Health Care Law

Administrative law establishes the legal controls over the operation of government and hence it relates to almost every legal practice, from security regulation to social programs to criminal justice. Indeed, administrative law is essential to justice in a modern society because administrative agencies generate most of the law that actually affects our lives and because administrative agencies adjudicate far more disputes than the traditional judiciary. This course is an introductory examination of the rules and procedures governing agency decision making. It explores (1) how agencies make policy and (2) how businesses, interest groups, and citizens challenge agency policymaking in court. Close Window

This course will provide an introduction to some of the issues that lawyers face in the diverse practice area known as 'health law.' The course will cover topics such as health care regulation and financing, health insurance regulation, legal and eithical issues around reproduction and dying, and duties and responsibilites in the patient-provider relationship. Class discussion will frequently focus on problems where students will be asked to act as lawyers who advise clients on options for how to proceed, weighing legal and non-legal factors. The course will involve some transactional work and counseling, as well as assessment of the risks of liability and a bit of policy discussion. The grade will be based on class participation and either (1) two memos involving research or (2) one research paper, which would satisfy the writing requirement. Students may choose which option they prefer. The top student papers will be featured in a symposium as part of the Benjamin Rush program. Regardless of the option, students will be subject to the usual curve for classes over 30 students (assuming more than 30 in the class total). There will be no final exam or laptops. Close Window

This course will explore the manner in which the law affects ethical issues of national and individual health care as they impact the most acute questions of health care policy in the twenty-first century. Materials presented will cover emerging as well as developing issues relating to classic and contemporary constructs of ethical appraisal and analysis and their application to topics such as: legal and ethical issues of technical advancements in human reproduction, medical research involving human subjects, and organ harvesting and transplantation; definitions of death; accomodation of humanity in the dying process; and ethical considerations involving the administration and cost of health care to the totality of society. The course will be presented through traditional case and statutory material, integrated with analysis of prevailing and proposed medical, economic and ethical applications. Where appropriate, client oriented problems will be utilized to introduce legal practice reality into abstract issues of medical, legal and ethical principles. Close Window

This class will examine the unique area of tort law that is commonly litigated in the U.S. The initial weeks of the course will cover the essential elements of a medical malpractice claim giving special attention to the specific statutes governing this kind of lawsuit illustrating the impact of these laws on the litigation of medical malpractice cases. Students will then be asked to apply trial advocacy skills to a hypothetical medical malpractice case. Using a fact pattern from a wrongful death action recently tried in Virginia, students will plan and participate in a range of discovery, pretrial and trial exercises. The trial advocacy activities will include undertaking pre-trial discovery, witness preparation, juror selection, and closing arguments. The class will have the students engaging in all aspects of taking a medical malpractice claim from the filing stage to the jury verdict. Close Window

Since its inception, insurance has evolved from a purely private contractual arrangement to a highly regulated industry. This course will explore how legal and regulatory principles have changed to address this ever more complex industry. We will also explore the public policy underpinning the development of our complex insurance regulatory system. Specific topics covered will include the creation and growth of the regulatory process, the state versus federal debate over the regulation of insurance, the powers of state insurance commissioners (both legal and practical), and how the regulatory process imposes specific restrictions and requirements on certain areas of insurance and certain types of insurance products. We will also explore how public policy pressures are currently affecting insurance law and regulation (e.g., legal and legislative reactions to the insurance industry's handling of major catastrophes, such as hurricane Katrina, the attempts by both the states and the federal government to create residual markets to cover losses which the private market is unwilling to take on, and the effect of the current health care reform debate on the health insurance landscape). In addition to the writing requirement, students will have an opportunity to participate in a debate on the comparative benefits of state and federal regulation of insurance and to select a cutting-edge topic for class discussion. Close Window