Law & Society Minor
The Political Science department offers a Law and Society minor, which can be taken alongside any major at LVC. The minor is an interdisciplinary program that introduces students to the American legal system through a study of the United States Constitution and its normative and political context. The program is expected to be of particular use to those students who intend to apply to law school. An internship (PSC 400) and a capstone Seminar in Law (PSC/PHL 417) are required for this minor.
The minor in Law and Society requires 18 credits (6 courses). Depending on the courses selected, the credit may also count towards Political Science, Philosophy, Business, or Digital Communications requirements. Further, some courses may be taken in partial fulfilment of general education requirements (e.g., Law and Government for L2 and writing process, Civil Rights & Liberties for SDS and writing process, Seminar in Law for writing process; several options for DSP credit). A Law & Society Minor Graduation Checklist is available to assist with tracking the requirements.
For more information, please contact Dr. Philip Benesch, the Director of the Law and Society Program, at prelaw@lvc.edu.
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Required courses:
PHL 280 Logic| Logic is the study of valid arguments, arguments whose conclusions follow from their premises. The course teaches the translation of arguments into symbolic logic so that their structure and validity become apparent. It also teaches how to construct proofs of valid arguments and refutations of invalid ones. 3 credits. |
| This course uses key cases to study important doctrines established by the Supreme Court with regard to civil rights and civil liberties. Students will examine the Court's rulings concerning the establishment and free exercise of religion, protection of freedom of speech and of the press, privacy rights (abortion and sexual freedom), the rights of the accused in the criminal justice system, and the law governing racial or sexual discrimination. The course places particular emphasis on various forms of textual interpretation used by individual justices to apply the Constitution in deciding cases and writing opinions. Fulfills general education requirement: American Social Diversity.Writing Process. Prerequisites: Sophomore standing or permission of the instructor. PSC 215 recommended. 3 credits. |
| Field experience in a political science environment. May be repeated for credit (up to 12 credits of internship may be counted toward the degree). Prerequisite: GPA of 2.50 in major and permission of department chair. Students taking more than six internship credits in political science please note: PSC 400 may count for no more than two elective courses in the PSC major. 1-12 credits. |
One of:
PHL 417 Seminar in Law| This capstone seminar examines the historical and philosophical development of constitutional law in the United States; the seminar emphasizes the dynamic relationship between the law and moral and political philosophy. Fulfills general education requirement: Writing Process. Prerequisites: Junior or Senior standing. PSC/PHL 345, DSP 352, DSP 356 or BUS 450. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with PSC 417) |
| This capstone seminar examines the historical and philosophical development of constitutional law in the United States; the seminar emphasizes the dynamic relationship between the law and moral and political philosophy. Fulfills general education requirement: Writing Process. Prerequisites: Junior or Senior standing. PSC/PHL 345, DSP 352, DSP 356 or BUS 450. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with PHL 417) |
One of:
BUS 371 Business Law I| Elementary principles of law relating to the field of business. The course covers contracts, government regulation of business, consumer protection, bankruptcy, personal property, real estate, bailments, insurance and estates. 3 credits. |
DCOM 230
HIS 215 Law and Government| This course uses key cases to study important doctrines established by the Supreme Court with respect to the structure and functions of the constitutional system (judicial, legislative and executive power and federalism). There is a particular emphasis on various forms of textual interpretation used by individual justices to apply the Constitution in deciding cases and writing opinions. Fulfills general education requirement: Liberal Studies Area 2 (Social Science).Writing Process. Prerequisites: Sophomore standing or permission of the instructor. PSC 110 recommended. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with PSC 215) |
| This course uses key cases to study important doctrines established by the Supreme Court with respect to the structure and functions of the constitutional system (judicial, legislative and executive power and federalism). There is a particular emphasis on various forms of textual interpretation used by individual justices to apply the Constitution in deciding cases and writing opinions. Fulfills general education requirement: Liberal Studies Area 2 (Social Science).Writing Process. Prerequisite: Sophomore standing or permission of the instructor. PSC 110 recommended. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with HIS 215) |
One of:
BUS 450 Business Ethics & Social Resp.| This course examines the major ethical issues, social responsibilities, and ethical dilemmas facing business and business managers in today's global environment. Students develop an understanding of the difference between what is legal and what is ethical and clarify their approach to ethical issues. Prerequisites: BUS 130, BUS 230 or permission. 3 credits. |
| Karl Marx is among the most influential thinkers in the modern world, and the ideology of Marxism has helped shape the cultural, religious, economic, and political history of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This course will examine Marx and Marxism(s) from an interdisciplinary perspective, first by exploring the life and word of Marx, and Marxist parties and movements, and then by examining the effects Marx's thinking has had on global politics, economic theory, religion, and philosophy. By examining the historical and philosophical roots and continuing significance of Marx and Marxism, students will have an occasion to practice a multidisciplinary study of a historical figure and movement and become better informed about intellectual and political history and how those continue to shape the world around us. Fulfills general education requirement: Disciplinary Perspectives. 3 credits. |
| This multi-disciplinary seminar will consider the relationship in contemporary society between individual freedom and moral-political equality. To this end, students will study the main doctrines advanced in libertarian, classical liberal, modern liberal, and communitarian thought, and critically evaluate the various strengths and weaknesses of each approach. Fulfills general education requirement: Disciplinary Perspectives. 3 credits. |
| Students in this course study the development of Western political thought from Classical Greece to modern times, examining the conceptual evolution of citizenship, civic obligation, and the nature of justice and exploring the connection between moral and positive law in the western tradition. Fulfills general education requirement: Writing Process. Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with PSC 345) |
| Students in this course study the development of Western political thought from Classical Greece to modern times, examining the conceptual evolution of citizenship, civic obligation, and the nature of justice and exploring the connection between moral and positive law in the western tradition. Fulfills general education requirement: Writing Process. Prerequisite: Junior standing or permission of the instructor. 3 credits. (This course is cross-listed with PHL 345) |