2023 Global Field ​Study Courses

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Program Contact: Professor Charlotte Ku at cku@law.tamu.edu or globalprograms@law.tamu.edu

Field Course Application, Add, and Drop Deadlines

  • 2Ls
    • Priority application deadline will be Monday, November 15, 2022. Select a full load of classes and add the 0.5 credit to that load for the spring segment of the field course.
    • Final application deadline is January 17, 2023. If accepted, you will add the 0.5 credit course to your spring courses before January 23, the last day to add classes.
  • 1Ls:  Application deadline is January 17, 2023. If accepted, you will add the 0.5 credit course to your spring courses before January 23, the last day to add classes. 
  • Graduate Students:  Application deadline is Wednesday, January 18, 2023.
  • January 31 is the last day to drop classes should you change your mind.

► Watch this video to learn more about Global Law Field Study Courses :
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Attend the Global Law Field Study Info Session on October 27, 12 - 1 pm in the Lecture Hall

Course Requirements, Attendance, and Tuition & Fees Information:

  • Minimum GPA requirement to enroll: 3.0
  • Course registration finalized after mid-January
  • Participation in this program requires a passport. If you do not currently have a passport or your passport has less than 1 year validity at the time of your trip, you must show proof of application for a new passport. Keep in mind that passport processing can take up to 14 weeks so apply early if you intend to participate.

Tuition and Field Study Course Fees for 2023:

  • Spring 202​3:  Tuition for 0.5 credits
  • Fall 202​3: Tuition for 2.5 credits
  • Separate field course fee will be charged to your Fall 2023 account: $3,500 (to be confirmed 1/15/2023 to include air travel, ground transportation, lodging, and some meals). You will be responsible for the full course fee even if you fail to complete the course.
  • Tuition will be assessed at the same rate as for all other law school courses.
  • For information on financial aid for Global Law Field Courses, please check https://abroad.tamu.edu/Funding/Financial-Aid.

Attendance Information:

  • The field study portion of this class will take place according to the course-specific information sheet. The attendance rules of the law school will apply and there will be no “excused” absences from other courses in which you are enrolled.
  • You are required to attend all classes at the law school and in the course location in order to earn credit.

Course Structure and Credit Hours

Overall course structure follows. Students must complete all course elements to receive the full 3 credits.
  • Spring 2023:  0.5 credit preparatory course required of all Global Law Field Course students (March 31, 2023: 9 am to 1:30 pm and April 14, 2023: 9 am to 11:10 am)
  • Fall 2023:  2.5 credits including the two-week field course to Israel or to the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey on May 7 to 21, 2023 (dates subject to change and confirmation). Project development and completion: 6 hours to be completed prior to the end of October 2023 (times and dates to be determined).
  • Course total: 0.5 credit (Spring 2023) + 2.5 credits (Fall 2023) = 3 credits

2023 Field Course Locations, Faculty, and Themes

Israel:  Solar Power, Wastewater Treatment, and Agriculture

Faculty: The course and trip, organized by Texas A&M University School of Law, will be led by Gabriel Eckstein, Professor of Law and Director of the law school’s Energy, Environmental & Natural Resources System Law Program, and Nancy Welsh, Professor of Law and Director of the law school’s Aggie Dispute Resolution Program.

Course Description and Group Project: The Israel field study course will combine classroom and field experience in Israel to explore water and other environmental challenges and related dispute resolution issues in the region. The course will be structured around legal questions and concerns raised by a client-entrepreneur developing a product designed to assist individuals and small communities in Israel, and possibly Texas, conserve and recycle scarce water.  Responding to the entrepreneur’s questions will involve: comparative legal research in Israel, the Palestinian Territories, and Texas; interviewing Israeli and Palestinian officials, leaders and judges; and visiting sites in Israel and the Palestinian Territories relevant to water scarcity, environmental issues, and dispute resolution.

The Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey: Sovereignty and Microstates in the 21st Century

Faculty: The course and trip, organized by Texas A&M University School of Law, will be led by Mark Burge, Professor Law and Andrew Morriss, Professor, Bush School of Government and Public Policy and Professor of Law.

