Note: Course will start on Monday, October 10, 2016

The American Legal System is complex and, arguably, is becoming increasingly more complex. Part of this problem is due to changes caused by technological improvements and innovation. Another part is caused by social change and an increased reliance on government by citizens who demand and expect protection from an ever burgeoning assortment of dangers and harm. Some interest groups contend the American Legal System is overpowering and should be restrained. One point of view is that civil litigation has become rampant and even destructive to America’s values, especially in medical malpractice. The United States incarcerates a far larger proportion of its citizens and for longer periods of time than any other Western nation. To put is plainly, America promises many “civil liberties” that in reality it fails to deliver either at all, or favours some persons over others. To understand the strengths and weaknesses of the American Legal System, the course will provide opportunity for students to study its English roots, transformation over 230 years since Independence, and focus on selected issues such as institutions, actors, substantive laws, procedural (adjective) laws, remedies for wrongs, and, in selected areas, the relationship between America and the global community