HOUSING DISCRIMINATION INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE住房歧视课程简介

IM

HOUSINGDISCRIMINATIONFALL2011:

INFORMATIONMEMO#1(8/15/11)

TABLEOFCONTENTS

A.TENTATIVECOURSEOVERVIEW(IM1-2)

B.INFORMATIONABOUTTHECOURSE(IM3-8)

C.INFORMATIONABOUTTHEINSTRUCTOR(IM8-10)

A.TENTATIVECOURSEOVERVIEW&SCHEDULE

UNITI.INTRODUCTIONTOTHESTATUTES(August16-30)

TheoriesOfStatutoryInterpretation

A. IntroductorySampleCases

B. RegulationofDiscriminationinHousing:SomeHistory

C. TheCausesofAction

1.Overview

2.CoveredConduct

3.ProtectedCharacteristics

D. TheoriesofStatutoryInterpretation

UNITII.PROVINGINTENTIONALDISCRIMINATION(August30-September15)

DialogueBetweenCourtsAndLegislatures

A. DirectProof

1.GovernmentDefendants

2.PrivateDefendants

B. TheMcDonnell-DouglasBurdenShift

C. DialogueBetweenCourtsandLegislatures

UNITIII.DEFINITIONS(September15-27)

StatutoryDrafting

A. IntroductiontoStatutoryDrafting

B. “MaritalStatus”UnderStateLaw

1.UnmarriedCohabitants

2.ConstitutionalDefenses:FreeExercise

C. DefinitionofRaceUndertheCivilRightsActof1866

D. FHADefinitionalIssues

1.“Dwelling”

2.“Handicap”

UNITIV.NON-INTENTIONALDISCRIMINATION(October4-November1)

LegislativeHistory

A. Advertising&RelatedClaims

B. DisparateImpactClaims

1.GovernmentDefendants

2.PrivateDefendants

C. IntroductiontoLegislativeHistory

D. ReasonableAccommodations/ModificationsforPeoplewithDisabilities

UNITV.DEFENSES(November1-22)

CanonsofConstruction

A. IntroductiontotheCanons

B. Non-TextualDefenses(“BenignDiscrimination”)

1.IntegrationMaintenance

2.“Benign”SexDiscrimination

3.“Benign”DisabilityDiscrimination

C. TextualDefenses

1.ReligiousOrganization/PrivateClub

2.Smallholders’Defenses

3.OccupancyRequirements

B.INFORMATIONABOUTTHECOURSE

WelcometoHousingDiscrimination.Thisclasswillintroduceyoutothefederalstatutesthatprohibitvariousformsofdiscriminationinthehousingprocessandtoafewrelatedstatestatutesaswell.Inadditiontoexploringthesestatutes(andthecasesandregulationsinterpretingthem),wewillfocusontwosetsofquestions.

First,wewillspendalotoftimereadingandtalkingabouthowcourtsandlawyersdealwithstatutes,askingquestionslike:Howdolegalargumentsaboutstatutesdifferfromthoseinvolvingcasesorconstitutions?Howshouldcourtsinterpretanambiguousstatutoryprovision?Howshouldlegislatorswritestatutestobestachievetheirgoals?

Second,generallyspeaking,thestatutesprohibithousingprovidersfrommakingdecisionsbasedonalistofprotectedcharacteristicssuchasrace,sex,religionanddisability.Althoughthehousingmarketmaytreateachprotectedcharacteristicsomewhatdifferentlyfromtheothers,forthemostpart,thestatutestreatthedifferentcharacteristicsalike.Doesthismakesense?Shouldthestatutesbeinterpretedorchangedtoreflectwhatwemightcall“differencesamongdifferences?”Inparticular,wewillexamineandcomparethetreatmentofdiscriminationbasedonraceanddiscriminationbasedondisability.

Myhopeisthattheimportantsocialissuesthatunderliethecourse(andthatwewilldiscussfrequently)willmakethehardworkofparsingthestatutesmoreinteresting.Afterall,whatisoftenatstakeinthesecasesissomepeople’sabilitytoacquireorretainhousingandotherpeople’sabilitytocontroltheuseoftheirproperty.Formanyofyou,thematerialwewillcoverinthisclassrepresentspartofthereasonyouwenttolawschool:anattemptbythegovernmenttoremedyapernicioussocialill.EqualaccesstohousinghasbecomeafundamentalprincipleofAmericancivilrights.However,aswewillsee,thedetailsremaincomplexandcontroversial.Mypriorclasseshavefoundthematerialfunandchallengingtoworkthrough.

