WOMEN’S AND GENDER STUDIES 3300/ POLITICAL SCIENCE 3301
WOMEN AND THE LEGAL SYSTEM
M, W, F 10-10:50 AM
Ramaley N1B31
Spring 2008
Professor Anne Costain
Hazel Gates Cottage, Room 102
Hours: M 2:30 – 4:30 PM and Tr 9:30 to 10:30 AM
Phone: 303-492-3206
E-Mail: anne.costain@colorado.edu
This course presents both historic and contemporary perspectives on the way U.S. courts have handled issues
of sex and gender. Using the case method, it examines policy issues including: same sex marriage and civil unions;
privacy; affirmative action; reproductive technologies; abortion; and discrimination based on sex and sexual orientation
in education and the workplace.
As we begin to consider American gender law, questions about legal language, interpretation, and political
significance will arise along with the more substantive issues of inequality and fairness. During the first weeks of the
semester, along with our consideration of how women and men, gay and straight, are treated under the law, we will
look more generally at the role of the law in furthering or slowing social change. Within the context of American
national politics, courts play a special role in enforcing checks and balances among the executive, legislative and
judicial branches - stepping in when they believe that one of the branches is overstepping its constitutional role. Federal
courts also act aggressively when confronted with state laws that they believe conflict with federal or constitutional law.
Understanding the law and how it is formed gives us a firmer foundation to appreciate and critique legal interpretations
of laws applying to sex and gender.
Beyond examining the structure of legal decision-making, there is also a politics of judicial decisions that will
be very evident in the way courts approach sex and gender. To incorporate the political dimension, each of us is
responsible for tracking the debate within the presidential selection processes of the Republican and Democratic parties.
We should refer weekly to the web-sites of the active presidential candidates and to one or more major on-line
newspaper source (eg. New York Times; Chicago Tribune; LA Times; Atlanta Journal Constitution; Washington Post;
or Christian Science Monitor),to track candidate stances on sex and gender issues, including, but not limited to: same
sex marriage and civil unions; affirmative action; the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” rule in the military; abortion; nondiscrimination based on sexual orientation; educational equity; and equal pay for equal work.
By the end of the class, you will understand how legal precedents are established and contested in America as
well as the current state of our law on sex and gender.
Requirements
Since the course combines short lectures, guided discussions, and close legal questioning on cases, it is
essential that students complete assigned reading prior to attending class. There will also be opportunities throughout
the class to earn extra credit by signing up for periodic Friday updates on presidential candidate positions on issues of
sex and gender as well as occasional in-depth presentations on special cases now before the courts. [These opportunities
will be announced in class throughout the semester.] Since work in class represents one fifth of the total grade for the
semester, it is especially important not to fall behind.
There will be three examinations on course material, two exams of 50 minutes each and a cumulative final
examination held on Monday, May 5 starting at 4:30 PM. The distribution of points on which the course grade will be
based is as follows:
Class Participation
First Examination
Second Examination
Final Examination
20 points
20 points
25 points
35 points
Extra Credit Opportunities
up to 10 points
Important Information
Honor Code
Every student at the University of Colorado at Boulder is responsible for following the campus’s honor code (Code),
which can be read at http://www.colorado.edu/policies/honor.html. The Code seeks to uphold academic integrity by
forbidding cheating, plagiarism, academic dishonesty, bribery, threatening behavior, and dishonesty. Any suspected
violation of this policy will be reported to the Honor Code Council at honor@colorado.edu. If you have questions about
appropriate rules for citation and use of other researcher’s work, or other academic issues covered by the Code, you are
encouraged to discuss them with the instructor.
Requesting Accommodations
The campus office of Disability Services (www.colorado.edu/disabilityservices) is available to assist students who need
extra time to complete examinations or require other accommodations for disabling conditions. If you need such
consideration, please request that Disability Services notify the instructor in writing in a timely manner about your
needs.
Campus policy instructs faculty to make every effort to adjust course schedules and deadlines to accommodate religious
obligations. If scheduled examinations, assignments, or required attendance for this class conflict with religious
observances, please inform me during the first two weeks of the class and I will work hard to provide you with a
suitable alternative.
Nondiscrimination
Open dialogue and learning can only take place in an environment free from intimidation and harassment. If you
witness or experience discriminatory or harassing behavior at the University of Colorado, Boulder, please contact either
the Office of Discrimination and Harassment at 303-492-2127 or the Office of Judicial Affairs at 303-492-5550.
Information about what constitutes discrimination and/or harassment is provided at http://www.colorado.edu/odh.
