FAMILY LAW
LAW# 6710, Section #2822
Professor Dowd
Spring 2002
MTuW11:30 Room 296
Office 312G Holland Hall; 392-2236; dowd@law.ufl.edu
Course materials: Weisberg and Appleton, Modern Family Law (Aspen 1998) and handouts.
Assignments: Each assignment in the casebook is for the week; we will cover roughly one-third of the assigned reading in each class. Please read the cases and other materials and carefully prepare the problems (the exam will include problems like these).
In addition to carefully preparing for class, each student must complete:
(1) the initial assignment;
(2) a family court observation; and
(3) a problem for class discussion.
All of these are described in further detail below, after the reading assignments.
Exam: The final examination for the course is May 3, 2002, and will be a one-day take home exam. You may opt to write a paper or do a project in lieu of the exam, with the permission of the instructor on or before February 18, 2002.
Reading Assignments
January 14-16
***For the first class, no reading is required, but please complete this assignment: Define "family" and illustrate your definition. Please use your course number, available from Student Services, to identify your paper and turn in your paper to Professor Dowd or her secretary, Cindy Zimmerman, prior to the first meeting of the class. (Her secretary's office is Room 382, Holland Hall.)
1-49 (Problem 16; Problem 23)
January 21-23
49-115, handout, Stenberg v. Carhart (Problem 74; Problem 92; Problem 104; Problems 114(2))
January 28-30
115-170 (Problem 129; Problem 150; Problems 165 (2); Problems 170(2))
February 4-6
handout, Baker v. Vermont; 179-239 (Problems 193(2); Problem 211; Problems 215 (4); Problem 239)
February 11-13
241-285, 309-330 (Problems 272 (2); Problems 285(2); Problems 318(2); Problem 330)
February 18-20
357-389, 343-351, 389-397(Problem 372; Problem 388; Problem 350; Problem 395)
February 25-28
397-465 (Problems 403(2); Problem 415; Problems 443(2); Problem 460)
March 4-8 SPRING BREAK
March 11-13
465-534 (Problems 489(2); Problems 502(2); Problem 505; Problem 534)
March 18-20
535-542, 564-590, 608-629(Problem 577; Problem 595; Problems 629(2))
March 25-27
649-729 (Problem 665; Problems 676(2); Problems 712(2))
April 1-3
729-797 (Problems 739(2); Problem 745; Problems 754(2); Problem 797)
April 8-10
799-867 (Problem 812; Problem 821; Problem 825; Problem 860)
April 15-17
867-882; handout, Troxel; 1129-1170, 1184-1192 (Problems 1146(2); Problems 1161(3))
April 22-24
1192-1201, 1207-1259 (Problem 1213; Problem 1216; Problems 1236(2); Problem 1251; Problem 1259)
Course Policies
1. The reading assignments are given for each week. We will cover roughly one-third of the reading in each class. You are presumed to have carefully read the cases and other kinds of materials, as well as the notes, and you should prepare the problems carefully. We will spend as much time as possible learning doctrine by applying it through a problem-oriented approach.
2. In addition to completing the reading assignments, each student must complete the following written assignments:
(1) the initial assignment;
(2) a family court observation; and
(3) a problem for class discussion.
These three assignments will be graded pass-fail. Any failed assignment will lower your final grade by 1/2 letter grade (e.g., from B+ to B). A late assignment is a failed assignment. At your option, you may elect to have your family court observation or your class problem count for 25% of your final grade (for a total of 50%). Each assignment is described below in greater detail.
(1) Initial assignment: Define "family" and illustrate your definition. Please complete this assignment before you read anything for the course. The illustration might be a drawing, photo, picture from a magazine, etc. This assignment is due before our first class meeting on Monday, January 14, 2002, at 11:30, to Professor Dowd or her secretary, Cindy Zimmerman (office is Rm. 382, Holland Hall). Your paper should be identified only by your course number, which you must obtain from Student Services.
For this assignment only, if the assignment is turned in after the first day of class, you may write an additional assignment that will be due January 28 in lieu of a late paper counting as a failed paper.
(2) Family court observation: Each student must observe proceedings in one or more of the family law divisions of the Circuit Court for at least two hours at some point during the semester. You can do this in Alachua County or in your home county. Please make arrangements early by contacting the judge's judicial assistant. You will receive a separate handout for this assignment with the information that you need. You must turn in a written narrative of your observation, and if you want the narrative to count as part of your grade, you should expand it by relating what you observed to course materials, including class discussions. Your narrative is due on or before Monday, April 15, before class begins, to Professor Dowd or to her secretary, Cindy Zimmerman.
(3) Problems: Each student will take primary responsibility to prepare and lead discussion on one problem listed in the syllabus. There are a total of 74 problems in the syllabus. The sign-up sheet (list of problems) is available from Prof. Dowd's secretary, Cindy Zimmerman, in Room 382, Holland. Please stop by as soon as possible to sign up for a problem. After all problems are covered by at least one student, the remaining students may sign up as the second student on any problem.
You should prepare for the problem based on class readings and any other background that you have; no research or additional reading is required. You are expected to submit a brief paper on your answer and to lead discussion on your problem in class. By leading discussion, I mean that you should be prepared to give a detailed, cogent discussion of the issues and how you resolved them or what you found difficult about coming to an answer, with your answer especially taking note of the relevant course materials.
You should prepare an answer, typed, double spaced, and submit that on the Friday before the week your problem appears on the syllabus, to Professor Dowd or to her secretary, identified only with your course number. At that time, you may elect whether your essay will count as 25% of your grade. The essay should be no longer than approximately 5 pages, or 1200 words, if it is submitted for a grade. If this will not count toward 25% of your grade, I would expect an essay in the range of 2-3 pages and it may be very informal.
Your pass/fail grade for this assignment will be based on both the paper and your class discussion.
Please do not refer to the cases or other materials cited in the problem; this will not help you in the process of learning and problem solving. Once you have completed your essay, if you consult those resources, you should include a sentence or two about case outcomes or the perspectives of particular scholars.
If for some reason you cannot be present to lead discussion, please switch with another student and then inform me of the change. If last minute circumstances prevent you from being present, your essay will be read to the class and you will be required to help lead discussion on an additional problem.
3. Exam: The final examination for the course is scheduled for May 3, 2002, and will be a one-day take home exam. If you wish, you may opt to write a paper or do a project, with the permission of the instructor. This can include group projects and can be done for credit in conjunction with another class. Your proposal must be approved on or before February 18, 2002.
This may be a particularly good option for those of you that have specific interests in family law that you wish to pursue.
4. Attendance: I expect you to be in class and to be prepared. I circulate an attendance sheet, and if you miss more than six classes, your grade may be lowered or if your absence is excessive, you may be dropped from the class. Please come see me if you have any extenuating circumstances during the course of the semester.