Experiential Requirement

The Ventura County Public Defender's Office and Southwestern Year-Long Externship is an opportunity for Southwestern students to work in the delinquency division of the Public Defender's Office and receive specialized training in and assisting with the representation of juveniles. Work in the externship will involve one or more of the following: initial client interviews, case evaluation and assessment, research and writing, appearances before the juvenile court, subpoena preparation, and writing and arguing (if certified) motions to expunge clients' prior convictions.

This course will offer students the opportunity to expand their skills in using primary and secondary legal sources and research the types of issues encountered in the practice of law. The course covers a range of topics, including in-depth statutory and case law research, legislative history, and administrative law research. Additionally, California practice materials and specialized topical resources will be examined. Students will be exposed to real-life situations, including the ethics of legal research and cost-effectiveness.

This course presents an overview of estate planning for individuals and focuses particularly on lifetime and death tax consequences to members of a family. Coverage includes estate, gift, corporate, partnership and individual tax issues. Issues regarding life insurance, trusts, wills, family transactions, investment analysis and other financial considerations are also discussed. Prerequisite: Wills & Trusts (360).

This course introduces students to the theory and practice of negotiation and dispute resolution. Through weekly reading, lectures, and class discussions, students will gain a solid foundation in negotiation principles and techniques developed by leading negotiation experts, as well as the ethical and practical issues that arise when lawyers negotiate on behalf of their clients. Students will have the opportunity to apply these techniques - and develop their own negotiation methods - through a series of intensive negotiation exercises focused on a range of legal and practical issues.

This is a hands-on course designed to train students in how to analyze technology contracts and how to draft some of today's most widely used forms of technology agreements. The course will take a detailed look at every aspect of contract drafting - why some clauses work and why others don't. Common provisions used in technology agreements will be reviewed in detail, particularly those standard, "boilerplate" terms that many lawyers have a tendency to skip over.

This course helps bridge the gap between studying law and practicing law for students interested in joining a big or medium law firm. The course will give students practical skills to succeed as an associate in a big/medium law firm.

This course introduces the student - in the context of theory, simulated practice, and integrated professionalism - to construction law and transactional drafting. It will address client interviewing, negotiation, legal writing, and transactional drafting in the context of issues that arise during the practice of construction law. The class will address the specialized contracts used in the construction industry, as well as claims, disputes, sureties, and alternative dispute resolution.

This is a hands-on course designed to train students in family law litigation in a mock world setting. The course would cover the most common family law issues, beginning with the initial client interview and concluding with a mock family law trial.

This course explores the art of legal writing in a small class setting, enabling students to hone skills developed in their first year legal research and writing class, including legal analysis, organization, rhetorical strategies and writing style. Students will learn to conceive of their writing process from outlining to rewriting as a series of strategic decisions. While emphasis is placed on well-written legal documents, students will read short fiction, essays and journalism to enhance their critical analysis of writing and use of language.

This practicum course will provide students the opportunity to work one-on-one with a faculty supervisor on a pro bono amicus brief. Students enrolled in this course will be assigned a case and a faculty supervisor. Case selection will be based on a variety of considerations, including legal significance, social significance, inquiry by an interested party (including students), jurisdiction, service to the profession, as well as faculty interest and expertise.