YORK UNIVERSITY

THE SOCIOLOGY OF LAW

AP/PPAS 4070 6.0 B
Fall/Winter 2018 - 2019

Seminar: Wednesday, 4:00pm – 7:00pm

Location:
Vanier College 108, FALL Term
McLaughlin College 049, WINTER Term

Course Director: Dr. Naomi Couto – [email protected]

Office: 132 McLaughlin College (x: 22278)
Office Hours: Wednesdays and Thursdays By Appointment.

Course Description:
This seminar examines social institutions and ideologies of law. The foundations and
practices of law are studied in reference to the influences of capitalism, liberalism and
modernity. Informed by classical and contemporary perspectives, this course examines
the relationship between law and society.

Selected important figures and topics, e.g. Weber, Marx, Durkheim, Rawls, Smart, and
MacKinnon contribute to an understanding about the nature of law itself, about legal
responsibility and legal punishment, and about standards of fairness in settling legal
disputes. This course aims at a critical understanding of the world around us by
considering legal institutions as a product of actions and interactions of both specialists
and ordinary citizens. Additionally, it examines the role of the law as a potential vehicle
and agent of change. It gives a practical sociological introduction to the professional
study of law.

Learning Objectives:
1. Become informed about the progressive advancement of socio-legal theory.
2. Learn to analyze the law as a social phenomenon.
3. Develop a critical mode of thinking about issues relevant to the relationship
between law and society.

Reading List:

Required:
Treviño, A. Javier. The Sociology of Law: classical and contemporary perspectives.
Routledge: Taylor & Francis Group. London and New York, 2017.
**York Bookstore has hard-copies or you may select to purchase the text on line:
VitalSource.com

Strongly Recommended:
Donald Black, The Behaviour of Law.

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Catharine A. MacKinnon, Butterfly Politics.
Carol Smart, Feminism and the Power of Law.
Kerry Wilkins, Essentials of Canadian Aboriginal Law.
**Text will be complemented by Lecture material drawing on historical and
contemporary sources in order to further develop the readings assigned.

Note: students are also responsible for any in-class visual/DVD material.

Grading Breakdown:
1)Test # 1 – written in class November 28, 2018 (from 4:00-6:00pm) – 30%
2)Group Presentation (30-45 minutes) – 20%
3)Final Test – written in class March 20, 2019 (from 4:00-5:30pm) – 20%
4)Major Essay – due in My Office March 27, 2019 (from 4:00-5:00pm) OR if emailed
you must keep my “confirmation receipt of your email/attachment” or I never got it. –
30%
NOTE: Any essay arriving after 5pm will be considered late.

**It is important that students complete the required readings for each class in
order to fully engage in the seminar experience. Note that it is the responsibility of
each student to arrive prepared and ready for group discussions.

READING & WRITING SCHEDULE:

SEPTEMBER
Text: Javier Treviño’s, The Sociology of Law

5: Course Introduction, Chapter 1: The Sociology of Law

12: Chapter 1, The Sociology of Law continued & Chapter 2, Foundational Works on
Law and Society
19: Chapter 2 continued
26: Chapter 2 continued & Chapter 3, The Sociological Movement in Law

OCTOBER
3: Chapter 3 continued
10: Fall READING WEEK, No Class
17: Chapter 4, The Marxian Perspective
24: Chapter 4 continued
31: Chapter 4 continued, & Chapter 5, The Weberian Perspective

NOVEMBER
7: Chapter 5, The Weberian Perspective continued
14: Chapter 5 continued
21: Study Day, No Lecture/Presentations
28: In Class Test (30%), 4:00pm-6:00pm.

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 Enjoy Your Holidays!

JANUARY
9: Chapter 6, The Durkheimian Perspective
16: Chapter 6 continued
23: Chapter 7, Structural-Functionalism
30: Chapter 7 continued

FEBRUARY
6: Chapter 8, Conflict Theory
13: Chapter 8 continued
20: Winter READING WEEK, No Class
27: Chapter 9, Critical Legal Theories

MARCH
6: Chapter 9 continued
13: Study Day, no class
20: Final In-Class Test (20%), 4:00pm – 5:30pm

27: Major Essay Due (30%) (In My Office between 4:00pm – 5:00pm) OR if emailed
you must keep my “confirmation receipt of your email/attachment” or I never got it.
– 30%
NOTE: Any essay arriving after 5pm will be considered late.

Note: All/any late work due by this date at -2 marks per day!! Any work later than five
days will not be accepted.

Thank You and Enjoy Your Spring/Summer!

