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Upper Division Curriculum

Select from a wide variety of courses—an excellent opportunity to explore areas that interest you.

Required and Recommended Courses

It is important to plan in advance, as course availability can change from year to year.

In addition to the requirements below, students must also complete 11 units of EXP coursework and complete a Scholarly Writing Requirement.  Please review Academic Policy section 2.01 for additional information.

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Required Courses for Graduation

  • Constitutional Law I (3 units)

  • Criminal Procedure I (3 units)

  • Evidence (4 units)

  • Legal Scholarship Training Seminar (0 units)

  • Professional Responsibility (3 units)

  • Torts II (3 units)

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Recommended Courses

  • Business Organizations (4 units)
  • Community Property (3 units)
  • Constitutional Law II (3 units)
  • Remedies (3 units)
  • Trusts & Estates (3 units)
Students in auditorium class with professor writing on white board

California Western offers more than 80 elective courses in nine different legal categories. 


Electives

The following are electives listed by general category. In some cases, the same elective may fall under more than one category, when relevant. Please remember that not all elective courses are offered every year.

Advocacy and Dispute Resolution

  • Advanced Criminal Defense 
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • Advanced Negotiation
  • Advanced Prosecution Function
  • California Innocence Project I and II
  • Mediation for Lawyers 
  • Trial Practice 

Constitutional Law and Civil Rights

  • Administrative Law
  • Constitutional Law II
  • Current Issues in Constitutional Law
  • Family Law
  • Wrongful Convictions

Corporate and Business Law

  • Advanced Negotiation
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • Bankruptcy
  • Business Organizations (Corporations)
  • Consumer Law
  • Corporate Finance
  • Deal Litigation
  • Entrepreneurship Law and Ethics
  • Employee Benefit Law
  • Employment Discrimination
  • Employment Law
  • Federal Income Tax
  • Internet & Social Media Law
  • Labor Law
  • Law and Economics
  • Legal Drafting
  • Licensing
  • Mediation
  • Patent Law
  • Patent Preparation and Prosecution
  • Privacy Law
  • Remedies
  • Sales
  • Secured Transactions
  • Securities Regulation
  • Trademark Law
  • White Collar Crime

Entertainment and Sports Law

  • Advanced Negotiation
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • Copyright Law
  • Contract Drafting
  • Entertainment Law
  • Labor Law
  • Legal Drafting
  • Mediation for Lawyers
  • Motion Picture Contract Drafting
  • Sports Law
  • Trademark Law

Family Law

  • Children and the Law
  • Child Welfare Law & Policy
  • Community Property
  • Domestic Violence Seminar
  • Family Law
  • Juvenile Justice
  • Trusts and Estates
  • Women and Immigration Law

Health Law

  • Bioethics Seminar
  • Biotechnology Seminar
  • FDA Law
  • Food Law
  • Health Law and Policy
  • Marijuana and the Law
  • Medical Malpractice Litigation
  • Mental Health Law

International and Comparative Law 

  • Asylum and Refugee Law
  • Comparative Law
  • Federal Crimes
  • Human Rights Law
  • Immigration Law
  • International and Foreign Legal Research
  • International Business Transactions
  • International Law
  • Women and Immigration Law

Real Estate Law

  • Administrative Law
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • Commercial Real Estate Transactions
  • Community Property
  • Contract Drafting
  • Estate and Gift Tax
  • Land Use Regulation
  • Legal Drafting
  • Mediation for Lawyers
  • Negotiation
  • Secured Transactions
  • Trusts and Estates

Special Interest Electives

  • Advanced Legal Research
  • Art Law
  • California Sentencing Seminar
  • Criminal Law Theory: Selected Topics
  • Forensic Evidence
  • Gender, Power, Law, and Leadership
  • Insurance Law and Litigation 
  • Jurisprudence: Selected Topics
  • Law and Ethics of Big Data
  • Law & Lawyers in the Pandemic
  • Law Office Technology
  • Prison Law