YOUR INSTRUCTOR
see information on your instructor including website, office hours, phone no. etc. http://lamission.edu/law/lawfaculty.htm


COURSE DESCRIPTION

Welcome to the Law 19 - Property & Creditor Rights. Law 19 is a study of the law of property including community property, joint tenancy, leases, deeds, contracts, escrows, deeds of trust, a study of the system of recording and search of public documents, a study of bankruptcy laws and forms and evictions (unlawful detainer actions).Law 19 introduces the student to the nature of property and personalty, acquiring and owning property, real property, and the landlord-tenant relationship.

The student will prepare all of the forms related to an eviction (unlawful detainer) and a simple Chapter 7 ("liquidation") bankruptcy, along with reviewing the documentation for transfers of real property and related escrow documents, and will also prepare a UCC-1 Financing Statement. The student will also study secured transactions, collateral, purchase money secured interests, liens, attachment, garnishment, and other creditor's remedies.

This course is designed to give the student familiarity with the substantive law of property and creditors rights. A good capsule summary of property law is found at Emanuel Summaries (Property). You will will learn to "think critically" in law, and in the area of property law.. You will learn how to prepare a simple, liquidation or Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, eviction or unlawful detainer papers for both landlord and tenant, along with transfer escrow documents and deeds in the purchase/sale of real property. 


COURSE TEXT       

West's Business Law by Clarkson, Miller, Jentz, and Cross - 10th Edition. Students can obtain the textbook from our College bookstore or online - see http://lamission.edu/law/textbooks . 


COURSE OBJECTIVES

1. The student will learn substantive personal and real property law, including secured transactions, bankruptcy, bailments,  eviction (unlawful detainer), and real property escrow documentation, and other laws relating to real and pesonal property.

2.  The student will learn an overview of law and the legal system, , including the courts, the court system, how to read, understand and brief court cases, how to read, and understand California and Federal Codes, and a general overview of substantive laws which a paralegal must be familiar with to do their job properly.

3. The student will learn to "think critically" in law, This will be accomplished through the multiple-choice quizzes, postings to hypothetical legal questions in a threaded discussion format and written assignments. The assignments require the student to read and brief court cases, anaylyze code sections, prepare a pleading, and other relevant legal tasks related to the subject materials.

4. The student will learn how to do legal research in general, how to phrase a legal question or issue, and how to search for the correct "legal" answer.

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

6. 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, including the preparation of bankruptcy schedules, and a landlord-tenant eviction case. The student should work off of the due dates for the class. 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).

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://lamission.edu/law/lawfaculty.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 is offered through a course management system. To find the class check the Mission online portal at http://lamission.edu/online .  

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 http://duedates.pbwiki.com 

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") above. Students are responsible for the most recent
updated version of this syllabus.

updated: 3-07-07