JD Courses

An introduction to accounting and basic business principles for attorneys, including reading annual reports and financial statements, researching the financial structure of corporations and non-profits, and exploring relevant issues such as socially responsible investing.

Provides students with a working knowledge of the general principles of administrative law;  implementation of legislative policy through administrative agencies, including the role of administrative agencies in the governmental process, rulemaking, adjudication, and judicial review of agency actions.

Refines and strenghthens the written and oral advocacy skils acquired in Appellate Advocacy, and prepares students to represent VLS in extramural moot court competitions.  Successful participants will become members of competing teams and/or members of VLS's Moot Court Advisory Board.

This is a rule drafting course.  Students, working the Reporter to the Vermont Supreme Court's Advisory Committees on procedural rules, will draft proposed amendments to sets of Vermont Rules , with explanatory notes. Students will participate in the judicial rulemaking process by orally presenting their drafts to the appropriate Advisory Committee, which will ultimately propose a restyled set of Rules to the Court.

This seminar undertakes an intensive and comprehensive examination of the constitutional, legal, procedural, and public policy issues surrounding a topic in criminal law. Specific topic varies from year to year and is detailed in the class description

This seminar provides an opportunity to explore emerging issues in dispute resolution through research and writing. The goal is to produce a publishable quality article.

Download the 2013 Summer Course Syllabus

This seminar provides students an opportunity to produce a significant written paper based on sophisticated research and thinking about a key area in energy policy and law. Seminar topics include proposals for reducing the economic and environmental costs of meeting energy needs. Efforts to reduce costs through more efficient delivery and end-use are assessed, with specific attention to the statutory, regulatory, and contractual techniques for creating sound incentives.

Provides in-depth exposure to the most useful, efficient strategies and resources for environmental law research, including highly specialized information databases, advanced administrative law research, legislative history, and environmental news/updating services.

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Skills-development course designed to provide students with the analytical, test-taking, writing, and study skills that are critical to students' success on the bar exam and in the practice of law.  The course consists of an intensive substantive and analytical review of major multistate bar exam subjects and of numerous writing and practice assignments.

This seminar focuses on statutory law including legislative history, administrative law, municipal law, and case law as well as secondary sources not covered in the introductory research course. The seminar will review specialized resources for topics such as international law, tax law, and interdisciplinary research. 

Prepares students for legal research in various work settings by teaching advanced "practice oriented" skills as well as exposing students to new resources they are likely to encounter after graduating.  While the course gives students a chance to explore highly specialized databases on Lexis and WestlawNext, the course focuses on cost effective alternatives to Lexis and Westlaw such as FastCase, CaseMaker, BloombergLaw and others.

An exploration of the major programs and regulatory strategies embodied in the Clean Air Act that are used to address conventional air pollution, toxic air pollution, and greenhouse gas pollution. 

This course presents the theory and practice of negotiation, mediation, and arbitration that constitute the foundation of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) through lecture and simulations.  Examines the different theories and approaches to ADR, as well as the wide range of issues that arise in the selection and application of these dispute resolution techniques.

A historical approach to questions about American identity that have arisen regularly in the history of the Constitution.  Are we a single people, or an uneasy gathering of different cultural groups? One republic, or a confederation? What are American values? Is a secular government appropriate, or should the American constitution reflect the spirituality of its people? The laws concerning citizenship and human rights are a record of answers given at different times.

This course addresses the fundamental crisis in which growing energy demands are threatening the buffering capacity of our global atmosphere, while also producing the greatest emissions of most primary pollutants, and the struggle to identify and create the legal elements necessary to promote and ensure solutions.

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A discussion of legal rights for nonhuman animals, the sources and characteristics of fundamental rights, why nonhuman animals are presently denied them, why all humans are presently entitled to them, whether they should be available for nonhumans under the common law and, and what strategies are available for obtaining them.

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An exercise in appellate brief writing and oral argument using a case pending before the United States Supreme Court.  Classes focus on the appellate process, complex research and analysis, preparation of briefs, critical writing skills, and oral argument.

An advanced international human rights law course in which students engage in research on cutting-edge issues in human rights law and policy for non-governmental organizations and inter-governmental organizations under the supervision of the professor. 

