News

1/3/05 Dean Welcomes Students Back for Spring Term

Welcome back for spring semester! I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday break and is ready for an active and productive new term. As I do each semester, I write to bring you up to date on upcoming events, faculty news, speaker series, and curricular developments at Northwestern Law.

We are pleased to welcome Bill Chamberlain (left) as the new Assistant Dean and Director of the Center for Career Strategy & Advancement. Bill is a 1988 graduate of Northwestern Law and joins us from the University of North Carolina School of Law at Chapel Hill where he was Assistant Dean for Career Services. Thanks to the many students, faculty, and staff who assisted us with the search process.

Please join me in also welcoming Albert Alschuler, Julius Kreeger Professor of Law and Criminology at the University of Chicago, who has joined the Law School as the Jack N. Pritzker Distinguished Visiting Professor for spring 2005. Professor Alschuler specializes in criminal justice and has written on topics including plea bargaining, sentencing reform, privacy, search and seizure, civil procedure, jury selection, confessions, and courtroom conduct. He will teach Constitutional Criminal Procedure this semester.

Spencer Waller, a Northwestern Law alum (JD '82) and now Professor of Law and Associate Dean at Loyola University School of Law, will also be joining us as a visiting professor in the spring. He will be teaching a section on Antitrust Law.

David E. Van Zandt, Dean

Upcoming Law School Events | Speaker Series | Faculty Conferences | Upcoming Student Organization Events | Curricular Developments

UPCOMING LAW SCHOOL EVENTS

Martin Luther King Jr. Day, January 17

There is much to look forward to this spring beginning with the Chicago campus Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration on Monday, January 17. This year's events feature an interdisciplinary panelist discussion on social justice followed by an evening lecture with Johnnetta Cole (right), President of Bennett College for Women, and a video presentation by TheHistoryMakers. Carlos Watson, CNN political contributor and host of "Off Topic with Carlos Watson," will moderate both discussions. The panel will take place in Thorne Auditorium at 11 a.m. followed by Cole's talk at 6 p.m.

Winter On-Campus Recruitment, January
The Center for Career Strategy and Advancement is sponsoring another recruitment program open to all Northwestern Law students, which will take place January 19, 20, 21, 26, 27, and 28. For details on how to participate, visit the Career Strategy Center.

Also, in early March the Career Strategy Center will host the annual Meet the Employers Night. This is a great opportunity for first-year JD students to learn about employers who recruit on campus prior to bidding for on-campus interviews. Stay posted for information on exact date and time. 

Lawyer as Problem Solver, January 20 and 27
First-year JD, JD-MBA, and LLM students will finish the last two sessions of Lawyer as Problem Solver on January 20 and 27. The final session will conclude with a reception for sponsors and students. 

42nd Annual Julius H. Miner Moot Court Competition, February–March
Preliminary rounds for the 42nd Annual Julius H. Miner Moot Court Competition will take place February 1, 3, 8, and 10. Each year approximately 70 second-year JD students compete in this prestigious competition. The final round will take place March 4.

Executive LLM in Korea Graduation Ceremony, March 27
During spring break in March, 33 Executive LLM Korean students will join us for two weeks to take their last course and attend their graduation ceremony. These students began Northwestern Law's unique Executive LLM Program last February in Seoul, South Korea. Our faculty traveled to Seoul for two-week periods through the ensuing 12 months to teach courses as part of the fixed curriculum.

We are also excited about a new partnership with the Instituto de Empressa (IE) in Madrid to develop an executive LLM program for European legal and business professionals. Pending a feasibility study, the program is set to begin in Madrid in 2005.

Spring Law Board Meeting, April 1–2
The Law Board will meet for the second time this year in April. The board is comprised of graduates and friends of the Law School who are distinguished members of the bar, the corporate world, and the government and not-for-profit sectors. The Law Board serves to advise the faculty and administration on the future course of the Law School and helps monitor the implementation of our Strategic Plan.

Leadership Retreat, April 8–10
SBA Executive Board members and interested student organization leaders will take part in the third annual Lawyer as Leader development retreat in Lake Geneva , Wisc. The weekend's activities include outdoor challenge courses, team building workshops, event planning sessions, and more. For more information on how to sign up, visit Student Affairs.

Day at Northwestern Law, April 2
We will welcome more than 100 admitted students to a Day at Northwestern Law on April 2. Second-year JD students Bill Chang, Jennifer ("JT") Lupfer, and Chahira Solh have worked with the Admissions and Student Affairs teams to plan special events to introduce admitted students to the Law School. This year's Day at Northwestern Law coincides with Wigmore Follies, our annual student-run cabaret show, as well as the spring meetings of the Law Board, our strategic advisory board. We hope after spending some time as part of the Northwestern Law community, these admitted students choose to join us next fall.