Course Description and Group Project:  Jersey and Guernsey are island possessions of the British Crown that are not part of the United Kingdom, maintaining separate sovereign legal systems that blend the Norman French civil law and English common law traditions, making them a fascinating study in comparative law. Alongside a diverse array of guest speakers, this course will consider the constitutional history, government structure, and business expertise of these English Channel microstates to understand how they successfully compete in the “law market” of regulatory competition to attract creative investment from all over the world. Topics touched on in the course may include green finance, non-traditional trusts and foundations, captive insurance and other risk transfer structures, and tax neutrality. Students will use the information to develop one or more proposals and pitch presentations aimed at U.S. lawyers and investors on the benefits and risks of using microstates as legal platforms for specialized investment and business activities


Check out our ​past field study courses:

 2019 Field Studies

  Cambodia Field Course students with monks Cambodia:
Art, Fashion, Food & Culture: Trade and Sustainable Development in Cambodia
Irene Calboli and Jeff Slattery
  Guernsey Field Course May2019 Channel Islands -- Jersey and Guernsey:
Sovereignty, Brexit, the European Union, and Financial Regulation
Charlotte Ku and Andy Morriss
  Mexico Global Engagement Grant May 2019 Mexico:
Mexican Reintegration Project, supported by a Global Engagement Grant
Luz Herrera, Huyen Pham, Angela Morrison, Guillermo Garcia Sanchez

► Read the full news article
 

eckstien-welshISRAEL:
Water, Energy, and Dispute Resolution

Gabriel Eckstein and Nancy Welsh

Israel-May9-Sorek-3-w
israel

 
The Israel field study focuses on regional disputes related to water and energy resource management.

Learn more.

Through on-site visits to various Israeli and Palestinian ministries, non-government organizations, and water and energy-related facilities, students explore water and energy procurement, development, and distribution in Israel and the Palestinian Territories, as well as associated environmental concerns. They also examine the challenges that resources scarcity, political instability, differing cultural norms, and other factors play in natural resources management and consider applicable domestic and international laws and dispute resolutions mechanisms.

“This field study will be a deep dive into the regulatory, political, and environmental issues at play,” Nancy Welsh, Aggie Dispute Resolution Program Director, said. “The current disputes over seawater desalination and its attending environmental impact are very timely, and will give our students insight into the nuances of dispute resolution in a different part of the world that cannot be replicated in the classroom.”

Details:
Combined classroom and field experience in Israel: explore the history, culture, and legal issues related to water, energy, and associated dispute resolution challenges; examine basics of international and comparative law, cross-cultural communication, and being a global professional.

This course includes a field study trip to Israel. Students will complete the Field Study Preparation for 0.5 credits as a Spring course with the Field Trip completed in May and the Field Study Debrief, Reflection Exercises, and Research Project completed during the Fall semester for an additional 2.5 credits.

Offered Spring 2018.

Randy Gordon and Guillermo GarciaSCOTLAND:
Natural Resource Management & Dispute Resolution

Randy Gordon and Guillermo Garcia

scotland-aberdeen-law Scotland Hall scotland-castle-360

 
The Scotland field study introduces students to the use of international commercial arbitration.

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Situated as it is along the North Sea, Aberdeen, and its ancient University, naturally evolved into an energy center. Our program takes advantage of the broad expertise--in terms of both scholarship and business--growing out of Aberdeen's extensive connections to the North Sea oil and gas fields. More broadly, we consider EU and International Law as they apply to energy, environmental, and climate change policy issues. And we give particular attention to dispute resolution in Scotland, the UK, and the EU, including arbitration. Finally, we take advantage of the Scottish location to learn about the history and evolution of Scots Law and the present mix of legal institutions.

“Arbitration has long played an important role in dispute resolution in Scotland and, as a result, Scotland has developed its own body of arbitration law,” said Executive Professor of Law Randy Gordon, who will lead the course. “As part of our field study in Aberdeen, we will examine the particulars of the Scottish arbitration scheme and how it fits within and diverges from the international commercial arbitration system.”

Details:
This course includes a field study trip to Scotland. Students will complete the Field Study Preparation for 0.5 credits as a Spring course with the Field Trip completed in May and the Field Study Debrief, Reflection Exercises, and Research Project completed during the Fall semester for an additional 2.5 credits.

Offered Spring 2018.

alkon_cynthia-charlotte-kuCAMBODIA:
Building The Rule of Law

Cynthia Alkon and Charlotte Ku 
EVP Sambo with Aggie Law group C-mondulkiri-dakdam-6756

 
Experience the basics of international and comparative law, cross cultural communication, and the challenges of developing rule of law.

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Students experience firsthand the challenges of developing rule of law in a post-conflict environment. Students examined how the history of conflicts and genocide have impacted the Cambodian legal system. Through hands-on experience, students investigate the issues of environmental law, land rights and labor arbitration affecting Cambodia today. Students also gain an understanding of being a global professional.

Details:
This course includes a field study trip to Cambodia. Students will complete the Field Study Preparation for 0.5 credits as a Spring course with the Field Trip completed in May and the Field Study Debrief, Reflection Exercises, and Research Project completed during the Fall semester for an additional 2.5 credits.

