Instruction
This is a class requirement; there are three potential outcomes: a ‘good’ product that that serves as a ‘pass’; a very good product that can influence the class grade higher; and a lesser product that can bring your grade down.
I’d like you to explore areas of interest on your own and identify possible opportunities, but here are some ideas I’ve floated previously.
1) Pick one of the following movies (My Cousin Vinny; 12 Angry Men; Anatomy of a Murder; A Civil Action; The Rainmaker; any other relevant movie that I approve), watch it and prepare a summary, an explanation of how it’s relevant to a topic we’ve discussed in class, and provide input on something new you learned about the law or the practice of law.
2) In 1994, a woman was burned when her McDonald’s coffee spilled in her car. She brought suit against McDonald’s. Find the opinion (legal ruling or relevant articles about it), discuss the relevant facts, explain the legal issues and discuss the ultimate resolution of the matter.
3) In 2015, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling in the matter of EEOC v. Freeman regarding the use of pre-employment criminal background checks. Find the opinion (legal ruling or relevant articles about it), discuss the relevant facts, explain the legal issues and discuss the ultimate resolution of the matter.
4) The Department of Labor has issued new regulations that were originally scheduled to effect December 1, 2016 (but have since been suspended pending further judicial appeals), regarding various exemptions to the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Those new regulations focus primarily on the ‘salary’ basis for the FLSA’s ‘white collar’ exemptions. Research and discuss the nature of the ‘white collar’ exemptions to the FLSA, the various tests that are applied in determining if a worker is ‘exempt’, the details of the latest regulation, and any information you can find on how employers are responding and taking action with their employees.