Department of Sociology and Anthropology

Fall 2001
Dr. Brian Campbell
Avard-Dixon 225, phone 364-2624
web www.sociologicalimagination.net/~blcampbell/teach

Sociology 3701 Law in Canadian Society

This is a course in the sociology of law. The concentration is on Canadian Common Law. Since students are assumed not to have legal backgrounds the course will acquaint the student with legal reasoning and terminology. The emphasis in the course is on the sociological analyses of legal concepts, actions, and structures.

Prerequisites: Nine credits in Sociology at the 1000 or 2000 levels; or permission of the Department.

Evaluation

20% Mid-Term Friday October 19.

10% Class participation, newsgroup participation, and newsgroup assignments.

10% Presentation of case law materials

Students will be asked to lead sociological discussions of legal materials in class. Depending on the size of the class, this may be done in a group.

30% Sociological Analysis of Legal Documents Paper

This paper is due the end of term. Guidelines for papers will be covered in class. The basic model for the paper is to apply a sociological perspective to legal documents, usually case judgments. Students may write their paper on the legal materials they have presented in class.

30% Take-home exam.

Text-books and other reading

S.M. Waddams, Introduction to The Study of Law, 4th edition

This short book is an introduction to the law intended for prospective law students. It gives us a good sense of the law from a lawyer’s point of view.

Neil Boyd, Canadian Law: An Introduction

Boyd provides a good overview of Canadian law and the legal system. His account of legal theories does not address sociological perspectives, but his approach is quite broad.

Course Package of Readings (referred to below as CP)

I have put together a package of readings that concentrate on the foundations of the sociology of law.

Legal Documents on the Web

There will also be readings from judgments, statutes, and other legal documentation. The web is a good source for some legal material.

Topic and Reading List

Week 1 (September 10 to 14) What is Law?

Waddams, The Study of Law, Chapter 1, “What is Law?”, pp.1-17.

Waddams, The Study of Law, Chapter 2, “Legal Education”, pp.19-36.

Waddams, The Study of Law, Chapter 3, “The Language of the Law”, pp.37-42.

Waddams, The Study of Law, Chapter 4, “Analyzing Legal Problems”, pp.43-57.

Week 2 (September 17 to 21) The Sociology of Law: Karl Marx and Ideology

Boyd, Canadian Law, Chapter 1, “The Role of Law: Competing Perspectives on Legal Order”, pp.3-30.

Inverarity, James M., Pat Lauderdale & Barry C. Feld, Law and Society. (Boston: Little, Brown & Company), 1983. Chapter 2. "Substance of Law and Mode of Production: Some Contributions of Karl Marx to the Sociology of Law", pp 54-99.

Week 3 (September 24 to 28) Types of Law

Waddams, The Study of Law. Chapter 5, “Public Law”.

Waddams, The Study of Law. Chapter 6, “Private Law”.

Waddams, The Study of Law. Chapter 7, “The Common Law”

Waddams, The Study of Law. Chapter 9, “Statutes”.

Week 4 (October 1 to 5) Legal Ideas about Responsibility from Tort to Crime

Boyd, Canadian Law, Chapter 7, “Torts of Intention and Negligence: Private Law, Public Interest”.

Boyd, Canadian Law, Chapter 10, “Criminal Law: Mens Rea, Actus Reus, and Malleable Definitions of Deviance”.

Moran, Richard. In The Annals of The American Academy of Political and Social Science. (Beverly Hills: Sage Publications, Inc.), January, 1985. “The Modern Foundation for the Insanity Defense: The Cases of James Hadfield (1800) and Daniel McNaughtan (1843). pp 31-42. (in CP)

Week 5 (October 8 to 12) The Sociology of Law: Emile Durkheim and Law as Ritual

Inverarity, James M., Pat Lauderdale & Barry C. Feld, Law and Society. (Boston: Little, Brown & Company), 1983, Chapter 4. "Sanctions and Solidarity: The Contribution of Emile Durkheim" pp 126-160.

Inverarity, James M., Pat Lauderdale & Barry C. Feld. Law and Society. (Boston: Little, Brown & Company), 1983. Chapter 10. "Sociological Analysis of the Criminal Sanction", pp 284-314.

Week 6 (October 15 to 19) Equity and the Higher Courts

Waddams, The Study of Law, Chapter 8, “Equity”, pp.91-96.

Boyd, Canadian Law, Chapter 4, “The Constitution of Canada: The British North America Act, the Constitution Act, and the Future of Federalism”

Week 7 (October 22 to 26) The Sociology of Law: Max Weber, Social Rationality and Legal Procedure

Inverarity, James M., Pat Lauderdale & Barry C. Feld, Law and Society. (Boston:

Little, Brown & Company), 1983. Chapter 3. "Legal Procedure and Social Structure: The Contribution of Max Weber", pp 100-125.

Week 8 (October 29 to November 2) The State, Rights and Regulation

Boyd, Canadian Law, Chapter 8, “The Changing Family and Family Law: Marriage, Divorce, Support, Property, and Custody”.

Boyd, Canadian Law, Chapter 9, “Administrative Law: The State and Its Duty to Be Fair”.

Week 9 (November 5 to 9) Lawyers and Judges

Waddams, The Study of Law, Chapter 11, “The Legal Profession”, pp.121-138.

Boyd, Canadian Law, Chapter 6, “Law Students, Lawyers, and Judges: The Evolution of the Legal Profession”

Week 10 (November 13 to 16) Intellectual Property

Internet sources.

Week 11 (November 19 to 23) Dispute Resolution out of Court: Deals, Plea Bargains, and Street Level Bureaucrats

Ross, H. Laurence. Settled Out of Court (New York: Aldine Publishing Co.), 1980. Chapter 1. "Introduction".

Week 12 (November 26 to 30) Student Presentations

TBA

Week 13 (December 3 to 5) Student Presentations and Conclusions

TBA

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