Course Descriptions
MEML 1010 (1 credits) - Seminar for the Study of Employment Law I: Foundations of Employment Law
This course is a two day course on campus to introduce employment law. Students will learn the difference between federal, state and local legislation and what laws/regulation take precedent, the basics of the American court system, legal research and an introduction to topics including hiring, promotion and termination, equal opportunity in employment, workplace security and privacy, occupational health and safety concerns, compensation and benefits, immigration, and labor-management relations.MEML 1020 (3 credits) - Legal Research Methods and Reasoning
This course will focus on legal research methodology and application of electronic research methods. Students will develop an understanding of legal precedents and the use of persuasive legal authority in the construction of legal arguments. Students will develop electronic research skills through hands-on application of appropriate legal research techniques. Students will be instructed on the use and importance of legal citations and how to identify legal authority based on citation method.Prerequisite for all courses in M.S. Emp.L. except 1010 & 1030.
MEML 1030 (2 credits) - Technology and Privacy Concerns in the Workplace
This course will examine the limits on privacy in the employment setting and privacy issues related to an employee's behavior inside and outside the workplace. Specifically, the course will examine the legal limits on monitoring an employee’s email, computer usage, and outside activities. The course will also examine the legal limits on drug testing employees and checking an employee’s criminal, credit, and medical background. Students will develop an understanding of the legal, economic, and social benefits and risks of violating an employee’s privacy.MEML 1040 (2 credits) - Overview of Federal Employment Law Statutes and Regulations
This course provides the students with an introduction to Federal legislation and administrative regulations in the field of employment. Topics include Title VII, ADA, ADEA, FMLA, OSHA, ERISA, and FLSA.MEML 1050 (2 credits) - Survey of Contract Law in Employee Relations
This course provides a detailed introduction to the legal principles and major concepts of contract law focusing on the construction and breach of contractual obligations. Students will study the necessary elements by law to create and terminate a contractual relationship. The course will emphasize the typical contract issues related to employment law, including terms of employment, covenants not to compete, and other restrictive covenants.MEML 1060 (2 credits) - Survey of Tort Law in Employee Relations
This course provides a detailed introduction to the legal principles and major concepts of tort law, focusing on legal claims and disputes in the employment context. The course will discuss general tort liability for both the employee and employer, including tortious interference with contract, misappropriation of trade secrets, and other business torts as well as agency theory of liability.MEML 1070 (2 credits) - Administrative Law and Employment
This course explores the role of administrative law in labor and employment. Students will review the sources of law for employers and management. In doing so, they will chart the overlapping and sometimes conflicting roles of federal and state legal regulation and study the implications and effects of the various types of laws that govern employment: administrative agency regulations, constitutional provisions, statutes, and court decisions.MEML 1080 (2 credits) - Employment Discrimination
This course will focus on the various laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, with a focus on federal statutes and regulations. Topics include Title VII, ADA, ADEA, and the FMLA. The students will also learn about how complaints are filed and investigated by the EEOC, with a detailed discussion on how the employer is required to respond to these complaints.MEML 1090 (2 credits) - Developing and Maintaining Employment Policies and Handbooks
This course provides an understanding of how the laws and regulations impact the employment policies of a business, and how human resource professionals can find information regarding the formation of employment policies. Students will research and examine different employment policies, and ultimately draft an employment policy for their employers or business.MEML 2000 (1 credits) - Seminar for the Study of Employment Law II
This course is a two-day, on-campus seminar during which students will be introduced to advanced legal research techniques and attend classes and presentations on specialized topics building on their first year of coursework. Students will be expected to confer with faculty advisors regarding their Capstone Research Projects. Students must present their Capstone Research Project ideas to a group of their peers, incoming students, various faculty members, and practitioners in the field. Such presentations will offer opportunities for further development of their ideas and refinement of their project plans.MEML 2010 (2 credits) - Occupational Safety and Health
This course provides an overview of the regulations dictated by the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA). The course is designed to cover the basic standards for recording and reporting of safety issues in the workplace and the ways that employees must be informed of their rights regarding the safety and health of the workplace.MEML 2020 (2 credits) - Employee Benefits
