Relevant bar examination topic.

Four semester hours credit.

Introductory course on the history and objectives of civil litigation, including sources of law, case law and the doctrine of stare decisis, and the history and development of equitable remedies; the anatomy of a legal proceeding before, during, and after trial of a civil case, including basic jurisdictional concepts in federal and state court, the law applied in federal court, adjudication of multiple claims and cases involving multiple parties, discovery, pretrial procedures and disposition without trial; basic concepts and strategies regarding litigation; and the law of former adjudication.

Relevant bar examination topic.

Three semester hours credit. Normally offered three times each academic year.

History and development of the rules relating to presentation of proof and evidentiary matters pertaining to the judicial functions, with emphasis on the Federal Rules of Evidence and the Texas Rules of Evidence, including preparation for trial, examination of witnesses, competency of witnesses, types of evidence, burden of proof, hearsay rule and exceptions, judicial notice, privileges, and impeachment in civil and criminal proceedings.

Relevant bar examination topic.

Three semester hours credit. Normally offered twice each academic year.

Texas civil procedure in trial courts from the prelitigation phase to the beginning of trial. Includes subject matter jurisdiction in the Texas courts, provisional remedies, prelitigation devices, jurisdiction over the person, venue, pleadings, parties, res judicata and collateral estoppel, discovery tools and techniques, and summary judgment and other methods of disposition without trial, as governed by Texas law.

Relevant bar examination topic.

Three semester hours credit. Normally offered twice each academic year.

Texas civil procedure in trial courts from the beginning of the trial through the motion for new trial with particular emphasis on pleading and practice in Texas and jury charge, jury and non-jury trial, verdict and judgment. Appellate procedure, method, nature and scope of appellate relief; appealable judgments; jurisdiction of appellate courts; procedure and parties; effect of transfer; supersedeas; records and brief; motion for rehearing review by the Court of Civil Appeals and the Texas Supreme Court.

Two semester hours credit. Offered periodically.

This course provides a comprehensive survey of the various processes known as Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). These include negotiation, mediation, evaluative processes such as neutral case evaluation and summary jury trials, and arbitration. The primary focus is the theory and law of ADR as the procedures relate to the court system and law practice, and, in particular, the lawyer’s role. Classwork also includes a number of simulations providing students opportunities to become familiar with the skills essential to competent practice in these procedures.

Two semester hours credit. Normally offered twice each academic year.

Prerequisites: Must have completed 45 semester hours and have taken or be concurrently enrolled in Texas Pretrial Procedure. These prerequisites will be strictly enforced.

The structure of the course involves students in preparing a realistic civil case against an opponent. Students engage in all aspects of pretrial discovery and motion practice, including client interview, attempts to settle, drafting pleadings, paper discovery, taking depositions, procedural and dispositive motions, and pretrial orders.

Two semester hours credit. Graded honors pass, pass, low pass, or fail. Normally offered as an intersession course.

This course is designed to provide students with the skills necessary to take and defend depositions. Students will explore why and when to take depositions; how to draft deposition notices for individual deponents, non-party witnesses, and corporate designees; how to draft successful deposition outlines; proper deposition questions and objections; and approaches to dealing with unruly and unprofessional opposing counsel during positions. Students will take and defend several mock depositions.

Three semester hours credit. Normally offered twice each academic year.

Prerequisites: Must have completed 45 semester hours and Evidence. These prerequisites will be strictly enforced.

Note: Students may receive credit toward graduation for only one trial advocacy course (Civil Trial Advocacy, Criminal Trial Advocacy, or Family Law Trial Advocacy).

The structure of the course involves students in trying a realistic civil case against an opponent. Students engage in all aspects of the trial, including trial motions, voir dire examination of jurors, opening statement, examination of witnesses and closing argument.

Two semester hours credit. Graded honors pass, pass, low pass, or fail. Normally offered twice each academic year.