Explores the interface of environmental laws and federal bankruptcy statutes, as well as the tension between the goals of bankruptcy and the goals of environmental law, in particular CERCLA. Topics covered include the rights and obligations of debtors and creditors under the Bankruptcy Code, the discharge of environmental debts in bankruptcy, and the abandonment of contaminated property by the bankruptcy trustee.

Survey of income tax issues of corporations, partnerships, S Corporations, limited liability companies, and their owners arising out of the business entity's formation, operation and liquidation. 

This seminar examines capital punishment as a legal process, using interdisciplinary materials and theory, litigation documents including briefs and recordings of oral arguments, and appellate opinions.  The seminar also employs written narratives, movies, and popular cultural images and artifacts to explore this subject matter. 

Examines CERCLA's broad liability and cost recovery provisions, emergency response and cleanup requirements that extend beyond the usual Superfund sites.  Brownfields, natural resources damages, community involvement, recent Supreme Court decisions and statutory amendments will also be addressed.  The course will examine how parties escape or limit  liability through due diligence, defenses,  pollution prevention, settlement, and cost allocation.

Covers the procedural rules governing civil actions in the state and federal courts, from commencement through appeal, including jurisdiction over parties, joinder of parties and claims, contents of pleadings, pretrial motions and discovery, conduct of trial, post-trial motions, res judicata, collateral estoppel, and conflicts between the state and federal judicial systems.

Using PBS video series "Eyes on the Prize" and companion readings, this course examines the civil rights movement that began in the years before Brown v. Board of Education and continued throughout the 1950's and 1960's.  Provides social, cultural, and historical perspectives on the civil rights movement and the legal developments that grew out of that movement.

This course reviews the various statutory and common law claims being tried in climate litigation, the kinds of remedies sought, and the jurisdictional and evidentiary obstacles that must be overcome.

This seminar explores the ways in which tax systems can effect change in the energy consumption behavior of business, industry, and consumers.  The seminar addresses issues of theory, policy, politics, and law and --while focusing on climate change-- provides students with a framework for understanding how and when to use tax measures to address other environmental problems.

Survey of the law relating to payment systems, with a major focus on the checking system and Articles 3 and 4 of the Uniform Commercial Code and applicable federal regulations. Topics include the laws and rules relating to electronic funds transfers, credit cards, debit cards, notes, letters of credit and similar payment devices. Also included are discussions of suretyship law and various credit enhancement devices. 

Explores how different countries within the Western Legal Tradition understand sources of law, the relationship between codes and cases, and constitutional design, including questions of federalism, judicial review and balance of powers.  The course will study selected aspects of legal systems, focusing on France and Germany, with some discussion of "mixed" common/civil law jurisdictions (e.g. Louisiana, South Africa), as well as some aspects of the European Union.

An overview of the tremendous environmental challenges for the 1.3 billion people in China and the efforts to address them through law and regulation. After an introduction to the political and legal system and cultural background of the largest greenhouse gas emitter in the world, we will survey the basic regulatory schemes managing air quality, water resources and quality, natural resources, environmental impact assessments, and pending legislation concerning waste management and energy conservation. If there is sufficient interest, we may offer an additional, optional, one-credit session in China immediately following the class, to let students experience firsthand the environmental conditions and lectures and meetings with leading Chinese environmental scholars and activists.

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Considers the principles used to resolve legal problems when the conflicting laws of two or more jurisdictions might reasonably be applied. The course initially focuses upon the different rules and methodologies used to determine the appropriate choice of law. Constitutional limits on the use of such rules and methodologies are explored in some detail.

A basic course on Constitutional Criminal Procedure, with comprehensive consideration of topics under the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Eighth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.  Among the topics considered are search and seizure law including probable cause to search and arrest, the warrant requirement and its exceptions, and the exclusionary rule; custodial interrogation, confessions and the privilege against self-incrimination; double jeopardy; the right to counsel and effective assistance of counsel; the death penalty and the Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments; lineups and other forms of pretrial identification.

Constitutional Law I:

This course focuses on the historical development of major constitutional doctrines, including the Commerce, Due Process, and Equal Protection Clauses.  The course also studies the process of constitutional decision-making, and explores major techniques of constitutional interpretation. 

Constitutional Law II:

Continues the studies major constitutional doctrines, including the First Amendment, and the processes of constitutional decision-making as well as major techniques of constitutional interpretation. 

