Law Schedule of Classes

NOTE: Course offerings change. Classes offered this semester may not be offered in future semesters.

285.2D sec. 001 - Death Penalty Clinic Seminar I (Fall 2026)

Instructor: Ty Alper  (view instructor's teaching evaluations - degree students only | profile)
Instructor: Elisabeth Anne Semel  (view instructor's teaching evaluations - degree students only | profile)
View all teaching evaluations for this course - degree students only

Units: 2
Grading Designation: Credit Only
Mode of Instruction: In-Person

Meeting:

W 3:35 PM - 5:25 PM
Location: Law 145
From August 19, 2026
To November 30, 2026

Course Start: August 19, 2026
Course End: November 30, 2026

Enrollment info:
Enrolled: 11
Waitlisted: 0
Enroll Limit: 20
As of: 06/08 06:45 PM


The Death Penalty Clinic Seminar I is limited to J.D. students who are accepted for enrollment in the Death Penalty Clinic for the academic year 2026-27. The clinic and the seminar are year-long commitments. The seminar addresses substantive and procedural law issues relevant to the clinic's death penalty cases and offers students an opportunity to workshop their clinic projects.

Students must apply for both the clinic and the companion seminar through the Clinical Program application process during Spring 2026.

In academic year 2026-27, the Death Penalty Clinic’s Co-Directors, Professor Elisabeth Semel and Professor Ty Alper, will co-teach the seminar. Faculty bios are available on the law school's faculty profiles page and the Death Penalty Clinic's webpage.


Attendance at the first class is mandatory for all currently enrolled and waitlisted students; any currently enrolled or waitlisted students who are not present on the first day of class (without prior permission of the instructor) will be dropped. The instructor will continue to take attendance throughout the add/drop period and anyone who moves off the waitlist into the class must continue to attend or have prior permission of the instructor in order not to be dropped.


Requirements Satisfaction:

When this Clinic and Seminar are taken in the same semester, they are counted together as satisfying one of the following requirements:

  • Experiential Requirement OR
  • Writing Requirement - Option 2
Together, they may satisfy either the Writing Requirement OR the Experiential Requirement, but not both. The Experiential and Writing Requirements cannot be combined.

Students who want the clinic/seminar to satisfy Option 2 of the Writing Requirement must obtain instructor approval and complete a paper or series of written work, with drafts, of 30 or more pages. To receive Option 2 credit, students must submit this form:
https://na3.docusign.net/Member/PowerFormSigning.aspx?PowerFormId=db49abd6-616e-45e4-a912-e932cd3fb15c&env=na3-eu1&acct=ae094ebe-6750-44d8-a517-9886242ff735

In addition to the above-designated requirement choice, the units from this Clinic/Seminar fulfill the Race and the Law requirement.

Please contact Student Academic Advising and Support Services (SAASS) with any questions.


Exam Notes: (None) Series of papers or assignments throughout the semester
(Subject to change by faculty member only through the first two weeks of instruction)
Course Category: Clinics
This course is listed in the following sub-categories:
Criminal Law
Race and Law
Social Justice and Public Interest

Files:

If you are the instructor or their FSU, you may add a file like a syllabus or a first assignment.

Class materials may also be available on bCourses.berkeley.edu

Readers:
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Books:
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