Prerequisites: Completion of the first 30 hours of required courses, but completion of fewer than 60 semester hours.

This course is designed to provide intensive training in trial advocacy and culminates each semester in a mock trial competition. Each class will have limited enrollment, and students are divided into teams of four. Each team prepares for the direct and cross-examination of witnesses, opening and closing statements, and trial motions. Students practice and develop skills in theory development, evidence analysis, forensic persuasion and litigation advocacy. No final examination.

One semester hour credit. Graded honors pass, pass, low pass, or fail. Normally offered three times each academic year.

Prerequisites: Completion of the first 30 hours of required courses.

Students are selected by the director of advocacy because of their interest and ability in appellate advocacy competitions. The course is limited to students who are members of a competition team or brief writers for a competition team engaged in one of the inter-law school moot court or mock trial competitions. Once accepted to a competition, it is the student’s responsibility to officially register for Moot Court/Mock Trial through the Registrar’s Office. This must be done during the semester of the competition. No retroactive approval will be granted. This course may be taken for one credit per semester up to a maximum of three hours credit.

Two semester hours credit. Graded honors pass, pass, low pass, or fail. Normally offered twice each academic year.

The course focuses on substantive instruction and clinical experience in techniques for effective jury communication in all phases of the trial. Particular attention is given to jury selection and techniques for conducting an effective voir dire.

Three semester hours credit. Offered periodically.

Consideration of the special problems encountered in complex litigation. Topics include permitted, required, and forbidden party joinder issues; the problem of parallel litigation, including consolidation of separate actions, transfers between federal courts, parallel federal and state lawsuits, and multidistrict litigation transfers; class actions, including general requirements for a class action, defendant classes, and class-wide and individual remedies; discovery issues; judicial control of the litigation, including selecting lead counsel, attorney’s fees, and sanctions; former adjudication issues, such as claim preclusion and issue preclusion; and alternatives to litigation, such as nonjudicial processes or mini-trials and other judicial devices.

Two semester hours credit. Graded honors pass, pass, low pass, or fail. Normally offered as an intersession course.

Four-day skills workshop teaching students to assess cases and strategize during different phases of litigation: when deciding whether to bring suit, during settlement negotiations or plea bargaining, discovery, trial, and assessment of damages or sanctions. Decision trees, basic game theory models, discounted valuations of damages or liability, information costs, and trial sequencing are core skills taught. Students receive an introduction to relevant economic concepts like moral hazard, adverse selection, best cost avoider, the knee of the curve, risk allocation, Pareto Optimality, and negative externalities, which as litigators they can incorporate into a theory of the case or analysis of an opponent’s arguments. Strategies include calculating whether suits should be brought and when they should settle; calculating optimal initial demand amounts during negotiations; and using the sequence of issues in the upcoming trial itself to influence settlement negotiations beforehand.

One semester hour credit. Graded honors pass, pass, low pass, or fail. Normally offered twice each academic year.

Prerequisites: Completion of Legal Research & Writing II and completion or concurrent completion of the first 30 hours of required courses.

Students are divided into teams of two members. Each team prepares an appellate brief and presents oral arguments in a competition. (The Leroy Jeffers Competition is conducted in the fall and the Spurgeon Bell Competition takes place in the spring.) Students practice and develop skills in legal research, brief writing and forensic persuasion. No final examination. Students are encouraged to register for Appellate Advocacy in their first semester or session after completing their first 30 required hours.

Two semester hours credit. Normally offered once each academic year.

This course concentrates on the law and procedure of arbitration. Issues include arbitrability, separability, arbitral jurisdiction, non-signatory arbitral jurisdiction, compelling arbitration, FAA preemption, drafting, and analysis of arbitration agreements. Additional considerations of court review, confirmation, and vacatur of arbitral awards are also addressed. Students will be introduced to arbitration advocacy, practice skills, and procedure. The course will also provide a survey of specialized arbitration topics, including commercial, international, labor, employment, securities, and consumer arbitrations.