Explores the procedural framework governing civil actions to enforce constitutional rights and the actionable elements of the individual rights protected by the Constitution, as well as defenses to constitutional tort liability, including Eleventh Amendment and common law immunities.  Students are required to draft a federal court complaint and to write and orally defend a summary judgment motion brief.

This course examines in detail the requisite elements of a valid contract, while analyzing the effects of contracts on third parties and the impact of outside forces on contracting parties.

A comprehensive introduction to copyright law that examines the historical foundations of copyright and related intellectual property law, U.S. treaty obligations, policies and case law that shape not only the traditional areas of copyright law, but also the often controversial relationship between copyright and technology in the digital age.

Explores legal and financial issues relating to the capital structure and financing of corporations, including various types of securities and the rights and legal relationships among the holders of such securities; and business and legal considerations with respect to dividends and distributions to shareholders.  This course also considers the planning, structure and implementation in connection with mergers and acquisitions, and the role of the business lawyer in corporate transactions. 

This course focuses on the foundation of our system of substantive criminal law, with emphasis upon mental state, responsibility, justification and excuse, inchoate crimes, and liability for the conduct of another.

The course covers a broad range of topics in constitutional criminal procedure law and criminal practice, including topics under the 4th, 5th, 6th and 8th amendments to the U.S. Constitution, federal criminal statutes, and Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. The course is designed to provide both a basic grounding in the criminal procedure jurisprudence relevant for the bar exam and an understanding of the application of this jurisprudence to criminal practice.

A basic course on Constitutional Criminal Procedure, with comprehensive consideration of topics under the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Eighth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.  Among the topics considered are search and seizure law including probable cause to search and arrest, the warrant requirement and its exceptions, and the exclusionary rule; custodial interrogation, confessions and the privilege against self-incrimination; double jeopardy; the right to counsel and effective assistance of counsel; the death penalty and the Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments; lineups and other forms of pretrial identification.

Interdisciplinary seminar that combines the study of cultural ecology with legal anthropology. The course examines the historical roots of the current environmental crisis in the development of agriculture, urbanization and industrialization. The course focuses on the political and cultural challenges of climate change in other historical periods and the challenges that global warming presents in different parts of the world.

This seminar will provide a vehicle for exploring "hot topics" in international law, with the specific focus shifting from year to year.

Explores the principles of ecology using an interdisciplinary approach and field-based work. Course work stresses the inventorying of biotic and physical components of a landscape, examining how these components are distributed, and determining what forces drive these patterns. Topics include interpreting the natural and cultural histories of a landscape, biodiversity conservation, and the scientific method, among others.

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This seminar examines legislative and judicial regulation of the political process.  It stresses two main themes: 1) the ways in which Congress and the state legislatures regulate campaigns, elections, and participants in the political process and 2) the ways in which courts can justifiably intervene in that process.

Examines federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, and sexual identity.  In particular, the course examinesTitle VII of the Civil Rights Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and state laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and identity.

Examines areas of federal and state labor law which regulate the employment relationship and which provide minimum protection outside of collective bargaining.  Major topics considered include wrongful discharge, post-employment liability, employee privacy, genetic and drug testing, and employee welfare and retirement benefits (ERISA).

Examines key issues in American energy policy and searches for ways to ease the strains which that policy puts upon environmental sustainability. The course reviews fundamental facts about our energy demands and sample regulatory orders and legal writings that address many of those elements from the perspective of a legal review. Background readings will include ethical issues of social justice in siting projects and meeting-or limiting-energy demand, the statutory schemes underlying traditional regulation, and an introduction to wholesale electric markets.

Builds on the course Energy Law and Policy in a Carbon-Constrained World by exposing students to the legal, economic, and structural issues involved in energy regulation and energy markets, focusing on electricity. The course examines the evolution, theory and techniques of monopoly regulation; the current processes for rate setting; and the development of  competitive, market-based alternatives. The course exposes students to the latest approaches to managing the electric grid, to renewable energy strategies and procurement, energy efficiency, demand side management and green markets.

The ENRLC is a public interest environmental law firm.  Student clinicians work on behalf of environmental and conservation organizations under the supervision of clinical faculty.  In addition to work on cases, students attend weekly staff meetings and a weekly seminar.

