Skip Navigation

University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Concentrations

The Program of Concentrated Study at the College of Law is designed for students who seek a particular focus during their time at the Law College. A student who wishes to focus on a particular area of the law may work with a faculty member who teaches in the area to develop an individualized Program of Concentrated Study. The purpose of a Program of Concentrated Study is threefold: (1) to recommend those courses a faculty member believes are important for the study and development of skills, values and doctrines in a particular area, (2) to sequence those courses in such a way that students will gain maximum benefit from the skills, values and doctrines the courses teach; and (3) to recognize the achievements of those students completing a Program of Concentrated Study.

The specific requirements for an individualized Program of Concentrated Study are as follows:

  1. An individualized Program of Concentrated Study must be developed by a student in consultation with a sponsoring faculty member and is subject to approval by the Dean and his or her designee. The attached Program of Concentrated Study form must be submitted to the Dean's Office before the student begins course work in the program. The Dean's office will record faculty sponsorship and the particular requirements of the individualized program.
  2. An individualized Program of Concentrated Study must consist of at least fifteen (15) credit hours in no fewer than five upper level courses that have been identified by a faculty member as central to the identified area. While a faculty member establishing a Program of Concentrated Study may require more course work than the five-course, 15 credit hour minimum, and may require sequencing of courses, the scope and contour of any Program of Concentrated Study should be consistent with the goal of assuring that students acquire a broad-based legal education.
  3. A student must declare an intention to complete an individualized Program of Concentrated Study no later than the last day on which students may add a class during the semester beginning the student’s third year. Students are encouraged to declare early to minimize problems caused by course sequencing and availability. 

A student may complete no more than two Programs of Concentrated Study. 

Upon successful completion of a Program of Concentrated Study, a student will receive a Certificate of Concentrated Study. A notation of successful program completion will appear on the student's transcript.

Proposal Form (PDF)

Business Program of Concentrated Study

The Business Program of Concentrated Study at the College of Law is designed for students who seek a focus on the legal aspects of business transactions during their time at the Law College. The Business Program of Concentrated Study has three purposes:

  1. to recommend those courses the faculty believes are important for the student and to encourage students to develop the skills and knowledge of doctrines necessary to be an effective and competent attorney advising clients on business transactions;
  2. to sequence those courses in such a way that students will gain maximum benefit from the skills and doctrines the courses teach; and
  3. to recognize the achievements of those students completing the Business Program of Concentrated Study.

The faculty recognizes that, among other skills, effective and competent business lawyers must have the ability to analyze and work with substantive doctrines in a variety of areas and the ability to bring to their practices the perspectives of different schools of thought and different disciplines. Therefore, the faculty also encourages students participating in the Business Program of Concentrated Study to take a broad sampling of courses that emphasize different areas of the law and the perspectives of different disciplines.

Students are encouraged to declare their intention to participate in the Business Program of Concentrated Study as early as possible, so they can plan their course of studies appropriately.

The College of Law will recognize a student who successfully completes the Business Program of Concentrated Study by making a notation on the student's transcript and by awarding the student with a certificate of recognition at the time of the student's graduation. Completion of the Business Program of Concentrated Study does not certify one as an expert in business law, but merely recognizes that one has completed courses in certain basic areas essential to lawyers advising clients on business transactions.

The Dean's Office shall designate a Program Coordinator to administer the requirements of the Business Program of Concentrated Study. The responsibilities of the Program Coordinator include:

  1. assisting students in completing all Program requirements;
  2. considering and approving requests from individual students to take non-Program courses in fulfillment of Program requirements due to a required or recommended Program course being unavailable; and
  3. carrying out any other responsibilities necessary to administer the Business Program of Concentrated Study.

The Business Program of Concentrated Study is designed for students who seek to develop their understanding of business law doctrine and transactional skills during their time at the College of Law.

Required Courses

In addition to successfully completing the usual requirements for graduation from the College of Law, all students in the Business Program of Concentrated Study shall successfully complete the following courses.

  1. Accounting for Lawyers (2 credit hours) (requirement waived if the student successfully completed at least three semester hours of basic accounting as an undergraduate or graduate student)
  2. Taxation - Individual Income Tax (4 credit hours)
  3. Corporations (3 or 4 credit hours)
  4. Taxation - Corporate (3 credit hours) [Prerequisite: Taxation-Individual Income Tax]
  5. Securities Regulation (3 credit hours) [Prerequisite: Corporations] 
  6. Business Planning (3 credit hours) [Prerequisites: Taxation-Individual Income Tax; Corporations; Taxation-Corporate*] 

The Business Planning course is the culmination of the Business Program of Concentrated Study. It draws on tax law, corporate law, partnership law, securities law, and other related subject areas and provides students with the opportunity to plan hypothetical but realistic business transactions.

Two additional courses are also very important for students advising small business clients: Taxation-Partnership and Estate Planning. They are not required, but they are strongly recommended.

* Students in the Business Program of Concentrated Study must complete Securities Regulation prior to taking Business Planning. Securities Regulation is not ordinarily a prerequisite to Business Planning, but students who take the courses concurrently will not meet the requirements of the Business Program of Concentrated Study. Therefore, students should take Securities Regulation in their second year of law school.

Other Recommended Courses

The best business lawyers are those with a broad background in the law. No single required program can anticipate the many areas a particular lawyer might need to draw upon. We strongly encourage you to take a broad variety of courses, not just those in the business transactions area.

