E. Edwin Eck, Dean
John L. Horwich, Associate Dean
Program Description
Law is the study of:
- the official rules and regulations
under which people live in organized
American society;
- the methods by which such rules are
devised and applied;
- the role lawyers, judges and public
officials play in the application of such
rules; and
- the specialized techniques, practices
and procedures involved in the practice
of law.
The School of Law's program of
instruction is designed to prepare
students for the practice of law in any
state. The School's curriculum, teaching
methodologies and assessment
techniques are designed to provide law
students knowledge of the law,
analytical abilities, practical skills, a
professional perspective on the societal
role and responsibilities of lawyers, and
sensitivity to the dynamics of social and
interpersonal interactions.
The School uses a variety of
pedagogical methods to achieve its
educational goals. To cultivate students'
analytical abilities, faculty use the
traditional case method (the careful and
rigorous study of appellate opinions).
Individual and collaborative legal
problem solving assignments
complement the case method. The
innovative "law firm" program, in which
the 75 students in the first-year class are
assigned to groups of six or seven
students requires students to work
collaboratively to devise collective
products or solutions to problem solving
exercises which integrate material from
first-year courses. The School's trial and
appellate advocacy programs ensure that
students develop oral communication
skills.
Issues of professional ethics and
responsibility are addressed in formal
course work. The historical and
intellectual foundations of the law are
examined in the first year in order to
provide students with a perspective on
the role which law and lawyers play in
society.
The Law School is accredited by the
American Bar Association and the
Association of American Law Schools.
For detailed information concerning
facilities, official descriptions of courses
and administrative regulations, consult
the Law School Bulletin.
Academic Year Calendar
Autumn Semester 1997
August 20 (Wednesday) Registration
and payment of fees
August 21 (Thursday) Classes begin
September 1 (Monday) Labor Day
(Holiday)
November 11 (Tuesday) Veterans Day
(Holiday)
November 26, 27, 28 (Wednesday-Friday) Thanksgiving Holiday
December 3 (Wednesday) Last day of
classes
December 4-8 (Thursday-Monday)
Reading period prior to exams
December 9-19 (Tuesday-Friday) Final
exams
Spring Semester 1998
January 20 (Tuesday) Registration and
payment of fees
January 21 (Wednesday) Classes begin
February 16 (Monday) President's Day
(Holiday)
May 7 (Thursday) Last day of classes
May 8-11 (Friday-Monday) Reading
period prior to exams
May 12-22 (Tuesday-Friday) Final
exams
May 23 (Saturday) Commencement
Admission
A. Criteria for Admission
The law faculty review all applications
for admission to the School of Law.
Candidates must be of good moral
character, of intellectual promise, and
must have received a baccalaureate
degree from an approved college or
university prior to matriculation. Each
entering class is limited to 75 students.
According to the law faculty policy,
the primary admissions criteria are the
cumulative undergraduate grade point
average and the score on the Law School
Admission Test (LSAT), from which is
derived a prediction index based on the
experience of first-year students at the
School of Law. The Admissions
Committee also weighs such factors as
writing ability, college or university
attended, trend in college grades, quality
of work in difficult courses, ability to
overcome economic or other
disadvantage, change in performance
after an absence from college, and
experience prior to application to law
school, including graduate study.
The School of Law subscribes to
Standard 212 of the American Bar
Association Standards for Approval of
Law Schools, thereby recognizing a
commitment to providing full
opportunities for the study of law and
entry into the legal profession of
qualified members of groups (notably
racial and ethnic minorities) who have
been victims of discrimination. This
commitment is implemented by special
recruitment efforts and by a concern for
determining the potential of such
applicants through the admission
process.
No particular course of study is
prescribed for admission to the School
of Law. Applicants are encouraged to
pursue studies that develop the capacity
to think analytically and reason logically.
Courses stressing the ability to write
lucidly are strongly encouraged. If the
academic performance or writing
samples of a law student disclose a deficiency in writing skills, the law faculty
may require further work in English
composition. Performance standards
and conditions for remedial work are
established by the law faculty.