Explores the range of processes that are used to resolve environmental disputes with particular emphasis on consensual processes such as negotiation and mediation.  Instruction will be based on lectures and discussions of the theory of dispute resolution and environmental law and simulations to practice the skills needed to resolve environmental disputes.

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Provides a broad based introduction to insurance law generally, and more specifically to how environmental issues have forced dramatic changes in the insurance industry, as well as how insurance is a fundamental component of many cases with environmental implications. It will cover the nature and purpose of insurance; different types of environmental insurance products; excess and reinsurance; issues affecting insurers, including tort reform, environmental cleanups, and insolvencies; state and federal regulation of insurers in the environmental arena.

An exploration of the types of environmental risks and issues that are commonly confronted in a variety of business-related transactions such as the acquisition of all a company's stock, asset purchases, real estate deals, leases and financings. Special focus on how the environmental issues in transactions are identified and managed in the course of a deal. The unique environmental issues associated with the purchase and redevelopment of contaminated properties or so-called "Brownfield sites" are also covered.

This course examines the issue of environmental justice from an environmental law perspective and from a civil rights law perspective. It explores how environmental justice issues are framed, addressed, and resolved through litigation and mediation in the U.S. and internationally.

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An introduction to the broader categories of protecting human health and the environment  to both assess the successes and failures of environmental protection in the U.S. and gain more detailed substantive knowledge of several key statutes.

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Examines the fundamental principles of federal gift, estate, and generation skipping taxes, including an introduction to basic estate planning techniques.

Examines gratuitous transfers by intestate succession, wills, trusts, and other techniques; execution and revocation of wills; will substitutes; administration of estates; family survivors' rights; the nature of trusts and fiduciary relationships; powers of appointment; and future interests.

Provides a basic introduction to European Union law, with a focus on the foundational treaties, the key institutions and their interrelationships, and important cases decided by the European Court of Justice.  Students will be given an opportunity to attend lectures by leading EU legal scholars at the University of Trento in Italy.  Special fees and conditions may apply. 

Considers the rules governing the admissibility of testimonial, physical, documentary, and demonstrative evidence in trials and other formal legal proceedings.  Topics considered include relevance, prejudice, competency, hearsay, opinion, impeachment, and privilege.

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Examines the ecological, social and ethical consequences of biological impoverishment and considers various legal and policy options to address the phenomenon of climate change.  The course addressses the extent to which laws like the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and some international laws can be used to address both conventional threats to species as well as the  threat of climate change.

Explores the legal and social issues arising from the development of assistive reproductive technologies. This interdisciplinary course is jointly taught by faculty from VLS and Dartmouth Medical School, and provides an opportunity for VLS and DMS students to share their approaches to the issue.  

An analysis of the sources of and limitations on the federal judicial power.  Particular emphasis is placed upon the relationship between the state and federal judicial system. 

Taught by a French law professor (in English), this course addresses the substantive law and underlying policies of the law of French business corporations and the ways in which the law differs from U.S. corporate law.  

Taught by a French law professor (in English), this course provides an introduction the French law and legal system, and French legal methodology. 

Focuses on the core of today's health care litigation and regulation in the United States, and health care organization and finance. Covers public health care programs like Medicaid and Medicare; private health care finance and insurance system; liability of health care providers and institution; information privacy and physician-patient confidentiality; tax status and business forms; and the international context for the United States health care system.

Covers the basics of immigration law; family and employment-based immigration categories; citizenship issues, grounds of inadmissibility/deportability; detention; removal and relief from removal. Special emphasisis placed on the immigration consequences of criminal convictions and humanitarian relief under asylum law and under the Violence Against Women Act

An introduction to federal income taxation.  Topics include:  the concept of income; exclusions from income; deductions and credits available to individual non-business taxpayers and business taxpayers; sales and other dispositions of property; capital gains and losses.

Working under the supervision of  working faculty sponsor, the IRP provides an individual student with  an opportunity to research and write about an area of law in which the student has a particular interest.

Examines the unique body of law governing "Indian country," the geographic areas recognized by the federal government as the homelands of sovereign American Indian tribes. Major topics include the history of federal-tribal relations, tribal property rights, tribal court systems, and the balance of governmental power between tribes, states, and the federal government.

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A basic introduction to the law of patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secrets. 

