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    Oct 14, 2024  
2014-2015 School of Law Bulletin 
    
2014-2015 School of Law Bulletin [Archived Bulletin]

REGISTRATION FOR COURSES


Requirements That Must Be Met Prior to Registration

Immunizations: Incoming students must provide proof of immunization before they register for any course at Hamline University. Minnesota Law (Minn. Stat. 135A.14) requires that all students born after 1956 and enrolled in more than one class at a public or private post-secondary school in Minnesota be immunized against diphtheria, tetanus, measles, mumps and rubella. Hamline University gathers this immunization information from all new students via Piperline.

Health Insurance Requirement: Insurance for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens: All Hamline University undergraduate and law students are required to have acceptable sickness and accident insurance. U.S. citizens and resident aliens who have their own policy may waive Hamline student health insurance by reporting their policy name and number at the time of registration on Piperline. All international students are required to have the policy sponsored by Hamline University, unless specifically exempted. U.S. citizens and resident alien students who fail to show proof of insurance by registration will be automatically enrolled in the university policy and their student accounts will be billed for the cost of that coverage. Students are responsible for submitting any insurance claims and making co-payments.

Tuition and Fees Payment Current: Before a student may register, he or she must be current on the payment schedule worked out with the Student Accounts office. Financial holds for failure to comply are placed and removed only by the Student Accounts Office.

Proof of Prior Degree: Matriculating J.D. and LL.M. students provide to the Office of the Registrar an official transcript documenting proof of graduation from an undergraduate institution before he or she starts classes.

Final Year Career Planning and Portfolio Requirement: Students will not be allowed to register for their final semester of law school until they engage in a Transition Interview with the Career Services Office. The interview will verify that the student has an acceptable legal application document portfolio and will address post-graduate job search or employment plans.

Effect of Failure to Meet Registration Pre-Requirements: Failure to meet registration pre-requirements will result in a registration hold. A registration hold will prevent registration changes on both Piperline and with the Office of the Registrar.

A hold for failure to complete state law immunization requirements cannot be removed until those requirements are met.

Registration Priorities

Registration Priority for Upper-Class Students: Students receive higher initial registration priority as they advance in their legal education. See the registration materials for each term for details. All registration priorities apply to the first registration round for fall and spring semesters.

Registration Priority for Weekend and Weekday Classes: Students in the weekend program have initial registration priority for weekend classes. Weekend classes are defined as those meeting exclusively on Friday night (5 p.m. or later start time), Saturday or Sunday. All other classes are considered weekday classes.

LL.M. Student Priority: LL.M. students often register after J.D. students have completed the initial registration round. LL.M. students may be granted wait list priority over J.D. students for up to ten percent of the total number of seats.

Seats may be reserved for MSL students in courses that are required to complete their degrees.

No Priority for Visiting, Consortium, or Auditing Students: These students have the lowest registration priority for courses offered at Hamline Law.

Priority Registration for Study Abroad and Institute Courses: Registration priority for international study programs offered by Hamline Law, including those offered by the DRI Institute or any other Institute program or course, is governed by the policies set forth by those programs. Please refer to each program’s website for details.

Seminar Course Priority: A degree-seeking Hamline law student may take more than one seminar, but Hamline J.D. students who have not yet had an opportunity to enroll in a seminar have priority for registering in seminar courses. After the initial registration period, students registered for a second seminar may be bumped from the class if there are students who have not yet taken a seminar on the wait list for that seminar.

Clinic Priority: Students who have not completed a clinic have priority over students who have previously completed a clinic. After the initial registration period, students registered for a second clinic may be bumped from the class if there are students who have not yet taken a clinic on the wait list for that clinic.

Skills Lab Concurrent Enrollment Priority: Students who are concurrently enrolled for the doctrinal course associated with a skills lab have registration priority over students who have taken the doctrinal course in a previous semester. After the initial registration period, students who are not concurrently enrolled in the doctrinal course may be bumped from the class if there are students registered for the associated doctrinal course on the wait list for that skills lab.

The Dispute Resolution Institute may grant registration priority to students enrolled in the CAPS program for the core courses required for the certificate by providing students with priority request forms which must be approved by the institute director prior to registration. This priority will allow students with approved priority requests to be registered for the courses before registration opens. Enrolled students will not be bumped for CAPS students.

Prohibited Registrations and Required Permissions before Registration

Prerequisites and Co-Requisites: Students must fulfill, or receive waivers for, prerequisites to courses in order to register. Definitions of prerequisites, concurrent prerequisites, and co-requisites can be found in Special Course and Curriculum Rules.

