UMass Amherst Department of Political Science

Honors in Legal Studies

Legal Studies encourages students in the major to consider honors courses and other honors work. Virtually all Legal Studies faculty are open to being approached by students wishing to establish Honors colloquia or Independent Studies, or to create honors thesis or project committees. 

Honors in Legal Studies is coordinated via Commonwealth Honors College and requires at least four honors courses and a thesis (Legal 499Y/499T; 6 credit minimum) or Honors Project (Legal 499P). Students are encouraged to begin developing their thesis research topic by the end of the second semester of junior year and to complete the research during the first semester of the senior year. Thesis writing is completed during the second semester of senior year. For additional information, contact the Legal Studies Honors Director, Leah Wing. 

The Legal Studies Honors requirements are available in Word and PDF formats.

 

Legal Studies Departmental Honors Track

Legal Studies Majors are invited to consider applying for the Departmental Honors track.  This provides majors with the opportunity to conduct independent research culminating in a Capstone research paper or project.  The Departmental Honors track in Legal Studies is a chance to extend and deepen your learning in an area of particular interest to you while working closely with a Legal Studies faculty member who serves as your honors committee chair. 

For information on the Departmental Honors Track in general see the Commonwealth Honors College webpage. 

For further information on the Departmental Honors Program for Legal Studies Majors, see below.

 

Admission requirements for students graduating in 2009-2012:

  • to participate in Departmental Honors, students must be members in good standing of Commonwealth College with the ability to complete 45 graded (not pass/fail) credits in residence (registered at UMass Amherst, not transferred); it is the expectation that students will be admitted to participate after having completed any outstanding incomplete(s);
  • students must meet with the Departmental Honors Director to discuss requirements and departmental opportunities.  The Director will sign a Change of Major form initiating a change to Legal Studies Departmental Honors (LEGAL HN-CCDEPT) to indicate an intention to admit the students to the LEGAL DH track;
  • finally, the Change of Major form must be co-signed at the Commonwealth College Office to finalize admission to the track.


 

Admission and requirements for students with graduation dates of 2013-2014:

You must be accepted to both Commonwealth Honors College and for Departmental Honors in Legal Studies.  There are two avenues through which students may be joining Departmental Honors in Legal Studies, depending on your status in CHC.  Please see the procedures outlined below.

1. If you are already a member of CHC, below is the procedure for signing up for Departmental Honors Track in Legal Studies:

  • to participate in Departmental Honors, students must be members in good standing of Commonwealth College with the ability to complete 45 graded (not pass/fail) credits in residence (registered at UMass Amherst, not transferred); it is the expectation that students will be admitted to participate after having completed any outstanding incomplete(s);
  • students must meet with the Departmental Honors Director to discuss requirements and departmental opportunities.  The Director will sign a Change of Major form initiating a change to Legal Studies Departmental Honors (LEGAL HN-CCDEPT) to indicate an intention to admit the students to the LEGAL DH track;
  • finally, the Change of Major form must be co-signed at the Commonwealth College Office to finalize admission to the track.


2. If you are not yet a member of CHC, you will need to become a member and also apply for the Departmental Honors Track in Legal Studies.

  • Apply to the CHC: http://www.honors.umass.edu/joining-honors-college 
  • Apply for Departmental Honors in Legal Studies: The Legal Studies Major in Political Science welcomes applications from undergraduate students for entrance into the Legal Studies Departmental Honors track.  A Grade Point Average of 3.4 at the time of application is required.  You should apply to the Commonwealth Honors College according to its guidelines and indicate an interest in Departmental Honors in Legal Studies; include an unofficial transcript and be sure to demonstrate in the application the promise of success in undertaking a year-long independent research paper/project and the ability to time manage effectively.

Note that the criteria for entering and completing the Departmental Honors Track is different for each graduating year.   

Please note: it is the expectation that students will be admitted by Legal Studies to participate after having completed any outstanding incomplete(s).

 

 

UMASS Amherst Legal Studies has proudly graduated dozens of honors students who have independently conducted research on topics as varied as:

  • Deprivation of rights of un-accompanied children in federal custody
  • The digital law office: resistance and reception
  • Why Americans still support the death penalty
  • Building trust, promoting peace, and bringing communities together:  The Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland’s influence as a mediator in its healing society
  • The right to privacy and government surveillance
  • Critical race theory and mediation
  • New Bedford raids
  • “Hot-tubbing” among expert witnesses
  • The right to privacy and same sex marriage
  • History and role of ombudspersons in Europe, Canada, and the United States
  • The death penalty and deterrence
  • Consequences a la carte:  a case for limiting collateral sentencing to facilitate re-entry
  • Infants and aids:  strategies to prevent the transmission of HIV though Breast-milk in South Africa
  • Parole and probation: current research foci on statistical-quantified data as more people return to prison
  • The construction of and responses to illegal immigration
  • Juvenile participation in legal proceedings and divorce mediation
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution in professional sports
  • Commercial legal strategy vis-a-vis unions
  • Digitization of legal professional practices and its impact on efficacy and justice
  • Expert witness reform in tort cases
  • The role of power imbalances in mediation theory and practice
  • Determinations of the best interests of the children with same-sex parents
  • The right to privacy post-9/11
  • Same-sex marriage as a fundamental right
  • Global Warming and the ski industry
  • Same-sex adoption
  • The role of arbitration in sports labor management relations
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