MechanicsoftheClass

Materials:WewillworkprimarilyoutofcoursematerialsI’vedeveloped,allofwhichwillbepostedonthecoursewebpage.Thepagecanbefoundat:

:81/facultysites/mfajer/hdf11.htm

YoucanalsoaccessthecoursepagebygoingthroughtheUMSchoolofLawhomepagetothefacultydirectorytomywebsite.Iamworkingwithtwoco-authorstoturnthecoursematerialsintoatextbook,soI’dappreciatefeedbackaboutstrengthsandweaknessesofthematerialsasweproceed.

Duringthecourseofthesemester,Iwillpostvarioussupplementarydocuments,includingastatutorysupplement,syllabiandassignmentsheets,andcommentsandbestanswersfromoldexamsandfromwrittenversionsofassignmentsfrompriorclasses.Amongthemostimportantpostingswillbeinformationalmemoswithclarificationsofpointsfromclassdiscussions,answerstostudente-mails,andcommentsandbestanswersfromwrittenversionsofassignmentsfrompriorclasses.Youshouldtreatthesememosasrequiredreadingforthecourse.

Inadditiontothematerialsonthecoursepage,IrecommendthatyoureadD.Massey&N.Denton,AmericanApartheid.ThesuggestedtimetableforreadingAmericanApartheidisasfollows:

Chapter2 ByAugust18

Chapters3&4 BySeptember13

Chapters1,5,6,7 ByOctober18

Chapter8 ByNovember3

Itwillnotinterferewiththeclassatallifyoureadahead.Isuggestthatyoutrytoallocateyourtimesoastobeabletoreadeachchapterasasingleblock.Youwillprobablyfinditusefultowriteupashortsummaryofeachchapterforyourownuse(particularlyifyoureadahead)thatincludesthemajorpointstheauthorsmadeandyourreactionstothem.Youneednottrytomasterthedetailsofthe(extensive)statisticalinformation,butyouwillfindithelpfultohaveagoodgraspofthegeneralthrustoftheauthors’arguments.Foryourconvenience,IwillplaceacopyofAmericanApartheidonreserveatthecirculationdeskinthelibrary.

Tofacilitatecross-referencingthestatuteswhilereadinganddiscussingcases,IstronglysuggestyoukeepahardcopyoftheStatutorySupplementhandywhileyoudotheassignedreading.YoushouldbringtheStatutorySupplementtoeveryclassalongwithahardcopyofanymaterialsassignedforthatday.

ClassMeetingTimes:Myexperiencestronglysuggeststhateighty-minuteclassespushatthelimitsofmanystudents’attentionspansandbladders.Thus,we’lltakeaten-minutebreakeachclassabout8:30.Toaccommodatethebreak,beginningonThursdayAugust25,wewillstartclassat7:50a.m.(You’llgetthebreakforfreeforthefirstthreeclassmeetings).

OfficeHoursandOtherOut-of-ClassContact:MyfallsemesterofficehourswillbeTuesdayandWednesdaymorningsfrom10:00a.m.tonoon(inmyoffice)orbyappointment.Youcansetupappointmentswithmeinpersonorbyore-mail<mfajer@>.Myassistantdoesnotkeepmycalendar,sopleaseonlytrytoscheduleappointmentswithmedirectly.

Feelfreetostopbymyoffice(LawLibraryRoom280)withoutanappointment.IfI’mfree,I’llbehappytotalktoyou;otherwiseI’llmakeanappointmentforalatertime.NotethatIalsoteachMonday&Wednesdayfrom7:50-9:20a.m.andIamlikelytobepreparingforclassbefore7:50ameveryday,sothesearenotoptimaltimestostopbyabsentacrisis.

Ifyouhavequestionsaboutthecourseoraboutlawschoolgenerally,e-mailisagoodwaytocommunicate.Icheckmymessagesatleastdailyduringtheworkweek,andIamlikelytorespondassoonasIgetthemessage.IfIthinkaquestionyouaskisworthsharingwiththeclass,Imaycopyyourquestionandmyanswerandcirculatethemtoeveryone,deletingyournameandotherreferencestoyou.

IntheClassroom

Courtesy:ThisisasmallclassandIintendtorunitfairlyinformally.However,pleasetrynottomakenoisewhenI’mlecturingorwhenotherstudentsaretalking.Beforecomingtoclass,turnoffcellularphones.Ifyouusealaptopcomputerinclass,turnthesoundoff.Inaddition,asacourtesytomeandyourfellowstudents,pleasetrytobeseatedandreadytostartwhentheclassisscheduledtobeginandagainattheendofthebreak.