Using a problem-solving method, this course provides a practice-based introduction to private cross-border transactions, such as purchase/sale of goods; licensing of intellectual properties; and investment of capital in foreign countries in a service business.  

Provides an overview of the structure and basic principles of international environmental law and policy. The course considers the challenge of addressing global environmental problems; the regulatory limitations of U.S. law; and the basic structure and principles of international environmental law. The course examines in detail the structure of the Montreal Protocol regime  and covers other areas, including treaties related to climate change, biodiversity and wildlife protection, and the intersection of international trade and the environment. 

Provides an introduction to international human rights law and procedures. It examines what are "human rights" and explores the law of treaty interpretation, how human rights law is incorporated into domestic legal systems, and the role of international governmental organizations, international and regional courts, and non-governmental organizations in protecting human rights.

This course provides an introduction to international law and the international legal system.  Using real-world examples, it examines the processes through which international law is made, interpreted and applied, exploring the role of states as well as that of international bodies, non-governmental organizations, and corporations. The application of international law in domestic legal systems is examined, as is the reach of domestic law in the international arena.

Examines the intersection between trade liberalization and environmental protection. The course addresses protection of natural resources through unilateral trade-based measures, the legality of multilateral environmental agreements employing trade measures, utilization of science-based trade tests, and environmental impacts of foreign investment liberalization.

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This simulation-based course introduces knowledge and behaviors needed to accomplish interviewing and counseling and negotiation tasks successfully.  Topics include working relationships with clients, gathering information from clients effectively, and helping clients make decisions in both dispute resolving and transactional contexts.

An introduction to contemporary Chinese legal system and institutions in historical and comparative perspective.  Studies diverse aspects in the legal development of the PRC, including the legislature, sources of law, the legal profession and the judiciary, administrative law, the criminal justice system, dispute resolution, and the efforts and challenges of addressing China's environmental degradation and energy problems through law.

Provides an opportunity to obtain field based experience on a part-time basis.  Students must work three hours per week for 15 weeks for each credit earned, and may earn from two to six credits depending on the time committed.  Students meet regularly with their faculty sponsors for evaluation and reflection of their experience.

Places students in judges' chambers, where students learn about the process of judicial decision making by observing the function of a court. Students work with the supervising judge to develop legal skills such as writing, research, and analytical skills. All judicial externship students complete an Academic Component which concentrates on judicial and legal ethics, judicial philosophy and history; decision-making and judicial discretion; and judicial opinion writing.

Explores the opinion-writing process from several theoretical and practical perspectives.  Students draft law clerk memos and judicial opinions based on the briefs and records in actual state and federal cases.

Modeled after the Oxford-Cambridge tutorial system in which the student and faculty member follow a course of reading and meet to discuss, this tutorial provides an opportunity for students to master a field of law and/or philosophy, or explore a particular author's writings in depth, or resolve a particular problem. The preferred subjects are philosophy, jurisprudence, social and political philosophy, ethics, land use, population, environmental, and tort law.

Traces the development of the constitutional regulatory takings doctrine in the United States-why it developed, what lines it draws, what voids have not yet been filled, how existing case law applies to various types of situations and whether the lines need to be redrawn by the courts or by legislatures to meet more fully the complex, competing needs of our society.

Examines the tools available to preserve ecological diversity, historic places, working lands, scenic viewsheds, and open space, such as conservation easements, purchase of sensitive lands, and private/public partnerships for land conservation. The course provides a practical understanding of both the legal and nonlegal dimensions of land conservation transactions involving conservation easements.

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An introduction to land transaction and finance, covering the study of the title system, title insurance and land contracts, the private development process, and modern real estate financing, including private financing and public financing. The course also introduces the public-private development process including redevelopment, military base conversion and Brownfield's redevelopment.

A basic course in land use law.  Covers planning and all manner of private and public land use regulation from common interest communities, to subdivisions, to zoning, to variances, to planned development districts, to transit-oriented development, to traditional neighborhood design, to form-based codes, to growth management. 

Focuses on building and reinforcing the analytical, writing, and reasoning skills essential for success in law school.

 The study of a lawyer's professional obligations based on the ABA's Model Rules, ethical rules from selected jurisdictions, and other laws and traditions governing professional conduct. Students develop the knowledge and skills necessary to identify ethical dilemmas and acquire the tools to help resolve them.