2005 Graduation Week, May 9–15
The graduation committee, chaired by Dylan Hendricks (JD '05), is busy working with the Student Affairs team to plan this year's Graduation Convocation, which will take place Sunday, May 15. The graduation committee will have additional activities planned throughout the week, including a barbecue, the Last Lecture, and a dinner and dance.

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SPEAKER SERIES
This spring we will welcome two prominent guest lecturers to Northwestern Law.

MLB Exec to Deliver 2005 Pope & John Lecture on Professionalism, February 1
Robert DuPuy, President and Chief Operating Officer of Major League Baseball, will deliver this year's Pope & John Lecture on Professionalism. DuPuy is responsible for all phases of baseball's central offices and has been involved in most of MLB's legal issues since 1989, when he was brought in as outside legal counsel. His speech, "Good Sports Make Bad Law," will take place at 6 p.m. on February 1.

Leading Political Philosopher to Deliver 2005 Julius Rosenthal Foundation Lecture Series, April 12–14
Michael Walzer, UPS Foundation Professor at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, NJ, will deliver the three-part Julius Rosenthal Foundation Lectures on "The Paradox of National Liberation." The first lecture will take place at 4 p.m. on April 12, and the following two lectures will take place at noon on April 13 and 14. Walzer has written about a wide variety of topics in political theory and moral philosophy, including political obligation, just and unjust war, nationalism and ethnicity, economic justice, and the welfare state.

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FACULTY CONFERENCES

“The Future of the United Nations In Matters of Security and Human Rights,” January 24–25
Academics, diplomats, and corporate representatives from the United States and Europe will gather at Northwestern Law in January for a conference on how the United States' decision to act without Security Council authorization in the war with Iraq has impacted the future role of the UN, and what role the UN should play in protecting human rights. This is event is being organized by Professor Douglass Cassel and sponsored by the Bluhm Legal Clinic's Center on International Human Rights with the Northwestern University Journal of International Human Rights and Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. The conference will be the fourth Annual Transatlantic Dialogue between Brussels and Chicago.

“Law and Positive Political Theory: Legal Doctrine, Judicial Hierarchies, and Political Control,” April 29–30
Legal scholars and positive theorists will visit Northwestern Law in April to participate in a conference organized by Professor Emerson Tiller to think about and generate articles on topics related to how courts have highlighted the importance of legal doctrine and have sought to shape it, whether for political control or normative values. This conference is supported by the Professor Irving Gordon Symposium Fund.

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UPCOMING STUDENT ORGANIZATION EVENTS

Intellectual Property Week, January 10-14

Media and Entertainment Law Week, January 17-21

Diversity Week, January 24-28

Black History Month, February

APALSA Heritage Week, March 1-4

Women's Leadership Coalition Week, March 7-11

Wigmore Follies, April 1-2

International Law Week, April 4-8

SFPIF Benefit Dinner, April 14

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CURRICULAR DEVELOPMENTS

Spring Colloquium Series: International Law; Advance Topics in Taxation; Constitutional Theory
The Colloquium Series consists of advanced seminars that bring together outside scholars, resident faculty, other Chicago-area faculty, and Northwestern students for an exchange of views on select legal areas or topics. Any interested Northwestern Law student may attend the presentations. Up to 15 students can enroll each semester in a seminar that is taught in conjunction with the colloquium. Participation in workshops is mandatory for students enrolled in the seminars.

This spring we introduce two new colloquia: International Law, organized by Professors Ken Abbott and John McGinnis, and Advanced Topics in Taxation, organized by Professors David Cameron and Philip Postlewaite.

This will also be the third year we present the Constitutional Theory Colloquium, organized by Professors Andrew Koppelman and Steve Calabresi.

International Team Projects (ITP)

Students involved in ITP gain firsthand experience in international legal and business environments through a combination of semester-long research, an intense two-week field study abroad, and a final group project. This year's ITP groups will be researching abroad March 12–27 in the following countries: China, Italy, Morocco, The Netherlands, Panama, Tanzania, and Thailand. 

New Spring Courses
We continue to add new and interesting courses to the curriculum, including some familiar courses being taught by new faculty. To find out more about any of these courses, view our online course catalog.

Contract Drafting
Susan Irion, Clinical Assistant Professor of Law
This seminar will provide introductory, hands-on training in basic techniques of drafting business contracts. Instruction will focus on methodologies in four areas: how to conceptualize in writing the parties' rights, duties, risks and protections; how to organize a contract on both the macro and micro levels; how to draft for clarity and enforceability; and how to express “boilerplate” terms. The seminar is not designed to teach the law or drafting nuances particular to specific types of contracts (e.g., real estate leases), but rather is geared to providing general tools and skills that can be applied to various types of advanced transactional work.

