The University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law, in collaboration with two other U.S. law schools and the University of Silesia in Poland, has created an international educational program on U.S. law for Polish judges, lawyers, post-graduates, and advanced law students. 

Hosted at the University of Silesia, the School of U.S. Law teaches U.S. domestic law through a collaboration among Bowen, Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, and the University of Toledo College of Law.

“The University of Silesia is very pleased with the program. It is our hope that it will continue, and that we will see additional forms of collaboration,” said Sarah Jenkins, Charles Baum Distinguished Professor of Law at Bowen and the law school’s liaison with the University of Silesia.

Bowen led the design of the curriculum for the first school year, which started in October 2015 and ended in July. Bowen also negotiated and drafted the terms of the collaboration.

The 2015-16 curriculum included doctrinal and skills courses in preparation for a trial advocacy course. The first classes focused on specific areas of U.S. law, such as evidence, comparative civil procedure, contracts, and criminal law. In addition to trial skills, the Polish participants studied U.S. legal analysis, legal writing, and U.S. criminal law.

“The first group of students comprised a wide range of ages, personal and professional backgrounds, and previous international experiences,” said Associate Professor Jeff Woodmansee, who taught criminal law research in the program. “The students were interested in the substance of the class, but were equally curious about the U.S. legal education system and legal processes.”

In addition to Professor Woodmansee, Bowen Professor Lyn Entrikin and Professor Emeritus Ken Gould taught in the program.

The program is comprised of 10 sessions, which take place once a month over a weekend. Each session is led by a professor from one of the three U.S. law schools who is an experienced teacher in a particular area of U.S. law. All classes are conducted in English and are held in Katowice, Poland, the home of the Faculty of Law and Administration of the University of Silesia.

Priority enrollment is given to upper-level University of Silesia law students, law practitioners, and post-graduate students. If they attend nine out of 10 sessions, participants receive a certificate signed by the deans of the four law schools acknowledging their completion of the program. Recruitment is now underway for the 2016-17 school year.

In the upper right photo, the first class of the School of U.S. Law at the University of Silesia in Poland is shown.