An introduction to the three fundamental skills needed for the pursuit of a legal career: research, reasoning, and writing. The early emphasis is on basic writing skills to eliminate language problems and to begin to develop clear, fluid writing. Students also learn rudimentary legal writing skills, including citing, identifying legally significant facts, formulating issues, and reasoning by analogy.

Introduction to legal research tools and strategies relevant for law school as well as legal practice. Topics include legal authority, the use of primary and secondary sources, effictive use of LexisNexis, Westlaw, and other electronic databases, the role of the Internet in legal research, and a brief introduction to environmental and international legal research. Emphasis is placed on appropriate and effective research strategies and evaluation of sources, both print and electronic.

Develops fundamental legal writing, reasoning, and research skills in the context of the analysis of a specific subject matter. This course also provides the transition from predictive to persuasive legal writing and advocacy and an introduction to other legal problem-solving skills.

Examines legislative law and the legislative process.  Topics include: the nature and history of legislative power, legislative structure and procedure, legislative advocacy, drafting statutory law, statutory construction, legislative history, legislative oversight, and the role of legislative attorneys in the process and the development of public policy.

Provides an opportunity for students to work in a standing committee of the Vermont General Assembly under the supervision of the committee's chair and a legislative counsel.  Students are required to be in attendance at the General Assembly in Montpelier and to complete legal research and drafting projects relating to their committee's pending legislation.  

Examines the nature of mediation and explores theoretical and practical aspects of the process. The course analyzes each component of the mediation process and provides students with the opportunity to apply theories and skills in simulation exercises.

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What is involved in the processes of in vitro fertilization, egg harvesting, and sperm donation, and how should the law respond?  Can conception and parenthood occur post-mortem, and if so, what are the legal consequences?  If a surrogate mother gives birth to a child, does the law consider her to be the mother?  Who should have access to assisted reproductive technologies-single mothers, same-sex couples, rich and poor alike-- and should the law regulate such an issue?  If these questions intrigue you, we invite you to enroll in this seminar.

Examines ethical issues in the professions with an emphasis on law, including professional character and relationships, gender and moral reasoning, confidentiality, deception, paternalism, and allocation of limited resources. Readings in professional ethics and ethical theory are applied to concrete situations facing professionals, including lawyers, environmental professionals, health providers, journalists, social workers, and political agencies.

Explores lawyers' involvement in the formulation and implementation of United States foreign and national defense policy through the examination variety of domestic, constitutional, and international law issues such as authority for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, intelligence gathering at home and abroad, detention and interrogation of terrorist suspects, planning for the next terrorist attack, protection of sensitive government information, and other current topics.

A hands-on introduction to the theory and practice of negotiation.  Explores the tension that is created in every negotiation between cooperating to create value with the other side and competing to claim value against the other side.  While there is a lecture component of this course, instruction relies heavily on the use of simulations. 

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An overview of management subjects facing nonprofit organizations, including resource development, leadership and governance, staffing, planning and policy, resource management and reporting, communications, and stewardship

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Examines nonprofit law, policy and practice. The course focuses on the issues surrounding the creation of a tax-exempt charitable organization at the state and federal levels, raising money for that organization, unrelated business income, lobbying and political activity, board of directors and managerial liability, and dissolution of the organization. 

Encompasses the regulation of nuclear safety, economics, and technology, as well as nuclear waste, nuclear proliferation, and nuclear energy policy. The primary focus is on nuclear energy in the U.S., but European and Asian nuclear programs are also considered.

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A review of domestic and international laws and treaties relating to coastal management, pollution, protected areas, endangered species, fish, marine mammals, wetlands, and seabed mineral and hydrocarbon resources. The course considers how effectively these legal authorities blend together to provide rational and comprehensive management and protection of marine resources.

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Examines the legal and regulatory framework of domestic and international upstream and downstream oil and gas activities. Explores key domestic statutory and common law sources, regulations, and industry standards. Surveys selected international and comparative materials such as oil spill prevention agreements, arbitral decisions, and technical regulations.

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In the 21st century, we are all witnesses to, actors in, and subjects/objects of something often called the "Information Age". For about a century, law has sought to define the "privacy rights" of individuals to control personal information held by others. Modern lawyers advocate on privacy issues in new and complex contexts. This course provides students with an understanding of the fundamentals of privacy law and the training to reason analogically to accommodate emergent technologies within existing legal frameworks.

