Study

791 Judicial Writing

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Course Areas of Practice
Evaluation Methods
  • Simulated Writing, Litigation
  • Reflective Writing
  • Oral presentation
  • In-class exercise
  • Class participation
Degree Requirements
JD elective
IntlLLM-SJD-EXC elective
IntlLLM writing
Course Type
  • Simulation
Learning Outcomes
  • Legal analysis and reasoning, legal research, problem-solving, and written and oral communication in the legal context

Sample Syllabi

Spring 2024

2024
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2
  • Simulated Writing, Litigation
  • Reflective Writing
  • Oral presentation
  • In-class exercise
  • Class participation
 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Syllabus: 791-01-Spring2024-syllabus.docx44.54 KB

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

Spring 2023

2023
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2
  • Simulated Writing, Litigation
  • Reflective Writing
  • Oral presentation
  • In-class exercise
  • Class participation
 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

Spring 2022

2022
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2
  • Simulated Writing, Litigation
  • Reflective Writing
  • Oral presentation
  • In-class exercise
  • Class participation
 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Syllabus: 791.01.Spring2022-syllabus.pdf317.81 KB

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

Spring 2021

2021
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2
  • Class participation
 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

Spring 2020

2020
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2
  • Class participation
 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

Spring 2019

2019
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2
  • Class participation
 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

Spring 2018

2018
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2
  • Class participation
 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

Spring 2017

2017
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

Spring 2016

2016
Course Number Course Credits Evaluation Method Instructor

791.01 2 Joan Magat

This course is intended to appeal to any student who seeks a judicial clerkship or aspires to be a judge, or who simply wants to learn more about how and why judges write judicial opinions. Students will consider the complexities of being on the bench, including judges' relationships with the public, with lawyers, with other judges, and with their clerks. The students will try their hands at formats and styles unique to clerking or judging, including a bench brief, an analytic paper, and an appellate-court opinion.

Degree Requirements
Pre/Co-requisites
None

In this section

*Please note that this information is for planning purposes only, and should not be relied upon for the schedule for a given semester. Faculty leaves and sabbaticals, as well as other curriculum considerations, will sometimes affect when a course may be offered.