Students participating in the Business Program of Concentrated Study are encouraged to take:

  • Evidence
  • At least one course with an international component
  • At least one Uniform Commercial Code course 

We also recommend:

  • Arbitration
  • Employment Law
  • Estate Planning
  • Estate Planning Problems
  • Wills & Trusts

One or more of the following courses might also be of particular interest to those participating in the Business Program of Concentrated Study:

  • Antitrust and Trade Regulation
  • Banking Law
  • Criminal Law II
  • Insurance Law
  • International Business Transactions
  • Investment Companies and Investment Advisers
  • Labor Law
  • Pension and Employee Benefits
  • Real Estate Transactions
  • Tax Policy Seminar
  • Taxation-Farm & Ranch
  • Taxation-International
  • Taxation-Partnership
  • Unfair Competition

Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study

The Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study at the College of Law is designed for students who seek a litigation focus during their time at the Law College.  The purpose of the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study is threefold: (1) to recommend those courses the faculty believes are important for the study and development of skills, values and doctrines necessary to be an effective and competent litigator; (2) to sequence those courses in such a way that students will gain maximum benefit from the skills, values and doctrines the courses teach; and (3) to recognize the achievements of those students completing the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study.                           
    The faculty recognizes that, among other skills, every effective and competent litigator requires the ability to analyze and work with substantive doctrines and the ability to bring to litigation the perspectives of different schools of thought and different disciplines.  Therefore, the faculty also encourages students participating in the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study to take a broad sampling of doctrinal courses that emphasize different areas of law and the perspectives of different disciplines.
    Students are encouraged to declare their intention to participate in the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study as early as possible, so they can plan their course of studies appropriately.  Students who have identified themselves as participants in the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study will be given priority over non-Program students in some of the required or recommended courses.  Those courses in which Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study students will receive priority are indicated in the description of the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study.  The College of Law will recognize a student who successfully completes the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study by making a notation in the student’s transcript and by awarding the student a certificate of recognition at the time of the student’s graduation.

    The Specialized Litigation Skills Courses are frequently oversubscribed and students often have difficulty in being able to take the necessary two skills courses before graduating.  IT IS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED that you begin participation in the lotteries for the skills courses as early in your law school career as possible. 
    The Dean’s Office has designated Professors Ruser, Moberly, Schmidt, and Dean Pierce as the Program Coordinators to administer the requirements of the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study.  The responsibilities of the Program Coordinators include: (1) assisting students who seek recognition for completion of the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study in completing all Program requirements; (2) considering requests from individual students to take non-Program courses in fulfillment of Program requirements due to a required or recommended Program course being unavailable; and (3) any other responsibilities necessary to administer the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study.


    To declare your intention to participate in the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study, go here.  The Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study is described on the right-hand side of the screen.  Scroll down to the bottom of the page and complete the information requested in the blue box.  Click on the submit button.  A message should appear above the blue box stating that the “Request Information has been sent.”


    The Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study is designed for students who seek to develop their litigation skills during their time at the College of Law.  Students may choose a general litigation focus or may choose to focus on either civil or criminal litigation skills.  Students may elect to have their certificate of completion of the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study indicate a civil emphasis, a criminal emphasis, or a general emphasis in litigation skills.

 

   REQUIRED COURSES


    All students in the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study at the College of Law shall take and pass the following courses:

    FIRST YEAR

    Students must take and pass all required first-year courses in order to complete successfully the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study.

    SECOND AND THIRD YEARS

    General Emphasis

    Students who wish to pursue a general emphasis in litigation skills shall take and pass the following courses: Civil and/or Criminal Clinic*, Criminal Procedure, Evidence, Legal Profession, Pretrial Litigation, and Trial Advocacy.

    Civil Emphasis

    Students who wish to emphasize civil litigation skills shall take and pass the following courses: Civil Clinic*, Evidence, Legal Profession, Pretrial Litigation, and Trial Advocacy.

    Criminal Emphasis

    Students who wish to emphasize criminal litigation skills shall take and pass the following courses: Criminal Clinic*, Criminal Procedure, Evidence, Legal Profession, and Trial Advocacy.

    (*Program students have priority over non-Program students in these courses)
 
    BLOCK REQUIREMENTS

    In addition to the required courses on the preceding page, students in the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study shall take the required number of courses from each of the following blocks of courses during their second and third years at the College of Law:

    SPECIALIZED LITIGATION SKILLS COURSES (TWO COURSES)

  • Advanced Legal Research
  • Advanced Trial Advocacy*
  • Appellate Advocacy*
  • Client Interviewing and Counseling
  • Construction Practice
  • Mediation
  • Negotiations
  • Satisfactory participation as a member of one of the following student competition teams:
  • National Trial Team, National Moot Court Team, or Regional Client Counseling Team
  • (Participation on one or more teams fulfills one course requirement only)


    SPECIALIZED LITIGATION DOCTRINAL COURSES (TWO COURSES)

  • Administrative Law
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • Arbitration
  • Capital Punishment
  • Civil Rights Litigation
  • Conflict of Laws
  • Criminal Law II
  • Family Law Practice
  • Federal Jurisdiction
  • International Arbitration and Litigation
  • Remedies
  • (*Program students have priority over non-Program students in these courses)


    SEMINAR

    Students in the Litigation Skills Program of Concentrated Study are encouraged to complete at least one litigation-related paper in a senior level seminar.