Administrative governance addresses issues central to the daily lives of Americans, including, but not limited to, immigration reform, education, civil rights, financial regulation, environmental protection, and auto safety. Indeed, in an age of polarized government, the administrative state has taken on an increased importance in American governance. Administrative law encompasses several different substantive areas, and is fundamentally about the creation, legitimation and control of bureaucratic decision making in a democracy. Though the course focuses primarily on national administrative agencies and the federal courts, familiarity with administrative law and process is essential for the practice of law at both the federal and state level. Administrative law deals with three issues: (1) what powers may be delegated to administrative agencies; (2) the manner in which agencies use their delegated power, e.g., through rulemaking or adjudication; and (3) the ways in which administrative agencies are disciplined by the political branches, the courts and private parties. The first issue raises questions largely related to the status of administrative agencies in the constitutional framework—i.e., whether and to what extent Congress may delegate to substantive decision-making authority to administrative agencies. The second issue deals almost exclusively with the procedural requirements imposed on administrative agencies when engaged in their “law creation” function. Finally, the third issue addresses questions of the availability and scope of judicial review, and the formal and informal ways that the political branches attempt to constrain agency discretion. The primary focus of this class, as an introductory class, will be to develop a working knowledge of the key doctrinal components of this area of the law. However, we will also think broadly about the justifications for the administrative state, which has been with us since the very first days of the Republic, and test those against our substantive ideals about democracy, deliberation, accountability, and effective governance. In addition to a Final Examination, there will be a midterm exam.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information
Health Law (Area of Focus) More information
Immigration, Asylum, and Citizenship Law Area of Focus (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

This Course is designed to refine the advocacy skills of students who will soon represent the law school in national moot court competitions. This Spring, with the assistance of other professors, guest speakers, and members of the Moot Court Board, we will provide students with individualized instruction, both as to their writing skills and oral argument presentation. Please note briefs written in connection with moot court competitions or submitted for this class will not satisfy the law school's written requirement.
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

This seminar will address issues concerning business immigration law, asylum, citizenship, and removal proceedings in substantial depth. The class will focus on grounds of inadmissibility, waivers and defenses to deportation and removal. It will also focus on non-immigrant business visas such as H-lb, E, L, P, and 0 visas. It will focus on employment based permanent residency such as EB-1, national interest waivers, labor certifications and investors. On family based permanent residency we will focus on such topics as priority dates, abandonment of residency, rescission, adjustment of status, and immigrant visa processing. On issues concerning asylum we will address questions concerning the definition of persecution, social group, credibility, and special acts of Congress such as the Cuban Refugee Adjustment Act. The discussion on citizenship will address issues concerning the Child Citizenship Act, loss of nationality, dual citizenship and revocation of naturalization. Removal proceeding will also address closed hearings, mandatory detention and issues related to terrorism and foreign policy.
 
Course Concentrations:
Immigration, Asylum, and Citizenship Law Area of Focus (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

This course grapples with the role of the Supreme Court (and thus inevitably the lower federal courts) during Reconstruction. This is part of our continuing effort to understand why there was no legislation implementing the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments for 95 years. This course meets 2 days a week for 90 minutes. This course is a more conventional course seeking to understand this part of our national history.
 
Course Concentrations:
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

This course introduces the theory, doctrine, and practice of estate planning. It explores how lawyers advise individuals and families on structuring the transfer of wealth through wills, trusts, charitable giving, retirement accounts, life insurance, and other mechanisms. The course surveys the statutory and regulatory framework of relevant tax law, and explains how taxation is a primary estate planning consideration for wealthy individuals and families. Coverage includes federal gift, estate, and generation skipping transfer taxes; federal income taxation of trusts and estates; federal regulation of retirement accounts; charitable gifting; business succession; and planning considerations related to Medicaid eligibility.
 
Course Concentrations:
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

The International Law Commission (ILC), working closely with the Sixth (Legal) Committee of the UN General Assembly, has played a critical role in the codification and progressive development of international law. The ILC, which is comprised of independent legal experts with recognized competence in international law, gives effect to the UN General Assembly's mandate under the UN Charter “to initiate studies and make recommendations for the purpose of … encouraging the progressive development of international law and its codification”.

This advanced seminar, which offers students a unique opportunity to learn how international law is made from one of only two faculty members at a US Law school serving on the ILC and to prepare a major paper, will first explore the historical origins, mandate, and contributions of the ILC towards the establishment of a rule-based international legal order.

The seminar, which prepares students for a summer externship with the United Nations in Geneva, will then critically evaluate the latest reports under study by the ILC, their present status, and future direction. These may include general principles of law; immunity of state officials from foreign criminal jurisdiction; sea level rise in relation to international law; subsidiary means for the determination of rules of international law; settlement of disputes to which international organizations are parties; prevention and repression of piracy and armed robbery at sea; and non-legally binding international agreements.

Two sets of materials are mandatory for this seminar. The first is The Work of the International Law Commission: Volumes I and II, Tenth Edition, 2022. Kindly purchase the hard copy.

The second set of required materials include the statute and relevant reports of the ILC to the UN General Assembly as well as excerpts of chapters of reports and other readings posted on Blackboard
 

This course will explore current developments in trademark and advertising law, primarily through recent federal court decisions under the Lanham Act. Course work includes in-depth treatment of complex areas of practice such as right of publicity and invasion of privacy, trademark issues in contextual advertising. litigation strategies, and recent legal developments in the field of trademark law.
 
Course Concentrations:
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information

This course builds on “Introduction to Affordable Housing,” and provides a deeper overview of issues to consider in affordable housing development: the most important areas of applicable laws and regulations on affordable housing; the sources of financing and the role of public/private partnerships and non-profit/ for-profit developers’ joint ventures; and the emerging trends in affordable housing development within urban communities. In addition to the classroom component, students will work on a variety of documents which are part of an actual affordable housing transaction, and will have an opportunity to meet clients, attend public hearings, and nurture a further understanding of the affordable housing arena. For the classroom component the class will meet once a week for eight weeks throughout the semester, and for the practicum the students will complete 40-50 hours of client related work, most of which will take place at the offices of Legal Services of Greater Miami; (2 credits, of which 1 credit satisfies a skills requirement).
 

This course will explore the impact of generative artificial intelligence on legal research. Topics include the evolution of AI legal research technologies, ethical considerations in AI-assisted research, and practical training in various platforms. Students will develop effective research skills on new and developing legal tools. Through hands-on exercises and critical discussion, students will develop an understanding of the capabilities and limitations of generative AI in legal research.
 

AI Law & Policy

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now the rage. But the US legal and regulatory response remains very much a work in progress (or in some cases, not even in progress).
AI includes a variety of technologies, notably ‘machine learning’ systems, Chatbots, and image (and Deepfake) creators. AI overlaps with robotics because behind many robots lies an embodied or even remotely connected AI. Both technologies present a number of ethical, social, and legal challenges that are inciting a wide variety of responses. Representative examples of problems include: Who is responsible for invidious discrimination by an AI? What should the liability (and ethical) rules be for accidents involving autonomous vehicles? Is existing malpractice law ready for AI doctors? Should we permit AI-enabled robots to carry lethal weapons? Should AIs and/or Robots have ‘rights’, whether human rights, animal rights, or some sui generis set of rights? To what extent should US law parallel the very detailed sets of rules being developed in the European Union and/or elsewhere?
The course will treat AI Law as a distinct subject, and also attempt to put it into the context of the law’s ongoing encounter with new technology. Most law courses seek to give you mastery of a relatively well-defined body of law. This course is different: it will seek to give you a taste of what it is like to work in areas with little clearly defined law (as such–the task then is to borrow or invent it), or new law, or where the law is in the process of being created and assembled – and where you could have a hand in making it, or interpreting it. Much like acrobatics without a net, this can be thrilling but it can also be scary. Crashes are always a possibility.
 
