Political Science 162 - Intr Constitutnl Law
Fall
2017
02
4.00
Wouter Van Erve
TU TH 10:00AM 11:15AM
UMass Amherst
39465
Introduction to the American constitution as law. The importance of the text and the traditions of interpretation. The courts, congress, and the presidency. Also local power, the bill of rights, and the fourteenth amendment. (Gen.Ed. SB)
Open to Investigating Politics RAP students in Pierpont. POLISCI 162-02
See http://www.umass.edu/rap/investigating-politics-rap
This course is about U.S. Constitutional Law, and will address the many ways in which the U.S. Constitution touches your life. Constitutional Law is about more than just the Supreme Court, and it affects your life in many ways:
-Do you have to answer the police officer that?s pulling you over for speeding?
-Can the State Legislature redistrict your state in such a way that it makes some people?s votes worth more than others?
-And how much power does the President really have?
These are all questions that we will address in this class.
The second objective of this class is to introduce you to thinking about these issues as a lawyer?in a very clean, analytical way, using the Constitution and cases that appeared before the Supreme Court as our guide. Using these tools, and with my instruction, you?ll learn how to make sense of jurisprudence, and to craft your own legal arguments. Even if you?re not sure whether you?ll ever go to law school, you?ll learn how to quickly process information and craft thoughtful, logical arguments; those are skills that will help you in any discipline!
A little bit about me: I?m a doctoral student in the Department of Political Science, working on research about fair representation. Before coming to UMass, I attended law school in the Netherlands and at the University of Minnesota, specializing in criminal law, and worked as an assistant prosecutor in the Netherlands. I look forward to working with you all, and sharing my passion for the law with you!
See http://www.umass.edu/rap/investigating-politics-rap
This course is about U.S. Constitutional Law, and will address the many ways in which the U.S. Constitution touches your life. Constitutional Law is about more than just the Supreme Court, and it affects your life in many ways:
-Do you have to answer the police officer that?s pulling you over for speeding?
-Can the State Legislature redistrict your state in such a way that it makes some people?s votes worth more than others?
-And how much power does the President really have?
These are all questions that we will address in this class.
The second objective of this class is to introduce you to thinking about these issues as a lawyer?in a very clean, analytical way, using the Constitution and cases that appeared before the Supreme Court as our guide. Using these tools, and with my instruction, you?ll learn how to make sense of jurisprudence, and to craft your own legal arguments. Even if you?re not sure whether you?ll ever go to law school, you?ll learn how to quickly process information and craft thoughtful, logical arguments; those are skills that will help you in any discipline!
A little bit about me: I?m a doctoral student in the Department of Political Science, working on research about fair representation. Before coming to UMass, I attended law school in the Netherlands and at the University of Minnesota, specializing in criminal law, and worked as an assistant prosecutor in the Netherlands. I look forward to working with you all, and sharing my passion for the law with you!