Course Syllabus

▼SYLLABUS

Seattle University School of Law

 

Professional Responsibility

Spring 2021, Mondays and Wednesdays 2:30-3:45pm

Prof. Dean Spade

spaded@seattleu.edu

Office: Room 436

Office Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays after class and by appointment

Administrative Assistant: Stephanie Tortorelli

Tech Assistant for this Class: Majidah Cochran

 

Required Texts

  • Lerman and Schrag, Ethical Problems in the Practice of Law, Concise Fourth Edition.
  • Susan R. Martyn, Lawrence J. Fox & W. Bradley Wendel, The Law Governing Lawyers: National Rules, Standards, Statutes and State Lawyer Codes, 2020-2021.

All other readings are available on Canvas. 

 

Course Requirements and Grading

Participation. You are expected to attend all sessions of the class and to have completed all readings assigned before class. Attendance and participation count for 10% of the final grade. The Quizzes (not graded for content, just for having completed them on time) I will occasionally give in which you reflect on readings about ethics in your own career count as part of the participation grade. This includes the introductory questions quiz for the first week of class.

Attendance. Missing more than four class sessions will have an impact on your grade. I do not keep track of excused/unexcused absences, but rather track aggregate absences.  It is your job to manage your allotted absences in terms of illness, professional obligations, and family obligations.  Only contact me if you have a significant, serious issue that you know will result in exceeding the allotment (such as caring for a seriously ill family member, ongoing medical issues, etc.).  Please do not contact me about your attendance otherwise. If you had connectivity issues that impacted your attendance on a particular day, contact Majidah Cochran, the class tech assistant, who will be tracking attendance. 

Zoom Camera Policy: To facilitate a productive discussion, you should not disable video without a compelling reason to do so. Just as you would be expected to show your face in class if we were not in a pandemic, I ask that you show your face in our Zoom classroom so that we can see each other's expressions and attention, and to avoid the temptation of distractions. Not everyone has a completely private space to attend class from home. That is okay, we would rather see you and also have the occasional disruption of your space by a pet, child, or roommate than not see you at all. If you would prefer that your home space is not seen by our class, considering using a background Links to an external site..

Writing Assignment: Ethical Roadmap Zine. As a final project in this class, in groups of three or four, students will make ethical roadmap zines. This roadmap will capture your learning over the course of the semester about the values that you want to guide your career, and about the tools and skills that you have developed or want to develop to support you as you encounter bumps in the road. Your roadmap may not exceed the equivalent of 6 pieces of 8” x 11” paper, but can be formatted however you want. It will be turned in electronically. Greater detail about this assignment will be provided separately on Canvas. This assignment is due on March 22.

Your ethical roadmap will be graded on:

  • Self-awareness and depth of reflection (50%)
  • Recruitment of useful tools and frames from our class (and beyond if you choose) (20%)
  • Organization and presentation (20%)

Your zine should reflect and equal collaboration between partners. This assignment will account for 30% of your grade. You are expected to work on this project outside of class, but some class time will be provided to allow you to meet with your group, in recognition of your varied schedules.

Exam:  A final examination will account for 30% of your grade.  It will be an anonymous, closed-note, closed-book, time-limited in-class. 

Group Presentation: 30% of your grade will be based on your group presentation. You will be part of a group of six or seven students (there may only be 10 groups total) who chose a legal career and create a 15-minute presentation about the ethical issues facing attorneys doing that particular type of work. The career should be specific, not a general topic in law, but rather which side of the practice you are focused on. For example, “housing” is too general. You should pick tenants’ attorneys, or landlords’ attorneys, or developers’ attorneys, or public interest land use attorneys, or government attorneys at a local, state or federal housing authority. Rather than “criminal justice” you should focus on defense or prosecution, or an even more specific area like juvenile defense. Your group will work together to research these issues. You may interview attorneys doing that work, but it is not required. Please see the more detailed description of this assignment on Canvas to be sure you meet the criteria before reaching out to any attorneys for interviews. You should look at legal scholarship and other published writing to learn about the specific ethical issues in the type of law practice you are examining. You may use any technological resources you desire to create a clear, understandable, information-packed, interesting presentation to help your fellow students learn the material you are sharing. You are expected to work on this project outside of class, but some class time will be provided to allow you to meet with your group, in recognition of your varied schedules.