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 GROUP PRESENTATION

The oral presentation is an essential part of the course. Students will select a topic from the assigned
chapter reading for that date. Students will conduct the presentations in groups made up of 3 or 4 students
each.

Students are expected to research the topic and to access several sources for the presentation.

Students are strongly encouraged –but not obliged to- follow this format and structure. First, there should
be a brief (15 minutes or less) introduction to the topic. Students will be encouraged to choose a focus topic
and an angle (theoretical school) through which they can deal with the selected topic, i.e., they will be
expected to select an aspect of the problem, preferably a debatable, or topical one, and analyze it through
their own perspective and supported through academic work. Second, students should plan an activity or
thoughtful question(s) (30 minutes or less) so that those not presenting can actively participate. Activities
should be original, entertaining, and formative. They should principally let students apply the topic
presented to different situations. There should be a conclusion and time for questions or comments in that
time frame. Additionally, students will have to select an article –preferably one available electronically- a
web site, create notes or find another source of information for the rest of the students to read about the
topic. The selected source of information must treat the topic comprehensively.

 The oral presentation requires extensive preparation as a group. One of the most common mistakes
presenters make is dividing the work up and attempting to come together as a group once they present. This
does not work and hurts your overall delivery and of course, your overall grade.

Please note that your grade is a ‘Group Grade’. Do not approach me after the presentation has been
delivered with narratives on “who did what and who did not”. If you are having difficulties with a group
member, this must be resolved before you all present. If possible, I will find that person another group. If
this is not possible you risk getting 0% if you do not present with your assigned group. NOTE: there are
NO individual presentations or written work assigned to make up for not presenting with your group. I will
provide the presenters feedback and a group grade in writing in the following class.

Passing requirements and scale of evaluation: 

1.      Does the presentation deal with the assigned topic/chapter? Does the presentation show an
understanding of topic dealt with? Does the presentation show a clear, coherent, and comprehensive
treatment of the selected topic? Has the presentation followed the required formalities?

2.      Does the presentation integrate knowledge acquired throughout the course? Is there an effective and
original integration of knowledge acquired throughout the course?

3.      Is there a critical and original personal assessment of the topic presented?

4.      Does the presentation include an activity/questions for the audience? Is the activity original,
entertaining, and formative? Has the activity engaged the active participation of the audience or have the
students engaged the audience throughout the presentation? Does the activity permit students to apply the
concepts, theories or other issues dealt with in the presentation?

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5.      Have the students selected an adequate article, a web site or another source of information that
comprehensively deals with the topic of the presentation for the other students?

Essay Evaluation Criteria

Writing at the University Level:
These are things that you should be able to do competently in order to feel confident with
writing university essays.

 Introduction: a clearly expressed answer to the question(s) implied by the

assignment, set within an opening paragraph that gives your reader an overview
of your argument(s).

 Paragraphing: clear topic sentences linked to your overall argument; show of

development and readability; no one-sentence or one-page paragraphs.

 Grammar and Style: clarity and correctness; no colloquial language; no clichés;

no incomplete sentences.

Separating the Competent (C+) from the Good (B) from the Very Good (B+):
 Analytical content: comprehension and interpretation of course material (text and
lectures); thinking beyond mere summary or description.
 Development of argument: main and subordinate points supported by apt
illustration.

Rare Achievement: Excellent (A) and Outstanding (A+):

 Particular persuasiveness and depth of argument.
 Originality and inventiveness: exploring passages of the text not taken up in
tutorials, fresh ideas or synthesis; creative use of essay form and language.

Special Requirements:
What will distinguish a really good paper from a merely adequate one will be the
imaginative use of all the required readings and the lecture materials, and their skillful
integration into the design of your project. The readings and the points made in lecture
have been chosen both for the broad relevance of the substantive issues they deal with –
AND for the hints they provide about the challenges of doing social scientific research,
be they practical, methodological, epistemological or ethical ones. These things are not
always explicit, and those of you who read between the lines, who extrapolate from the
particular case being discussed and apply those insights to your own research problem,
will do well. Those who write their papers with no attention to the course readings and
lectures will do poorly. Yes, this paper may require additional readings, but the most
important ones are those you have been addressing every week during the course.

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 ARGUMENT AND EVIDENCE
A crucial distinction for you to bear in mind when writing essays at the university level is the
distinction between description and argument. While your work will probably always contain
some description, a successful essay in Sociological Theory (as well as in other courses) will
require that you make and defend an argument.

What is an argument? According to one useful definition, it is "a process whereby we

connect evidence in a reasoned, logical way in order to arrive at a conclusion." Its purpose is
to persuade. Even when an argument is essentially explanatory, it is also your task to
persuade the reader that what you are offering is a sound explanation.