Course Concentrations:
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information

This course examines how federal and state laws regulate animals. It explores the relationship between humans and animals from philosophical and practical perspectives, including legal and ethical issues relating to the classification of animals as “property”; use of animals by industry, including agribusiness; animal welfare science and emerging legal protections for animal sentience; “standing” and other legal obstacles involved in litigating on behalf of animals; and environmental laws addressing endangered and other protected species. The course will explore animal protection in several areas of law including criminal law, torts, property law, constitutional law, and international law. It will also address cutting-edge issues in animal protection including strategic animal rights litigation, humane washing, and rights of nature as a platform for animal rights.
 
Course Concentrations:
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information

The Eleanor R. Cristol and Judge A. Jay Cristol Bankruptcy Pro Bono Assistance Clinic at Miami Law offers pro bono legal services to low-income individuals and entities that are dealing with financial problems. The Bankruptcy Bar Association of the Southern District of Florida established the clinic. Miami Law offers it as a one semester or a two-semester, three or six credit elective that pairs students into teams to represent clients under the mentorship of experienced attorneys. How Students Benefit from Participating in this Clinic • Hands-On Learning – Students have the opportunity to practice on real cases in federal bankruptcy court. These can be chapter 7s, chapter 13s, contested matters, adversary proceedings which can include cases such as fighting to help the debtor discharge student loans. Also, students may counsel with respect to financial distress and solutions to problems particularly those problems resulting from the COVID 19 pandemic and economic consequences. • Expert Mentorship – Students are placed with mentor bankruptcy attorneys in the community who really are at the top of their game from firms such as Kozyak Tropin and Genovese Joblove Battista. • Unparalleled Networking Opportunities – During the clinic students meet prospective future employers and attend numerous of bankruptcy events in the community such as View From the Bench, and numerous other Bankruptcy Bar Association events. • Fantastic Support – Clinic Director Patricia Redmond , Clinic Coordinator and mentor attorneys provide ongoing support, help and advice. Clients are referred to the clinic by the Dade County Bar Association, and sitting judges of the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida
http://www.law.miami.edu/academics/clinics/bankruptcy-assistance-clinic 

This course will explore various legal, business, and government affairs issues related to bidding for and hosting major sporting events (e.g., Super Bowls, CFP Championships, FIFA World Cup, etc.) from multiple perspectives, including, the sports league/organization, host city, host committee, host venues, event sponsors, event media partners and talent.
Class size will be limited.
 

“Narrowly Taylored”: IP through the lens of Taylor Swift’s career, covering topics such as music copyright, trademark use, fair use, and IP licensing.
 

This course investigates the law pertaining to businesses, starting with the law of agency and partnership (with a bit of the law of limited partnerships, limited liability companies and other organizational forms thrown in), and concluding with corporate law, the goals of the course. Students are assumed to know nothing of business law, or indeed, of business itself. The course operates on the premise that all lawyers need to understand the underlying notions taught herein. There is practically no area of human interaction that does not involve notions of agency. Partnerships can be complicated endeavors, but may also include small family entities. Likewise, corporations may be very large, or very small (again, things like family corporations). One need not be a "business lawyer" to encounter the fundamentals of business law, in areas as diverse as family law, commercial law and intellectual property. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine any legal practice that is divorced from concepts of business association law. Other operative principles for the course: (a) that the law in all domains is united by a core of fundamental principles, based on basic concepts of business and economics; (b) that an understanding of those principles is best achieved by starting with relatively simple business relationships (agency, partnership) and progressing to more complex ones (corporations) and (c) that having achieved such an understanding, students will be able to analyze business problems that arise, and even new organizational forms, whether or not such problems and organizations have been studied before. Thus, although the course includes considerable analysis of individual cases and particular statutes, these are only means to a greater end: a comprehension of how the law of business associations operates overall, and why. Issues concerning regulation of business (e.g., by the Securities and Exchange Commission) and taxation of businesses are considered only in passing.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

This course is an introduction to the laws pertaining to the formation and governance of business entities. We will cover agency, partnerships, LLCs and corporations, with an emphasis on the powers, rights, duties and liabilities of corporate directors, officers and shareholders. Topics will include the formation and financing of business entities, entity choice, internal structure, corporate governance, the allocation of power among the various participants in the enterprise, fiduciary duties, and shareholder voting. No prior knowledge of business law or business is expected. The course is designed on the premise that all lawyers need to understand the concepts covered therein.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25nSgU5lKr0&list=PL5qQGzdjNpDgK_K4S7XjYIDJF1LmIENbm&index=8 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

This course examines the evolving status, rights, and responsibilities of children in the American legal system. Students will explore critical issues shaping relationships among children, parents, society, and the state, focusing on the rapidly changing legal frameworks that govern these relationships.

Recent years have seen significant shifts in children’s rights. Their constitutional rights to speech, religion, and bodily autonomy have been narrowed, while birthright citizenship is being challenged in the courts. Federal laws seeking to guarantee equal access to education, safety in schools, and protection from maltreatment and labor exploitation have faced rollbacks and weakened enforcement. At the local level, children face an increasingly hostile regulatory environment, with many communities banning them from public spaces and the internet without parental supervision or consent.

Drawing from current events and real cases, and working individually or in small teams, students will identify and study contemporary legal issues affecting children. Topics may include education rights, criminal and juvenile justice, medical decision-making, First Amendment issues in schools, emerging cases under the Second Amendment, immigration and citizenship, or other areas where children's legal status is contested.

Students will develop practical legal research and policy skills, analyze statutory, regulatory, and constitutional frameworks, and produce advocacy-oriented writing. Final work products might include legal writing (amicus briefs, complaints), policy reports (comments to proposed regulations or legislation), or public education materials (training materials, white papers, op-eds).

The course will include a combination of seminar meetings, individual project meetings, and significant independent work time. Seminar meetings will focus on foundational legal principles in children’s rights, discussion of the selected topics, and instruction in policy research, analysis, and writing.

No prior experience in children’s rights or policy is expected or required.
 

Please see link below. http://www.law.miami.edu/clinics/?op=0
 
Course Concentrations:
Health Law (Area of Focus) More information

This course will continue the study of the process through which civil legal disputes are resolved in American courts. In addition to reviewing some of the concepts covered in the basic Civil Procedure course, it will focus the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure as they apply to the stages of a lawsuit from Pre-trial Motions to Appeal, with an emphasis on Discovery and the ethical obligations of lawyers in the federal trial court system. Specifically Civil Procedure II will cover: • Curtailed adjudication (12(b)(6) Motions for Failure to State a Claim for which Relief can be granted & Summary Judgment) • Trial and post-trial motions for Judgment as a Matter of Law and Motions for a New trial • Discovery (mandatory initial disclosure, interrogatories, requests for admission, and requests for documents; relevance; privilege; work-product protection; protective orders; physical and mental examinations; and sanctions for discovery misconduct) and electronic discovery. • Challenging Judges and Jurors • Claim and Issue Preclusion (Respect for Judgments) • Joinder of Parties and Claims (including permissive joinder of parties, counter-claims and cross-claims, impleader, intervention, indispensable parties, and class actions).
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

The term “civil rights” initially referred to all individual claims enforceable in courts within law and equity jurisdictions. This understanding held on through Reconstruction and the long post-Reconstruction era. Section I of the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871 is the most prominent example, now the foundation of 42 U.S.C. section 1983. The 1983 action, reaching state and local actors proceeding under color of law, was not put to sustained use in federal litigation until the 1960s, now tied to particular constitutional or federal statutory terms. It has since become the point of departure for an enormous, greatly complicated body of litigation. This course looks as closely as possible at intricacies — it is not easy to identify readily enforced rights or readily asserted defenses. The course also explores federal question suits against federal actors possessing their own difficulties. Familiarity with this material is a genuine asset for students contemplating federal judgeships or litigation in federal courts.
 