Book to Purchase and Other Readings
The following book is required reading for this course. It can be purchased through the CU bookstore or the Colorado
Bookstore on the Hill:
Judith A. Baer and Leslie Friedman Goldstein, The Constitutional and Legal Rights of Women: Cases in Law and
Social Change, 3rd ed., Roxbury Publishing, 2006.
Additionally, the following web-sites provide very useful information on a variety of legal topics ranging from U.S.
Court procedures to specific Supreme Court cases:
www.uscourts.gov/links.html
www.oyez.org
www.lambdalegal.org
www.law.cornell.edu/supct/index.html
www.findlaw.com/casecode
Use them to supplement readings from your casebook.
These web-sites will keep you on top of the U.S presidential nomination process:
www.newyorktimes.com
www.chicagotribune.com
www.losangelestimes.com
www.ajc.com
www.washingtonpost.com
www.csmonitor.com
Googling the names of the active presidential candidates will get you to their web-sites, so you can track their positions
on topics of interest.
Course Outline
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I. INTERPRETING LAW AND UNDERSTANDING WOMEN’S LEGAL HISTORY IN AMERICA
January 14
Discussion of the course, adjudication, and the multiple meanings of sex and gender.
January 16
Read and be prepared to discuss the introductory chapter in The Constitutional and Legal Rights of
Women [afterwards referred to as Rights of Women]
January 18
Read chapter 1, pp. 11-23 in Rights of Women.
Cases: The Slaughterhouse Cases (1873)
Myra Bradwell v. State of Illinois (1873)
Minor v. Happersett (1875)
January 21
MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. holiday.
January 23, 25 Read chapter 1, pp. 23-45 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Lochner v. New York (1905)
Muller v. Oregon (1908)
Bunting v. Oregon (1917)
Adkins v. Children’s Hospital (1923)
U. S. v. Darby (1941)
January 28
Read chapter 1, pp. 46-57 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Goesaert v. Cleary (1948)
Hoyt v. Florida (1961)
January 30,
February 1
Read chapter 2, pp. 58-77 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Reed v. Reed (1971)
Frontiero v. Richardson (1972)
Kahn v. Shevin (1974)
Schlesinger v. Ballard (1975)
Weinberger v. Wiesenfeld (1975)
February 4
Read chapter 2, pp. 77-95 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Craig v. Boren (1976)
Michael M. v. Sonoma County (1981)
February 6
Read chapter 2, pp. 95-116 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Taylor v. Louisiana (1975)
J.E.B. v. Alabama (1994)
Rostker v. Goldberg (1981)
February 8
Read chapter 2, pp. 116-138 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Miller v. Albright (1998)
Tuan Anh Nguyen v. INS (2001)
Personnel Administrator v. Feeney (1979)
Pittsburgh Press v. Human Relations Commission (1973)
Hishon v. King and Spaulding (1984)
Roberts v. U.S. Jaycees (1984)
February 11
FIRST EXAM. PLEASE REMEMBER TO BRING BLUE BOOKS.
II.
GENDER AND FAMILY LAW
February 13, 15 Read on-line the entire opinion in Lawrence v. Texas 539 US 538 (2003) and be prepared to discuss it
in class. Monday we will discuss Justice Kennedy’s opinion for the court and Wednesday we will talk about the
concurring and dissenting opinions. Two easy places where you can locate the complete text of these opinions are:
www.findlaw.com/casecode or www.law.cornell.edu/supct/index.html .
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February 18
Read chapter 4, pp. 241-264 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Guardianship of Kowalski (1986, 1991)
Goodridge et al. v. Commisioner of Public Health (2003)
Lockyear v. City and County of San Francisco (2004)
February 20
Traditional Marriage. Read chapter 4, pp. 264-272 in Rights of Women.