Your first term essay must present just such a persuasive argument; it must not merely
describe the materials you have read. Your argument will be presented in its most concise
form in your thesis statement, and will be supported in the body of the essay by a selection of
the best evidence you can draw from course readings and lectures. Remember: PERSUADE
WITH EXAMPLES, NOT WITH OPINIONS.

The points you make in support of your argument are sometimes referred to as its premises.
These are the reasons you offer the reader for accepting your conclusion (thesis). Premises
are often set up with "cue words" such as since, because, given that, as illustrated by, and so
on. Conclusions, on the other hand, are often set up with words such as therefore,
consequently, thus, implies that, points to, and so on. While you need not use such cue
words, they let the reader know just which ideas you are connecting with which, and what
claims you are making with respect to logical connection. They also should remind you to be
cautious: when you say "therefore", you better be prepared to back it up!

In fact, you should be careful with all of your "logical connector" words: they are not just
'filler' with which you link sentences to keep your work from sounding too choppy. For
example, these connectors are useful when you want to amplify (enlarge) a point you have
already made: furthermore, in addition, moreover, indeed. Some connectors, on the other
hand, serve to qualify (restrict) a point: admittedly, granted, on the' other hand. Yet others
reassert your point after you have registered this qualification: nevertheless, even so, still.
Finally, while it is technically acceptable to use such connectors as obviously and of course,
they may imply greater assurance than is warranted by your beginner's knowledge of your
subject; while self-confidence is a good quality in the presentation of argument, arrogance is
not. Remember that what may be obvious to you may not be obvious to the reader (whom
you are, remember, trying to persuade).

One final consideration in these early stages of learning to mount an argument is the
anticipation of counter-arguments. If you spend some time thinking about just what points an

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opponent might raise in response to your claims, you can build a defense against them into
the presentation of your premises. Don't overuse this defensive strategy, but be aware that it
can sharpen your thinking, can save you from seemingly naive arguments, and can
sometimes ensure that you don't offer arguments you don't really believe in, since you might
talk yourself out of your first position in thus playing "devil's advocate".

Plagiarism:
Please refer to our course syllabus for the Senate Guidelines on Academic Honesty.
Papers must be your own work; borrowed, purchased or ghostwritten works are all
considered plagiarism. Moreover, all references to the exact words (direct quotation) or
the ideas (indirect quotation) of others must be fully acknowledged. The rule of thumb
for direct quotation is that if you use more than four words from any sources, you must
put them in quotation marks. (Be careful, by the way, to use the correct page references
in your footnotes. I often check them, and having to track down incorrect ones – however
innocently presented, will end up hurting your final grade).

NOTE:
For further details of York’s policy on plagiarism, see the Senate Policy on
Academic Honesty in York University’s Undergraduate Programmes calendar or on
the Website.

When All is Said and Done…

Hand in your work on time and in person to your tutorial leader. As I have mentioned,
there are no extensions given as assignments are handed out with ample time.

Always save your work in multiple formats for your own protection (photocopy, memory
key, hard drive, website etc…).

If, for whatever reason, you feel that you “need” a certain grade – to maintain your self-
respect, to impress friends, to keep your scholarship, or whatever – then by all means do
enough work ahead of time to earn that grade. You must “write your way” to a good
mark before you hand in your essay, not try to “talk your way” to a good mark after we
give you back your paper.
And don’t make excuses. We know that “the readings can be difficult”; we know that
you do not have unlimited time to do this paper; we know that for some of you English is
not your first language; all of this will be taken into account when we assess your work.
We are looking for the best possible result within those constraints – and those
constraints are not nearly so constraining as you may think they are.

Don’t’ panic. This is your attempt to write at the university level, and the assignment is
meant to help you acquire new skills and higher levels of confidence. You might bear in
mind Nietzsche’s words; “What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.”

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NOTE: ILLNESS ON DAY OF TESTS – GUIDELINES.
Sometimes students assume that if they are sick, they can miss the test/exam and a make-
up will be scheduled for them. THIS IS NOT TRUE. Students have no automatic rights
to make-up exam/tests. A make-up may be scheduled but only in quite exceptional
circumstances; otherwise students can appeal through the university appeals
procedures.

If you are too sick to make the test, you will need a detailed doctor’s note (go on line to
the Registrar’s Office page to download). This note must state why you were unable to
write the test on that day. A headache, stomachache or cold will not be sufficient
excuse.

If you miss a test/exam, please Email ([email protected]) or call my office (416 736-2100
x: 22278) and leave a message for me with the name of your tutorial leader (if
applicable). You should do this on the day of the exam/test. If you are too sick to phone,
have a friend phone.