FreeSpeechandResponsibility.Thematerialwearegoingtocoverincludessomeverycontroversialandimportantcases.Wewilldiscussrace,sex,religionandpolitics,andtheclassmaygetabitheatedupattimes.Itisincrediblyimportantthatwebeabletoexploreallpossiblepointsofviewontheseissues,soIwantyoutofeelfreetoraiseanysubstantivepointarguablyrelatedtothediscussion(whetherornotyouyourselfbelieveitstronglyoratall).Ifyouthinkapointoughttobeonthetable,butareunsurehowotherswillreacttoit,feelfreetoraiseitinthethirdperson:“Butsomepeoplemightbelieve”or“Howdowerespondifsomeonesays?”

Withfreespeechcomesresponsibility.I'dlikeyoutoberesponsibletoyourfellowclassmatesforkeepingdiscussionscourteous.Pleasetrytoremembertoattackpeople'spositionsratherthantheirpersons.Pleasetrytothinkcarefullyaboutwhatyouintendtosay,evenifyouareangry.Overbroadgeneralizationscaninadvertentlyhurtothers,andarenotparticularlygoodexamplesoflawyeringanyway.Animportantroleoflawyersinoursocietyistofacilitaterationaldiscussionsofcontroversialissuesandtohelpallowpeoplewhopassionatelydisagreetoco-existpeacefully.Thiscoursecanbeaworkshopforpracticingthatrole.

DiscussionQuestions,ReadingAssignments&Attendance:StartinginPartCofUnitI,aftereachcaseorsetofcasesinthecoursematerials,Iwillincludeasetof“DiscussionQuestions.”Thesequestionswillbetheprimaryfocusofourclasstime.EachtimeIpostnewcoursematerials,IwillpostanupdatedassignmentsheetonthecoursepagethatwillincludearoughscheduleforeachclassofwhatmaterialsyouneedtoreadandoftheDiscussionQuestionswewillcover.Youwillgetthemostoutoftheclassifyoutotrytoanswerthequestionsthoroughlybeforetheclassinwhichwediscussthem.IfIaskyoutomakealist,reallymakethelist.IfIaskforargumentsaboutaparticulartopic,trytoformulateargumentsfromatleasttwodifferentperspectives.Intheend,mostofyouwilllearnbestifyouworkthroughthequestionsfairlythoroughlybyyourselves,thenrefineyouranswersaftertheclassdiscussion.WewillnotspendclasstimeoneveryDiscussionQuestion,butyoushouldfindthatthoroughpreparationofallofthemwillpayoffinunderstandingthematerialandthethemesofthecourse.

Iexpectallofyoutobefullypreparedforthefirstfourclasses.Afterthat,Iwilldivideuptheassignedmaterialandmaketwotofourstudentsprimarilyresponsibleforeachsegment.Yourassignmentsheetswillindicatewhichstudentsareon-callforwhichmaterial.Duringclass,anyoneisfreetovolunteertoparticipatewhetherornottheyareoncall,butIgenerallywillstartthediscussionofassignedmaterialbycallingonthepeoplewhoarelisted.Notethatyouareoncallformaterial,notforaparticulartimeslot.Thus,ifthediscussionofacaseattheendofaclasscontinuesuntilthenextmeeting,sotoodoesyourresponsibility.Afewofthediscussionquestionsontheassignmentsheetswillbelistedas“ALL.”Allofyoushouldpreparethosequestionsasthoughyouwereoncall.Ifyouareunpreparedmorethanoncewhencalledonformaterialyouwerespecificallyassigned,thatwillloweryourparticipationgrade.

Whenyouareoncall,bepreparedtodiscussyourassignedmaterialcarefully.Ifyouhaveprimaryresponsibilityforacase,makesureyouarefamiliarwiththeimportantfacts,theholding(s),andtheprimaryrationale(s).Ifyouareassigneddiscussionquestions,don’tmerelyskimthem;bepreparedtodiscusstheminsomedepth.Inaddition,ifIaskyoutorespondtooneoftheDiscussionQuestions,Iexpectyoutobereadywithananswerortobeabletofinditveryquicklyinyournotesoronyourlaptop.Pleasedon’tkeepuswaitingwhileyoufumblethroughyournotesorscrollthroughseveralscreens.