For the past several years, there have
been eight applicants for every position
in the 75-member first-year class. The
Admissions Committee reviews all
applications in light of the stated criteria,
and endeavors to select those applicants
with the strongest qualifications.
As a state assisted institution, the
School of Law limits the nonresident
enrollment to one-third of an entering
class. Once admitted as a nonresident,
students must pay nonresident fees for
the duration of their legal studies.
B. Application Procedure
C. Review of Applications
Completed applications are considered
beginning in February and continuing
into early June. Completed applications
are either accepted, denied or placed in a
category for further review. Applicants
whose files are completed by February 1
will receive a first response (accept,
deny or further review) by the beginning
of April. The last consideration of all
complete pending applications is made
by June 15. Applicants not admitted or
denied are placed on the waiting list and
informed of their positions on the list. If
vacancies occur in the entering class,
applicants are admitted, in order, from
the waiting list.
D. Acceptance
Accepted applicants who wish to
reserve a seat in the entering class are
required to make an advance deposit of
$300 by the deadline stated in the
acceptance letter. For those who enroll,
the deposit is credited toward total
University fees. $150 of the deposit is
refundable if written notice of
cancellation is postmarked by July 15.
Applicants who fail to make the deposit
within the time specified in their
acceptance letters forfeit their places in
the entering class.
Accepted applicants new to the
University or students returning after
one year or more must complete and file
a medical history record with the Student
Health Service.
Admission is granted for fall semester
of each academic year. There are no
midterm admissions. Admission for one
academic year cannot be deferred to
another academic year. Files of all
applicants are retained for two years.
Individuals resubmitting an application
for admission are required to update, but
not duplicate, the application.
E. Admissions with Advanced Standing
Application for admission as a transfer
student must be postmarked by June 1 to
the School of Law. The Admission
Committee will begin considering files
April 1.
The ceiling of 75 positions in the
first-year class is maintained for both the
second- and third-year classes. Within
this limitation, the best qualified
applicants for admission with advanced
standing will be accepted, based upon
consideration of an applicant's
cumulative undergraduate grade point
average, score on the Law School
Admission test, and academic
performance in the law school
previously attended, including an
evaluation of the quality of the school
attended. Guidelines for admission with
advanced standing include the following:
- the legal studies previously
undertaken have been in a law school
accredited by the American Bar
Association;
- the average in all law studies for
which the student has registered and
received a grade is equivalent to that
required for graduation from the
institution attended;
- the applicant is in good standing and
eligible to continue in the law school
previously attended (evidenced by a
letter from the den of the school from
which transfer is proposed); and
- the applicant ranked in the upper
one-third of applicant's law class at the
completion of one year of law study. If
the applicant's class rank at the
completion of one year of law study is
not available when the Admissions
Committee considers the application, the
rank after one semester or two quarters
may be considered.
Transfer students must complete at
least 60 credits of law study at The
University of Montana-Missoula to earn
a degree.
F. Change of Course or Withdrawal
Law courses may not be added after
the end of the tenth semester class day.
Dropping courses without penalty is
permitted until the last class day or final
grade assignment. Withdrawal from the
School of Law without penalty and the
assignment of a grade of "W" is
permitted during the first 14 weeks of a
semester. A student who withdraws
during the first semester of the first year
and who applies subsequently for
readmission is not considered a former
student but must complete the admission
process required of all applicants.
G. Basis for Exclusion
To be in good standing, students must
obtain a 2.0 cumulative grade point
average in all courses for which they
have registered and received a grade by
the time they have completed two
semesters of course work totaling any
number of credits. If a student fails to
obtain and maintain a 2.0 grade point
average, he or she is placed on academic
probation. The student will remain on
academic probation until achieving a 2.0
cumulative grade point average,
graduating with a cumulative GPA of at
least 2.0, or being excluded from the
School of Law.
A student shall be excluded from the
School of Law if he or she fails to achieve a 2.0 grade point average in any
semester while on academic probation.
Any required course in which an "F" is
received shall be repeated. A student
shall have the option, conditioned on
class scheduling, of repeating a course in
which a "D" grade has been received.
