Prerequisites: By permission of the instructors. To apply, please send a very brief statement of interest, noting any particular interest in or relevant background to the course, to Susan Smith at ssmith@law.harvard.edu by October 5, 2023.

Exam Type: No Exam

This workshop aims to provide students with a historical perspective on the intersections between law and society in the United States. Assignments and class discussions will feature a mix of major works in the field of legal history, introducing students to critical methodologies and historiographical debates, and workshop presentations by leading historians writing on the American criminal system, including the history of prisons, policing, and the criminal law. Further information about the topics to be covered will be available closer to the Spring semester.

Law students will have the choice of adding a writing credit to this two-credit workshop by completing a substantial paper. Those who choose to write a substantial paper will receive three credits (two classroom, one writing) upon successful completion of the course; those who do not complete substantial papers will receive two classroom credits. All FAS graduate students who enroll in the workshop must complete a substantial paper and will receive four credits upon successful completion of the course.