Schnitzel, Beer, and Marketing Your Study Abroad Experience

Classroom at Justus Liebig UniversityThis past summer I was fortunate to have had the opportunity to participate in Marquette University Law School’s summer program in Giessen, Germany.  The program, run jointly with the University of Wisconsin Law School and Justus Liebig University in Giessen, provides Marquette students with the opportunity to study a variety of international law topics at a foreign university with classmates from around the globe.  Course offerings this past summer included Comparative Law, International Economic Law & Business Transactions, International Intellectual Property Law, and the Law of Armed Conflict.  The courses were taught by both American and German professors over the course of a (somewhat intense) four week period that included weekend excursions to Munich and Berlin.  While the subject matter of the classes was incredibly interesting, this was further magnified by the international make-up of the student body.  My classmates this past summer hailed from 17 different countries including the United States Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Germany, Spain, Moldova, Turkey, India, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, South Korea, China, Benin, Senegal, Cameroon, and Ethiopia.  The discussions and conversations we had, both in and out of the classroom, provided insights about international legal issues that would be difficult to duplicate outside of such an experience. Not only was I able to learn about international, German, and EU law, but I was also able to gain a better understanding of US law.

The value of a study abroad experience, both in terms of the substantive knowledge gained as well as the “soft” skills developed, is likely to be clear to someone who teaches or participates in such a program (see Professor Fallone’s semi-exhaustive list of ten reasons why one should study abroad).  However, those less familiar with international study experiences may not always ascribe the same value or benefit to study abroad programs.  This can be problematic for law students who hope to show potential employers that their time spent studying overseas was more than just an excuse to sample copious amounts of schnitzel and beer.   While CALI awards, clerkships, internships, pro bono work, and participation in law review or moot court are all ways that students have traditionally distinguished themselves to potential employers, the same has not been true for participation in study abroad programs, which are a relatively new phenomena in the law school curriculum.

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Marquette Students Study Comparative Law in Germany

Giessen 2015This is week Two of the Summer Session in International and Comparative Law, taking place in Giessen, Germany.  Pictured to the left are my students in the class on Comparative Law.  They come from Mexico, Peru, Senegal, Brazil, Zimbabwe, Spain, Moldova, Vietnam, the Slovak Republic and, yes, even Wisconsin.  Along with my co-teacher, Thilo Marauhn from Justus Liebig University here in Germany, we have been comparing the constitutional systems of the United States and Germany, and also contrasting the quasi-constitutional structure of the European Union.  It may not look like it in the photo, but we are certainly having a great deal of fun.

Other classes this session include International Economic Law & Business Transactions, The Law of Armed Conflict, and International Intellectual Property Law.  The faculty come from the United States, Germany, Lithuania, and Great Britain.  The faculty are all experts in their fields and, judging from our dinner tonight, we all share an appreciation of German beer.

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Legislative Diplomacy After Zivotofsky

The Supreme Court’s decision in Zivotofsky v. Kerry held that Congress violated the separation of powers by enacting a statute that purported to compel the President to issue statements that contradict his policy of strict neutrality on the status of Jerusalem. In a recent post, I analyzed a disagreement between the majority and the dissent on the significance of foreign perceptions of U.S. law. I’ve now written a second post on the case, this time exploring Zivotofsky‘s implications for the constitutionality of diplomatic communications between Congress and foreign governments. It’s available over at Lawfare.

 

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