The U.S. Supreme Court: Conflict, Change and the Court

Immigration. LGBT rights. Healthcare. Abortion. The death penalty. Cell phone privacy. The U.S. Supreme Court has decided cases on all of these topics in recent years, and its decisions ultimately touch the lives of all Americans. In this class we will study the Supreme Court's place in the U.S. legal system. Topics we will cover include: how a case gets to the court, the justices, the role of lawyers before the court, the purpose of oral argument, the court building and its symbolism, and media coverage of the court.

 

In addition, students will listen to the arguments in current Supreme Court cases and spend class time discussing them. In papers, students will be asked to rigorously explain why the justices likely took those cases and how they will come out based on what they hear at oral argument. This class is geared not only toward anyone who is interested in the law or government service but also toward anyone interested in working on or being informed about the biggest issues of the day.                                                                                         

Hi, I’m Jessica Gresko and for almost 20 years I have worked as a reporter, editor and manager for The Associated Press, first in Miami and now in Washington. I was a legal reporter for more than a decade and covered the

Supreme Court for six years. My time covering the court was a time of great change and consequence and I look forward to talking about that with you. I earned my B.A. in history and political science from Columbia University in New York and a M.S.L. (Master’s in the Study of Law) from Georgetown University Law School. I grew up in Southern California and took my first journalism class at UCLA. I have taught at UCDC since 2014.