Participants' Responsibilities
and Expectations
Welcome to the Cyberspace Law Seminar
Attendance,
Exams and Grades
Coordinates and
Assistant
Defining a "Seminar" -- and Standards
for Grading Papers
Internet Overview
Ombudsperson
Personal Bio Assignment
Seminar as Two Courses
Understanding the Internet
Web
Publication, Internet and E-mail Requirements
Hopefully your experience with this seminar -- including the research and writing on a topic of your choice that interests you -- will be fun as well as instructive and personally satisfying.
The information and standards which follow are kind of common sense. Do you take your legal education seriously? Are you in the habit of preparing before class? Fairly compulsive about attending seminar sessions? Make every effort to meet deadlines for submission of papers? Take pride in the quality of your work? If so, you will find little in what follows that you are not already doing.
There are, however, some details regarding the seminar you will need to know -- especially those involving the "Writing Assignments."
Every professor believes that his/her course is one of the most important. So you can discount a little what I am about to say.
But I really do think there is nothing more (a) timely, (b) fun, (c) rapidly changing, and (d) practical for your legal career -- that is, the next 50 years, as distinguished from my legal career during the past 50 years -- than what we're about to do together.
The Internet embodies two of the most significant changes going on today: (a) telecommunications innovations, convergence, networking and expansion, and (b) the resulting globalization of everything.
The Internet is the fastest growing anything in human history -- and there's nobody in charge. During the past decade most major global business firms have created an Internet presence. Ironically, it is the platform for both (a) a rapidly expanding multi-billion-dollar commerce, and the ever-growing political power of global corporations, and (b) democratization movements empowering individual citizens and grassroots movements.
As for the legal profession, the Internet (a) impacts on the practice of law, including the legal profession's increasing globalization, (b) is a means of access to collections of legal materials, and (c) is the source of whole new bodies of legal issues, conflicts, confusion and cases.
Historically, legislators, judges and lawyers have not focused on the extent to which "the law" is tethered to a geographical "place." It was so taken for granted that no one even thought about it. The Iowa legislature, Iowa courts, or lawyers licensed to practice in Iowa, all accepted without reflection that, of course, their authority stopped at the Mississippi or Missouri Rivers' edge. Virtually every jurisdiction and area of the law made similar, unspoken, geographical assumptions.
Now we have a "new world disorder" called "cyberspace" with neither latitude nor longitude on Planet Earth. Students' CLS02 seminar papers (which will be posted to the Web) will come as quickly to computer screens in Bangkok as in Boston, they are as "local" to Warsaw as to Washington, D.C. (And they are, in fact, getting "hits" from all around the world; as of the beginning of this semester some 113 countries.)
To the extent there is going to be a "law of cyberspace," it requires the rethinking of every area of our centuries-old, geographically-tethered legal system.
The earlier in your career you can experience the "de-mystification" of the Internet -- what it is and how you can use it, the kinds of legal issues it raises, and the kinds of solutions lawyers can offer -- the better advantaged you will be in dealing with the world you'll face in this 21st Century.
My dictionary defines "seminar" as "a group of advanced students studying under a professor with each doing original research and all exchanging results through reports and discussions."
It's not bad as definitions go.
Finally, you will be "exchanging results through reports
and discussions": preparing individual seminar papers, which will be (1)
shared, in some form, with your colleagues, (2) presented orally, (3) revised/rewritten,
proof read, polished, and (4) "published"
on the Web.
Because a "seminar" at this law school is, in effect, two courses -- with, indeed, three sources of credits. (1) One course consists of readings, seminar discussion, possible minor assignments, quizzes and a final. On the assumption you successfully complete the seminar it is worth two academic credits. (2) A second consists of a writing requirement. You must write no less than one 20-page paper of text -- plus the additional pages of endnotes. That paper entitles you to (a) one additional academic credit, and (b) one writing credit. (3) You may write more. If you choose to write a (a) 40-page paper (or an additional 20-page paper), that would entitle you to two additional academic credits (in other words, one more than what you'd get for a 20-page paper, a total of four for the entire undertaking). Similarly, (b) one writing credit is awarded for each 20 pages successfully completed (or two for a 40-page paper). [Please note in this connection that you are not required to write precisely 20 pages and no more. While 19-1/2 pages doesn't meet the requirement, 22 pages does -- and it also suggests to the reader that the author was really into the subject, rather than just doing an "assignment" that had to meet a minimum length and be turned in by the eleventh hour.]
