A PORTION OF THE ABOVE CLASS RESERVED FOR MAJORS
ABOVE CLASS OPEN TO GRADUATES ONLY
ABOVE CLASS MEETS WITH LAW-B 659

This is a joint course for history graduate students and law
students.  It is designed to introduce both groups of students to
American legal history as a topic itself and as a means of examining
central issues in the American past and present.  It will divide the
American legal past from the Revolution to the present into distinct
eras.  In each era, students will examine critical developments in
the republic’s private law, public law, legal institutions, and
legal profession.  Subjects to be discussed include commerce, race,
gender, family, regionalism, constitutionalism, jurisprudential
theories, legal education, and professionalism.  Through a
chronological analysis of subjects such as these students will
become acquainted with the central developments and recurrent issues
in American legal history.  The fundamental goal of the course is to
encourage students to think broadly about the place of law and its
history in American culture.  All students will be expected to
participate in class discussions, write a book analysis, and
complete the reading for each class session.  Graduate students will
also be required to write a historiographical essay that relates
their individual research interests to some of the themes of the
class.  Law students will be required to complete a comprehensive
final examination.   A study guide and set of examination questions
will be handed out prior to the exam.