Elements of an excellent group project include:

  • You divided the research and writing work evenly, supported each other in that work by reviewing and discussing each other’s work so that you all feel comfortable standing behind all of the elements.
  • You approached your research with an eye to becoming experts in the ethical issues facing this area of law practice, undertook research that provided this expertise, and demonstrated this expertise in your presentation.
  • Your presentation described key ethical controversies relevant to your area of practice that might interest your classmates.
  • You exercised and enhanced your cooperation and collaboration skills by working in a group that effectively communicated, divided labor, and supported one another’s work. No one dominated the group and no one was a “free rider” in the project.

On the day of your class presentation, your group must provide to me a one-page account listing what each individual contributed to the project. It should include sufficient detail about what elements you each researched, wrote, designed, presented, and otherwise engaged so that I can assess each individual’s contribution. Everyone in your group should have read and agreed to what is inside the document about your individual contributions to the project, ensuring that is an accurate account of your contributions.

Recap of grade components for this class:

30% Ethical Roadmap Zine

30% Group Presentation

30% Final Exam

10% Class Participation

 

Schedule (Subject to Change)

Week 1

Jan 11

Take this required quiz before class.

Jan 13

  • Lerman & Schrag 1–39
  • Review the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct to become familiar with their structure and various sections. You do not have to read the comments, but please read the rules themselves.

Week 2

Jan 18 Classes cancelled for MLK holiday.

Jan 20

Admission to Practice

Week 3

Jan 25

Guest Speaker: Prof. John Strait Links to an external site., Adjunct Investigative Counsel to the Washington State Bar Association Office of Legal Discipline. 

Readings: Download This packet of materials.

Jan 27

Duty of Competence

Week 4

Feb 1

Conception of Lawyer Role, Ethical Issues Implicated by Career Choice 

Feb 3 Guest Speaker: Joey Mogul Links to an external site.

Week 5

Feb 8

Navigating Stress, Overwork and Perfectionism 

Feb 10

Navigating Stress, Conflict and Collaboration

Before class, complete this required Collaboration Style Reflection on Canvas. Links to an external site.

Week 6

Feb 15 Classes cancelled for Presidents’ Day.

Feb 17

Distraction, Technology, Overwork, and Mapping Supportive Practices

Week 7

Feb 22 

Generative Conflict

Feb 24

Meet with Ethical Roadmap group during class.

Week 8

March 1

RPC 1.14 and Ethical Considerations of Guardianship
Guest Speakers: Beth Leonard, Disability Rights Washington, David Lord, Disability Rights Washington

Optional:     

March 3

Working with People Experiencing Conflict and Trauma

Week 9

March 8

Meeting with Ethical Roadmap group during class time.

March 10

Formation of Attorney-Client Relationship and Accompanying Duties

  • Rules 1.2, 1.16, 1.18, 6.1, 6.2, 6.5
  • Lerman & Schrag, pp. 178-189 ; 193-211; 241-247
  • Restatement 3rd of the Law Governing Lawyers §14 (In Martyn et. al. text starting p. 121)

Week 10

March 22

Ethical Duty of Confidentiality, Privilege, and Attorney Work Product

March 24

Attorney Client Privilege

  • Lerman & Schrag 156-176
  • Restatement 3rd of the Law Governing Lawyers, §§ 68-75, 77-80, 82-83, 86-89 (you do not have to read the comments)
  • Wright v. Group Health Hospital, 103 Wn.2d 192, 691 P.2d 564 (1984)

Week 11

March 29

Loyalties and Conflicts of Interest

  • Rules 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 1.10, 1.13, 1.15, 1.18, 6.3, 6.4, 6.5
  • Lerman & Schrag, Chapter 6, pp. 249-284

March 31

Meet in Group Presentation Groups

Week 12

April 5

Conflicts, continued.

  • Lerman & Schrag ,Ch. 7, pp. 300-315
  • Lerman & Schrag ,Chapter 8, pp. 321-347, 352-365

April 7

Who is the Client? – Representation of Entities, Classes, and Multiple Parties

  • Lerman & Schrag Ch. 7, pp. 290-300
  • Derick Bell,  Serving Two Masters: Integration Ideals and Client Interests in School Desegregation Litigation, 85 Yale L.J. (1976).

Week 13

April 12

Guest Speaker, Elana Redfield

April 14

Meet with your Group Presentation Group

 

Week 14

April 19

Groups 1, 2, 3, and 4 Present

April 21

Groups 5, 6, 7, and 8 Present

 

Week 15

April 26

Groups 9 & 10 Present

Best Practices for Exam Period Self-Care

April 28

Exam Review