I. LOCATOR INFORMATION

 

Course Number and Name: POLI 613-01 – The Judicial Process

Number of Semester Hours of Credit: 3

Semester:  Fall 2002

Time Class Meets: Thursday 6:00 PM - 8:50 PM

Building and Room Number: JKSA 204

Instructor's Name: Dr. Andrew Dowdle

Office Location: TS 207B

Office Telephone: 672-1247

Office Hours: TR 9:30-11 am, MWF noon - 1pm, MR 5-6 pm

    OR BY APPOINTMENT

E-mail:  adowdle@uncfsu.edu

Website: http://spacer.uncfsu.edu/f_dowdle/poli613.htm

 

II. COURSE DESCRIPTION

 

     Political Science 613 is designed to provide graduate students with the ability to examine and analyze the procedures and politics involved in the judicial process. Emphasis will be placed on all levels of the federal judiciary with special emphasis on the judicial process involving the Supreme Court.  The process involving judicial selection, group litigation, internal procedure, precedent development, enforcement, and impact will be utilized as the means of examining the judicial process.

  

III. TEXTBOOKS

 

   Murphy, Walter F. et al. Courts, Judges, and Politics, 5th Ed. New York: McGraw Hill, 2002.

  

   O’ Brien, David M. Storm Center, 6th Ed. New York:  W.W. Norton, 2002.

 

IV. COURSE OBJECTIVES

 

   On completion of this course students should be able to demonstrate their

    knowledge of the American legal system by:

   *  Evaluating the effects of Supreme Court rulings on major political issues.

   *  Demonstrating an understanding of the concept of “agenda-setting.”

   *  Being able to explain the concept of “the cult of the robe.”

   *  Evaluating the public’s attitude toward the court.

   *  Comparing the media’s coverage of the judiciary to that of the other branches. 

   *  Understanding how the appointment process to the bench works.

   *  Demonstrating a comprehension of the Court’s case selection process. 

   *  Explaining the origin of judicial review and evaluating its significance.

   *  Evaluating the effectiveness of the Court in implementing its decisions.

   *  Comparing the power of the judiciary to that of the other branches of the

       government.

 

V. EVALUATION CRITERIA:

 

Midterm Examination 40%

 

Final Examination 40%

 

Class Presentations 20%

 

Grading scale

 

A 92-100

 

B 83-91

 

C 73-82

 

F 72 or below

 

 

VI. COURSE REQUIREMENTS

 

  *  Each student is expected to make contributions to the discussion and analysis of

      these materials.

  *  Satisfactory performance in this course requires regular and prompt class

      attendance.

  *  All examinations must be taken at the time that they are scheduled.  All other

     assignments should be completed by the time they are due.

 

     There will be two (2) exams, see attached schedule. Students will be required to make one in-class presentation.

 

VII: TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE

 

August 22 -  Introduction and Orientation

     

August 29 - The Nature of Jurisprudence

                 Murphy et al., Chps. One and Two.

 

September 5 - Judicial Organization / A Case Study on How the Court Works

                  Murphy et al., Chp. Three.

                  O' Brien, Chp. One.

 

September 12 - Judicial Selection and "The Cult of the Robe" -

                    Murphy et al., Chp. Four.

                    O' Brien, Chp. Two.

 

September 19  "The Marble Temple" and the Legal Profession -

                     Murphy et al., Chp. Five                   

                     O' Brien, Chp. Three

 

September 26 - Access to the Courts

                      Murphy et al., Chp. Six.

                      O' Brien, Chp. Four.

 

October 3 - Midterm Examinations

 

October 10 - Fall Break - No Classes

 

October 17 - Judicial Power and Its Limits

                    Murphy et al., Chps. Seven and Eight.

 

October 24 - Fact-Finding and Precedent

                      Murphy et al, Chps. Nine and Ten.

 

October 31 - Statutory and Constitutional Interpretation

                       Murphy et al., Chps. Eleven and Twelve.                   

 

November 7 - SPSA

 

November 14 - Judicial Decision-Making

                       Murphy et al., Chp. Thirteen.

