Jurisprudence, Law and Justice Studies

Focus on the American system of law: principally constitutional law, criminal law, and the development of civil rights. Topics include philosophical approaches to justice, English common law, and comparative analysis of French civil law and legal codes in socialist political systems and in majority Muslim countries. Consideration of the challenges to trust in legal institutions from the Supreme Court to local courts and police. Attention also to legal regimes regarding refugees, Native Americans, and defendants with mental illness.

A survey of the American judicial system. An examination of federal and state courts, and the structure of the American judicial system. Analysis of how courts interact with the public and other government institutions, and the influences on judicial decision-making. Topics also include judicial federalism, criminal and civil procedure, judicial activism, and judicial policy-making.

Analysis of constitutional doctrines through major cases. Function of the Supreme Court as an instrument of government and arbiter of public policy. Doctrines include judicial review, federalism, interstate commerce, due process and questions of individual rights.

Introduces theories and practices that focus on repairing harm caused by criminal or personal injury. We will examine various processes, involving both the injured party and perpetrator, which acknowledge the truth of the injustice endured, and — suspending the punitive repercussions of the violation — focus on the interpersonal work of reparations and mutual understanding of the damage done, and possibilities for healing and reconciliation. We will examine the work of Buber, Zehr, and Tutu/ Mandela in their role with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as well as a similar commission established in Canada to address the violation of Indigenous children in residential schools. We will explore the roots of restorative justice in moral philosophy and biblical and other sacred texts.

Analysis of competing theories of the liberty of expression in the American context. Focuses primarily on contemporary political and legal disputes over such morally divisive issues as "hate speech," campus speech codes, pornography, media and Internet censorship, and the proper role of free speech in a democracy. Examination of the evolution of American constitutional law concerning freedom of expression.