Historically, litigation involved the adjudication of disputes between individual parties over discreet claims. See, Best Practices in Federal Pretrial Litigation I. In the modern world, it has become increasingly common for legal disputes to involve multiple parties, battling over multiple claims in separate forums. For example, in the federal courts, over 35% of all cases involve multidistrict litigation under the aegis of the Panel in Multidistrict Litigation and many more pending in the state courts. And, as the world is increasingly interconnected, this trend is likely to accelerate. The purpose of the course is not only to acquaint students with the doctrinal underpinning of the law of multiple party litigation but also to expose them as well to the practical application of these principles to pretrial practice (pleadings, motions, discovery, settlements). The course will involve readings from the basic text and cases, other materials available in electronic data bases, and class discussion.
 

Finance and financial markets are a significant focus of actions and policies to address climate change. These actions and policies include the fossil fuel divestment movement, private standards, regulatory taxonomies for sustainable finance, rules regulating corporate disclosures about climate change, and banking and insurance regulators addressing issues of climate-related systemic risk. In the US, recent moves to deregulation of the relationship between climate change and finance are also important to study. Both public and private institutions issue green and sustainable bonds and develop investment funds which emphasize sustainability. The class examines a range of issues relating to the relationship between climate change and finance. The class suits students who are interested in environmental law and/or ESG (environmental, social and governance) or compliance. Course materials are provided on the course website.
https://www.blenderlaw.com/eu-law/ 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information

The form and function of negotiable instruments (promissory notes, checks and drafts) under Article 3 of the Uniform Commercial Code; the system of bank collection of negotiable instruments under Article 4 of the UCC and federal reserve regulations; the modern payment media, including consumer electronic fund transfers under the EFTA and commercial wire transfers under Article 4A of the UCC. Consideration will be given to certain innovations enacted by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, including amendments to Regulation J of the Federal Reserve, governing the check clearing system; and clearinghouse requirements for swap transactions.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

The course will focus on the diversity of Criminal Justice systems. focusing on key issues and recent trends. Topics will comprise the analysis of fundamental principles, such as legality and culpability, as well of specific areas of criminality such as crimes against the person, sex offenses and organized crime. The analysis of substantive law will always be connected with its enforcement, making reference to prosecutorial discretion and to the different models of procedure. Short Course Attendance Policy Due to the small number of meetings, attendance to all meetings/classes for short courses is mandatory. Students who miss more than one class session (70 minute) of a 1-credit short course are subject to administrative withdrawal and will have a W for the course on their transcripts.
 
Course Concentrations:
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

Students will learn to understand and apply the legal nuances of matrimonial and family law. Students will be taught to apply the practical skillset needed to understand strategies necessary to excel as a divorce attorney through fact patterns and real-life cases from a practicing New York City matrimonial and family law attorney. At the end of the course you will: -Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of matrimonial and family law -Engage in legal reasoning, legal research, fact analysis, and critical thinking -Communicate effectively in oral and written form -Act professionally and ethically -Understand the particulars of a demanding law practice Short Course Attendance Policy: Due to the small number of meetings, attendance to all meetings/classes for short courses is mandatory. Students who miss more than one class session (70 minute) of a 1-credit short course are subject to administrative withdrawal and will have a W for the course on their transcripts.
 

The focus of this 2026 course will be Panama. We will explore its physical geography, culture, legal framework and institutions, and tourism-development-conservation conflicts. The field trip will be divided into two locations: Panama City and Chagres National Park. Panama City is a vibrant, cosmopolitan coastal city that is an international commercial and financial center, major international port and entrance to the Panama Canal, as well as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its coastline is undergoing major development that is altering its natural ecosystems. Chagres National Park (PNCh) is located an hour from Panama City and protects the watershed of Lake Alajuela, the major source of freshwater for the Panama Canal and for drinking water for a million residents of Panama City and Colón. The Spanish colonial road (Camino Real) passes through the PNCh. We will stay for 3 days in the community of Quebrada Ancha on the shores of Lake Alajuela at the site of a community-based tourism (CBT) project and examine in detail the organization and operation of the CBT project. Additionally, we will visit another CBT project at the Emberá community (Emberá Purú).

Course participants will meet weekly throughout the semester in Miami to discuss background readings and develop a group research field project that we will carry out during a Spring Break trip to the research sites in Panama City and Chagres National Park. Upon return to the University of Miami, class participants will prepare manuscripts and presentations based on the field data that course participants have collected during the trip.
 
Course Concentrations:
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

This course considers the history, theory, and contemporary law of the post-Civil War Amendments to the Constitution, particularly the Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. The central subjects are the constitutional law governing discrimination on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, and the recognition of certain fundamental rights. The course also explores the doctrine and theory of the constitutional law of freedom of speech. The subjects for discussion may include advocacy of unlawful conduct, defamation, offensive speech, symbolic expression, and protest in public places. Throughout, students consider foundational questions, including the role of courts in a democracy and the question of how the Constitution should be interpreted. The student grade is based on several short papers and class participation.
 
Course Concentrations:
Immigration, Asylum, and Citizenship Law Area of Focus (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

This course is an intensive study of the various aspects of construction law, including construction contracting, claims, and litigation. The course considers the rights and duties of developers, contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, bonding companies, and lenders. It emphasizes pitfalls to avoid in construction contracting, the bidding process, government work, construction scheduling and delays, warranties, arbitration or litigation, damages, remedies, waivers, and defenses. (3 credits)
 

This course is an intensive study of the various aspects of construction law, including construction contracting, claims, and litigation. The course considers the rights and duties of developers, contractors, subcontractors, design professionals, bonding companies, and lenders. It emphasizes pitfalls to avoid in construction contracting, the bidding process, government work, construction scheduling and delays, warranties, arbitration or litigation, damages, remedies, waivers, and defenses. (3 credits)
 

This course surveys the legal framework that governs how ordinary consumers borrow, pay, save, and are collected on in the United States. We will study the full lifecycle of household credit and payment systems, including credit marketing, origination, disclosures and reporting (credit cards, mortgages, student loans, auto loans), what happens when consumers can’t pay (collections, repossession, garnishment, default, and bankruptcy), the state and federal regulatory structure (Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Reserve, state AGs, state “Unfair and Deceptive Acts and Practices” laws), and private enforcement (contract, tort, arbitration). We will also examine the political economy of consumer financial markets, including the privatization of social risk through consumer credit markets and the public-private divide; distributional problems due to discrimination and uneven market access; and financial crises and the interaction of consumer financial markets and law with the real economy. The course will briefly introduce topics in consumer fintech, including practices such as algorithmic credit scoring and products like “buy now, pay later.” Students interested in a more in-depth discussion of these issues should enroll in Fintech (for which Consumer Finance Law is a co-requisite).

This course will be taught through a mixture of lecture and class discussion. Course materials will be assigned from open access sources and will include a combination of judicial opinions, statutory/regulatory excerpts, scholarly and policy commentary, and real consumer finance documents such as credit agreements.
 

