Fall 2023
6360 Trial Advocacy for Non-Litigators - LUKIN- 14405
Professor(s):
Karen Lukin (ADJUNCT)
Credits: 3
Course Areas: Blakely Advocacy Simulation
Time: 9:00a-10:30a TTH Location: 222
Course Outline: Trial Advocacy for Non-Litigators provides students who do not have any trial experience with a chance to gain basic litigation training. This class is ideal for students who plan to pursue a career as a transactional attorney, but want to acquire the knowledge and skills required to try a case. The class is a mirror of the evening trial advocacy class, so students will learn the skills of case analysis, direct examination, cross examination, opening statement, closing argument, and voir dire. The course provides learning by doing and requires skill performance by each student every week. The final examination is a full jury trial. Evidence is not a requirement for this course. Evidentiary issues relating to the case files will be identified by faculty and discussed in class. Mock trial students or students with previous trial training are not eligible for this class.
Course Syllabus: Syllabus
Course Notes: (Face-to-Face) The UH registration system instruction mode for this course is listed in parenthesis. After student registration opens, there may be instruction mode changes to this course up through two weeks before the first day of classes for the term, but notice of such changes will be sent to then-registered students. For this instruction mode, instructors and students are expected to normally be physically present in the classroom. If the course has a final examination, it will be in a classroom requiring your physical presence. Other assessment, such as a mid term exam, may also be in a classroom. Whether this instructor will offer “remote presence” (starting a zoom meeting from the podium computer to enable student remote access on an occasional basis) for part or all of the semester is not known, but students should not rely on an expectation that remote presence will be available.
Quota=12
Prerequisites:
First Day Assignments:
Final Exam Schedule:
This course will have:
Exam:
Paper:
Satisfies Senior Upper Level Writing Requirement: No
Experiential Course Type: simulation
Bar Course: No
DistanceEd ABA: No
Pass-Fail Student Election: Conditional Availability (not for required credits)
Course Materials
Book(s) Required
TRIAL ADVOCACY REQUIRED TEXTS FOR PURCHASE. Make sure you purchase correct editions noted.
1. Nita Liquor Commission v. Cut-Rate Liquor and Jones at http://www.law.uh.edu/blakely/trial-advocacy/ (Problem 1: “Nita Liquor Control” and “Diagram”).
2. Flinders Aluminum Fabrication Corporation v. Mismo Fire Insurance Company (10th Edition) – may be purchased at UH bookstore.
RECOMMENDED TEXTS:
1. Texas Rules of Evidence (can be viewed online or purchased)
2. Mauet, Trial Techniques and Trials – This is an excellent resource. The latest edition is the 11th, but there are used copies of the 9th and 10th editions available online. References to pages in the syllabus are to the 9th edition, but the corresponding pages for the 10th and 11th editions can be provided if necessary.
