Study

This course will provide an overview of immigration law and policy. It combines a study of constitutional law, statutory interpretation, and administrative regulations. We examine the constitutional law governing noncitizens as they seek to enter and remain in the United States as well as the statutory provisions governing humanitarian protection, family-based and employment-based migration. We also discuss the immigration consequences of criminal convictions, the obligations of criminal defense attorneys to advise noncitizen clients, and the intersection of criminal and immigration enforcement systems.

The course explores the legal, social, historical, and political factors that have constructed immigration law and policy in the U.S.  In examining these various factors, the course will analyze several inherent conflicts that arise in immigration law, including, among other things, the tension between the right of a sovereign nation to determine whom to admit to the nation state and the constitutional and human rights of noncitizens to gain admission or stay in the U.S., the power of the executive branch to set and change immigration policy, issues that arise between noncitizens and citizens of the U.S. with regard to employment, security, and civil rights and the tension between the federal and state governments in regulating immigration law. Students will participate in a mock removal proceeding and will complete hypothetical immigration problems that illustrate the application of constitutional, statutory, and regulatory immigration law.

Enrollment Pre-/Co- Requisite Information

The course satisfies the pre-requisite or co-requisite requirement to enroll in the Immigrant Rights Clinic.

Spring 2022

Course Number	Course Credits	Evaluation Method	Instructor
351.01	Course Credits 3	Final Exam Practical exercises Class participation	Kate Evans
Sakai site: https://sakai.duke.edu/portal/site/LAW-351-01-Sp22
Email list: LAW-351-01-Sp22@sakai.duke.edu