LAW-8048 Women and the Law
The goals of this course are for you to become familiar with the most well-known feminist legal theories and to be able to apply these theories to analyze women’s legal issues. This process includes logic and legal analysis, but it also encompasses a kind of creative critical thinking that is deeply rooted in narrative and legal storytelling. Consider some of the causes of action and defenses that did not exist until lawyers imagined them as viable legal issues and articulated them as compelling stories: date rape; marital rape; hostile work environment; battered spouse defense; sexual trafficking; Title IX violation for denial of equal opportunity to participate in collegiate sports; inclusiveness of employment opportunities; etc. Consider, also, some of the issues that are being developed right now, such as revenge porn as a potential crime and/or tort. In exploring some of the various legal issues that affect women, we will be reading legal briefs, transcripts of oral arguments, statutes, and cases, as well as a slave diary and a woman reporter’s account of trying to financially survive while working for minimum wage as a waitress and a maid.
Offered
Spring Law