Both grades in repeated courses will be
included in calculations of cumulative
grade point averages for the purpose of
academic ranking. Only the second grade, if a "D" or higher, will be included in
a student's cumulative grade point
average for all other purposes.
A student who receives an "F" grade in
the first semester of a continuing
required first-year course may be
ineligible to enroll in the second
semester of the course. The fall
semester course may have to first be
repeated with a grade of "D" or higher as
soon as scheduling of classes permits.
Courses and credits in which "F" grades
are recived, or in which a "D" grade has
been received and the course has been
repeated with a "D" or higher, will not
be counted toward graduation
requirements.
The Academic Review Committee will
review the law school record of a student
placed on academic probation and the
committee may require the student to
meet prescribed conditions, including
limiting extracurricular activities,
curtailing employment, reducing
courses, or enrolling in specific courses.
A student excluded on the basis of
substandard performance shall not be
readmitted, except in cases when
satisfactory showing is made to the
faculty, by written petition, that the
substandard performance was the result
of circumstances which no longer exist,
or the student has demonstrated the
capability and desire to perform
satisfactory work since his or her
exclusion.
H. Graduation
Candidates for the Juris Doctor (J.D.)
degree must:
- be graduates of an approved college
or university;
- complete six semesters in residence
at a law school approved by the
American Bar Association with 60
semester hours successfully completed at
The University of Montana School of
Law;
- complete 90 semester hours of law
with a grade point average of 2.00 on all
law courses for which the student has
registered and received a grade; and
- complete all required courses.
A candidate for the Juris Doctor
degree who has fulfilled the
requirements for graduation will not be
recommended for the degree if, in the
opinion of the majority of the law
faculty, the candidate is unqualified in
accordance with generally accepted
standards for admission to the bar.
CHANGE OF REGULATIONS: The
School of Law reserves the right to
change at any time its regulations
respecting admission to the school,
continuance and graduation.
Required Curriculum
First Year | Credits |
504 Civil Procedure I | 3 |
505 Civil Procedure II | 2 |
511 Contracts I | 3 |
512 Contracts II | 2 |
521 Pretrial Advocacy I | 1 |
522 Pretrial Advocacy II | 2 |
530 Legal Research | 2 |
531 Legal Analysis | 1 |
532 Legal Writing I | 3 |
535 Property I | 2 |
536 Property II | 3 |
543 Torts I | 2 |
544 Torts II | 3 |
Second Year | Credits |
555 Business Organizations | 3 |
559 Federal Tax (may be taken third year) | 3 |
561 Estate Planning (may be taken third year) | 3 |
563 Constitutional Law | 4 |
574 Evidence | 3 |
578 Professional Responsibility | 2 |
583 Legal Writing II | 1 |
585 Trial Practice | 2 |
593 Criminal Law/Proc I | 2 |
594 Criminal Law/Proc II | 3 |
Electives* |
Third Year | Credits |
Commercial Law (select from menu) | |
Legal Writing (select from menu) | |
651 Clinical Training | 1-4 |
652 Cinical Training | 1-4 |
*Electives | |
Elective Courses
Administrative Law (Law 690, 3
credits)
Alternative Dispute Resolution (Law
691/2, 2 credits)
Advanced Legal Research, (Law
691/2, 2 credits)
Advanced Environmental Law (Law
667, 3 credits)
Advanced Problems in Indian Law
(Law 691/2, 2 credits)
Advanced Problems in Public Land
and Resources Law (Law 691/2, 2
credits)
Agricultural Law (Law 666, 2 credits)
Appellate Advocacy (Law 691/2, 2
credits)
