Michigan State University. in Michigan Law Schools
Michigan State University – College of Law
Background
History: The law school began as the Detroit College of Law (1891), one of the first independent law schools in Michigan. In the 1990s it relocated to East Lansing and formally affiliated with Michigan State University, becoming MSU College of Law.
Identity: Today, it is a public law school within MSU, offering a JD program along with joint degrees (like JD/MBA, JD/MPP). Its mission is to balance rigorous legal theory with practical training.
Experiential Learning: Students participate in legal clinics, moot court, mock trial, and externships. Clinics include Criminal Defense Clinic, Child and Family Advocacy Clinic, First Amendment Clinic, Immigration Clinic, and Small Business & Nonprofit Law Clinic.
Academics and Training
Doctrinal Foundation: Students learn the traditional first-year curriculum — Contracts, Torts, Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, Civil Procedure, and Property.
Skills-Based Training: Through the Trial Practice Institute, students develop courtroom and litigation skills. Moot court and mock trial competitions reinforce appellate and trial advocacy.
Specialization Areas: MSU Law has strong programs in food and agriculture law, intellectual property, and social justice lawyering.
Key Michigan Case Law (often taught at MSU Law)
1. People v. Lockridge (2015)
Issue: Michigan’s sentencing guidelines required judges to increase sentences based on facts not found by a jury.
Ruling: The Michigan Supreme Court held this violated the Sixth Amendment. The guidelines were made advisory, not mandatory.
Importance: Taught in Criminal Procedure; it aligns Michigan law with U.S. Supreme Court cases like Apprendi and Alleyne.
2. People v. Heflin (1990)
Issue: The trial court refused to give the jury an instruction on involuntary manslaughter.
Ruling: The Michigan Supreme Court held that trial courts must give lesser-included instructions only when supported by the evidence.
Importance: Key case for Criminal Law; demonstrates how Michigan courts handle jury instructions, self-defense claims, and lesser-included offenses.
3. People v. Custer (2001)
Issue: Concerns a search and seizure challenge under the Fourth Amendment.
Ruling: The Michigan Supreme Court clarified that probable cause and reasonableness are central when judging police conduct.
Importance: A cornerstone in Criminal Procedure courses; frequently cited in suppression hearings.
4. Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) & Gratz v. Bollinger (2003)
(University of Michigan cases, but heavily studied at all Michigan law schools including MSU Law)
Issue: Race-conscious admissions policies at the University of Michigan.
Ruling:
Grutter upheld the law school’s holistic admissions policy that considered race as one factor.
Gratz struck down the undergraduate policy that awarded automatic points for race.
Importance: Landmark Constitutional Law cases on Equal Protection and affirmative action; directly impact Michigan higher education.
Why These Cases Matter for MSU Law Students
They connect Michigan legal practice to federal constitutional principles.
They show how state law interacts with U.S. Supreme Court rulings.
They are used in moot court and clinical practice so students can argue constitutional and criminal issues with real-world relevance.
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