Syllabus

CIVIL PROCEDURE

Fall, 2019
Professor David Hyman
dah137@georgetown.edu
5024A Hotung
202 - 661 - 6782

Civil procedure is a course about the process of litigation. The course will begin with an overview, and then systematically work through jurisdiction, incentives to litigate, pleadings, discovery, pre-trial, trial, and appeal. We will not cover preclusion and joinder (including class actions). The course will focus on mastering the often-technical rules and doctrines that govern civil procedure; understanding the policy trade-offs of those rules and doctrines; and exploring how the rules and doctrine are used by busy practicing lawyers who must make many decisions under conditions of considerable uncertainty. The Georgetown Law Curriculum Guide webpage provides further detail about course objectives and goals.

Our text is Yeazell & Schwartz, Civil Procedure, 10 th edition. Everyone must have a copy of this text, and a 2019 edition of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or its functional equivalent. There will be additional handouts, which will be posted to the course website.

Grading is based on an open-book final exam, participation and attendance. Participation and attendance will count for no more than a one-step increase or decrease (i.e., B+ to an A- or B), but such adjustments will be unusual. To help ensure adequate participation by all, each student will be “on call” for three classes over the course of the semester, starting on 9/5. A list of the dates you are on call will be posted on the course website on 9/ 4. Open book means whatever printed materials you choose to bring with you to the exam – but excludes materials stored electronically and/or on computer media. You will not have access to materials stored on your hard drive during the final exam.

Class will meet every Tuesday and Thursday from 1:20 – 3 :20 in McDonough 203. Class will be shortened on 9/24 and is cancelled on 9/26. Because of law school scheduling, there will not be class on 10/15, which is a statutory Monday. The final exam is on December 16 , 2019.

You are responsible for the relevant Federal Rules and statutory provisions associated with the readings. That means if a case or note references a Rule or statute, you should go to your FRCP/Statutory supplement and read it. For each class, you are responsible for the assigned reading for that day, as well as the reading assigned for all previous classes. If we do not fully cover the reading assignment for a particular class, we will start where we left off in the next class session. It is possible that adjustments will be made to the syllabus over the course of the semester. Although we will not be covering the Assessment Questions at the end of each chapter in class, you are strongly encouraged to spend time going through them as we complete each chapter.

Office hours are Tuesday afternoons from 3:30 – 5:30 (which you can schedule through Canvas), and by email appointment. There is a cap of three students per 20 minute time slot. There will not be office hours on September 2 4 th or November 2 6 th.

Specific Assignments: