Constitutional Law, Adjudication and Advocacy

In this course we will explore how cases are developed in the state and federal trial courts and presented on appeal in the Vermont Supreme Court. Taught by a retired Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court and a senior status United States District Judge, the course will include both a substantive component focused primarily on United States and Vermont constitutional law and trial and appellate procedure, and an experiential component in which students will participate in a moot appellate court presentation, including submitting a written argument in a “brief” and making an oral argument to a “bench” of one or more judges. Students will examine in depth the briefs, oral arguments and resulting decisions in two recently-decided Vermont Supreme Court cases and will attend the arguments for actual cases being heard by the Vermont Supreme Court. Having read and discussed the briefs and issues in those cases, students will meet with one or more Justices of the Court and the lawyers who presented arguments. Finally, students will read about and discuss “hot topics” in the United States’ legal and justice system, including methods of judicial selection, police officer liability for constitutional violations and the need to modernize state and federal constitutions.



Justices John Dooley is a retired Justices of the Vermont Supreme Court.



Judge William Sessions is a senior status Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont./