing and Analysis in the Law (4th ed., Foundation Press 1999); Christina L. Kunz et al., The Process of Legal Research (5th ed., Aspen L. & Bus. 2000); and Association of Legal Writing Directors & Darby Dickerson, ALWD Citation Manual (Aspen L. & Bus. 2000).

Recommended texts: Students may also wish to obtain one or more of these supplemental texts: Richard C. Wydick, Plain English for Lawyers (Carolina Academic Press, 4th ed. 1998); Black's Law Dictionary or a comparable legal dictionary; a general dictionary, such as Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary; a general guide to grammar and usage, such as Barron's Pocket Guide to Correct Grammar; and possibly a legal usage dictionary (either A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage or Dictionary of American Legal Usage).

The required texts and most of the recommended texts are available in the law school bookstore.

Course Policies

Attendance: Attendance at and preparation for each class meeting is required and expected. You will not receive credit for the course if you are absent from more than 25% of the scheduled class meetings. Students will be held responsible for all material covered or handed out in class and all announcements made during class, whether or not an absence is excused.

Late papers: Graded assignments must be typed, double spaced, paginated, and stapled, and are to be submitted at the beginning of class on the due date. Late papers will be penalized by a deduction of one half grade for each 24 hours or portion thereof that a paper is late. Computer and copier problems will not be accepted as an excuse for late papers. Graded papers will normally be handed back two weeks after the due date, and papers therefore will not be accepted after that date. In other words, if you do not submit a graded assignment within two weeks after the due date, you will not be able to pass the course.

Ungraded assignments: Several ungraded research and citation exercises will be assigned, in addition to the graded written memorandum assignments. Students must complete all of these assignments in order to pass the course.

Plagiarism: When you submit an assignment in this course, you are representing that it is your own work. Plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty are viewed as serious offenses at the law school, and will not be tolerated in this class. The Lawyering Skills faculty's plagiarism policy will be distributed in class.

Online research: The research component of this course focuses on conventional methods of legal research, and students therefore may not conduct research using Lexis, Westlaw, or other online research tools for the research and writing assignments in this course.

Grading

The course grade will be determined based upon the four written memorandum assignments. The assignments will be weighted according to the following table, then the law school's curve will be applied to determine the course grade.

First memorandum . . . . . . . . . . .	10%
Rewrite of first memorandum . . .	20%
Second memorandum . . . . . . . .	30%
Third memorandum . . . . . . . . . .	40%

I anticipate assigning relatively low grades for the graded assignments, and then curving the weighted averages upward as necessary to fit the school's grading curve. However, it is possible that the curve will require a downward adjustment from the weighted average for some students.

Conferences

I normally will be available to assist students during office hours on a walk-in basis rather than by requiring an appointment. At certain times during the semester, however, I will ask you to sign up for individual tutorial conferences. I consider these conferences important, and they are a required part of this class. I hold them to provide you with individual feedback on your writing assignments in addition to my written comments, to work with you on specific problems with writing and legal analysis, and to help you learn what you can do to improve your performance on future assignments. These conferences are not intended to serve as a forum for challenging or arguing about grades. If you believe a grade is erroneous, please let me know in writing rather than during a tutorial conference.

Semester Schedule

Monday, January 15: Read chapters 1 and 2 in Writing and Analysis in the Law. The first memorandum assignment will be distributed (due February 5).

Thursday, January 18: Prepare a written case brief of Alcorn v. Anbro Engineering, Inc. (in the memorandum assignment packet) to discuss in class.

Monday, January 22: Read chapters 4 and 7 and appendices C and D in Writing and Analysis in the Law. Prepare an outline of the issues in the memorandum assignment.

Thursday, January 25: Read chapters 5 and 6 in Writing and Analysis in the Law.

Monday, January 29: Read chapters 8 and 10 and Appendix A in Writing and Analysis in the Law.

Thursday, February 1: Read chapter 1 in The Process of Legal Research, and part 1 (pages 1-12) in the ALWD Citation Manual.

Monday, February 5: FIRST MEMORANDUM ASSIGNMENT DUE.

Thursday, February 8: Library tour.

Monday, February 12: Read chapters 2 and 3 in The Process of Legal Research. The second memorandum assignment will be distributed (due April 2).

Thursday, February 15: Read chapters 4 through 9 in The Process of Legal Research, and chapter 12 in Writing and Analysis in the Law.

Monday, February 19: FIRST RESEARCH/CITATION ASSIGNMENT DUE. Read chapter 9 in Writing and Analysis in the Law. The first memorandum assignment will be handed back.

Thursday, February 22: Tutorial conferences.

Monday, February 26: SECOND RESEARCH/CITATION ASSIGNMENT DUE.

Thursday, March 1: Tutorial conferences.

Monday, March 5: REWRITE OF FIRST MEMORANDUM ASSIGNMENT DUE.

Thursday, March 8: Read chapter 10 in The Process of Legal Research.

[SPRING VACATION--March 12-18]

Monday, March 19: Read chapter 11 in The Process of Legal Research.

Thursday, March 22: THIRD RESEARCH/CITATION ASSIGNMENT DUE.

Monday, March 26: Read chapter 3 in Writing and Analysis in the Law, and chapter 12 in The Process of Legal Research. The rewrite assignment will be handed back.

Thursday, March 29: Tutorial conferences.

Monday, April 2: SECOND MEMORANDUM ASSIGNMENT DUE. The third memorandum assignment will be distributed (due April 30).

Thursday, April 5: Read chapter 19 in The Process of Legal Research.

Monday, April 9: No assignment.

Thursday, April 12: FOURTH RESEARCH/CITATION ASSIGNMENT DUE.

Monday, April 16: The second memorandum assignment will be handed back.

Thursday, April 19: Read chapter 11 in Writing and Analysis in the Law.

Monday, April 23: Tutorial conferences.

Thursday, April 26: Tutorial conferences.

Monday, April 30: THIRD MEMORANDUM ASSIGNMENT DUE. Last class meeting.