Cases: U.S. v. Yazell (1966)
Stanton v. Stanton (1975)
Orr v. Orr (1979)
Kirschberg v. Feenstra (1981)
February 22
Traditional Family. Read chapter 4, pp. 272-282 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Tinker v. Colwell (1904)
McGuire v. McGuire (1953)
Borelli v. Brousseau (1993)
February 25
Child Custody. Read chapter 4, pp. 282-297 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Long v. Long (1955)
Salk v. Salk (1975)
Palmore v. Sidoti (1984)
Louis A. Bunim v. Ethel Bunim (1949)
Jacqueline Jarrett v. Walter Jarrett (1979)
David M. v. Margaret M. (1989)
Linda Tetreault v. Mark Tetreault (2002)
Culbertson v. Culbertson (2001)
February 27, 29 Fathers. Read chapter 4, pp.297-328 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Stanley v. Illinois (1972)
Fiallo v. Bell (1977)
Quilloin v. Walcott (1978)
Caban v. Mohammed (1979)
Parham v. Hughes (1979)
Lehr v. Robertson (1983)
Michael H. v. Gerald D. (1989)
III. REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM
March 3
Read chapter 5, pp. 343-367 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Buck v. Bell (1927)
Skinner v. Oklahoma (1942)
Stump v. Sparkman (1978)
Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
Eisenstadt v. Baird (1972)
Carey v. Population Services (1977)
March 5, 7
Abortion. Read chapter 5, pp. 368-396 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton (1973)
Planned Parenthood v. Danforth (1976)
Bellotti v. Baird (1976)
March 10, 12
Abortion. Read chapter 5, pp. 395-446 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Webster v. Reproductive Health Services (1989)
Rust v. Sullivan (1991)
Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992)
Stenberg v. Carhart (2000)
March 14, 17
Read chapter 5, pp. 446-480 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Hill v. Colorado (2000)
Scheidler v. NOW (2003)
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In Re A.C. (1990)
Ferguson v. Charleston, S.C. (2001)
March 19
Read chapter 5, pp. 480-497 in Rights of Women.
Cases: The Baby M case (1988)
Munoz v. Haro (1986)
Johnson v. Calvert (1993)
Davis v. Davis (1992)
A.Z. v. B.Z. (2000)
Woodward v. Commissioner of Social Security (2002)
March 21
SECOND EXAM. BRING BLUE BOOKS.
March 24-28
SPRING BREAK
IV. WOMEN AND EMPLOYMENT
March 31
Equal Pay and Title VII. Read chapter 3, pp. 139-149 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Corning Glass Works v. Brennan (1974)
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power v. Manhart (1978)
Arizona Governing Committee v. Norris (1983)
Washington County v. Gunther (1981)
Weeks v. Southern Bell (1969)
Rosenfeld v. Southern Pacific (1971)
April 2
Title VII and Sexual Harassment. Read chapter 3, pp.147-166 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson (1986)
Ellison v. Brady (1991)
Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc. (1993)
Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services (1998)
Jones v. Clinton (1998)
Burlington Industries v. Ellerth (1998)
April 4
Read and prepare to discuss the University of Colorado policy on sexual harassment
(www.cusys.edu/policies/alphaIndex.html).
April 7
Gender Stereotyping and BFOQ. Read chapter 3, pp.167-183 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins (1989)
Dothard v. Rawlinson (1977)
April 9
Mothers in the Workforce. Read chapter 3, pp. 183-197 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Cleveland Board of Education v. LaFleur (1974)
UAW v. Johnson Controls, Inc. (1991)
April 11
Pregnancy and Benefits. Read chapter 3, pp. 197-210 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Geduldig v. Aiello (1974)
General Electric Co. v. Gilbert (1976)
Nashville Gas Co. v. Satty (1977)
Newport News Shipbuilding v. E.E.O.C. (1983)
April 14
Protective Laws for Pregnant Workers. Read chapter 3, pp. 210-222 in Rights of Women.
Cases: California Federal Savings and Loan v. Guerra (1987)
Nevada v. Hibbs (2003)
April 16
Affirmative Action. Read chapter 3, pp. 222-237 in Rights of Women.
Case: Johnson v. Transportation Agency (1987)
V. WOMEN AND HIGHER EDUCATION
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April 18 , 21
Read chapter 6, pp. 506-533 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Heaton v. Bristol (1958) and Allred v. Heaton (1960)
Kirstein v. Rector of the University of Virginia (1970)
Williams v. McNair (1970)
Mississippi v. Hogan (1982)
U.S. v. Virginia (1996)
April 23
Title IX. Read chapter 6, pp. 533-543 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Grove City College v. Bell (1984)
Cohen v. Brown University (1996)
April 25
Sexual Harassment and Title IX. Read chapter 6, pp. 543-554 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Franklin v. Gwinnett County (1992)
Gebser v. Lago Vista (1998)
April 28
Title IX. Read chapter 6, pp. 554-565 in Rights of Women.
Cases: Davis v. Monroe County (1999)
April 30
Review for final exam.
May 2
The future
THE FINAL EXAM WILL BE HELD MONDAY, MAY 5 BETWEEN 4:30 AND 7 PM IN RAMALEY N1B31.
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