Online sessions begin October 21, 2024. ENROLL NOW! Call 1-800-522-7737, email [email protected] or click here to contact us.

Online sessions begin October 21, 2024. ENROLL NOW! Call 1-800-522-7737, email [email protected] or click here to contact us.

About This Course

V-Legal is a series of three online courses designed to help executives and managers gain fluency in the legal principles, language, and processes business leaders need to understand. Professionals who earn the certificate will learn to “think like a lawyer” when making decisions for their businesses or organizations, gaining skills that may have an immediate impact on their job performance and career advancement.

The certificate will cover the basic structure of the legal system and legal reasoning, and introduce you to important business topics, including Contracts, Discovery, Attorney-Client Privilege, and Property.

Course Objectives:

  • Learn how to confidently work with lawyers
  • Understand legal risk in the business environment
  • Become a sophisticated consumer of legal advice
  • Synthesize legal issues at work and in the news
  • Gain a basic understanding of U.S. law, legal structures, legal research, and more
  • Receive an invaluable education from Vanderbilt – a Top 20 Law School

Course 1  -The Architecture of American Law

Learn the intricate details of how American law and government are structured, and how they operate. You will discover the nature of the law and a brief history and structure of American government and the legal system. This course will cover lawsuits and how they work, and we will compare them to other methods of dispute resolution.

  • Segment 1.01 – Introduction to the V-Legal Certificate Program
  • Segment 1.02 – Nature of Law
  • Segment 1.03 – History of American Government
  • Segment 1.04 – Structure of Government: Overview
  • Segment 1.05 – Structure of Government: Federalism
  • Segment 1.06 – Structure of Government: Executive
  • Segment 1.07 – Structure of Government: Legislature
  • Segment 1.08 – Structure of Government: Judiciary
  • Segment 1.09 – Structure of American Government: Administrative Agencies Segment 1.10 – Structure of the American Legal System
  • Segment 1.11 – Structure of American Courts
  • Segment 1.12 – Supreme Court
  • Segment 1.13 – Anatomy of a Lawsuit: Overview
  • Segment 1.14 – Anatomy of a Lawsuit: Jurisdiction
  • Segment 1.15 – Anatomy of a Lawsuit: Discovery
  • Segment 1.16 – Class Actions
  • Segment 1.17 – Alternatives to Litigation
  • Segment 1.18 – International and Comparative Perspective

Course 2 – The Language of the Law: How Lawyers Think

Discover the inner workings of legal concepts, the types of reasoning that both lawyers and judges use, and how they interpret various legal sources. You’ll learn about basic concepts, such as burdens of proof, efficiency, rules, statutes, and standards. This course will help you understand how lawyers think, reason, and manage corporate risk.

  • Segment 2.01 – Types and Sources of Law
  • Segment 2.02 – Risks and Ambiguity in Law
  • Segment 2.03 – Modes of Interpretation – Statutes and Regulations Segment 2.04 – Test Your Statutory Interpretation Skills
  • Segment 2.05 – Modes of Interpretation: Constitutions
  • Segment 2.06 – Rules and Standards
  • Segment 2.07 – Law and Fact/Burden of Proof
  • Segment 2.08 – Consensual vs. Regulatory Governance
  • Segment 2.09 – Regulatory Choices
  • Segment 2.10 – Efficiency
  • Segment 2.11 – The Role of Lawyers
  • Segment 2.12 – The Legal Profession
  • Segment 2.13 – Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Course 3 – The Content of American Law

Learn about basic doctrines that govern many areas of the law, such as Contract Law, Property Law, Torts, Administrative Law, Employment Discrimination, Evidence, Legal Ethics, Legal Remedies, Criminal Law and Procedure, Intellectual Property, and International Law. These areas are highly relevant to your interactions with lawyers.

  • Segment 3.01 – Constitutional Law
  • Segment 3.02 – Constitutional Law II
  • Segment 3.03 – Contracts I
  • Segment 3.04 – Contracts II
  • Segment 3.05 – Torts I
  • Segment 3.06 – Torts II
  • Segment 3.07 – Property I
  • Segment 3.08 – Property II
  • Segment 3.09 – Administrative Law
  • Segment 3.10 – Employment Law
  • Segment 3.11 – Evidence
  • Segment 3.12 – Remedies
  • Segment 3.13 – Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure Segment 3.14 – Intellectual Property I
  • Segment 3.15 – Intellectual Property II
  • Segment 3.16 – International Law
  • Segment 3.17 – Corporations
  • Segment 3.18 – Tax Law
  • Segment 3.19 – Wrap Up