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My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 23, 2013 12:10 am
by BrooklynLaw16
My torts prof is OBSESSED with economics! We're lucky if he even briefly mentions black letter law, most of the time it's just "hmm how do we most efficiently spread the loss?" Then gunners (it's the same people every time) raise random guesses that the torts prof usually shrugs off as "Maybe..."
He's an avid follower of Posner (judge who writes about economics and the law), he has written the Hand Formula on the board at least 10 times...anybody have a similar experience?
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 23, 2013 12:17 am
by Younger Abstention
Yep. It can be fun. Learn the Hand formula well as it will be the most important concept in the class and he'll likely make you apply it to every theory of negligence on the exam.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 23, 2013 12:19 am
by ph14
BrooklynLaw16 wrote:My torts prof is OBSESSED with economics! We're lucky if he even briefly mentions black letter law, most of the time it's just "hmm how do we most efficiently spread the loss?" Then gunners (it's the same people every time) raise random guesses that the torts prof usually shrugs off as "Maybe..."
He's an avid follower of Posner (judge who writes about economics and the law), he has written the Hand Formula on the board at least 10 times...anybody have a similar experience?
Torts is a field that is well-suited to economic analysis.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 23, 2013 12:40 am
by gchatbrah
BrooklynLaw16 wrote:My torts prof is OBSESSED with economics! We're lucky if he even briefly mentions black letter law, most of the time it's just "hmm how do we most efficiently spread the loss?" Then gunners (it's the same people every time) raise random guesses that the torts prof usually shrugs off as "Maybe..."
He's an avid follower of Posner (judge who writes about economics and the law), he has written the Hand Formula on the board at least 10 times...anybody have a similar experience?
Significantly more interesting than a black letter law version of the class.
Full disclosure: UChicago 2L
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 23, 2013 10:51 am
by BeautifulSW
But make sure you learn enough black letter law to pass the Bar Exam. Your Supreme Court couldn't care less if you understand some academic's view of the risk spreading nature of liability for tortious actions; they want to know if YOU know what the elements are for defamation of character. In fact courts in general don't pay very much attention to legal academics compared with precedent.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 23, 2013 11:15 pm
by 5ky
BeautifulSW wrote:But make sure you learn enough black letter law to pass the Bar Exam. Your Supreme Court couldn't care less if you understand some academic's view of the risk spreading nature of liability for tortious actions; they want to know if YOU know what the elements are for defamation of character. In fact courts in general don't pay very much attention to legal academics compared with precedent.
torts is so difficult nobody could ever learn the BLL for it during bar study period
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2013 10:40 am
by 3|ink
I had the same experience at George Mason. Coase came up every day. And not just in torts class. Every class. I'm pretty sure George Mason has a shrine for Coase somewhere on campus.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2013 10:46 am
by guano
Hand formula and Coase theorem for the win
Learn it, love it, live it
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2013 2:24 pm
by kay2016
guano wrote:Hand formula and Coase theorem for the win
Learn it, love it, live it
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2013 2:26 pm
by stillwater
kay2016 wrote:guano wrote:Hand formula and Coase theorem for the win
Learn it, love it, live it
or just ignore it because its dumb.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2013 3:14 pm
by guano
stillwater wrote:kay2016 wrote:guano wrote:Hand formula and Coase theorem for the win
Learn it, love it, live it
or just ignore it because its dumb.
No, it isn't. It's pretty much the opposite of dumb
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2013 3:51 pm
by stillwater
guano wrote:stillwater wrote:kay2016 wrote:guano wrote:Hand formula and Coase theorem for the win
Learn it, love it, live it
or just ignore it because its dumb.
No, it isn't. It's pretty much the opposite of dumb
hows law school guano?
oh, and hand formula and coase theorem are dumb.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2013 4:51 pm
by odoylerulez
The Coase Theorem and the Learned Hand formula are good stuff.
The Coase Theorem will help you really understand what's going on in a lot of cases from a different angle, but I'm not sure that knowing the ins-and-outs of it is within the scope of most 1L Torts classes. It certainly wasn't for us, even though the professor alluded to it a little bit.
Gotta know that B = PL, though.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Thu Oct 24, 2013 5:06 pm
by guano
stillwater wrote:guano wrote:stillwater wrote:
or just ignore it because its dumb.
No, it isn't. It's pretty much the opposite of dumb
hows law school guano?
oh, and hand formula and coase theorem are dumb.
I dropped out. FYI I had Coase theorem in business school long before I considered getting a JD. I knew about the Hand formula long before then too. Whether you agree with them or not, the concepts are brilliant
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 30, 2013 1:13 am
by Eco
Your professor is Turley, I'm assuming. I'm probably right lmao. Get ready for an epic bloodbath of an exam btw. Study the black letter law because it is on the exam even if he isn't teaching it.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 30, 2013 10:08 pm
by BrooklynLaw16
This stuff is tought. Just when I think I've got it, there's a new caveat to the traditional rule that was modified by the modern rule but still retains the exception from the old rule. It's starting to erode my confidence to a certain point, not because I don't understand, because I do understand as I'm reading it. But my exam is closed book, and if you ask me to recite the elements an exceptions of a tort that I learned last month, I doubt that I'd be able to do it with 100% accuracy. The exam is a traditional issue spotter. TLSer's...any words of wisdom?
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 30, 2013 10:21 pm
by haus
3|ink wrote:I had the same experience at George Mason. Coase came up every day. And not just in torts class. Every class. I'm pretty sure George Mason has a shrine for Coase somewhere on campus.
Maybe it is kept in back at the Einstein Bagels.
Re: My torts prof is OBSESSED with Economics
Posted: Wed Oct 30, 2013 10:24 pm
by Eco
TLSer's...any words of wisdom?
Is your professor Turley at GW?