Campaign Finance Law

This course will involve an in-depth exploration of the various constitutional, statutory, regulatory and policy issues surrounding the regulation of the financing of political campaigns. Campaign finance issues and problems have been a staple of Supreme Court jurisprudence for almost fifty years and have come to the fore in recent years because of cases such as Citizens United. The topics covered in this course will include: the foundational principles governing the field, the regulation of contributions and expenditures, the role and regulation of outside groups and individuals, the role of disclosure and public financing of campaigns as possible, partial solutions to campaign finance problems, the special problems of financing judicial elections, the question of greater regulation of lobbyists and government contractors, the nature of state law campaign regulations and the ongoing search for solutions to the various principle and policy dilemmas that plague the area.

Grading and Method of evaluation:
Letter grade, final exam, pass/fail option. The grade in the course will be based on a final examination, but there will be a paper option which, with the permission of the instructor, may be used to satisfy the Upper Class Writing Requirement. The paper option cannot be taken pass/fail.
Enrollment Notes:
Students who have earned credit for Campaign Finance Law Seminar may not enroll in this course.