This course will introduce the law and economics of corporate finance. The course begins on the economic side, looking at the fundamentals of valuation—the time value of the money, net cash flow as the measure of value, and the derivation of capitalization rates. Expanding on the theme of valuation, the course goes on to the economics of securities markets (the efficient capital markets hypothesis) and of capital structure (the irrelevance hypothesis). The course then turns to the legal side, with a transactional focus, looking at derivatives, long-term debt contracting, asset securitization, and financing with hybrid securities. Text: Bratton, Corporate Finance: Cases and Materials (10th ed. 2025)
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

With the number of craft breweries and craft spirits producers now estimated to exceed 9,800 and 3,000, respectively, craft alcoholic beverage supply has quickly outstripped its “boutique” or “cottage” roots. These industries, together with the emerging low-proof distilled spirits and ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktail markets, operate within a complex regulatory framework of state and federal law. Many of the privileges available to craft suppliers have evolved as nuanced exceptions to the regulations and policy underlying the traditional beverage alcohol laws forged in the immediate aftermath of Prohibition. In a parallel universe, the federal prohibition of cannabis is slowly eroding and twenty-four states, plus the District of Columbia, have now approved the legalization of cannabis for adult recreational use. Furthermore, the rescheduling of marijuana under the Federal Controlled Substances Act, is under serious consideration by the current administration, a clear nod towards the possibility of federal deregulation. Separately, legislation promulgated (under the 2018 Farm Bill) has spurred a massive multi-state market for hemp and low-dose THC beverages, the legality of which is murky and premised upon certain incongruities or “loopholes” within the regulatory scheme. Critical to the growth and success of these industries are attorneys with interdisciplinary skills and a working knowledge of the regulatory landscape involving craft alcoholic beverage products and the conflicted intra-state marketplace for cannabis and hemp products. Traditional beverage alcohol and cannabis regulation will be presented and discussed as a rubric for understanding the current regulation of the craft alcoholic beverage and cannabis industries. This course will explore these concepts from both the vantage point of the operators of these businesses, as well as from the perspective of investors in this robust period of incubation and growth. The goal of this course will be to enable critical issue spotting for attorneys at the periphery of these industries or to serve as a jumping off point for attorneys who wish to specialize in these substantive areas. Short Course Attendance Policy Due to the small number of meetings, attendance to all meetings/classes for short courses is mandatory. Students who miss more than one class session (80 minute) of a 1-credit short course are subject to administrative withdrawal and will have a W for the course on their transcripts
 

How vigorously can a criminal defense attorney represent the interests of his client without "crossing the line?" When has a prosecutor become vindictive in his pursuit of a conviction? Is the judge just a referee who calls balls and strikes, or does the judge have a role in meting out justice? Studying actual cases and debating hypothetical scenarios, we will tackle the cutting edge issues that lawyers inevitably confront: the duty to disclose evidence favorable to the defendant, calling a witness the attorney does not believe, impeaching a witness the attorney knows is telling the truth, and getting paid, without getting indicted. In this advanced survey of the criminal process, we will reconcile the tension between tenacious advocacy and ethical (if not moral) constraints as we question the very premise of our justice system and the role of the attorney.
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

This course will cover the legal authorities of U.S. customs officials to regulate entry and assess admissibility of merchandise. Topics include the customs laws regarding the detention, search, and seizure of merchandise, as well as the people, baggage, parcels, containers, and conveyances that transport merchandise into the country. Topics also include the customs laws regarding the importation process, encompassing the declarations, tariffs, and restrictions applicable to entry of various types of merchandise, cargo, and personal possessions.
 

The legal landscape for digital assets, blockchain, and cryptocurrencies is rapidly evolving. This course provides an in-depth examination of the legal and regulatory frameworks governing digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), stablecoins, decentralized finance (DeFi), tokenized securities, and digital asset reserves at the federal, state, and sovereign levels.

Students will explore the intersection of law, technology, economics, and business, analyzing major legal doctrines such as the Howey Test, securities regulations, money transmission laws, and taxation of virtual assets. Real-world case studies, including SEC v. Ripple Labs, SEC v. Telegram, CFTC v. BitMEX, SEC v. Coinbase, and joint CFTC/SEC actions against Binance, will be examined in detail.

The course integrates technical aspects of blockchain (smart contracts, consensus mechanisms) and business models (crypto exchanges, token offerings, investment funds). Additionally, we will explore the legal and economic implications of federal and state digital asset reserves, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and the role of sovereign wealth funds in digital asset investment. The course will assess how digital assets are being integrated into national and global financial systems, including discussions on reserve management, monetary policy, financial stability, and legislative developments at both the federal and state levels.

A key component of this course is an analysis of the GENIUS Act (Global and National Economic Infrastructure for U.S. Sovereignty Act)—a proposed legislative framework addressing the integration of programmable finance, stablecoin reserves, and sovereign digital currency systems. The Act’s principles and policy mechanisms will be used as a lens through which students can evaluate the balance between financial innovation, consumer protection, and national economic sovereignty. Students will critically examine how the GENIUS Act could shape U.S. and global digital asset regulation, influence international monetary relations, and redefine the interplay between public and private digital money systems.

From a technological perspective, the course offers a detailed exploration of digital asset infrastructures and platforms, including the architectures of blockchain protocols (Ethereum, Solana, XRP Ledger, Hyperledger Fabric), DeFi protocols, and cross-chain interoperability solutions. Students will gain exposure to smart contract programming concepts, digital custody models, decentralized governance structures (DAOs), and the emerging regulatory approaches toward tokenized financial instruments and on-chain compliance technologies. This technical foundation will allow students to connect the mechanics of digital systems to their broader legal and economic implications.

By the end of the course, students will have a solid foundation in the technological, legal, compliance, policy, and economic challenges shaping the digital asset industry. They will understand not only the underlying blockchain architectures and smart contract systems that enable decentralized applications and financial instruments but also how these technologies intersect with evolving legal regimes, compliance frameworks, and economic theories of value and governance. This integrated perspective will prepare students to navigate and influence the next generation of digital asset regulation, innovation, and implementation across both public and private sectors.
 

“In the second and third years of the program, students will focus on writing their dissertations. If the student chooses to remain in Miami during this period, the student may continue to participate in the S.J.D. seminar and audit classes and will be encouraged to participate in the intellectual life of the school. Students will receive regular assessments of their progress by their faculty advisor, and the S.J.D. Director will review these assessments annually. The faculty advisor and dissertation committee must determine that the dissertation constitutes a significant and original contribution to scholarship in the student’s chosen field of law. Generally, the dissertation should be 250-300 double-spaced pages and conform to the program formatting guidelines. The expectation is that students will complete their dissertations by the end of their third year in the program.”
 

In the second and third years of the program, students will focus on writing their dissertations. If the student chooses to remain in Miami during this period, the student may continue to participate in the S.J.D. seminar and audit classes and will be encouraged to participate in the intellectual life of the school. Students will receive regular assessments of their progress by their faculty advisor, and the S.J.D. Director will review these assessments annually. The faculty advisor and dissertation committee must determine that the dissertation constitutes a significant and original contribution to scholarship in the student’s chosen field of law. Generally, the dissertation should be 250-300 double-spaced pages and conform to the program formatting guidelines. The expectation is that students will complete their dissertations by the end of their third year in the program.
 

The purpose of this course is to provide students with a practical view of the legal aspects of business transactions taking place in Latin America. Companies doing business or investing in Latin American jurisdictions need to be familiar with the issues that arise when activities cross borders, as well as understand the legal framework and the legal culture of the countries in which their clients operate. Understanding the differences in law in different jurisdictions, the culture in which the law is based and the thought processes of the local lawyers are key aspects in advising clients on Latin American transactions. The course structure is as follows: 1) Selecting a topic of interest: Students will select a question or problem of their choice from topics of discussions covered in the class in a specific Latin American country. 2) Assignment of a Mentor: Students will be matched with a mentor that has experience with the student’s topic of interest. 3) Students will prepare a paper with the analysis of the topic selected and present the final results in an oral presentation to the class. The final paper will be submitted at the end of the course.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information

This course will provide students the opportunity to explore and experience scenarios faced by practicing lawyers representing clients in the sports industry, specifically in esports. Students will learn about all aspects of the esports industry and will learn to draft and negotiate esports contracts, represent clients, and work in organizations. Students will also explore and experiment with different negotiation strategies. Overall, the goal of the course is to expose students to skills and considerations in the practice of representing clients who operate in the esports industry and, in particular, through discussing various current and recent esports and sports law readings, how to anticipate and address issues that present themselves in practice. The course will emphasize classroom participation. Short Course Attendance Policy Due to the small number of meetings, attendance to all meetings/classes for short courses is mandatory.
 

