Economics 495:  Senior Seminar in Law and Economics

Day 1: Thu., 8/30/07:
Topic:	Administration I. Economic analysis of the law A. How civil suits work
Readings:	Friedman: Intermezzo.     State Bar of California. A Guide to Legal Literacy: Understanding the U.S. Legal System, 2001.     Optional: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. Publications: Select link to Understanding the Federal Courts.
Handouts:	Syllabus     Sample civil suit     Worksheet: Applying microeconomics to the economic analysis of the law     Part I teams
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Day 2: Tue., 9/4/07:
Topic:	B. The relationship between law and economics
Readings:	Friedman: Introduction; Chapter 1     Posner: Chapter 2     Optional: Craft, R. Kim, and Joe G. Baker. "Do Economists Make Better Lawyers? Undergraduate Degree Field and Lawyer Earnings."
Handouts:	Sample civil suit: outcome     Short assignment: Flood v. Kuhn
Topic:	C. Review of how markets work
Readings:	Friedman: Chapters 2; 3     Posner: Chapter 1
Handouts:	Coase and economics: study guide
Due:	Worksheet: Applying microeconomics to the economic analysis of the law
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Day 3: Thu., 9/6/07:
Topic:	C. Review of how markets work (finish) D. Ronald Coase: "The Problem of Social Cost"
Readings:	Friedman: Chapter 4     Ronald Coase. "The Problem of Social Cost." Journal of Law and Economics (1960): 1-44.
Handouts:	Worksheet: Externalities and Pigouvian taxes revisited     Coase cases     Coase cases: commentary
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Day 4: Tue., 9/11/07:
Topic:	ID. Ronald Coase: "The Problem of Social Cost" (finish) II. Property IIA. The economics of property rights
Readings:	Friedman: Chapter 10     Posner: Chapter 3.1, 3.14
Handouts:	Property: legal teams     Property: mock trials
Due:	Short assignment: Flood v. Kuhn
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Day 5: Thu., 9/13/07:
Topic:	IIB. Acquiring property rights
Readings:	Posner: Chapter 3.2, 3.13     Skim: The Baseball Players' Labor Market (1956)
Cases:	Haslam v. Lockwood 37 Conn. 500 (1871)
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Day 6: Tue., 9/18/07:
Topic:	IIB. Acquiring property rights (finish)
Cases:	Pierson v. Post (no number) (1805)     Hammonds v. Central Kentucky Natural Gas Co. 255 Ky. 685 (1934)     Houston and Baker v. United States Gypsum Co. 652 F.2d 467 (1981)
Topics:	IIC. Exercising property rights
Handouts:	The "Blackstonian" bundle of land rights
Due:	Pram v. Martini plaintiff and defendant briefs
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Day 7: Thu., 9/20/07:
Topics:	IIC. Exercising property rights (finish)
Cases:	Ploof v. Putnam 81 Vt. 471 (1908)     Vincent v. Lake Erie Transport Co. 109 Minn. 456 (1910)     Sanborn v. McLean 233 Mich. 227 (1925)
Topic:	IID. Conflicting property rights: incompatible uses
Readings:	Friedman: Chapter 5     Posner: 3.6, 3.8, 3.9
Cases:	Fontainebleau Hotel Corp. v. Forty-Five Twenty-Five, Inc. 114 So.2d 357 (1959)     Estancias Dallas Corp. v. Schultz, 500 S.W. 2d 217 (1973)     Boomer v. Atlantic Cement Co. 26 N.Y.2d 219 (1970)     Spur Industries v. Del E. Webb Development (1972)
Handouts:	Take home: Alternative approaches to handling incompatible uses
Mock trial:	Pram v. Martini hearing
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Day 8: Tue., 9/25/07:
Topic:	IID. Conflicting property rights: incompatible uses (finish)
Mock trial:	Pram v. Martini opinion
Due:	Pram v. Martini opinion     MGM v. FastTrack plaintiff and defendant briefs     Alternative approaches to handling incompatible uses
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Day 9: Thu., 9/27/07:
Topic:	IIE. Intellectual property 1. Economic analysis
Readings:	Friedman: Chapter 11     Posner: Chapter 3.3, 3.16     "So not intimidated"
Mock trial:	MGM v. FastTrack hearing
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Day 10: Tue., 10/2/07:
Topic:	IIE. Intellectual property 2. Intellectual property law
Cases:	Lowell v. Lewis, 15 F. Cas. 1018 (1817)     Rickard v. Du Bon, 103 Fed. 868 (1900)     Brenner v. Manson 383 U.S. 519 (1966)     Sears, Roebuck & Co v. Steiffel Co. 376 U.S. 225 (1964)     Sony Corporation v. Universal City Studios (brief), 464 U.S. 417 (1984)
	End of material for midterm
Readings:	Friedman: Chapters 8; 6     Actual cases used for mock trials:     Prah v. Maretti (1982) and Paramount v. Grokster (2005)     File-sharing verdict a triumph for record labels (2007)
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Day 11: Thu., 10/4/07:
Topic:	III. Contracts A. The economics of contracts
Readings:	Friedman: Chapter 12     Posner: Chapter 4.1
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Day 12: Tue., 10/9/07:
Topics:	B. Making contracts
Readings:	Friedman: Chapter 12     Posner: Chapter 4.2-4.6, 4.8
