POL 301 – JUDICIAL PROCESS

Jason Pierce

St. Joe's Room 223

229-2596

This course is designed to provide a concentrated introduction to the individuals, institutions, and processes that define the U.S. judicial system. It surveys a number of topics: theoretical conceptions of law and courts, the different roles that courts play in the judicial system, judicial selection, judicial decision-making, the capacity of courts to effectuate social reform, and the perennial question of how one may reconcile judicial review powers in a democracy. The course will, when possible, draw upon the experiences and practices of other countries’ judicial systems to gain additional perspectives on the American judicial system.