As soon-to-be lawyers you will, of course, want to review the "law and regulations" regarding seminars, found in University of Iowa College of Law, Student Handbook (latest edition). They spell out the requirements regarding revisions, credit hours, writing credits, and so forth. You are responsible for knowing their contents, as they will govern to the extent they expressly conflict with anything on this Web site.
There are a number of aspects of the Internet you will benefit from understanding. Here are some of the questions for which you will want to find the answers.
(1) What is it? How did it get started? Who runs it? How does it work? What does "hypertext" mean? How many countries are "online"? What are the relationships between phone companies, "Internet Service Providers," "browsers," and Web sites? What was the Internet before there was a "Web"? How does AOL fit into all of this? What is a "modem"? What is the difference between logging in from the law school (or other University facilities) and from home? How come the Internet is so slow sometimes; what are all the factors that can affect the speed with which a Web page appears on your screen? How can parents -- or countries -- "block" sites? How can a company "do business" over the Internet? Is any business making money from its Web site; which are most profitable and why? How can so many people afford to make so much information available for free?
(2) How do I use it? What are the basics of getting an account, and the relative merits (and costs) of a local provider (like Internet Navigator) or a national/global mega-provider (like AOL) or a "free" ISP like NetZero? How do I get a "browser," log in, go to a Web page for which I know the address (URL), send and receive e-mail, participate in news groups' discussions? What are these free electronic magazines ("e-zines") and "list servers"? How do I find out what's available, and subscribe?
(3) What are the basics of making the Internet work for me; making billions of pages of information genuinely useful? What are "bookmarks" and "search engines"? Why are they so important? How do I find a site I just visited, but failed to note? How can I "save to disk" a page I find useful? How can I print a Web page? What do I have to do to save my bookmarks to a floppy disk in the A: drive rather than to the hard drive of a computer I may be using only temporarily?
(4) What do I need to know about Internet research techniques in general, and Internet legal research techniques in particular? How can I evaluate the accuracy and worth of material on the Internet? Are there special rules of citation form I need to learn ("How do you 'cite' a 'site'"?)
We all learned how to use "the library" in junior high and high school -- the card catalog and the Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature. Once in law school, we learned how to do legal research with books, and then with Westlaw and Lexis.
The general skills involved in legal research are perhaps the most practical thing you'll get out of law school. If you can do thorough, quality legal research and writing in two hours that takes others one or two days you can either go home earlier every day or charge more per hour.
Now we have yet another set of skills to learn beyond those needed for Westlaw and Lexis. Not every law office will have the commercial services; not every client can afford the extra hourly charges. And even if your client can afford them there is information on the Internet that Westlaw and Lexis don't provide. Mastery of Internet legal research skills will both save, and make, you money.
(5) Begin building your own "bookmarks." What are some of the more useful mega-sites (Web sites that are organized to get you to as many as thousands of other sites)? Legal collections? Sites more specifically related to this seminar and your possible paper topic?
(6) Are there potential cyberspace law issues that occur to you as you surf around?
(7) Finally, for those of you who are interested, what resources are available, what skills are necessary, to make your own Web page? What is Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)? How can you make a Web page without learning to write in HTML?
It will come as no surprise that a seminar devoted to "cyberspace law" makes substantial reliance on e-mail and the Internet.
Use of the Internet.
You will need to be able to "surf," use search engines, and otherwise be comfortable interacting with the Web.