Crime and Punishment: Theories and Evidence
Kenworthy Bilz, Visiting Assistant Professor of Law
During first-year criminal law class, students learned the standard theories of punishment: deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation, and retribution. This seminar closely examines these theories, exploring their validity and usefulness from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, such as social psychology, philosophy, sociology, and economics. The course will also assess the functions of punishment by exploring what the harms of crime actually are to victims, communities, and the social and moral order.

Innovation, Competition and Intellectual Property
Matthew Sag, Visiting Assistant Professor of Law
The effect of intellectual property law on innovation and competition has become the subject of increasing public debate. This seminar explores a variety of issues surrounding the debate, organized around three key topics: (1) reforming the patent system, (2) the relationship between IP & Antitrust, and (3) the effect of intellectual property on industrial organization.

Securitization
Jason Kravitt, Adjunct Professor of Law
This interdisciplinary seminar will address legal, tax, financial, and accounting issues that arise in securitization of financial assets. Securitization is a large and growing corporate finance technique utilizing legal principles from the fields of bankruptcy, secured transactions, securities, banking regulation, tax, real estate, and pension plan regulation. Relevant aspects of financial accounting, rating agency methodology and financial analysis will also be covered.

The Law Where the Sidewalk Ends
Chris Guzelian, 2004-05 Searle Fellow
While law attempts to impose order on a world that is only partly understood, that order is artificial. Attorneys believe this structure makes the world better. Although that belief may be intuitively satisfying, this course's principles suggest that law is often ineffective in addressing or even worsens existing dilemmas when it need not do so. This class begins with a single premise: Our beliefs about reality (in particular, perceptions of risks and uncertainties) lie at the core of nearly all law, norms, and marketplaces. The course shows that these beliefs – even some of those fundamental beliefs that we hold most dear as true – have no objective basis.

Sentencing Law and Policy
John Pfaff, 2004-05 Olin Fellow in Law and Economics
This course provides an introduction to criminal sentencing in the United States and considers both the theories for punishment and how (or whether) sentencing policies successfully translate them into practice.

Sexual Orientation and the Law
Heather Sawyer, Adjunct Professor of Law
This seminar will examine the treatment of sexual orientation and related questions of sexuality in the U.S. legal system. It will begin with readings and discussion on theories of human sexuality, the nature of sexual orientation, issues of identity and expression and background on the modern gay rights movement. It will then address the ways in which different views of sexual orientation have determined or influenced legal and constitutional rights in a variety of contents.

Classes to be Taught by New Instructors
Antitrust Law
Due to high demand last semester, we have added a spring semester section of Antitrust Law. Spencer Waller, a Northwestern Law alum and now Professor of Law and Associate Dean at Loyola University School of Law, will be teaching this course as a Visiting Professor.

Constitutional Criminal Procedure
This course will be taught by Albert Alschuler, the Julius Kreeger Professor of Law and Criminology, who is serving as the Jack N. Pritzker Distinguished Visiting Professor Spring semester. Professor Alschuler is one of the most influential and prolific legal scholars in the fields of criminal law, criminal procedure and criminology.

Evidence
This course will be taught by Kenworthy Bilz, Visiting Assistant Professor.

Summer Courses
As students begin to formulate their summer plans, they should consider taking a course or two over the summer. The summer session begins June 20. 

Business Associations
Albert Yoon, Associate Professor of Law
This course provides an introduction to the law that governs business associations. The class is designed to provide students with a foundation in the common law and state statutory systems that regulate business organizations as well as the important issues of policy that surround this regulation. Although the course touches briefly on the federal regulation of securities exchanges, there will be no discussion of the federal regulation of securities. The course is particularly appropriate for students who intend to take related classes, such as securities regulation, corporate finance, corporate tax, and more specialized offerings. Students who have taken Corporations may not take Business Associations.

Managing Corporate Assets
Clint Francis, Professor of Law
The course utilizes case studies based on real world business issues to analyze how skillful legal management facilitates optimal resolution of these business events. By analyzing real world case studies similar to those used in Kellogg, it is hoped to show the interrelationship of law and business in a way that is not achieved by the segmented specialized courses. The course is aimed at both Northwestern Law and Kellogg students, and requires no prior knowledge of the topics examined. It serves as a complement to the current Business Association summer offering, providing coverage of a range of topics not dealt with in that course.

Practicum: Corporate Counsel (open to third-year JD/MBA students only)
Pete Wentz, Adjunct Professor of Law
Students are placed as externs in general counsel offices of business (most of which are members of the Law School 's Corporate Counsel Center ). In the summer, students will be placed with General Counsel's Office of Inland Steel and other Chicago area corporations. Students will be expected to devote one day a week to the corporate law department in which they are placed. While externs can be called upon to do legal research, the purpose of the externship is that they become involved in the life of the law department: attending meetings, observing negotiations, and otherwise gaining an understanding of how law is practiced within a business setting.

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