Welcome to Fed Courts and First Week Assignments

Welcome to Federal Courts. 

This blog is the primary means for out-of-class and between-class communication.

Please download and read the Syllabus for complete details about the course, assignments, pedagogical approach, grading methods, and course rules. Review it prior to the first class.

You should bring the Syllabus with you to every class. Please download and review Assessments for complete details about grading and graded assignments for the course. I will answer questions about these prior to the second class, on Tuesday, August 19.

Here are Class Discussion Questions that we will use to guide class conversations . You now have most of the questions for the entire semester, although I may provide more in advance of a particular class. You should print this and keep it with the Syllabus. 

Required Course Materials:

1) Erwin Chemerinsky, Federal Jurisdiction (9th ed. 2025) (“Chemerinsky”)
2)  James E. Pfander, Principles of Federal Jurisdiction (4th ed. 2022) (“Pfander”)

3) Federal Courts Blog. All materials can be found on the Blog at Supplemental Materials, as indicated in syllabus; you should bookmark this page, because you will come back to it a lot.

Assignments for First Day+ of Class: After the jump 

Introduction: Federal Courts and Constitutional Structure

 

   Provisions:

   U.S. Const. art. III

   U.S. Const. art. II § 2 cl.2 (appointment); Art. I § 4; Art. I § 2, cl.5-6 (impeachment)

   U.S. Const. art. I, §§ 8, 9

   U.S. Const. art. VI, cl.2-3

   U.S. Const. amends. X, XI, XIII, XIV, XV

 

   Maps of the Federal Judicial System (Blog)

 

 

 

Theme: History and Constitutional Foundations                     Chemerinsky 1-16

                                                                                                       Pfander 1-22

 

   Cases:

   Marbury v. Madison

 

   Commentary:

   The Federalist No. 78 (Blog)

   The Federalist No. 79 (Blog)

   Chervinsky, Chase Impeachment (Blog)

 

 

Theme: Separation of Powers, Parity, Comity, Federalism       Chemerinsky 26-43, 40-44

                                                                                                          Pfander 22-26, 32-36

 

Theme: Judicial Activism

 

 

Theme: The Judicial Role

 

   Cases:

   Trump v. CASA (Blog)

 

Theme: Judicial Supremacy and Judicial Departmentalism     Chemerinsky 16-17

                                                                                                          Pfander 22-23

 

   Cases:

   Trump. CASA (Blog)

 

 

Theme: Good Writing and Talking Procedure

 

   Commentary:

   Good Writing and Talking Procedure  (Blog)

 

Questions to Consider: Relevant section of Class Discussion Questions.