CIVIL JUSTICE THROUGH THE COURTS (1) (PBL294)

Professor Joyce Saltalamachia

Students will work with the Center for Justice and Democracy, http://www.centerjd.org/, a civil justice advocacy organization, on various projects designed to raise awareness about attacks on consumer and citizen access to civil justice through the courts. In a time when so-called ‘tort reform’ once again appears to be at the center of political scrutiny, CJ&D has a mission to increase public awareness of the value of the civil justice system. Topics of interest will be medical malpractice litigation protection, product safety litigation strategies, and federal regulations, along with the full range of contemporary civil litigation areas. Possible projects include drafting legislation in conjunction with the New York State Assembly Judiciary Committee, researching advocacy issues for the New York State Academy of Trial Lawyers, and preparing policy papers for Congressional presentation. Students will work in teams to prepare documents and present research. There will be the opportunity to discuss current tort subjects with practitioners and opinion leaders in the field. Student may have the opportunity to ‘shadow’ a practitioner during tort litigation. The goal of this course is to acquaint students with the wide variety of current issues facing personal injury practitioners and to raise student awareness of the critical role that litigation through court proceedings plays in protecting consumer and citizen health and safety.
 

Student competencies to be enhanced include analysis and reasoning, researching the law, influencing and advocating, writing, developing relationships within the legal profession, diligence and self-development. There are no pre-requisites beyond successful completion of the first-year Torts class. Recommended classes are Torts II, Medical Malpractice, Insurance, and Mass Torts.
 

The class will meet once a week, from 1:00-2:00, on either Tuesday or Thursday, depending upon the students’ schedules. It is contemplated that this course will take from six to eight students. Application process will be through resume and one paragraph statement of interest. Selection will be by the professor, in consultation with the staff of the Center for Justice and Democracy. Graded Pass/Fail with the possibility of “Pass with Distinction.”