Lifedoesnotalwayspermityoutobeaspreparedasyou’dlike.IfIcallonyouandyouhavenotdonethereading,pleasesayso.IwilltrytogiveyouquestionsyoucananswerregardlessorIwillasksomeonetofillyouinandthenaskyouquestions.Iwon’tletyouoffthehook,butIwilltrynottoembarrassyoumorethanyouwillbealready.Ifyouareon-callandhaven’tdonethereading,showupanyway.IfIintendtocallonyouandyouaremissingwithoutexcuse,Iwilltreatitasbeingunpreparedwhencalledon.However,ifyouknowyouwillnotbeabletoattendasessionwhenyouarescheduledtobeoncall,letmeknowinadvanceifpossible,andI’llmakeappropriateadjustments.

IunderstandthatyourlivesarecomplicatedandIwilltrytohelpwhereIcan.Iwillnottakeattendance(beyondthepanelsystem)andIwillnotmonitorwhetheryouaredoingthereadingwhenyouarenotoncall.Inreturn,Iexpectyoutoapproachtheclassresponsibly.Thepurposeoftheclassistotrytodevelopandimproveimportantlawyeringskills.Youobviouslywilllearnmoreifyoudothereadingandshowupthanifyoudon’t.Andthemoreofyouthatregularlypreparecarefully,themoreweallwillgetoutoftheclass.Ontheotherhand,don’tskipclassmerelybecauseyoufallbehindinthereading.Youarelikelytogetevenmorelostifyoumisstheclassdiscussionaswell.Ioftenuseclasstimetotrytoputmaterialincontextandtomakeconnectionsbetweendifferentpartsofthecourse.

Evaluation

GradingContract&Components:Therewillbethreegradedcomponentsofthecourse:aTake-HomeFinalExam;ShortWrittenAssignments;andClassParticipation.Eachoftheseisdescribedinmoredetailbelow.Youwillbeallowedtodecide(withintherangeslisted)whatpercentageofyourgradewillbeattributedtoeachcomponent.Oncewegetpasttheadd/dropdeadline,youwillfillouta“gradingcontract,”settingthevaluesforeachcomponent.

Forexample,ifyouonlyhaveoneortwootherexams,youdon’tlovetalkinginclass,andyouanticipatehavingalotofworkduringthesemester,youcouldput80%ofyourgradeonthefinalandjust10%eachontheassignmentsandparticipation.Ontheotherhand,ifyouhavefourotherexams,butnotalotofmajorprojectsduringthesemester,youcouldassignjust40%ofyourgradetothefinalexamandtake30%eachontheassignmentsandparticipation.

FinalExam(40-80%ofGrade).Thiswillbeathree-questiontake-homeexamavailabletoyoufortheentireexamperiod.Onequestionwillbeatraditionalissue-spotter,onewillaskyoutowriteajudicialopinionandashorterdissentonanarrowissue,andthethirdwillaskyoutocritiqueadraftofastatutefrombothatechnicalandasubstantivestandpoint.Youwillbeallowedsixpagesperanswer(usingspecifiedformatting).Laterinthesemester,Iwillpostpastexamquestions,alongwithmodelanswersandmycommentsonthestudents’collectiveworkonthequestion.

ShortWrittenAssignments(10-40%ofGrade):Thesewillberelativelyshort(7pagesorless)typeddouble-spacedsubmissions.Therewillbefivedifferentassignments,allofwhichyoumustcompletetoavoidsubstantialpenalties.Eachassignmentwillbepostedonthecoursepageassoonaswehavecompletedtherelevantin-classmaterials.

Youmaydoeachoftheassignmentsbyyourselforingroupsoftwoorthreestudents,butyoumaynotworkwithanyparticularstudentmorethanonce.Iwillseparatelyprovideyouwithdetailedinstructionsforformattingtheassignments.Tohelpyouplan,hereisaroughtentativeschedulefortheassignments:

AssignmentI:Writethreeshortfocusedessaysdiscussingmaterialsonpeoplewithdisabilitiesandproblemstheymightencounterinthehousingmarket.In-ClassCoverageComplete:TuesdayAugust23;DueWednesdaySeptember7.

AssignmentII:Compileanannotatedlistofthekindsofevidenceusedinsomeassignedcasestoproveordisproveintenttodiscriminate.In-ClassCoverageComplete:TuesdaySeptember13;DueMondaySeptember26.

AssignmentIII:Draftarevision/additiontoastateanti-discriminationstatutetoclarifythedefinitionof“maritalstatus”andcreateadefenseforcertainkindsofreligiousobjectionstounmarriedcohabitation.In-ClassCoverageComplete:ThursdaySeptember22;DueMondayOctober17.

AssignmentIV:Actingaslegalcounselforahousingdevelopment,identifypotentiallegalproblemswithanadvertisementandmakesuggestionstolimitliabilitywhileretainingtheclient’smarketingstrategy.In-ClassCoverageComplete:ThursdayOctober6;DueMondayOctober31.

