Administrative Law —Spring 2010
PROFESSOR
Eric M. Fink
Telephone: 336.279.9334
Email: ude.nole|knife#ude.nole|knife
Office: A213
Office Hours: Tuesday & Thursday, 10:30 AM – Noon or by appointment
CLASS MEETINGS
Room 204
Tuesdays & Thursdays from 3:00 – 4:30 PM
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course will acquaint students with the role of administrative agencies in law-making and adjudication. Topics to be covered include the relationship between administrative agencies and the legislative and executive branches of government; administrative rulemaking; administrative adjudication and enforcement; and judicial review of administrative agency actions.
COURSE MATERIAL
Casebook
Michael Asimow & Ronald M. Lewin, State & Federal Administrative Law (3d ed. West 2008)
Optional Text
Cornelius M. Kerwin, Rulemaking: How Government Agencies Write Law and Make Policy (CQ Press 2003)
Course Website
The course website (http://elon-adminlaw.wikidot.com/) contains a schedule of reading assignments, supplemental readings, practice problems and sample exam questions, and other pertinent material. There is also a forum where students may post questions or comments about the assigned reading and class discussion, or other matters related to the course (e.g. news stories or court decisions pertaining to administrative law). Participation in the course forum is optional, but may contribute to the class participation component of your final grade. The course forum is a virtual extension of the classroom, and the same norms of mutually respectful behavior and civil discourse apply.
COURSE POLICIES
Class Attendance, Preparation, and Participation
I expect you to attend class regularly, complete all reading as assigned, and contribute to class discussion. Excessive absences or persistent lack of preparation may result in a reduction of your final grade.
You may earn a bonus on your final grade—up to .25 points on the Elon Law grading scale—for exceptional contributions to class discussion. Contributions to the online course forum may count for this purpose. In deciding whether to award a participation bonus, I will consider the quality, not the quantity, of your contributions.
Computers and Other Electronic Devices
I encourage you to bring a computer to class, and to make use of relevant online resources in class. You may use your computer in class to access course materials, take notes, or other course-related purposes. I expect you to refrain from using computers or other electronic devices during class for non-course-related purposes (including, but not limited to, email, instant messages, or other communication; web browsing; and games). Non-course-related use of computers or other electronic devices during class may result in a reduction of your final grade, and may also violate the Elon Law School Honor Code.
Examinations and Grading
Your final grade will be based on a final examination (75%) and a group project (25%). Final grades are subject to a class participation bonus or reduction as described above.
The group project, for which you will be assigned into teams of lawyers representing various interest groups, will entail drafting proposed federal regulations, engaging in the notice & comment process, and preparing a request under the Freedom of Information Act.
Students who have received advance approval to satisfy the Elon Law School upper-level writing requirement in conjunction with the course will submit the upper-level paper in lieu of the final exam, and must also participate in and complete the group project.
COURSE OUTLINE
A. The Administrative State
1. Introduction
- Casebook, Chapter 1
2. Socio-Legal Perspectives (Optional reading)
- Max Weber, “Bureaucracy” in Economy & Society, part III, chap. 6
- Kerwin, Chapter 1
- Edward O. Laumann & David Knocke, The Organizational State: Social Choice in National Policy Domains (Univ. of Wisc. Press 1987)
- Reuel E. Schiller, The Administrative State, Front and Center: Studying Law and Administration in Postwar America, Law & History Review 26.2 (2008)
- Gary Lawson, The Rise and Rise of the Administrative State, 107 Harvard Law Review 1231 (1994)
- Richard Epstein, “Is the Administrative State Consistent with the Rule of Law?”, lecture delivered at University of Chicago (January 29, 2008) (video)
B. Agency Adjudication & Rulemaking
1. Administrative Due Process
- Casebook, Chapter 2
2. Agency Adjudicative Process
- Casebook, Chapters 3 & 4
3. Agency Rulemaking
- Casebook Chapter 5
C. Limits on Administrative Delegation
1. Delegation of Legislative Power
- Casebook, Chapter 7, § 7.2
2. Delegation of Adjudicative Power
- Casebook, Chapter 7, § 7.3
D. Access to Agency Records & Decision-Making
1. Federal Law: Freedom of Information Act
- Casebook, Chapter 8, § 8.1
2. State Open Government Laws
- N.C. Public Records Act, NCGS Chap. 132
- N.C. Open Meetings Act, NCGS Chap. 143, Art. 33C
- Attorney General & N.C. Press Assn. Guide to Open Government and Public Records
E. Judicial Review of Agency Action
1. Scope of Review
- Casebook, Chapter 9
2. Procedural Issues
- Casebook, Chapter 11