This course will cover the legal aspects of television show production in Latin America, oriented to attorneys willing to practice in the field of entertainment for either U.S. or foreign TV networks and production companies doing business in Latin America. Forms of contracts and other legal documents will be brought to analysis, including the discussion of generally accepted clauses and resolution of situations generally encountered in the TV business based on real cases taken from practice and case law. The course will aim to provide students with basic knowledge to understand and develop a practice in Entertainment law oriented to the Latin American market. The course will cover the legal steps of the TV business, from the acquisition of rights over a format to the final distribution of the series or program, with the analysis of: (i) Format License Agreements, for both scripted and non-scripted shows, intellectual property registrations under Latin American laws and the concept of “moral rights” vs. copyright; (ii) Development and Production Agreements, including the development of pilots and first episodes; (iii) Agreements for directors, actors, talents, writers and composers, focusing on the services provided with special emphasis in the protection of IP rights (assignment of rights and “right to credit”); (iv) Unions and guilds and the protection of talents, writers and musicians’ rights in Latin America, including term of assignment (“perpetuity vs. limited time, and reversion of rights), territory (worldwide vs. designated territory), and media (all media including Internet vs. selected media); (v) rights and clearances for the use of image, footage and locations and other IP holders such as voice talents, art and set designers, makeup artists and others; (vi) Distribution Agreements, focusing on cable, satellite, Internet and mobile devices; and (vii) Music Composer Agreements (episodic or score), focusing on synchronization, mechanical and publishing rights, and Performing Right Societies.
 

The Environmental Justice Clinic educates, trains, and inspires the next generation of leaders and advocates for regenerative environments through working with students, clients, and partners on environmental cases and campaigns in communities of color in Miami and South Florida. The Clinic’s course requirements include student-led case work, a classroom component and related assignments, individual assessments, and group student-faculty supervision meetings. The students join teams that pursue one or more of the Clinic’s cases and campaigns and have primary responsibility for advancing that matter during their year in the Clinic, supervised by Clinic faculty. In collaboration with their teams, students devise and implement strategy, interact regularly with their clients, communities, and partners, and function as professional advocates. The Clinic’s priority issues are the climate crisis, pollution, and the built environment.
 
Course Concentrations:
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information
Health Law (Area of Focus) More information

Environmental Law: Practice-Ready Approaches to Effective Environmental Advocacy

This course introduces students to the statutory, regulatory, and common-law foundations of environmental protection and law in the United States while emphasizing the practical skills required for effective environmental lawyering. Through case studies, simulated client interactions, and drafting exercises, students will develop proficiency in statutory interpretation, advocacy, and compliance counseling. Core topics include major federal environmental laws, environmental torts, related doctrines such as standing, and environmental justice frameworks. Students will engage in applied learning, such as preparing comment letters, enforcement memos, and litigation documents, to understand how environmental law operates in real-world contexts. The course also will examine the profound transformations in environmental governance from the Trump Administration and the current Supreme Court. Students will learn both the “old law” and the new realities of environmental regulation, enforcement, and litigation, gaining insight into how statutory meaning, agency discretion, and judicial review evolve in real time. By the end of the course, students will be prepared to navigate environmental law practice with confidence, professionalism, and an equity-informed perspective.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

Environmental Law: Practice-Ready Approaches to Effective Environmental Advocacy

This course introduces students to the statutory, regulatory, and common-law foundations of environmental protection and law in the United States while emphasizing the practical skills required for effective environmental lawyering. Through case studies, simulated client interactions, and drafting exercises, students will develop proficiency in statutory interpretation, advocacy, and compliance counseling. Core topics include major federal environmental laws, environmental torts, related doctrines such as standing, and environmental justice frameworks. Students will engage in applied learning, such as preparing comment letters, enforcement memos, and litigation documents, to understand how environmental law operates in real-world contexts. The course also will examine the profound transformations in environmental governance from the Trump Administration and the current Supreme Court. Students will learn both the “old law” and the new realities of environmental regulation, enforcement, and litigation, gaining insight into how statutory meaning, agency discretion, and judicial review evolve in real time. By the end of the course, students will be prepared to navigate environmental law practice with confidence, professionalism, and an equity-informed perspective.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

This course will take a broad view of environmental planning and analysis while focusing specifically on the requirements for and preparation of Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) and Environmental Assessments (EA). We will look in detail at the statutory requirements and procedures at the federal level, as well as the latest regulations promulgated by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). Our approach will rely heavily on federal judicial opinions that provide compelling examples of environmental disputes and controversies.

We will also read excerpts from policy and social science essays that consider the successes and failures of the EIS process, the effect of the EIS process on bureaucracies, and the participation of the public in environmental planning.

An additional unit that will be integrated into the above readings will consider some of the substantive requirements of environmental impact analyses, such as assessments of the physical and biological environments, as well as socioeconomic impacts. Students will specialize in an EIS and prepare a case study based on the Environmental Document.
 
Course Concentrations:
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information

This course takes a practical approach to the estate planning process, analyzing typical fact patterns encountered in practice. Planning for younger families, affluent retirees, and owners of family businesses is discussed, and ethical considerations, such as conflicts that arise from dual representation of husband and wife, are also considered.
 

This compressed course will provide an overview of the law and policy of Everglades restoration through a blend of field visits and classroom learning. It will cover relevant environmental regulations, changing federal and state legal frameworks, and policy implications. The course will cover environmental themes such as drainage and flood control, habitat connectivity, listed species, water quality standards, public lands, algae blooms, climate change, hydrology, water management, tribal rights, and working lands. This course takes place January 5-9 in the Everglades.
 
Course Concentrations:
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information

This 4-credit Evidence course is designed for students interested in litigation. Although it is in many ways a traditional course, we will discuss evidence law from a strategic perspective – as litigators trying to enter or exclude certain evidence. To that end, students will be required to analyze hypotheticals, stand, and make oral arguments. Substantively, the course will cover the law of evidence as applied in both civil and criminal proceedings throughout the United States. The focus will be on the Federal Rules of Evidence, which now have been adopted through codification in the vast majority of states. These will be examined in detail with reference both to their common law background and to their subsequent interpretation.
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information

The University of Miami School of Law Externship Program is a JD class that provides second-year (2L) and third-year (3L) students, in good academic standing, an opportunity to gain practical legal experience by working with corporations (in-house legal department or general counsel's office), government agencies, public interest organizations or the judiciary for academic credit. Students gain legal experience by working under the supervision of practicing lawyers, which is enhanced by a classroom component that allows students to maximize the learning opportunity. Law firms, of any size, do not qualify to serve as externship field placements. The Externship Program has two components: (1) a semester total of 135 hours at the approved externship field placement, and (2) a class that meets once per week. The works hours and classroom component must be completed concurrently. The Externship Program is an elective 3-credit course that is graded pass/fail and meets a skills graduation requirement. Students are responsible for securing your own externship placement. Please go to the Externship Program webpage where you will find information on current pre-approved placements and instructions on how to apply to each placement. You can also seek approval for a new placement that is not on the pre-approved list. You have until the end of the add/drop period to obtain an externship placement and enroll in the course. You will be enrolled in the course only after you have obtained an offer from your externship placement. For more information, please click here for the Externship Program webpage or contact Professor Jessi Tamayo (jtamayo@law.miami.edu). Enrollment is by permission of the Instructor.
https://www.law.miami.edu/iml/careers/miami-law-cdo-externship-program 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

The University of Miami School of Law Externship Program is a JD class that provides second-year (2L) and third-year (3L) students, in good academic standing, an opportunity to gain practical legal experience by working with corporations (in-house legal department or general counsel's office), government agencies, public interest organizations or the judiciary for academic credit. Students gain legal experience by working under the supervision of practicing lawyers, which is enhanced by a classroom component that allows students to maximize the learning opportunity. Law firms, of any size, do not qualify to serve as externship field placements. The Externship Program has two components: (1) a semester total of 135 hours at the approved externship field placement, and (2) a class that meets once per week. The works hours and classroom component must be completed concurrently. The Externship Program is an elective 3-credit course that is graded pass/fail and meets a skills graduation requirement. Students are r
 
Course Concentrations:
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

The University of Miami School of Law Externship Program is a JD class that provides second-year (2L) and third-year (3L) students, in good academic standing, an opportunity to gain practical legal experience by working with corporations (in-house legal department or general counsel's office), government agencies, public interest organizations or the judiciary for academic credit. Students gain legal experience by working under the supervision of practicing lawyers, which is enhanced by a classroom component that allows students to maximize the learning opportunity. Law firms, of any size, do not qualify to serve as externship field placements.
 