Offered Spring 2017.

morriss-andrew-william-magnusonJERSEY (Channel Islands):
Facilitating Trade

Andrew Morriss and William Magnuson 
Jersey Royal Court tour guide Jersey Finance Field Study article May-2017

 
Students explore firsthand the basics of international financial regulations and Jersey's specialized investment structures.

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Students travel to the island of Jersey in the Channel Islands to explore firsthand the basics of international and comparative law, cross cultural communication and being a global professional. As Jersey is a major international financial center, the students examine how businesses and investors make use of Jersey structures to invest in Great Britain, the European Union and the world. They gain an understanding of the British constitution, European Union financial regulation and the legal issues involved in wealth management.

Details:
This course includes a field study trip to Jersey. Students will complete the Field Study Preparation for 0.5 credits as a Spring course with the Field Trip completed in May and the Field Study Debrief, Reflection Exercises, and Research Project completed during the Fall semester for an additional 2.5 credits.

Offered Spring 2017.

AricShort-ThomasMitchellGHANA:
Land Use Conflicts and Access to Justice

Aric Short and Thomas W. Mitchell 
Taylor Winn with children in Ghana Ghana anti-corruption sign

 
Students examine the history, culture and legal issues affecting Ghana’s land use conflicts and access to justice.

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Applying international and comparative law concepts along with cross-cultural communication, the students meet with government officials, NGOs, judges, practicing lawyers & communities to understand the complexities of land use and ownership, including the interplay between customary and statutory law in Ghana.

Details:
This course includes a field study trip to Ghana. Students will complete the Field Study Preparation for 0.5 credits as a Spring course with the Field Trip completed in May and the Field Study Debrief, Reflection Exercises, and Research Project completed during the Fall semester for an additional 2.5 credits.

Offered Spring 2017.

 

Summer Program

alton_stephen140BORDERLANDS LAW:
Contemporary Legal Issues Relating to the U.S.-Mexico Border

Stephen Alton

tx-mex border sign sh_486345745 Laredo borderlands Law field trip

 
Travel to Laredo to investigate U.S.-Mexico border issues such as immigration, natural resources management, and trade and business.

Apply today!

Learn more.

The U.S.-Mexico borderlands have loomed large in the mythology of Texas. Come experience the power of the borderlands, as the myth collides with the reality of the 21st century in Texas A&M University School of Law’s collaborative summer program with Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) in Laredo, Texas. Laredo is the largest port of entry in Texas and is the third-largest port of entry in the United States. Laredo’s annual import-export trade topped $280 billion in 2015. Total trade back and forth across the U.S.-Mexico border amounts to almost $1.5 billion each day.

The Laredo program consists of two parts, totaling six credits over seven weeks. The first part is a two-credit, two-week course called “Borderlands Law,” which will be held on the Texas A&M International University (TAMIU) campus in Laredo and will include guest speakers and field trips. Six TAMIU students will participate in this class.

The second part of this summer program will be a five-week, four-credit externship placement in Laredo, immediately following the two-week Borderlands Law course. The externship will place students in a public interest setting or private law firm setting in Laredo.

Details:
Preference for enrollment in the Borderlands Law course and the associated Laredo externship will be given to those students who enroll in both courses (i.e., the Borderlands Law course and the Laredo externship).
Enrollment limited to six (6) law students.

Offered Summer 2016, Summer 2017, Summer 2018, and Summer 2019.

 

Spring Break Field Trip

burge_mark140CAYMAN ISLANDS:
Financial Regulation

Mark Burge

Learn more.

This course is a combined classroom and field experience in the Cayman Islands designed to provide a foundation for the examination of international business and tax strategies and related policy issues. The course will provide introductory knowledge and concepts to students, so that, as part of their legal practice, they will be able to assist clients in evaluating international business strategies. Students will study the various business goals that may motivate U.S. corporations to organize and utilize offshore business entities, and will examine the broader policy and legal issues related to the use of such entities. Most importantly, students will have the opportunity to meet and interact with professionals and policymakers from the Cayman Islands.

This course includes a field trip to the Cayman Islands during Spring Break. All three segments will be completed in the Spring semester for a total of 2 credits.

Offered Spring 2016.

 

Recent courses:

Global Rule of Law Development Seminar & Projects

Backstop clients around the world with research and information on specific law topics. In this capstone course, students work on projects for clients in a variety of countries, creating a written product ​for the requesting agency/organization. Through these projects students will improve their skills in rule of law assessment, research, and communication. Projects will focus on a specific legal question, process or institution and are expected to produce a written product that will be sent to the agency/organization that requested the research.