Course curriculum

  • 1

    Course Introduction & Preliminary Assessment

    • Course Objectives

    • Definitions: What is Rule of Law and What is American Rule of Law?

    • Our Working Definitions of American Rule of Law
  • 2

    Week 1 Introduction: Politics and American Rule of Law (06/29/20)

    • Topics, Goals, and Format
  • 3

    Week 1, Day 1: (06/29/20)

    • Thomas Jefferson & Sodomy Laws

    • Due Process of Law: Crash Course Government and Politics

    • Equal Protection: Crash Course Government and Politics #29

    • 14th Amendment: A Quick Walk-through

    • 14th Amendment and Race

    • What are the levels of judicial scrutiny?

    • Minow: Dilemma of Differences

    • W1, D1: Discussion Questions
  • 4

    Week 1, Day 2: (06/30/20)

    • Landmark Cases in Women's Rights History

    • 1st Supreme Court Ruling in Favor of Homosexuals Cited 1st Amendment

    • Early 1960s: Seeing The Word "Gay" In A Magazine "Changed My Life Instantly."

    • W1, D2: Discussion Questions
  • 5

    Week 1, Day 3: (07/01/20)

    • Plessy v. Ferguson 163 U.S 537

    • Brown v. Board of Education, 347. U.S. 483

    • The Endurance of Sodomy Laws

    • W1, D3: Discussion Questions

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 6

    Week 1, Day 4: (07/02/20)

    • Crash Course: Affirmative Action

    • Regents of Univ. of California v. Bakke, 438 U.S. 265 (1978)

    • Reproductive Justice Cases (Khan Academy)

    • President Obama's Remarks at White House Hate Crimes Act Reception

    • Dissecting the Complex Hate Crime Law Debate

    • Jordan Peterson On Why He Refuses to Use Special Pronouns For Transgender People

    • Further Reading/Viewing

    • W1, D4: Discussion Questions

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 7

    Week 1, Day 5: (07/03/20)

    • The New Frontier of LGBTQ Civil Rights, Explained

    • Transgender Laws in Present Day America

    • What "defund the police" really means

    • Further Viewing

    • W1, D5 : Discussion Question(s)
  • 8

    Week 2 Introduction: American Rule of Law and the Economy (07/06/20)

    • Topics, Format, and Goals
  • 9

    Week 2, Day 1: (07/06/20)

    • Property and the Right to Vote

    • Evolution of American Corporations (Optional)

    • How American CEOs got so rich

    • Commerce Clause: its Originality (Please Read the Section "The Founders' Fear", other sections are optional)

    • Antitrust: FTC Perspective

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 10

    Week 2, Day 2: (07/07/20)

    • Property, Policy, and Poverty

    • Redlining and the Racial Wealth Gap

    • The Political Content of Antitrust Law (Read the Conclusion only!)

    • Antitrust and Competition, Historically Considered (read the abstract and conclusion only!)

    • Why the Stimulus Doesn't Work for Some Small Businesses | WSJ

    • Financing Options for Small Businesses (Optional)

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 11

    Week 2, Day 3: (07/08/20)

    • Gideon v. Wainwright and Justice for the Poor

    • United States v.s AT&T

    • Is the Theory behind U.S. v. AT&T Applicable Today?

    • How tax breaks help the rich

    • Constitutionality of Wealth Taxes

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 12

    Week 2, Day 4: (07/09/20)

    • Citizens United: Money & Political Influence

    • United States v. Microsoft Corp: Background Explained

    • United States v. Microsoft Corp

    • Intro to Patents, Novelty, and Trolls

    • Patent Trolls Debate (Optional)

    • Panel Discussion: Who Won, Who Lost, and Did It Matter? (OPTIONAL)

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 13

    Week 2, Day 5: (07/10/20)

    • Political Corruption in America

    • The Patent Crisis and How the Courts Can Solve It - Dan L. Burk & Mark A. Lemley (Excerpts)
  • 14

    Week 3, Day 1: (07/13/20)

    • Constitutional Right: The Right to Counsel

    • THE EIGHTH AMENDMENT RECONSIDERED

    • Introduction to International Law (Optional)

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 15

    Week 3, Day 2: (07/14/20)

    • Waterboarding: Brief Explanation

    • On “Waterboarding”: Legal Interpretation and the Continuing Struggle for Human Rights

    • UN-Extrajudicial Executions in "War on Terror"

    • International Criminal Law & the ICC

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 16

    Week 3, Day 3: (07/15/20)

    • US & International Criminal Courts

    • The Rohingya Crisis (ICC)

    • Rasual v. Bush

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 17

    Week 3, Day 4: (07/16/20)

    • Intro to Maritime Law

    • China and the South China Sea Arbitration: Geopolitics vs. International Law

    • Questions for Tomorrow's Meetings
  • 18

    Week 3, Day 5: (07/17/20)

    • The Future of International Courts - Kent, Skoutaris, Trinidad (Excerpts)