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 Course Descriptions
| Conference Title: Legal Issues in the Information Age |
| Description: This course includes an introduction to information age, impact on privacy rights, impact on intellectual property, electronic evidence, criminal law applications and social networking. This course will not only explore and discuss the relevant rules of evidence, but would discuss dozens of courtroom scenarios that involve accident reports, environmental reports, driving records, autopsy reports, birth certificates, breathalyzer logs, death certificates, DNA results, e-mail, investigation reports, polygraphs, maps, medical records, traffic tickets, tax returns, business records, personal documents, diaries, letters, garbage, published writings and legal documents. |
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| Conference Title: Judicial Logic & Reasoning |
| Description: This seminar offers guidance in good reasoning, in constructing and evaluating deductive and inductive arguments in accordance with general principles of logic. Participants will review basic concepts of logic, master the Venn-diagram test for validity, practice identifying common valid and invalid argument forms, practice recognizing common fallacies in legal and non-legal literature, and practice evaluating analogical and other inductive arguments. Integrated with the logic review is an introduction to ethical theory, culminating in a discussion of whether judicial reasoning is ever "moral reasoning". This seminar is designed for persons who have never studied logic, those seeking review of some basic technique of logic, and those judges who routinely write opinions. |
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| Conference Title: Advanced Evidence |
| Description: This course is designed to look at evidence from the perspective of the judge. The judge will identify the evolution of evidence and define the types of evidence. The judge will be able to identify best evidence and rule on objections using case studies. They will also identify exceptions to the hearsay rule and recognize components of the competency and relevancy objections and rule on them using case studies. They will be able to recognize components of authentication and privilege and rule on them using case studies. Judges will identify types of nonverbal communication and determine the nonverbals' influence on evidence in the courtroom. Judges will examine both verbal and nonverbal cues given by witnesses and will review the definition of judicial demeanor and determine their individual "styles" of demeanor. |
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| Conference Title: Fact Finding Process |
| Description: This seminar deals with the judicial fact finding process. Areas that will be explored include listening, communicating, pretrial preparation, information gathering and clarity, and judicial personality profiles. It will also cover obstacles in the fact finding process, including bias, stress, prejudice, and witness credibility. This seminar is aimed toward assisting judges to improve their on the bench decisions. |
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Conference Title: Realities of Judging
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| Description: This seminar examines examine some of the problem areas that judges may confront. The participants examine political issues that may arise while in office. Participants then focus upon problems dealing with listening and communication. An examination of bias gives each judge the opportunity to examine himself or herself in an effort to recognize and eliminate bias. Every judge must deal with stress and burnout. Participants will have a chance to discuss these problems and to select appropriate measures to deal effectively with them. The seminar concludes with in depth discussions of contempt and ethics. Ample opportunity to discuss other problem areas is provided. |
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| Conference Title: Evidence |
| Description: This course is designed to look at evidence from the perspective of the judge. The judge will identify the evolution of evidence and define the types of evidence. The judge will be able to identify best evidence and rule on objections using case studies. They will also identify exceptions to the hearsay rule and recognize components of the competency and relevancy objections and rule on them using case studies. They will be able to recognize components of authentication and privilege and rule on them using case studies. Judges will identify types of nonverbal communication and determine the nonverbals' influence on evidence in the courtroom. Judges will examine both verbal and nonverbal cues given by witnesses and will review the definition of judicial demeanor and determine their individual "styles" of demeanor. |
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