                       O' Brien, Chp. Five.

 

November 21 - Assessing the Role of the Court               

                      Murphy et al., Chp. Fourteen.

                      O' Brien, Chp. Six.

 

November 28 - Thanksgiving - No Classes

 

December 5 - Review for Final Examination

 

VII. JUDICIAL PROCESS AND CONSTITUTIONAL LAW BIBLIOGRAPHY: ARRANGED BY TOPIC

 

A. Constitutional Theory And Governmental Powers

Abraham, H., Freedom & the Court (6th ed. 1993 ).

Biskupic, J. & Witt, E., The Supreme Court and Individual Rights, 3d ed. (1997).

Currie, D. The Constitution in the Supreme Court (2 vol., 1985, 1990).

Currie, D. The Constitution in Congress (vol 1. 1997)

Gunther, G. Constitutional Law; Individual Rights in Constitutional Law.

Kelly, A., Harbison, W., & Belz, H., The American Constitution (7th ed. (1991).

Murphy, W., Fleming, J., Barber, S. American Constitutional Interpretation (2d ed. 1995).

O'Brien, D. Constitutional Law & Politics (1995) with yearly supplements.

Pritchett, C., Constitutional Law of the Federal System; Constitution & Civil Liberties (1983).

 

B. Collections Of Case Studies About The Court And Its Justices.

 

Cannon, M. & O'Brien, D., ed. Views from the Bench (1985).

Garraty, J., ed., Quarrels that Have Shaped the Constitution 2d ed. (1987).

Irons, P., Courage of their Convictions (1988)

Steamer, R., Chief Justice (1986).

White, G., The American. Judicial Tradition (2d ed., 1988).

 

C. General Histories Of The Court And American Constitutionalism.

 

Farber, D. & Sherry, S. A History of the American Constitution (1990).

McCloskey, R. The American Supreme Court (2d ed. 1994).

Mason, A. ed. Free Govt. in the Making (1985 ed)

Schwartz, B. A History of the Supreme Court (1993).

Semonche, J. Keeping The Faith: A Cultural History of The Supreme Court (1998)

Urofsky, M. March of Liberty (1988).

Wiecek, W., Liberty under Law (1988).

         

D. The Bill of Rights: Historical Function and Historical Studies.

 

Cogan, N .The Complete Bill of Rights: the Drafts, Debates, Sources & Origins (1997).

Conley, P. & Kaminski, J., The Bill of Rights and the States (1992).

Corwin, E. "The Doctrine of Due Process of Law Before the Civil War," 24 Harvard Legal Review 366 &460 (1941).

Lacey, M. & Haakonssen K. eds.A Culture of Rights (1992).

Levy. L. Jefferson & Civil Liberties (1963).

Plescia, J. The Bill of Rights and Roman Law (1995).

Rutland, R. The Birth of the Bill of Rights (1955).

Wilmarth, A. "Original Purpose of the Bill of Rights," 26 American Criminal Law Review 1261 (1989).

 

E. The Fourteenth Amendment Incorporation Problem.

 

Amar, A., "The Bill of Rights and the Fourteenth Amendment," 101 Yale. Legal Journal 1193(1992).

Antieau, C. Intended Significance of the 14 Amendment (1997).

Aynes, R. "Charles Fairman, Felix Frankfurter & the 14th Amendment," 70 Chicago-Kent Law Review 1197 (1995).

Belz, H. Emancipation and Equal Rights (1978).

Bond, J. No Easy Walk to Freedom (1997).

Curtis, M., No State Shall Abridge (1986).

Kaczorowski, R. "Revolutionary Constitutionalism in the Era of the Civil War &

Reconstruction," 61 New York University Legal Review 863 (1986).

Kettner, J. The Development of American Citizenship, 1609-1870

Kutler, S., Judicial Power and Reconstruction Politics (1968).

Maltz, E. "Fourteenth Amendment Concepts in the Antebellum Era," 32 American Journal of  Legal History 305 (1988).

Maltz, E. Civil Rights, the Constitution, and Congress (1990).