Required Clinic Component: Government Lawyer: U.S. Attorney Clinic (fall or spring semester). Students who are accepted into this clinic will be enrolled in the clinic and clinical seminar by the Office of Clinical and Pro Bono Programs.

Additional Co-/Pre-Requisites: None.

By Permission: Yes. Applications to the clinic are due April 10, 2020.

Add/Drop Deadline: May 11, 2020 for fall students; August 31, 2020 for spring students.

Exam Type: No Exam. A paper will be required in lieu of an examination.

The course will examine the role and responsibilities of the prosecutor, with a particular focus on federal prosecutors.  The course will consider questions concerning the politics of prosecution, the role of the prosecutor in the adversarial system (and whether that system is the best for achieving justice), and the autonomy and discretion of the prosecutor.  We will look at policy issues that arise around prosecution, as well as those issues individual prosecutors face in their work.  Some specific topics that will be addressed will include prosecutorial ethics; disclosure and discovery issues; pretrial publicity; investigations (including use of the grand jury); sentencing; federalization of crime; and dealing with informants, cooperators, and victims.  We will consider these issues in the context of different areas of criminal prosecution, including white-collar crime, organized crime, urban violence, and terrorism.