If you know how to use the Internet, but haven't spent many hours doing so, you are strongly encouraged to log as many hours as possible at the beginning of the semester. I know of no substitute for just spending hours in exploration as a way of coming to understand this "thing," how it can be of greatest use to you now and in the future, and what potential legal topics and issues you would most like to explore with your research paper.
Web Publication.
Publication of your paper on the Web is a requirement, a condition for receiving credit for the seminar. There are at least two reasons for this. One is educational. From a pedagogical perspective, past experience shows that Web publication provides an added incentive for students to do their very best work and gain more from the seminar and writing experience. Another is the obligation of the faculty and students of any academic institution to publish contributions to their relevant body of knowledge.
Past seminar Web sites receive a lot of hits. There are, as of January 2002, regular users on our Web sites from 113 countries. Your paper will actually be used by others. Some past seminar students have received requests from editors and publishers to publish papers in hard copy publications.
From your own perspective, your paper is a "writing sample" to which you can direct potential employers if you choose. Moreover, a Web site represents a kind of ubiquitous "filing cabinet" to which you can go at a moment's notice to retrieve a copy of your paper no matter where you are on Planet Earth (so long as you have access to the Internet). So posting your paper on the Internet is not a casual matter. It may actually positively influence your career in one way or another. Virtually all students have found Web publication to be a significant benefit of the seminar.
Copyright. As you will learn, if you have not already, present copyright law provides that everything you create is copyright at the moment of its creation -- even your class notes. So you will hold the copyright on your paper, subject only to the license you are granting me to post it to the class Web site. Any income from your paper goes to you. You control the rights to its publication in hard copy form. You are free to post your paper to other Web sites if you wish. If you want to go beyond that, there are some additional benefits to you of formal registration with the Copyright Office and you are certainly free to do that.
Copyright aside, I am happy to work with you, even after the seminar is over, to improve the appearance and Web-formatting of your paper, or make corrections of minor errors you find after it's been submitted, should you want to do that.
How long will your paper be available from the seminar Web site? It has been (and remains) my intention to maintain these sites indefinitely. However, I must, necessarily, reserve the right to close any of them down at any time in the event I die, am no longer associated with the University of Iowa (which is providing the storage space), or for some other reason. Thus, to the extent you want to guarantee the continued availability of your paper from the Web you should keep a copy of it on disk (or download it from the Web with the "Save As" feature on your browser), and arrange to have it uploaded to another site somewhere.
There is an option available to you for creating your own Web site if you wish. This is not a requirement. Doing it will not enhance your grade -- though it will enhance your Internet and professional skills. If you already have a Web site of your own I'd like to link to it from our main seminar Web site. If you don't, but would like to have one, just let me know.
E-Mail.
You will find e-mail a useful means of communicating with your colleagues and me. No telephone tag. No wondering when I'm coming back to the office. Moreover, it's the fastest way for me to get information to you. And it, and this Web site, provide you with a written record for review -- rather than trying to remember instructions provided in class.
So, one of your first obligations it to get your e-mail address to me as soon as possible. You can just send it to me at <mailbox@nicholasjohnson.org>.
However, please note that if you do not have an e-mail account, or have one but don't check it at least a couple of times a week, don't be shy. Let me know. That's OK. We'll make some other arrangements for you.
We meet in Room 125. My office is in Room 446. The phone there is 335-9146. A better phone number for voice messages is 337-5555, my home office number with an answering machine. The e-mail address, noted above, is <mailbox@nicholasjohnson.org>. The personal, all-purpose Web site is at <http://www.nicholasjohnson.org>. The best postal address is: Box 1876, Iowa City IA 52244-1876. The law school fax number I use is 335-9019.
E-mail is probably the best of these options. But because a student once lodged a formal complaint with the Ombuds when I had not responded to their e-mail in under four hours, I should put you on notice that even e-mail has its limitations if you need a really rapid response. I cannot/do not get to my e-mail during the day, at law school. (All of my e-mail accounts get dumped into the "inav" address, above, which cannot conveniently be accessed from school. It is coordinated and administered from home during the very early morning hours and early evenings.) Moreover, like you, I cannot promise that there will never be an occasion when you have to wait more than 24 hours. Often there are a couple hundred e-mails waiting when I log in. Sometimes I'm out of town and unable to check. On rare occasions I even have things to do in my life that do not involve a computer monitor and keyboard. But most of the time you'll have a reply in less than a day.