An introduction to the concept of ownership and its legal implications: rights to control, enjoy, and transfer real and personal property, including public and private restrictions on use; estates in land; concurrent ownership; adverse possession; easements and licenses; and landlords and tenants.

A comparative approach to competing legal mandates and diverse philosophies that make federal land management a lively topic not only in the West, but throughout the country. Resource extraction, preservation, and sustainable/multiple-use concepts are addressed. 

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Provides an introduction to race as it relates to and is reflected in the law.  The seminar focuses on the role and experience of African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Latin-Americans, and Native-Americans in American society, with attention to questions concerning critical race theory, class, family, and feminism.  

Examines the regulation of solid and hazardous waste under the Resources Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and the Solid Waste Act, RCRA's overlap with other statutes, and the policy implications of the statute.  The course addresses the regulatory and policy problems associated with recycling, resource recovery, waste minimization, land disposal, incineration, underground storage tanks, and state and federal regulation of the generation, storage, transportation, treatment and disposal of solid and hazardous wastes.  

Examines the interaction of state, federal, and international regimes in the regulation of the marine environments through the examination of issues such as the marine environment as a source of energy; the nonrenewable resources of the seabed; and the winds, waves, currents, and temperatures of the sea itself.

Studies the legal and equitable methods available to redress an infringement of legal rights, such as those rights provided by the laws of contracts, torts, equity, constitutional law, and civil procedure. 

Explores the emerging field of renewable and alternative energy supplies. The course reviews local, state, and federal laws and policies that regulate such sources; considers emerging distributed generation models; surveys the range of emerging technologies; and considers proposed strategies for reducing greenhouse gases.

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Prepares students for the practice of transactional corporate law by providing them with a foundation on the law and processes related to corporate transactions, acquisitions, and divestitures of businesses.  Students draft documents, negotiate business issues, and organize the legal affairs for growing businesses.

A science and law course taught from the perspective of a scientist.   This course examines the science, methods, principles and limitations of risk assessment and, more broadly, teaches methods of evaluating and critiquing scientific information.

Covers primarily Article 2 of the Uniform Commercial Code governing the sale of goods, including formation and modification of contracts for sale, Article 2's statute of frauds, warranties, parole evidence, risk allocations when goods are stored or transported, breach, remedies for sellers and buyers, and contractual limitations on remedies.  The course includes references to consumer rights as well as comparisons between the common law of contract and the Code's rules and concepts.

Through case studies, this course explores the manipulation of scientific information underpinning some public policy controversies such us global climate change, abortion, homosexuality, DNA forensics, evolution, genetically modified organisms, and debates over the safety and effectiveness of prescription drugs. The course also has the broader goals of teaching the student to critically read and identify political or social bias on scientific literature.

An examination of the structure of the law of security interests in personal property from both practical and economic perspectives.  The course covers the interests of all parties in secured transactions, particularly as a way of financing business.

A study of federal law and the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission concerning the registration, distribution and trading of securities, and legal and regulatory aspects of the securities industry.  The course considers the responsibilities and liabilities of issuers of securities, its officers and directors, brokers, attorneys, and other participants in the distribution and trading processes, as well as issues regarding "insider" trading.

A full-time external clinic, appropriate for students interested in self-directed learning under the supervision of an experienced mentor. Field-mentors are experienced lawyers who work with and within government, NGOs, nonprofit organizations, corporations, and law firms.

A look at the way law and the legal systems affect the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered people.  The class will explore domestic and international laws that sanction discrimination against the LGBT community and the struggle for equality by this community.

Explores which legal rules can best further enterprises that are designed to engage in profit-making activities for the purpose of promoting social goals.  Will examine ways to define social enterprises; and ask whether traditional for-profit or non profit business forms can accommodate these dual mission companies or whether a new hybrid business form is needed.

An on-campus clinic dedicated to serving Vermont residents who cannot afford private counsel.  Students work under supervising attorneys representing real clients in civil cases in state and federal courts in Vermont and before administrative agencies.

An introduction to the study of comparative law that provides students with an opportunity to compare the Spanish and the American approaches to constitutional law.   The seminar focuses on similarities and differences in constitutional structure, methodology, and values.  Students attend lectures by leading Spanish legal scholars at VLS and at the University of Seville in Spain.  