Course Concentrations:
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

1L Elective: This class will cover substantive issues which include: entry into marriage, legal treatment of cohabitants and same sex couples, divorce, alimony, custody, visitation, child support, adoption, etc. Throughout the semester, there will be a series of guest speakers (judges, practitioners, guardian ad litem attorneys and family mediators) who will address the real life practical issues of family law. The goals of the class are to help students: 1. Apply legal doctrine to new factual situations 2. Develop oral advocacy skills 3. Develop a critical perspective about the difference between "law on the books" and "law in operation" 4. Collaborate with colleagues on legal problem.
 
Course Concentrations:
Immigration, Asylum, and Citizenship Law Area of Focus (Area of Focus) More information

THIS SECTION IS ONLY FOR 1L STUDENTS. This class will cover substantive issues which include: entry into marriage, legal treatment of cohabitants and same sex couples, divorce, alimony, custody, visitation, child support, adoption, etc. Throughout the semester, there will be a series of guest speakers (judges, practitioners, guardian ad litem attorneys and family mediators) who will address the real life practical issues of family law. The goals of the class are to help students: 1. Apply legal doctrine to new factual situations 2. Develop oral advocacy skills 3. Develop a critical perspective about the difference between "law on the books" and "law in operation" 4. Collaborate with colleagues on legal problem.
 
Course Concentrations:
Immigration, Asylum, and Citizenship Law Area of Focus (Area of Focus) More information

This course will expose students to legal and business issues affecting the fashion industry in the United States and around the world, with an emphasis on preparing students to practice law in the fashion industry, or to identify issues that arise in connection with the representation of clients pursuing branding opportunities. Topics will include protection of intellectual property, employment law, governmental regulation, retailing and licensing.
 

This course is not a general survey (that would likely require five hours a week). Instead we will look at recent developments importantly changing the work of Article III federal courts. It is not only the case that so-called justiciability notions have changed — perhaps most notably in connection with the political question doctrine. A parallel revision in Supreme Court thinking has recently jettisoned the Chevron doctrine, inserting Article III judges in more detailed ways in reviewing federal administrative action. Article III judges at all levels are now regularly involved in preliminary judging, often without full-fledged opinions (“judging in the shadows”). There is much more too. The underling idea of the course is to take the measure of “right now.”
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

This course examines the substantive, procedural and tactical aspects of the criminal aspects of the federal tax system. The IRS and the Justice Department prosecute criminal tax cases each year involving a variety of fact patterns, from the simple, such as the failure to file tax returns or report income, to the complex, such as the implementation by tax advisors of unlawful tax schemes. An understanding of the criminal tax enforcement function is important to any tax lawyer doing controversy work, tax planners who might work on sophisticated planning issues, and practitioners in the international area. Topics will include i) the nature and types of criminal tax offenses, ii) government processes and policies underlying criminal tax enforcement cases, iii) the prosecution and defense of criminal tax cases from inception through trial, iv) plea bargaining and sentencing in tax cases, v) the intersections between civil and criminal tax compliance and enforcement, vi) the IRS voluntary disclosure policy, and vii) ethics issues relating to criminal tax cases. Course materials will include selected Code provisions, cases, and government policy and procedures. Federal Income Tax and Criminal Law are prerequisites for this course.
 

Tax is so pervasive that you risk malpractice if you skip it. This course introduces the basic concepts of, and helps students learn to solve problems with, the federal tax code and regulations. Subjects include: whether, to whom, and when income is subject to taxation; capital recovery; business deductions; and capital gains.
The course is more an English than a math course, is not designed for students with a strong tax background, assumes no business or accounting knowledge, and has two fundamental purposes: first, to teach basic tax avoidance strategies; and second, to help students learn to use statutory materials to solve legal problems.
This is a rigorous course requiring close statutory analysis and considerable work. The course format is online, asynchronous (or as I prefer “non-synchronous”) and mediated through UM's excellent blackboard learning management system. Approximately three hours of session videos open each Friday morning, preceded by detailed class prep assignments due midnight Thursday, and followed by wider-ranging post-video assignments due Tuesdays (leaving weekends free).
Save for the 3-hour multiple-choice final exam proctored in-person at Miami Law the course could be taken from anywhere on earth with an appropriate Internet connection.
Note: we will be using the 20th edition of the casebook.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

This course presents an intensive survey of U.S. federal income taxation. It focuses particularly on the areas of U.S. federal income taxation relevant to students who intend to pursue advanced study in corporate law or business transactions. It also is intended to satisfy the needs of students who intend to pursue advanced study in taxation, including an LLM in taxation or a tax-related area. Topics to be covered include: the computation of adjusted gross income and taxable income; important basic types of income such as compensation income and gains and losses from property transactions; deductions related to business and investment, including those related to management fees, depreciation and interest; and the special treatment of capital gains and losses. The course will also provide a brief overview of business entity taxation. Other topics that may be covered if time permits include the deduction for charitable contributions and the taxation of life insurance and individual retirement accounts.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

This new practicum, offered by FIFA and the University of Miami School of Law’s Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law (EASL) program, provides students with a unique opportunity to engage directly with leading legal professionals in the world of international football. Through two intensive and practice-oriented modules, students will gain first-hand exposure to core legal areas in football law: dispute resolution and player transfers.
 

Financial markets have undergone a dramatic digital transformation over the last half a century, a phenomenon referred to today as “fintech.” Consumers can open bank accounts, take out loans, invest and make payments, all through a simple app on their mobile phones. These apps are increasingly powered by advanced artificial intelligence systems, and large volumes of data. As with all advances in technology, fintech is a double-edged sword. It plays an important role in enabling the expansion of financial markets and contributing to economic growth. But it also presents risks. They include distributional risks, such as increased algorithmic discrimination and exploitation of vulnerable consumers, and macroeconomic risks, such as faster credit expansions. Legal and regulatory frameworks play a key role in managing these risks and shaping the economic and social outcomes due to fintech, and financial markets.

This course will examine the rise of consumer fintech in the U.S., from the growth of credit reporting agencies and credit scoring in the latter part of the 20th century to recent developments such as cryptocurrency and “buy now pay later” lending, as well as the technological, political, and socio-legal drivers of these developments. The course will introduce students to different normative frameworks for analyzing the relationship between law, markets, technology, and the political economy. The course will use these analytical frameworks to critically examine the key existing laws and regulations that govern consumer financial markets, and new modalities for fintech regulation. The course plugs into broader debates on social and racial justice, surveillance capitalism, algorithmic and stakeholder governance.

Note that this is an advanced course that requires students to engage with advanced legal and economic scholarship on fintech, focusing on consumer financial markets. To be eligible for this course, students must also enroll in Consumer Finance Law (Spring 2026), which I will teach concurrently. Students can satisfy the essay assessment requirements for both this course and Consumer Finance Law by writing one, longer combined essay, or two shorter essays.
 