AssignmentV:Providediscussionsofthreeshortexam-typeproblemsrelatedtointegrationmaintenance.In-ClassCoverageComplete:ThursdayNovember3;DueWednesdayNovember16.

Yourassignmentswillbesubmittedtomyassistantviae-mailandyouwillusepseudonymssoIcangradethemblind.Iwillacceptassignmentsuptoaweekaftertheduedate,butwilltakeoffpointsforlatenessabsentanemergencyAssoonasIcan,Iwillreturnyourassignmentstoyouwithwrittencomments.

Byoneweekaftertheduedate,Iwillpostcomments(oftenbasedatleastpartlyonpriorstudents’submissions)explainingwhatIwaslookingforandaddressingcommonmistakes.Ialsowillpostsomegoodanswersfromearlierclasses.Youcanusethisinformationtoevaluateyourownwork.AfterIreturnyoursubmissions,ImaypostadditionalcommentsImayhavealongwithanyparticularlygoodanswersfromyourclass.

ClassParticipation(10-30%ofGrade):Becausethisissuchasmallclass,participationisrequiredandmustmakeupatleast10%ofyourgrade.Indeterminingyourscoreforparticipation,Iwilltrytorewardcarefulpreparationofdiscussionquestions,thoughtfulengagementwiththematerialandwiththeideasofothers,andbringingotherwiseabsentperspectivestodiscussions(whetherornotthepositionstakenrepresentthestudent’sownopinion).Ialsowillrewardhelpfulfeedbackonthematerials.Exceptforthisfeedback,yourscorewillbebasedonlyoncontributionsinclass,notonoutofclasscommentsorongoodattendance(althoughpoorattendancewilltendtolowerthescorebecauseitmeansyoucumulativelycontributelesstoclassdiscussions).

Conclusion:

Thisismyfavoriteclasstoteach.Ihavecreatedthestructureforthecourseandchosenandeditedthematerialsmyself.Thecourseisfullofhardandinterestingquestionsthatwillforceyoutothinkaboutthemeaningofdiversity,housingpolicy,theroleofjudgesinterpretingstatutes,andtheroleoflawyersinsociety.Ilookforwardtoexploringthemwithyou.

C.INFORMATIONABOUTTHEINSTRUCTOR

EDUCATION A.B.History1982,J.D.1985,StanfordUniversity

EMPLOYMENT UniversityofMiamiSchoolofLaw

ProfessorofLaw(6/94-present)

AssociateProfessorofLaw(6/88-5/94)

SantaClaraUniversity,SantaClara,California

VisitingProfessorofLaw(8/02-5/03)

UniversityofPennsylvania,Philadelphia,Pennsylvania

VisitingProfessorofLaw(8/99-5/00)

CornellUniversity,Ithaca,NewYork

VisitingProfessorofLaw(8/95-5/96)

Heller,Ehrman,White&McAuliffe,Seattle,Washington

AssociateAttorney(9/86-4/88)

U.S.NinthCircuitCourtofAppeals,Seattle,Washington

LawClerkforHon.BettyBinnsFletcher(8/85-9/86)

BARADMISSIONS California(1985);Washington(1987);Florida(Associate1997)

DOGS Simon(4)&Teddy(2)

HONORSANDAWARDS

UniversityofMiamiFacultySenateOutstandingTeachingAward(2004)

HauslerGoldenAppleAward(Teaching/ServicetoStudents)(1991,2002) (alsonominated1995,1998,1999,2001,2010)

OutstandingAdvocateAward,GayandLesbianLawyersAss’nofSouthFlorida(1995)

LAWSCHOOLTEACHING

Antitrust(upper-levelcourse1989-92,1994,1997,1999-2000,2002,2004,2007-08)

ConstitutionalLaw(upperlevelcourse1994,1998,2000-01,2003;

firstyearcourse1995)

ElementsofLaw(firstyearcourse1994,1996-98,2000-01,2003,2005-09)

FairHousing(mini-courseforLL.M.candidatesinRealEstate1996-97)

GalileoProject(upperlevelelective2012)

HousingDiscrimination(firstyearelective1995,1998,2002,2005,2008,2011-12;

seminar1996-97;upperlevelelective1996-97,2000,2002,2006,2008-11)

IdentityPoliticsandLaw(seminar1993,1995)

Property(introductorycourse:1988-93,1996,1998-99,2001-03,2005,2007,2010)

Religion&AntidiscriminationLawWorkshop(upperlevel