Homework Assignment 1, due 2/16

Read the decision in the case, Riggs v. Palmer. In the space of about one page, double spaced, answer the following questions (please remember to number your answers 1 and 2).Ā 

  1. What were two main arguments given for the the majority opinion (the ā€œOpinion of the Courtā€ by Earl)?Ā 
  2. What was the main reason for the minority dissent (section entitled, ā€œGRAY, J.Ā  (dissenting)ā€)? Explain it. (If more than one, pick the one you think is most compelling).

Please remember to use your own words, and to use quotation marks if you find it necessary to quote from the case.Ā 

Upload your assignment to turnitin.com before class (i.e. before 6pm on 2/16). (You can find our Class ID and password for turnitin.com in Blackboard).

Welcome!

Dear Students,Ā 

Greetings from virtual space! Iā€™m Professor MacDougall, your professor for Philosophy of Law (PHIL3211). I hate that we have to meet like thisā€”do you? Perhaps we can all agree that it is different and interesting and convenient. Iā€™d still much rather be in a real classroom with real faces.Ā 

There are three things that I want you to know before our first day of class.Ā 

1. This will be a (mostly) synchronous class. That means you will need to plan on being logged in to Zoom between 6-8:30pm on class days. The class will not be recorded for several reasons, including CUNY policy. There may be some class periods where we have a pre-recorded lecture, or some other activity, that makes the period essentially asynchronous. I will let you know ahead of time about these. Our first class will take place Tuesday, February 2, at 6pm. I will call roll during the class. The Zoom invitation can be found in Blackboard.Ā 

2. Most of our written interactions, and all class updates and materials, are available on our OpenLab site. Please join our OpenLab section as soon as possible. You will be required to join in order to participate in online discussions. You can also see the schedule and assignments there.

3. This class is an Open Educational Resource (OER) course. That means there is no textbook, and all readings are freely available online. This saves you money and means you can store all our readings on your hard drive, indefinitely! You can find links to class readings on the OpenLab Schedule page.

Let me know if you have any questions. Iā€™m looking forward to meeting you.

Dr. MacDougall