Cases:	Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway v. Columbus Rolling Mill 119 U.S. 149 (1886)     Sherwood v. Walker. 66 mich. 568, 33 N.W. 919 (1887)     Hamer v. Sidway 124 N.Y. 538 (1891)     Broadnax v. Ledbetter, 99 S.W. 1111 (1907)
Handouts:	Research paper assignment
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Day 13: Thu., 10/11/07:
Topic:	Exam 1, 5:00-7:30, Fowler 302 (bring a blue book) see study guides: Part I and Part II
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Day 14: Thu., 10/18/07:
Topics:	B. Making contracts (finish)
Cases:	Cotnam v. Wisdom, 104 S.W. 164 (1907)
Topic:	C. Enforcing contracts
Readings	Posner: 4.7, 4.9
Cases:	Harding v. Ja Laur Corp., 20 Md. App. 209 , 315 A. 2d 132 (1974)     Stambovsky v. Ackley: 169 A.D.2d 254 (1991)     Laidlaw v. Organ 15 U.S. 178 (1817) - brief
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Day 15: Tue., 10/23/07:
Topic:	C. Enforcing contracts (finish)
Cases:	Alaska Packers Assn. v. Domenico, 117 F. 99 (1902)     Williams v. Walker-Thomas Furniture Co., 350 E2d 445 (1965)
Topic:	D. Interpreting contracts
Cases:	Wood v. Duff-Gordon. 222 N.E. 88 (1917)     Suydam v. Jacskon 54 N.Y. 450 (1873)     Albert M. Greenfield & Co. V. Kolea 475 Pa. 351 (1976)
Mock trial:	Legal briefs due: Haskins v. McGraft
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Day 16: Thu., 10/25/07:
Topic:	D. Interpreting contracts (finish)
Cases:	Morin Building Products Inc. v. Baystone Construction Inc. 717 F. 2d 413 (1983)
Mock trial:	Hearing: Haskins v. McGraft
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Day 17: Tue., 10/30/07:
Topic:	E. Breaking contracts
Readings	Posner: 4.10-4.15
Cases:	Goebel v. Linn 47 Mich 489 (1882)     Walgreen Co. v. Sara Creek Property Co., 966 F.2d 273 (1992)      Groves v John Wunder Co. 205 Minn. 163  (1939)     Peevyhouse v. Garland Coal & Mining Co. 382 P. 2d 109 (1963)      Hadley v Baxendale, 9 Ex. 341 (1854)
Mock trial:	Judicial opinions due: Haskins v. McGraft     Actual case: Hawkins v. McGee (1929)
Handouts:	Round 4: Research presentation teams and guidelines
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Day 18: Thu., 11/1/07:
Topic:	E. Breaking contracts (finish)
Handouts:	Liability for damages resulting from breach of contract
Topic:	IV. Torts A. The economics of tort liability
Readings:	Friedman: Chapters 7, 14
Handouts:	Presentation schedule sign-up
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Day 19: Tue., 11/6/07:
Topic:	A. The economics of tort liability (finish)
Topics:	B.  Harm
Cases:	Winn Dixie Stores, Inc. (d) v. Benton (p) 576 So.2d 359  (1991)
Topic:	C.  Causation
Cases:	Davies v. Mann, 10 M. & w. 547, 152 Eng. Rep. 588 (1842)      Central of Georgia Ry. Co. (d) v. Price (p), 106 Ga. 176 , 32 S.E. 77 (1898)     Palsgraf v. Long Island Railroad Company 248 N.Y. 339 (1928)     Adams v. Bullock, 227 N.Y. 208, 125 N.E. 93 (1919)
Mock trial:	Legal briefs due: Palsgraf v.Long Island Railway Co.
Handouts:	Presentation schedule assigned times
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Day 20: Thu., 11/8/07:
Topic:	C.  Causation (finish)
Cases:	Kingston v. Chicago & N. W. Ry. Co. 211 N.W. 913 (1927)
Handouts:	Lunch class at DrJ's: Information sheet     Redundant causation
Mock trial:	Hearing: Palsgraf v.Long Island Railway Co.
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Day 21: Tue., 11/13/07:
Topic:	D.  Liability D1. Negligence
Cases:	United States v. Carroll Towing Co., 159 F.2d 169 (1947)     Saglimbeni v. West End Brewing Co., 274 A.D. 201; 80 N.Y.S.2d 635 (1948)
Topic:	D2. Victim fault
Cases:	Butterfield v. Forrester, King's Bench, 11 East 60 (1809)     Dobson v. Louisiana Power & Light Co., 567 So. 2d 569 (1990)
Handouts:	Outcomes under alternative negligence rules
Mock trial:	Judicial opinion due: Palsgraf v.Long Island Railway Co.
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Day 22: Thu., 11/15/07:
Topic:	D3. Strict liability
Cases:	Escola v. Coca Cola Bottling Co., 24 Cal. 2d 453 (1944)
Topic:	D4. Joint liability
Cases:	Summers v. Tice 33 Cal. 2d 80 (1948)     Sindell v. Abbott Laboratories, 26 Cal. 3d 588 (1980)
Topic:	E.  Damages
Readings:	Friedman: Chapter 9
Cases:	Skim the following:     Vosburg v. Putney, 80 Wis. 523 (1891)     Wycko v. Gnodtke, 361 Mich. 331 (1960)     Hunt v. K-Mart Corp. 981 P.2d 275 (1999) 981 P.2d 275 (1999)
Handouts:	Directions to DrJ's house
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Day 23: Thu., 11/20/07:
Topic:	No class
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Day 24 - Day 26: Tue, 11/27/07 - Tue, 12/4/07
Topic:	Student research presentations
Handouts:	Research paper assignment     Research presentation teams and guidelines
Deadlines:	Tue, 11/28: Research paper due (available online: sample paper)     Wed, 12/12, 6:30-9:00, J204: Exam 2 (bring blue book)
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