updated: 2/23/05

YOUR INSTRUCTOR
see information on your instructor including website, phone no. etc. http://profj.us/faculty.htm         

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Catalog: Law 13 is a study of the fundamental principles of the law of wills, and trusts, including simple will and trust forms; an examination of the organization and jurisdiction of the California Probate Court, and an overview of estate administration.

Law 13 introduces the student to wills, trusts, living wills, and living trusts, Advanced Health Care Directives, Durable Power of Attorneys, Guardianships, Conservatorships, Emancipation, Simplified Probate Procedures, Life Insurance Trusts.

The student will prepare a simple will, a simple trust, a living will, and a living trust, and will prepare the necessary transfer documents, and deeds to complete the living trust.

COURSE TEXT

No Course Text - materials for class are posted on the webpage for the class. - 1     2    3    


COURSE OBJECTIVES

1. The student will learn the substantive law of wills and trusts.

2. The student will learn to "think critically" in law, and in the area of wills and trusts. This will be accomplished through the multiple-choice quizzes, the postings to the "threaded discussions", and the assignments. The assignments require the student to prepare various types of legal documents relating to wills ands trusts., including a California Statutory Will, a Complex Will, and a Living Trust with a pour-over will.

3. The student will learn how to do legal research in the area of Wills and Trusts, and the class will cover some of the most recent decisions in the area of Wills and Trusts.

4. The student will improve their writing skills and learn basic skills in legal drafting and writing.

5. The student will improve their study skills and will improve how they study law.

GRADING & EVALUATION

The class will be composed of quizzes, postings to an "electronic bulletin board" - threaded discussions, and written projects. The student should work off of the "classroom schedule under Etudes". The deadlines are clearly posted on the schedule. Quizzes will be posted and students are expected to fill in their answers to the multiple choice questions during a deadline period. After the time period has expired, the quiz link will no longer be available, and the student will NOT be allowed to take the quiz (certain exceptions might be made if the student emails his/her online instructor regarding exceptional family circumstances or situtations - not just "not enough time", or "late", and the instructor will decide and determine each request on the facts of the circumstances).

Grades will be posted on the internet using microsoft excel. There will be a column for each quiz, project, and posting. Grades will be posted for each student under a unique student identification number in order to preserve confidentiality.

The "letter grade" scale is as follows.

A =  90-100 percent of total points
B =  80-89
C =  70-79
D =  60-69
F =  Below 60

Office Hours: see Faculty page at http://profj.us/faculty.htm - Office Hours, Mon. - Friday 9-5 pm at the Office Telephone number of each Faculty member, or upon special appointment - email the faculty member for your appointment date and time.

Course Structure: This course will be offered under the new educational courseware adopted by the Los Angeles Community College District, ETUDES. Note: Please be aware that the instructor has access to certain information and materials that students do not. For example, grading, drop box and monitoring of student online course activities.

LATE ASSIGNMENTS: ASSIGNMENTS SUBMITTED LATE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED UNLESS PRIOR APPROVAL IS REQUESTED AND GRANTED BY THE INSTRUCTOR.

EXTRA CREDIT: Since the law is in constant change, along with the advent of the Internet, issues may arise that are timely and germane to our class. Therefore, opportunities may arise during the term that allow for extra credit, although no extra credit is presently offered.

INCOMPLETE: If you require a grade of "incomplete," you must advise me as soon as possible and discuss the terms of its removal.

ACADEMIC HONESTY: Academic honesty is highly valued at Mission College, just as it is at all colleges and universities. A student must always submit work that represents his or her original words or ideas. If any words or ideas are used that do not represent the student's original words or ideas, the student must cite all relevant sources. The student should also make it clear to what extent such sources were used. Words or ideas that require citations include, but are not limited to, all hard copy or electronic publications, whether copyrighted or not, and all verbal or visual communications when the content of such communications clearly originates from an identifiable source. All submissions to any public meeting or private mailbox fall within the scope of words and ideas that require citations if used by someone other than the original author.

Course Assignments: see links at Etudes under "classroom".

Course Evaluation:

The final grade will be determined by: averaging quizzes, discussion questions and written assignments, each assigned 100 or more points.

Required Resources (for internet/online work)

System requirements: IBM or compatible (486/33 CPU minimum) with Windows or Mac or compatible with 6.05 operating system or higher, 8 megs of RAM, 20 megs free hard disc space, modem with a 9600 baud rate minimum.

* This syllabus is subject to change. Please note revision dates ("updated") . Students are responsible for the most recent
updated version of this syllabus.