Florida’s Rules of Civil Procedure provide the procedural framework for every case as it proceeds from the filing of the initial Complaint to a summary disposition or a trial. A firm understanding of the rules will not only help you to pass the Florida Bar and become a lawyer in the first place, but more importantly it will help you turn potential procedural obstacles into advantages as you embark on your legal practice. The emphasis in this course will be on the practical side of litigating cases in state court in Florida. The course will include an in-depth review of the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure by studying the rules themselves as well as the salient Florida case law applying them.
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information

This Florida Constitutional Law course will examine the State of Florida’s constitution in the context of federalism in the United States and in the context of Florida’s unique history. Special emphasis will be given to the distinctive role of state constitutions in a system of dual sovereignty, to the particular values and concerns of Florida’s citizens reflected in policy choices in Florida’s constitution, and to the wide-ranging constitutional limitations placed on the inherent powers of the state. The course will focus on separation of powers among three branches; the state court system, powers and jurisdiction; legislative powers and limitations; executive branch powers; tax and public finance; homestead protection from creditors; local government; public education; elections; and special individual rights and protections under the Florida Constitution, including broad privacy rights and the right of access to courts.
 

This course provides an overview of Florida’s documentary stamp tax laws and regulations applicable to real estate documents and transactions, including deeds on real property transfers, promissory notes, mortgages, and loan renewals. Students will gain a understanding of various tax rates, calculation of the tax on different types of transactions, and exemptions to the tax. Tax compliance procedures and consequences for failure to pay the tax will be addressed. Students will engage in practical exercises and discussions to deepen their understanding of how the documentary stamp tax operates in real-world scenarios. Florida’s nonrecurring intangible tax will also be discussed.
 

This course delves into the exciting parent/child issues that arise in Florida marital and family law cases, with an emphasis on the practical aspects of being a Florida family law practitioner and effectively advocating for clients and the best interest of children. The class is designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills that will make them a more attractive candidate and/or useful law clerk to potential and current employers. Through a combination of instructor lectures, guest speakers, interactive discussions, student presentations, and role play, students will learn how to handle family law proceedings that involve parent/child issues. Students will work in teams to develop a hypothetical court case and participate in role play such as interviewing clients; drafting court documents; working with court-appointed professionals and experts; and preparing Parenting Plans and Guardian ad Litem reports. Students will engage in ADR (alternative dispute resolution) and litigation scenarios, all while being mentored by local attorneys and judges. Students will observe real-life family law proceedings and write a paper on their observations.
 

This course is designed to provide hands-on experience using Florida specific legal resources. You will learn the legal research process and how to apply it to solve research problems through in-class and homework exercises. You will learn how to evaluate sources and determine if they are the right type of source and appropriate authority for your legal issue. Please note that this is a compressed course that includes a final research assignment. This course counts towards your Skills graduation requirement.
 

This course will provide an overview of environmental policy at the state and local level in Florida. The course will include an analysis of relevant law, policy, and emerging issues for Florida-specific environments, focusing on environmental themes that are of particular importance to marine professionals, such as: Everglades restoration, coral reef protection, fish and wildlife management, watershed and land management, invasive and listed species, waste management, energy, and climate change policies.
 
Course Concentrations:
Environmental Law (Area of Focus) More information
Environmental Law (Concentration) More information

This is the second installment in a two-semester simulation of arbitral proceedings, covering all practical aspects of an investment arbitration from the genesis of a dispute to a plenary hearing. The Spring course segment covers the hearing phase, including pre-hearing preparation, oral arguments, and witness examination. The intensive Course will incorporate frequent practical exercises, including the preparation of facts and expert witnesses, negotiation of contentious issues, oral advocacy, and drafting. Students will act in the roles of arbitrators, counsel, and witnesses. Completion of “Forensics of Advocacy I” (D. González and L. Sobota) in the Fall semester is recommended to enroll.
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information

This course will help you develop advanced reasoning, writing, research, citation, and oral
argument skills in the context of simulated appellate cases, including Supreme Court cases.
You will (1) focus on styling and preparing briefs tailored to the demands of contemporary
appellate practice, (2) learn how the components of a brief fit strategically and thematically,
(3) learn to construct legal arguments using varying approaches to legal reasoning and
interpretation, and (4) focus on the mechanics of good persuasive writing, such as developing
themes, using headings and transitions effectively, and relying on impactful language. You
will also experience opportunities to prepare for and deliver oral arguments to an appellate
court. Finally, you will be challenged to consider ethical issues in appellate practice,
principally involving how not to cross the line between zealous advocacy and half-truths or
misrepresentations that may undermine your credibility.
 

The General Counsel Practicum is a blueprint for students to learn, in a hands-on environment with the Legal Department at the MIAMI Association of REALTORS®, the skills needed to practice as a general counsel. Topics include contract drafting, regulatory compliance, risk management, corporate and nonprofit governance (for both MIAMI REALTORS® and its subsidiaries), alternative dispute resolution (arbitrations, ombud program, mediations, and ethics cases), government affairs, public policy, labor and employment issues, and strategic legal decision-making. The practicum allows a limited number of students (up to five) to be placed with the Legal Department at MIAMI REALTORS®, Inc., the largest local REALTOR® association in the United States with 58,000 members, and second largest in the world. The course is for 3 credits and is graded. The course meets weekly for two hours with the Chief Legal Counsel of MIAMI REALTORS® (and guest speakers) for subject matter training and professional development. Students are required to attend other meetings for credit (e.g., board meetings, vendor meetings, contract negotiations). Course Delivery: In-person at MIAMI REALTORS®' Global HQ (1800 Oakwood Drive, Miami, FL 33166)
 

Website:
https://www.law.miami.edu/academics/clinics/health-rights-clinic 
Course Concentrations:
Health Law (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

The healthcare services landscape is shifting. Hospitals, which were the foundation of American healthcare, are reconfiguring their organizations and services. Satellite offices, acute care locations, and even pharmacies are offering more services to increasingly stratified patient consumers. This interdisciplinary course offers graduate students from across the University the opportunity to explore the complexity of health care services and the multiple perspectives from which we engage, build, and work in healthcare settings.

Participating Schools/Departments
Organized, coordinated and sponsored by the Law School, the course is taught by University of Miami professors from the College of Arts and Sciences, Miami Herbert Business School, Miller School of Medicine, School of Architecture, School of Law, and the School of Nursing and Health Studies. Topics include Patient Protection and the Affordable Care Act, The Economic, Social and Built Environment of Health Care, Achieving the Triple Aim of Healthcare (Access, Quality and Low Cost), Nursing in the 21st Century, Health Care and Technology, Ethics, AI and Access to Healthcare, Health Care Services in Global and Local Settings, and Health Risks and Access to Health Care Services in Different Occupations.

Schedule
Over the course of the semester, students are required to attend five full day Saturday classes: The first class on Saturday January 24, three (of five possible) additional Saturday classes (Jan. 31, Feb. 07, Feb. 14, Feb. 21, Feb. 28); and the final class on Saturday March 21.

Time and Location
9:00 am to 3:30 pm, Saturdays as indicated below in the Law Library, Faculty Meeting Room, 4th floor for all sessions with breakfast and lunch provided.
Students with a parking tag for any UM lot, will be able to park in any Coral Gables campus lot (including purple) on Saturdays. Students who do not have a UM parking tag and need to park on campus may contact the Course Coordinator for assistance.
 
