Law Related Courses at Stonehill

A rigorous undergraduate education should include upper level courses in a variety of liberal arts disciplines.  Your chances of being accepted into a prestigious law school are not necessarily enhanced by enrolling in one of the following courses. However, if you have an intellectual interest in the law, these courses may appeal to you:

BA 354 Business Law: This course examines the law of contracts, agency, and business organizations; torts, criminal law, product liability and real property are briefly studied. The course material is covered through a combination of readings, lectures, problem analysis, and case studies. Students cannot take both BA 352 and BA 354 for credit.

CO 307 Freedom of Speech.  A consideration of the First Amendment and governmental restraint in personal, social, and mass communication.

CO 330 Media Regulation. Examines how control, from government censorship to forms of industry regulation, is exhibited over the media. The history of media censorship, including significant cases and precedent-setting legal decisions, is examined. The focus is on the differences between censorship and regulation, and the similarities and differences among various mass media outlets. Among the topics covered are libel, indecency, obscenity, and other examples of speech not protected by the First Amendment.

EC 317 Economics and the Law.  Focus on how an understanding of the law is furthered by an awareness of the economic background against which it operates. The course draws from economic principles developing concepts such as efficiency, property rights, regulation and income distribution.  Applications of these ideas include crime, discrimination, health, the environment, professional sports, gun control, and the legal services industry. Prerequisites: EC 175-176

HC 323 Health Care Law.  Examines legal issues in provision of health care services. Kinds of questions addressed: What are the three sources of law? What should you do if your health care facility is sued for malpractice? What is informed consent? Do you have to tell a patient everything? What should be documented in a medical record and when can such a record be released? When can a patient refuse treatment?  When can a health care facility refuse to treat a patient? What are a patient's rights? Negotiation and legal writing skills are  developed. Recommended for anyone interested in working in a facility providing health care social services, either as a manager or a provider. Prerequisite: HC 105

PC 421 Psychology and the Legal System.  An overview of the impact of Psychology on the legal system. Topics covered include how psychological research has influenced court decisions, an examination of the insanity defense, how competency to stand trial is determined, what psychological processes are involved in jury selection and jury decision making, the accuracy of eyewitness identification, and how children are viewed in the legal system. Prerequisite: PC 101

PH 204 Legal Philosophy.  An in-depth study of fundamental legal notions: the nature and purpose of law; the sources and limits of law; human and natural law;  equity; legal responsibility. The analysis of these notions is accompanied by an account of their role in the development of the English common law and its continuation in American legal history.

PS 336 Constitutional Law and Politics.  Examines the ways in which the Constitution has been interpreted over time by the Supreme Court regarding the institutional powers and structural form of American government. Recurring topics include the methodology of judicial decision making, judicial self-restraint versus judicial activism, the problems of constitutional interpretation, and the development of institutional powers (presidential, congressional, judicial, and state) over time. Prerequisite: PS 123

PS 341 Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.  Focuses on the Supreme Court's efforts over time to define, enlarge, and interpret the rights and liberties enshrined in the Constitution. Examines the limits the Court and the Constitution place on the legitimate range of political action in order to prevent the majority from infringing upon individual liberty or minority rights. Topics include freedom of worship and speech, voting rights, criminal rights, discrimination, and legal reasoning. Prerequisite: PS 123

SO 313 Sociology of Law.  Nature and meaning of law. Critical examination of origin of law, structure of legal system, and changing meaning of law. Literature and film are utilized to demonstrate varying theories of how law is developed and for whom it is developed. The concept of "justice" is used in evaluating the effect of law on the general society. Prerequisite: SO/CJ 101

Courses that offer useful skills for students interested in attending law school:

LA 131 Elementary Latin I/LA 132 Elementary Latin II.  Introduction to Latin grammar and pronunciation. Development of listening, reading, and writing skills, and of the cross-cultural effects of Latin on the English language and of the Romans upon American life. No previous experience necessary.

LA 231 Intermediate Latin I/LA 232 Intermediate Latin II. Intensive review of Latin grammar with an emphasis on the development of reading comprehension. Readings include selections from Petronius' Satyricon and Ovid's Metamorphoses. For students with 2-3 years of high school Latin or LA 131-132. 

PH 201 Elementary Logic.  The art of reasoning or argument: deductive and inductive. Terms as signs. Definition and division of terms and concepts. Relations between statements. Categorical deductive reasoning. Propositional logic. Predicate logic.

WR 248 Analyzing the English Language.  An overview of twentieth-century linguistics, sentence patterns, transformation of basic sentence patterns, modification and coordination, modifiers, words and word classes, diagramming, and grammar for writers in academia, professions, and business.