Bankruptcy (Law 621, 2 credits)
Business Planning (Law 691/2, 3
credits)
Client Counseling Team (Law 692, 2
credits)
Contemporary Problems in
Constitutional Law (Law 691/2, 2
credits)
Elder Law (Law 691/2, 3 credits)
Employment Discrimination and Civil
Rights Litigation (Law 663, 2 credits)
Family Law (Law 695, 3 credits)
Federal Courts (Law 683, 2 credits)
Gender Bias and the Law (Law 691/2,
3 credits)
Independent Study (Law 681/2, 1-2
credits)
Indian Law (Law 661, 3 credits)
Insurance Law (Law 691/2, 2 credits)
Intellectual Property (Law 691/2, 3
credits)
International Law (Law 691/2, 3
credits)
Introduction to Environmental Law
(Law 662, 3 credits)
Labor Law (Law 650, 3 credits)
Law Practice (Law 691/2, 1 credit)
Law Review I, II, III, IV (Law 591/2,
Law 603/4, 1-2 credits)
Legal History (Law 691/2, 2 credits)
Local Government (Law 656, 2
credits)
Moot Court (Law 699, 2 credits)
Natural Resource Development (Law
691/2, 3 credits)
Negotiation and Dispute Resolution
(Law 691/2, 2 credits)
Negotiation Team (Law 691, 2 credits)
Partnership Tax (Law 691/2, 2 credits)
Philosophy of Law (Law 698, 3
credits)
Problems in Estate Planning (Law
691/2, 2 credits)
Products Liability (Law 691/2, 2
credits)
Public Land and Resources Law (Law
664, 3 credits)
Public Regulation of Business (Law
691/2, 2 credits)
Real Estate Transactions (Law 671, 2
credits)
Remedies (Law 640, 3 credits)
Secured Transactions (Law 691/2, 2
credits)
Sentencing (Law 691/2, 2 credits)
Taxation of Corporations and
Corporate Distributions (Law 665, 3
credits)
Taxation of Property Transactions
(Law 691/2, 3 credits)
Trial Admissions Program (Law 500, 4
credits)
Water Law (Law 688, 3 credits)
White Collar Crime (Law 691/2, 3
credits)
Workers' Compensation (Law 694, 3
credits)
Faculty
Professors
Margery H. Brown, J.D., The
University of Montana, 1975 (Emeritus)
Bari R. Burke, J.D., University of
California, Davis, 1979
J. Martin Burke, LL.M., New York
University, 1982
Scott J. Burnham, LL.M., New York
University, 1981
William J. Corbett, LL.M., Harvard
University, 1971
Gardner Cromwell, S.J.D., University
of Michigan, 1958 (Emeritus)
William F. Crowley, LL.M., New York
University, 1951
E. Edwin Eck II, L.L.M., Georgetown
University (Dean)
Larry M. Elison, S.J.D., University of
Michigan, 1962
Gregory S. Munro, J.D., The
University of Montana, 1975
Robert G. Natelson, J.D., Cornell Law
School, 1973
David J. Patterson, LL.M., University
of Michigan, 1966
Lester R. Rusoff, LL.M., University of
Michigan, 1952 (Emeritus)
Albert W. Stone, J.D., Duke
University, 1948 (Emeritus)
Robert E. Sullivan, J.D., Notre Dame,
1946 (Dean Emeritus)
Carl W. Tobias, LL.B., University of
Virginia, 1972
Associate Professors
Raymond Cross, J.D., Yale, 1973
Cynthia Ford, J.D., Cornell Law School, 1978
Melissa Harrison, J.D., Vanderbilt
University, 1984
John L. Horwich, J.D., Cornell Law
School, 1975 (Associate Dean)
Assistant Professors
Carole A. Granger, M.L.S., University
of Washington, 1971 (Assistant Law
Librarian)
Fritz Snyder, J.D., Washburn School
of Law, 1979
Sally R. Weaver, J.D., Vanderbilt
University, 1981
Lecturer
Thomas P. Huff, Ph.D., Rice
University, 1968
Adjunct Faculty
Gail Anne Hammer, J.D., The
University of Montana, 1988
John W. McDonald, J.D., The
University of Montana, 1961
Joan B. Newman, J.D., The University
of Montana, 1982
Jeffrey T. Renz, J.D., The University
of Montana, 1979
Larry E. Riley, J.D., The University of
Montana, 1966
Klaus Sitte, J.D., The University of
Montana, 1972
Maylinn Smith, J.D., The University of
Montana, 1987
Margaret A. Tonon, J.D., The
University of Montana, 1974
Frances L. Wells, J.D., Southern Methodist University, 1973
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