Course Concentrations:
Health Law (Area of Focus) More information

The Human Rights Clinic (HRC) works for the promotion of social and economic justice globally and in the United States. Students gain firsthand experience in cutting-edge human rights litigation and advocacy at the local, national, regional, and international levels. This includes engaging with the Inter-American Court and Commission on Human Rights, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the European Court of Human Rights, the United Nations, and other tribunals. Focus areas include gender and racial justice, immigrant and Indigenous women’s rights, and the rights to housing, health, and food. HRC draws on international human rights laws and norms, along with domestic law and policy. It engages in multidimensional advocacy strategies, which include documentation and report-writing, litigation, media engagement, work with legislative and administrative bodies, campaigning, community organizing, and global networking to develop practical solutions and promote accountability on the part of state and non-state actors. In the classroom, students have the opportunity to bridge theory and practice. They critically engage with human rights law and contemporary social problems while sharpening key lawyering skills. Students examine the evolution and tools of the human rights movement, as well as ethical challenges and critiques. Students must apply to enroll in HRC (please see
https://www.law.miami.edu/academics/clinics/human-rights-clinic-requirements 
Course Concentrations:
Health Law (Area of Focus) More information

Established in 1966, ICSID is the only multilateral institution dedicated to the resolution of international investment disputes. Since registering its first case in 1972, the vast majority—over 70 percent—of international investment disputes have been administered by ICSID. This course presents unique insight into ICSID practices and procedure, covering every aspect of an ICSID proceeding from the filing of a request for arbitration to post-award remedies and enforcement. The course also focuses on the foundational topic of ICSID Jurisdiction and prominent topics in the field of investor-State dispute settlement, such as the transparency of cases, the participation of non-disputing parties, and the time and cost of proceedings. Students should have had some exposure to investor-State or international arbitration prior to registering for this course.
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information

Please see link below.
http://www.law.miami.edu/clinics/?op=0 

This course exposes students to the recent literature on immigration and immigrant and ethnic minorities in order to explore the linkages through which "immigrants" become "ethnics" and the contrasting social and economic results of the process. In keeping with a focus on public policy, we will examine the ways in which state action affects the adaptation process of immigrant groups and the opportunities for economic mobility and social integration of racial and ethnic minorities. The timing of the seminar this semester coincides with a confrontation of historical proportions concerning future immigration policy in the United States. Through readings and class discussions, we will examine what lies behind public declarations and legislative proposals of advocates and opponents of continuing immigration and of immigration reform. The present crisis in the U.S. Southern border due to massive arrival of asylum-seekers will be analyzed and alternative policies to deal with the situation will be discussed.
 
Course Concentrations:
Immigration, Asylum, and Citizenship Law Area of Focus (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

In this course students study the income taxation of estates, trusts, and their beneficiaries; distributable net income; distribution deductions for simple trusts, complex trusts and estates; distributions in kind; the planning of funding marital trusts; post-mortem estate planning and the throwback rules; taxation of trusts for minors; charitable and foreign trusts; assignment of income; income in respect of a decedent; the grantor trust rules; and income tax basis problems. Federal Income Tax is a prerequisite for this course.
 

This course focusses on the analysis and interpretation of the typical provisions of bilateral tax treaties. It does so on the basis of the OECD and UN Model Tax Conventions and in the light of the U.S. Model Income Tax Convention. The course discusses common planning methods utilizing tax treaties, as well as common anti-abuse rules found in these treaties.
 

Please visit: www.law.miami.edu/academics/clinics/innocence-clinic
Please visit: www.law.miami.edu/academics/clinics/innocence-clinic 

This course is intended to familiarize students with the basic elements of various types of insurance and the regulation of insurance under state and federal law. Although we will look at property, life, and automobile insurance, particular attention will be focused on liability insurance and its impact on civil litigation practice. Concepts of welfare economics will be developed and used to understand insurance contracts and the behavior of insurance institutions.
 
Course Concentrations:
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Health Law (Area of Focus) More information

This course will focus on the United States’ enforcement of its anti-corruption laws and its use of sanctions to combat foreign corruption and bribery committed by domestic and foreign parties. Because many U.S. corruption cases are resolved without trial, this course will focus on critical, unresolved issues, such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act’s (“FCPA”) definitions of a foreign “instrumentality” and “foreign official,” as well as the scope of U.S. extra-territorial jurisdiction. The course will also compare the U.S.’s anti-corruption laws to other anti-corruption laws and treaties. We will focus on recent high-profile corruption cases and recent changes in FCPA enforcement and will explore the United States’ increased use of sanctions against foreign parties to combat corruption and other white-collar crime. Finally, we will evaluate critical issues that arise from the growing trend in trans-national investigations and prosecutions, including extradition issues that arise in white-collar prosecutions, and Interpol implications.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Area of Focus) More information
Social Justice & Public Interest (Concentration) More information

The New York Convention of 1958 on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards provides for the international enforcement of arbitral awards and arbitration agreements. Considered as the most successful international convention in international private law, the Convention now has [AJ] 172 Contracting States and more than 2,500 court decisions interpreting and applying the Convention (as of November [AJ] 2023). The course will analyze and compare the most important ones of those decisions. It will offer a unique insight in treaty design, statutory enactments, varying court approaches, and the practice of international arbitration. The course materials will be made available at www.newyorkconvention.org.
www.newyorkconvention.org 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information

This course covers various issues related to international arbitration in Latin America and the Caribbean. The course will also examine legal frameworks and practicalities of conducting commercial arbitration proceedings in Latin America, the current developments of handling disputes, and the application of the New York Convention in Latin America.
 
Course Concentrations:
Litigation & Dispute Resolution (Concentration) More information

Corporate insolvency today is rarely contained within a single nation’s bankruptcy jurisdiction. Most large corporations have assets and operations in multiple countries and are often part of a “corporate group” that includes affiliated entities operating in numerous countries, many of which will file their own insolvency proceedings in their countries of incorporation. In these instances, the bankruptcy practitioner needs to know something about foreign insolvency laws as well as the U.S. laws that facilitate coordination among the U.S. and foreign bankruptcy courts. The course consists of two modules, Comparative Insolvency Law and Managing Cross-Border Cases. The first module covers the substance question: what are the insolvency laws like in other major international business centers. The second covers the procedural question: how do bankruptcy laws facilitate cross-border coordination. The course is taught in conjunction with other participating law schools. There is a live component to the class, led by Professor Patricia Redmond, but the majority of the lectures are delivered through remote synchronous video, with guest lecturers who are leading professors, attorneys, judges, and policymakers from around the world. Leading U.S. insolvency experts act as commentators to keep the discussions lively and highlight important points. Because the sessions will be broadcast live to all participating law schools, students at each school are able to ask questions in real time and have them answered immediately by the guest lecturer. In addition, Professor Redmond can answer questions during the lectures and delve more deeply into important issues during the time reserved for local discussion following the lectures.
 
Course Concentrations:
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information

This is a survey course concerned with the problems likely to be encountered when firms engage in transnational business transactions. The areas covered are: (i) sale of goods and services, (ii) establishment and management of agencies, distributorships and other strategic alliances in foreign markets, (iii) protecting and licensing intellectual property rights, (iv) the conduct of direct foreign investments, including the protection of property from expropriation and nationalization, (v) compliance with foreign exchange regulations, and competition policies especially antitrust, and with labor and environmental laws. The course also introduces the student to selective problems in transnational litigation, including suits against foreign sovereigns, service of documents abroad, discovery of evidence located abroad, the recognition of foreign judgments and the enforcement of international arbitration agreements and awards. In addition to treaties and other sources of international law, including the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements and NAFTA. We will take a comparative approach to the subject, focusing on differences in contract formation, formalities and interpretation between the civil and common law traditions.
 
Course Concentrations:
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Area of Focus) More information
Business Compliance and Sustainability (Concentration) More information
The Business of Innovation, Law and Technology: BILT (Concentration) More information
Transactional Law (Area of Focus) More information
Transactional Law (Concentration) More information