TRUSTS AND WILLS
Syllabus
Peter Tiersma
Burns 424 (213-736-1162)
peter.tiersma@lls.edu
Office Hours: Wed. 4-5 p.m.; Thurs. 4-5 p.m., or by appointment.
Website: www.tiersma.com (click on "courses")
Participation:
You are all expected to be prepared to participate in class.
Points for class participation will be assigned as follows.
If you
are well prepared when called on and exhibit good understanding of the
material, you will get two points. If you seem to have read
the case and your participation is otherwise satisfactory, you will
get one point. If you pass or attempt to answer but have no
real knowledge of the case (i.e., you seem to be "winging it"), you get
no points. If you are absent when I call on you,
you will also lose one point. Additional absences will lead to loss of
an additional point, up to a maximum of minus 3.
I reserve the right to give an extra point to any students who, without
being called on, contribute interesting, original, or thoughtful
comments or questions. These extra points will be relatively rare,
however.
Exam:
The exam date is set by the registrar. No earlier or
later exams will be administered unless it is absolutely required by
the rules of the law school (consult the student handbook). Please make
sure that all vacations, trips, weddings, jobs, and so forth begin
after the exam period.
The exam will be part multiple choice and part
essay. Sample questions and answers can be found on the course
website.
Email:
You can email questions to me. Questions and answers may
be posted on my website for the benefit of other students.
Laptop/internet use during class:
Use of laptops during class for any purpose besides
notetaking (such as game-playing, emailing, surfing the net, etc.) is
distracting not just for you, but your classmates. Such use is
restricted to breaks.
Text:
Dukeminier et al., Wills, Trusts and Estates (Seventh Edition).
Readings:
Readings will be announced in class and are posted on the website.