LAW 5317: Lawyering in Real Time - 2164

Lawyering in Real Time
Class Term:
Spring Term 2015-2016
Catalog Number:
5317
Class Number:
26896
Class Schedule:
Wednesday
4:30 pm -
6:20 pm
Room:
LAW G46
Professor(s):

Professor

Type:
Lecture
Credits:
2 (2 Contact, 0 Field)
Graduation Requirements:
"W" Writing
Priority:
Limited Enrollment - 3rd Year Priority
Full Year Course:
No
Category:
Standard Courses

Additional Information

Students will be taught
how to quickly obtain primary documents and other reliable information directly from courts and other legal players;
how to keep up with rapidly changing and accumulating information streams as legal issues develop and shift in real time;
how to effectively read, filter and evaluate masses of unfamiliar online material;
how to differentiate fact and opinion;
how to identify, avoid and combat misinformation;
how to leverage a variety of online tools to write and communicate with legal audiences of various sorts (e.g. clients, policymakers, the public);
how to present information effectively and argue persuasively in online environments; and
how to work with colleagues and peers in “virtual teams” delivering information and services over long and short distances under heavy time pressure.
There is no textbook for this workshop. Instead, students can find all assigned readings online or on reserve at the library reference desk.

Grading Details

Grading will be based on in-class individual and team research exercises and a series of short weekly written assignments. Frequent and intensive feedback will be provided to help students improve as the semester progresses.

Description

Lawyers practicing in the fast-paced, information-glutted, 24/7 society of the 21st century need to know how to research the latest legal developments quickly and efficiently; identify and leverage the most up-to-date and authoritative resources available; accurately evaluate the credibility of “facts” and analysis; connect and collaborate “just in time” with knowledgeable peers and experts; and report their own conclusions to clients, colleagues and courts clearly and concisely. JURIST, the award-winning online legal news service at Pitt Law, has pioneered a range of real time legal research and writing techniques honing these skills, but JURIST can only take a fraction of the students who apply to it every year. In this workshop, JURIST now offers basic training in “real time lawyering” to Pitt law students not on staff. Guided by JURIST professional staff, workshop students will learn how to navigate, synthesize and explain large amounts of dynamic information from diverse unfamiliar sources over short periods of time in demanding collaborative environments.

Lawyering in Real Time