Through silly parodies of Star Wars themes, hypothetical questions and fun, interactive discussions, students will learn common legal concepts and vocabulary like contract, liability, mens rea, prima facie, cause of action, etc., that will spark the beginnings of an education in law. Everyone should learn these skills as life navigation tools! This class also allows learners to apply legal analysis while thinking on their feet.

Star Wars themed virtual backgrounds, cosplay, and products are welcomed but not required and each class will begin with a brief sharing time if the learner would like to share something related to Star Wars. 

Class Outline

Day 1:  Civil Law

Students will be provided with a scenerio involving a defective light saber. Students will then identify conflicts and legal issues that might cause the characters to wind up in court. For instance, should a Stormtrooper be compensated for the defect? A discussion of legal vocabulary and concepts will explore the role of plaintiff and defense lawyers, judge, jury, cause of actions, damages, and other legal terms as they arise from the discussion. At the end of the lesson will be a moot court where each student will act as a lawyer choosing to defend or prosecute a character of their choice on one of the legal issues identified. There will be no winner of the moot court, but rather a student reflection on the different perspectives of a case. 

Day 2: Criminal Law

Using the same model from Week 1, students will explore legal issues presented when top galactic crime slug Jabba is put on trial for spearheading a spice smuggling ring. Legal concepts such as mens rea, cross-examination, indictment, evidence, trial, will be discussed. 

Day 3: Constitutional Law

Using the same model from Weeks 1 & 2,  students will look at First Amendment issues presented when the Star Wars Universe’s major media outlet HoloNet publishes a hologram depicting Darth Vader as an empty suit. An introduction to the First Amendment and concepts such as due process will be discussed.