The Legislative Process (Schwartz)

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Course Number
LAW 3370
Category
,
Course Description

Objective of the course:

Most law in Manitoba is made by the Legislatures, not the courts. The objective of the course is to develop an appreciation of how bills and regulations and other legislative instruments are created. This understanding is aimed to make students both more informed citizens and to equip them as practising lawyers to advocate effectively for a client when the best path to success is to secure a favourable enactment rather than adjudicative decision.

Attendance: MANDATORY. More than two classes missed without a reasonable excuse means an automatic ceiling of D on the final grade.

Topics to be covered:

  1. Why procedure matters.
  2. The law of the legislative assembly and the constitutional framework.
  3. Small p parliamentary procedure -Roberts Rules of Order-mock faculty council meeting.
  4. Large P parliamentary procedure -mock House of Commons meeting.
  5. Voting system reform -Counting Canadians.
  6. Procedural aspects of implementing and exercising Indigenous Rights of Self Government.
Teaching Method

First part of the course is lecture and class discussions, and probably a Mock Roberts of orders meeting and a mock House of Commons or cabinet meeting.

Assessment

100% on term paper, including quality of presentation; class participation throughout can raise a grade by up to one notch (e.g., B to B+). Papers are generally an analysis of a bill passed in the last session of the legislative assembly, but papers on parliamentary or voting system reform are sometimes permitted.

Course Materials

UMLearn
Roberts Rules of Order.

Instructor

Dr. Bryan Schwartz