This course provides an overview of the basics of employee benefit law. The course is designed to cover the relevant provisions of ERISA, including how plans are to be administered, how to avoid conflicts of interests, and how to comply with all regulatory limitations. It will also address how benefits plans can and must be transferred after an employee leaves the business, with a focus on COBRA and HIPAA.MEML 2030 (2 credits) - Preventing Workplace Harassment
This course will discuss Title VII anti-discrimination law and how courts attribute liability for harassment to employers. The course will focus on regulations, strategies, policies and procedures that are designed to prevent harassment or limit the liability of an employer for an employee’s or customer’s harassing conduct.MEML 2040 (2 credits) - Hiring, Firing, Promoting and Evaluating Employees
This course will detail the laws that regulate how employees should be hired, fired, promoted, disciplined and evaluated. The course will explore the steps an employer should take to avoid allegations of discrimination during the hiring, firing or disciplinary process.MEML 2050 (2 credits) - Immigration and Naturalization Concerns in Employment
The course is designed to introduce students to the complex area of immigration and nationality law relating to employment. The course will focus on the Immigration and Reform and Control Act, as amended by the Immigration and Nationality Act. Students will learn about steps employers should take to comply with nationality verification laws, and which persons may or may not work for U.S. businesses.MEML 2060 (2 credits) - Law Regulating Wages and Hours
This course will explore the federal wage and hours standards regulated under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The course will focus on which employees are covered by the law and the minimal standards regarding wages, overtime pay and child labor.MEML 2070 (2 credits) - Labor Law: Laws Regulating Unions and Management
The course will introduce students to basic labor law principles. It will focus on how a collective bargaining unit can be established, what constitutes an unfair labor practice, and the rules regulating the collective bargaining process. Students will learn some of the basic rules employers must follow when employees are trying to start a union, what they must do when a union has been established, and what is required to bargain in good faith.MEML 2080 (2 credits) - The Intersection of Employment Law and Federal Contract Regulation
This course provides an overview of the federal employment laws that regulate businesses that have federal contracts. It will focus on how to comply with the different laws regarding employment issues: including wages, safety, hours, age of employees, and anti-discrimination.MEML 2090 (2 credits) - Dealing with Whistleblowers and Preventing Retaliation
This course will discuss the law regarding the protection of employees who report violations of an employer or claim discrimination in the workplace. The course will detail the whistleblower protections allowed under federal law, and the potential liability for retaliating against an employee who seeks redress for discrimination.MEML 3000 (2 credits) - Remedies in Employment Law
This course will focus on remedies available in employment law, including federal and state litigation, jurisdiction, dispute resolution, and mediation. Special topics will include the limits of remedies in certain areas of employment law, administrative remedies and requirements, compensatory and punitive damages, and attorney's fees.MEML 3010 (2 credits) - Alternative Dispute Resolution
This course will be a skill-based course merging legal issues in employment with practical skills of negotiation and dispute resolution. Students will be paired together to work through hypothetical situations that require cooperative efforts to reach common ground on divisive issues. Students will provide reflective analysis on the challenges encountered in their exercises and provide written feedback to the instructor on insights gained through the negotiation process.MEML 3020 (6 credits) - Individual Research Project Seminar
Part 1 (3 credits)This is the capstone course for the M.S. Employment Law program. In the foundation phase of the student’s individual research project (IRP), each student will identify a final research thesis that they will then develop over the course of the next two semesters. Students select and hone their individual research topics with direct collaboration of their faculty advisor and expert consultant. Successful completion of this component of the IRP course requires: timely completion of the IRP topic summary, the IRP topic outline (at least 5 pages in length), timely submission of all discussion board topics, timely completion of all quiz assignments, participation in scheduled live classroom discussions, and submission of the first rough draft (at least 20 pages in length).
Part 2 (3 credits)
In the second phase of the capstone course for the M.S. Employment Law Program, students continue to build on the foundation of their research and writing. Students continue to work with their faculty director, expert consultant, and student colleagues. Students will receive comprehensive feedback on their rough draft. Students will incorporate suggested changes and continue to develop their individual research projects. Successful completion of the course requires timely submission of a final written IRP product of publishable quality and an oral presentation on the research thesis by the student to classmates, faculty, and industry consultants during the residential institute. Students must complete all coursework for Part 1 of the IRP course with a passing grade as a prerequisite for Part 2 of this course.