An interdisciplinary course that provides students with both practical and theoretical approaches to legal issues that affect professional and amateur sports leagues, conferences, team, and players.  Topics include torts, antitrust, labor, agency, criminal, contract, immigration, and anti-discrimination laws.

Examines the interaction between federal, state and local governments, with particular attention to resource management, pollution control, and human rights. The course also covers non-state jurisdictions such as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Indian Country.

Introduces students to the various legal methods of achieving environmental improvement. Topics covered include market forces and emission trading; handling inspections and enforcement actions; environmental litigation and complex causation; acquiring and using information; risk assessment; and methods to account for and transfer environmental risks in business transactions.

This course sets out, in three linked modules, the fundamental knowledge that professionals should have for working in the closely intertwined fields of energy and the environment. Students may take one, two, or three modules for one credit each.

Module A: Engineering Essentials
The engineering realities of electric power grids and natural gas pipelines greatly constrain the choices that lawyers and policy analysts might otherwise make. This module will cover the engineering fundamentals inherent in the current and expected energy infrastructure.

Module B: Business Essentials
The energy and electric power industries in the U.S. are facing unprecedented challenges in meeting our society’s demands for low-cost, high-reliability energy and electricity with lower environmental impacts. This module will introduce the major financial and economic factors that energy companies use in making production and investment decisions, and how emerging environmental regulations might affect these decisions. The module will also cover deregulated market structures in the petroleum, natural gas and electric power industries.

Module C: Legal Essentials
This module will provide an overview of the fundamentals of energy law in both the US and the European Union. It will focus on what financiers, engineers, and economists need to know about energy law in order to work together and with lawyers in the energy world. The course will address some of the most important problems faced by energy project development, including facility siting, environmental issues, and authority fragmentation. In every issue a comparative perspective will be adopted.

Download Module A Syllabus

Download 2013 Module B Syllabus

Download 2013 Module C Syllabus

This course presents the study of the legal protection afforded against interference by others with the security of one's person, property, or intangible interests.

Provides students with a solid foundation in trademark, rights of publicity, advertising, and other state and federal law relating to the protection of commercial goodwill. Students will also be introduced to the practical aspects of interacting with the US Trademark Office and its administrative body - The Trademark Trial and Appeals Board.

This skills course covers the important aspects of a trial, including jury selection, opening statements, direct and cross examination, exhibits, objections, expert witnesses, and closing arguments.  The course culminates in a full, simulated trial.  

Examines the three main systems of water law in the United States: Eastern riparian systems, the prior appropriation doctrine of the West, and the nationally diverse laws regulating the use of groundwater. The course will also review federal water allocation issues, interstate water disputes, tribal water rights matters, and will highlight contemporary water allocation dilemmas throughout the country.

Taking "ecosystem approach" to the study of watersheds and the laws that attempt to restore and maintain them, the course contrasts the current fragmented approach of pollution control and land use law with the kind of integration that is needed to deal more effectively with the problems affecting watersheds. Topics include the public trust doctrine, water allocation, pollution control, floodplains and wetlands conservation, storm water controls, "factory farms," endangered species preservation,  and ecological restoration.  

Provides a survey of federal wetlands regulation under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and related laws and a discussion of international protections. Includes discussions of the basis for federal jurisdiction over wetlands, the fundamentals of the wetlands regulatory process, the role of wetlands in climate change, the relationship to other federal laws, enforcement, international treaties, and other obligations related to wetlands, and scientific and policy issues.

White Collar Crime balances black letter law with current, high-profile examples of corporate felonies and fiascos. Topics include: conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud, securities fraud, perjury, obstruction of justice, RICO, tax fraud, money laundering, and environmental crimes. In addition, administrative investigations, grand jury investigations, pleas, trials and sentencing will be covered.

An introduction to the domestic statutes and international treaties that regulate and/or prohibit particular types of unlawful wildlife taking and trafficking, with emphasis on the enforcement schemes and methods used to address these crimes. The course includes a discussion of the most common types of wildlife crimes and an examination of the CITES treaty.

Explores the interaction of the law and gender via an in-depth study of legal responses to domestic violence. Includes discussions of family law, the civil and criminal systems, and the international human rights dimensions of this issue.