Law 792:  Public Health Emergency Law

Effective management of public health emergencies involves the interplay among various legal frameworks and requires coordination of various legal authorities at the federal, state, and local levels. This course will demonstrate tools available and explore topics within public health emergency law via the lens of the COVID-19 pandemic. The course will begin with a historical foundation of law related to public emergencies generally and infectious disease outbreaks in particular; legal theory pertaining to fundamental and other rights in the context of emergencies; a consideration of potential lessons learned from the current pandemic; and discussions around possible law and policy changes in anticipation of future public health emergencies. The course will build upon students’ existing understanding of constitutional, administrative, and other areas of law, and utilize various reading materials to illustrate concepts discussed in class.

Sequence and Prerequisites:  There are no prerequisites for this course, although some familiarity with constitutional law and health law will benefit students.

Evaluation: To fulfill the requirements of the course, students will complete various in-class activities and engage in two presentations to the class.