My assistant for the seminar is Jessie Kriebs. She is in Room 405. Her phone number is 335-9091. Her e-mail is <jessie-kriebs@uiowa.edu>. If you're unable to reach me directly you should feel free to leave paper drafts or otherwise communicate with me through her if you wish.
1. Because of the waiting list, if there is a possibility/probability that you will be dropping early in the semester please let me know that now.
2. As you ponder that request, know that the seminar will consist of the following assignments and responsibilities (the details of which are, or will be, spelled out elsewhere). Because of some student misunderstandings in the past, they are laid out for you now, before the seminar begins.
4. Time and place of final exam. It is your responsibility to confirm the place, date and time of the exam. The Student Handbook details the administrative regulations and procedures regarding conflicts in examination schedules, and dates for makeup exam times.
5. Delivery of seminar grades. When there is a final exam
there are, of course, exam numbers and seminar grades can then be posted
by number (outside the instructor's office and on the main law school bulletin
board). When there is no final exam grades are not posted (as they would
be identified by name); unless other advance arrangements are made grades
will be available only through the law school's main administrative office;
advance arrangements might include a request that a grade be e-mailed,
or a pre-addressed envelope for mailing.
One of the greatest resources of any law school is the intellectual quality, and diversity of background and experience, of its student body. We are particularly blessed in that respect at this law school in general and this class in particular. The more we can all know about each other, and the resources we bring to the classroom, the more each of us can take from it. Besides, it's more fun knowing who these folks are with whom you are about to be locked in a room for 14 evenings.
So, please hand in to my assistant, Ms. Jessie Kriebs, Room 405, before January 22, a brief, one page essay about yourself that can be shared with other members of the class. You need not, but may, examine examples of bio booklets from past classes, available from Ms. Kriebs. We'll put together a comparable one for our seminar, make copies, and give you one.
Obviously, if there is anything you want to keep to yourself you are a skillful enough writer to do so. There's nothing you must include.
But while you wait for the muse to strike, be aware that the following kinds of things would be interesting and useful:
(1) something of your family, community and upbringing,Format Request. Please use:(2) early ambitions, goals or professional interests,
(3) college majors, intellectual interests, activities,
(4) work, travel or other job-related experiences,
(5) your current obligations and environment outside of law school (e.g., marital and parental status or other family responsibilities, nature and demands of outside employment, hobbies or other activities),
(6) areas of specialization in law school, student activities, or legal internships,
(7) any experiences working for (or dealing with) computer-related firms, print or electronic media, advertising, or political campaigning,
(8) future goals, expectations and plans for using your legal education,
(9) electronics hobbies (e.g., amateur radio license, computer programming or Web page design).
(1) one page maximum,
(2) single spaced,
(3) using a computer printer or typewriter,
(4) with a ribbon or cartridge sufficiently dark to make machine copies possible,
(5) one inch margins all around,
(6) a heading that includes your name and the date,
(7) any reasonable and readable font.
Every effort will be made to be open to students' questions, suggestions and complaints. There are a number of available communication channels noted under "Coordinates and Assistant," above. My office door is usually open when I'm there. You should feel free to come by at any time. You can also schedule appointments if you wish; it's just not necessary to do so.
But I'm also mindful there may sometime be a concern you would like to raise without my knowing it is coming from you. So that's OK, too. And that's why I'd like the seminar participants to vote one of your number as your ombudsperson to bring such individual or group concerns to me on an anonymous basis.
We'll do that the second seminar session, so be thinking about whether you'd like to serve, or who else you'd like to serve in that position. The pay is lousy, but there is (usually) virtually no work to do.
As you know, you elected your colleague Ray Tinnian in the seminar session January 23.