programma visiting professor 2017

PROGRAMMA VISITING PROFESSOR 2017
CORSO ATTRIBUTIVO DI 3 CREDITI LIBERI
LEGAL ENGLISH AND GLOBAL LEGAL SKILLS IN CONTEXT
Prof. David Austin
Legal Writing Professor
California Western School of Law
San Diego, California (USA)
Durata:
27 ore cumulative
9 lezioni di 3 ore accademiche ciascuna
Date:
2 incontri alla settimana in date e orari da concordare
Inizio: 18 aprile
Fine: 17 maggio
Lingua:
Le lezioni si svolgeranno in inglese.
E’ obbligatoria, dunque, una buona conoscenza della lingua
inglese, scritta e parlata. Non è comunque necessario che lo
studente abbia una conoscenza approfondita del inglese
giuridico: uno degli obiettivi del corso è, appunto, quello di dare
agli studenti la possibilità di approfondire la loro conoscenza
dell’inglese giuridico.
Obiettivi:
Il corso darà agli studenti la possibilità di seguire un percorso
interattivo per arricchire la propria conoscenza dell’inglese
giuridico e del sistema del common law. Le lezioni seguiranno
l’iter giuridico di un caso concernente il diritto all’espressione in
ambito scolastico e culmineranno con simulazioni e role-playing
nei quali i partecipanti dovranno presentare un’arringa a favore
del loro assistito.
SCHEMA DEL CORSO
PRIMA LEZIONE:
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Introduction
Course overview
Writing Diagnostic: Prior to class, students will be provided with a fact pattern involving
a 17-year-old student arrested and charged with a crime. Students will also be provided
with legal rules to help determine whether the minor should be tried as an adult. They
will have to draft a brief written assignment and e-mail it to the professor before the first
lesson.
Legal English: How do U.S. lawyers communicate? The structure of legal
communication: the IREAC formula.
Overview of the United States system of government, the common law system, and the
judiciary.
How to read a judicial opinion.
SECONDA LEZIONE:
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Prior to class, students will be given a Supreme Court decisions to read (Minersville School
District v. Gobitis). They will be asked to come to class with a brief written summary that
identifies the Issue, the Procedural History, the Holding, the Rule, and the Disposition of
the case.
Stare Decisis and the law of case precedent.
Discussion: Was Gobitis correctly decided?
Critical reading skills: together the class will examine two Supreme Cases that followed
the Gobitis decision.
TERZA LEZIONE:
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Prior to class, students will be asked to read Tinker v. Des Moines Independent
Community School District, the first case in which the Supreme Court defined the power
of government to limit student speech. Students will be asked to write a brief essay in
English comparing the rights of Italian students under Italian law with the limitations
placed on U.S. students as a result of the Tinker decision.
Introduction to Student Free Speech. The professor will help the class understand the
development of free speech law as it applies to students in the United States.
Students will participate in an interactive discussion and group exercises to better
understand the law and how it applies in a variety of situations.
Legal Research skills: students will learn some basic research skills to identify other cases
and resources that address student speech rights.
QUARTA LEZIONE:
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Students will be introduced to the fact pattern that will provide the context in which they
will explore student free speech rights for the remainder of the course.
The fact pattern involves an African-American student who was disciplined for wearing a
t-shirt with a “Black Lives Matters” message to school during a day intended to honor the
life of a local police officer who was killed in the bline of duty. Because the “Black Lives
Matter” movement focuses on the systemic racism of law enforcement in the United
States, the message on the students’ t-shirt was viewed by many students as offensive and
disrespectful to the memory of the dead police officer. The school principal was
concerned that the tension between the pro- and anti-“Black Lives Matter” groups might
escalate and, to avoid potential harm, the principal censored the student’s t-shirt by forcing
the student to cover up her message. The African-American student therefore filed a
lawsuit claiming that her constitutional free speech rights were violated.
Students will be provided with a Complaint detailing the student’s legal claim and the
School’s Answer. Students will have an opportunity to better understand the life of a U.S.
lawsuit by examining these documents.
Identifying legal issues. Based on their understanding of the law involving student free
speech, students will discuss the fact pattern and attempt to identify the legal rules that
will help predict how a court would rule. This discussion will also help students identify
what additional research might be necessary to provide advice to the Student and the
School.
Students will be divided into two groups: half of the students will be assigned to provide
legal assistance to the African-American Student and half of the students will be assigned
to provide legal assistance to the School.
Over the weekend, students for both sides will be provided with additional resources and
will be asked to draft a brief legal memorandum (e-mail memo) with their advice and
recommendation to the side they are assisting.
QUINTA LEZIONE:
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Reviewing the legal memorandum. The professor will conduct an in-class exercise to
identify strong and weak aspects of the written memoranda provided by the students.
Students will be provided with ideas on how to improve their written communication.
The trial court’s decision. Students will be provided with a written decision by the judge
assigned to rule on the dispute between the African-American Student and the School.
Examining the legal authorities the trial court used to reach its conclusion.
Right or wrong?
Deciding whether to appeal. Students will learn about the appellate process in the United
States and the factors that lawyers consider when determining whether to appeal a case.
Standards of review and how they impact an appeal. The appellate process in the United
States is very different from that employed in Italy. Students will have a chance to better
understand how the process works in the United States as a result of the simulation
exercise.
SESTA LEZIONE:
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Developing themes as a way to persuasively present facts. Students will review a famous
civil rights case involving Martin Luther King and the Birmingham March and focus on
the different ways that facts can be presented in order to reinforce themes and legal
arguments.
Legal Research. Students will research, review, and discuss cases that might provide useful
precedent on which to build legal arguments for the appeal filed by the African-American
Student.
Heckler’s Veto Doctrine, Student Safety, and Free Speech. The professor will facilitate a
discussion on the tension between free speech rights, the rights of others, and the
responsibility of the state to ensure student safety.
Oral Research Report. Students will receive instruction on how to orally present the
results of their research to a supervising attorney.
Students will be provided with a limited number of cases to use in connection with the
arguments they will develop for their oral argument.
SETTIMA LEZIONE:
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Working in their assigned teams, students will present an oral research report to their
supervising attorneys.
Appellate Oral Arguments. Students will receive instruction on the format and purpose
of oral arguments.
Working in small groups, students will develop themes for the oral arguments they will be
presenting at the end of the course.
Students will draft practice questions that they anticipate might be of interest to appellate
judges hearing the case between the African-American Student and the School.
OTTAVA LEZIONE:
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Students will practice delivering the openings and closing of their oral arguments.
Students will practice answering questions they might be asked by the appellate judges.
Students will compare the legal framework regarding student speech in the United States
with the Italian legal framework and examine issues involving free speech and hate speech
in the broader European framework.
ULTIMA LEZIONE:
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Students will present their oral arguments to a panel of appellate judges and celebrate the
end of the course.

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