One semester hour credit. Graded honors pass, pass, low pass, or fail. Normally offered as an intersession course.

Provides students with mediation certificate training, during which students serve as third-party neutrals, settlement advocates and parties to the dispute. Emphasis is on the practice of mediation through intensive skills training. Students develop an appreciation both for the functioning of the third-party neutral and for the advocate’s role in the alternative dispute resolution process. This course is designed to satisfy the current 40-hour Texas requirement for mediator certification.

Three semester hours credit. Normally offered twice each academic year. Enrollment is limited to 24 students.

This course examines mediation theory and practice. A variety of readings, exercises, and role-plays will be employed to encourage rigorous analysis of mediation concepts and critical assessment of the application of these concepts in practice. Topics to be covered include negotiation theory, stages of the mediation process, ethical issues in mediation, bringing parties to agreement, legal issues in mediation, dealing with power imbalances, and the lawyer’s role in the mediation process. Students will participate in exercises at various stages of the mediation process.

Two semester hours credit. Offered periodically.

This course first provides an in-depth study of negotiation because mediation is essentially a facilitated negotiation. Next, students will be exposed to mediation theory and process in order to gain an understanding of what is important while representing clients in the mediation session itself. Pre-mediation matters will be addressed including preparing cases and clients for mediation. The course will also cover advocacy during the mediation process. All students will have the opportunity to play the role of advocate in several in-class mediations. The goal of this interactive course is for students to develop the essential problem-solving skills for effective client representation in the mediation process.

Two semester hours credit. Offered periodically.

This is an interactive skills course designed to teach elements and practice of negotiation. The course examines an array of approaches to negotiation from joint problem-solving to adversarial strategies to improve students’ negotiating skills. Students will be acquainted with the negotiation process as it relates to the court system and law practice. Subject matters range from transactional to litigation settlement. Substantial class time will be devoted to exercises and the practical application of negotiation. Students will be expected to prepare for, participate in, and critique several simulated negotiations.

Two semester hours credit. Graded honors pass, pass, low pass, or fail. Normally offered as an intersession course.

Examination of the attorney-client relationship, including establishing the relationship in the initial interview; billing arrangements; the importance of continuing communications; case analysis; decision-making; counseling with the client as to case development and strategy; preparation of the client for settlement negotiations as well as trial; termination of the relationship, including the collection of fees. Students will conduct several mock interviews throughout the course.

Two semester hours credit.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of not less than 30, nor more than 44, credit hours and a 2.8 grade point average.

Students arrange their own placements with local, federal, and state judges on both the trial and appellate level, including probate, bankruptcy, and immigration courts. During the Judicial Process Clinic, students observe how the law works in practice, what lawyers do and what judges expect. All students will apply lawyering skills and improve their legal research and writing abilities while preparing legal memoranda, as required by the supervising judge.

Three or four semester hours credit. Normally offered twice each academic year. Maximum of twelve students.

Prerequisites: Mediation Practice, Mediation Theory, or Mediation Theory & Practice.

Students serve as third-party neutrals in Harris County cases requiring dispute resolution procedures and also participate in a classroom component featuring simulated mediation exercises. Students may also participate in EEOC mediations. Throughout the semester, emphasis is on a broad-based exposure to the development, research, and practice of alternative dispute resolution.

Two or three semester hours credit.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of all courses required for graduation (with the exception of the substantial writing requirement) and not less than 45 credit hours and a 2.8 grade point average. Completion of or concurrent enrollment in Texas Pretrial Procedure is recommended.

Students arrange their own placements with local federal and state judges on both the trial and appellate level, including probate, bankruptcy and immigration courts. During these clinics, students observe how the law works in practice, what lawyers do and what judges expect. All students will apply their analytical skills and improve their legal research and writing abilities through the production of legal memoranda.