Waivers of Prerequisites, Consultation Recommended: Students seeking a course substitution or a waiver to a prerequisite must request such waiver in writing from the professor. If the student seeks such a waiver reasonably in advance of registration, the professor may waive the prerequisite if there are grounds to believe that the student has sufficient background in the area to justify the waiver.

Once the student has received confirmation approving a waiver from the professor or the Associate Dean, the student must ensure that the Office of the Registrar is notified by the professor or the Associate Dean so that the waiver can be coded in the system before registration begins.

Whenever another course is a prerequisite or a recommended course, students are strongly urged to consult the professor in the course about whether they can successfully complete the course without the requisite.

Pre- and Co-Requisites, Piperline Enforcement: Piperline strictly enforces course pre- and co-requisites (“if you have not taken X, you cannot take Y” or “you must register for X and Y concurrently”) and will not let a student register without a pre- or co-requisite or an appropriate waiver. Students are responsible for reading course descriptions to determine applicable pre- and co-requisites, and if concurrent registration for prerequisites is allowed. In the event that a student manages to enroll for such a course outside of the conditions stated above, no academic credit will be granted. Co-requisite waivers cannot be granted.

Pre- or Co-Requisites Completed at Other Law Schools: Students who have completed coursework at other institutions that might satisfy a pre- or co-requisite for a course at Hamline Law should visit the Office of the Registrar before registration begins to ensure that the coursework is properly articulated to satisfy the specific pre- or co-requisite.

Course Registration Restrictions

Students on Probation: Students on probation may not register for upcoming summer courses or J-term courses.

Journal and Law Review Restrictions: A student may not receive credit within the same academic year for both Law Review and Hamline Journal of Public Law and Policy.

Competition Restrictions: A student may not receive credit for more than two competition courses. Year-long competition courses count as one course.

Clinical Course Restrictions: To be eligible to register for a clinic, students must be in good standing (not on probation), be eligible for Certification under Minnesota Supreme Court Rule 2 for Student Practice, and must have completed or be concurrently enrolled in the Professional Responsibility course, unless the Director of Clinics approves a substitute professional responsibility course.

Course Type Restrictions for Graduation: The American Bar Association and the faculty of the law school have imposed certain restrictions on the number of credits earned outside the J.D. classroom that students may apply towards their required J.D. credits. See the JD requirements for details.

Independent Study Restriction: Students can earn credit for no more than two Independent Studies during their law school education.

Overloads/Underloads: J.D. students must seek approval from the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs to register for permission to enroll for credit loads outside of the following parameters:

  • Weekday students: Fall or Spring: 12-16 credits; Summer: more than 8
  • Weekend students: Fall or Spring: 8-11 credits; Summer: more than 8

In no event may a student exceed 17 credits in Fall or Spring, 10 credits in Summer, or 3 credits in J-term.

Students registered for 8-11 credits pay part-time tuition and students registered for 12-16 credits pay full-time tuition. Students pay per-credit tuition rates for credit loads below eight and for each credit over sixteen.

Students should complete and return the Overload/Underload Status Request form to the OTR in advance of registration to allow time for processing.

Foundational Course Completions: All J.D. students must complete their required foundational courses (commonly known as first-year courses) within the first four semesters of their legal education. Exceptions will be permitted only with the advance approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs.

Independent Studies: Students must complete the Independent Study Registration Form, receive approval from their full-time faculty supervisor, and have the independent study approved before they are registered by the OTR.

Course Offering Cancellations: On occasion, a course may be canceled after registration because of insufficient enrollment, changes in faculty availability, or institutional needs. Students will be notified and assisted in finding another course.

Registration Procedures

Dates and Procedures for Registration: The Office of the Registrar sets the dates for registration, including initial registration and deadlines to add and drop consistent with the Academic Rules. These dates are posted on the online Academic Calendar.

Registration procedures are online here: http://www.hamline.edu/law/registrar/registration/. The instructions provided for any particular term govern even if they are in conflict with the general rules described herein.

Validation by Attendance Required: Students must validate their registration by attending the first class meeting for all courses. Failure to do so may result in being dropped from the course. Students unable to attend their first class must contact the faculty member before the scheduled meeting time to request an attendance waiver. Attendance waivers may not be available for courses with a compressed schedule (particularly during January and Summer terms).

Process for Course Registration: The Office of the Registrar sets the dates for initial registration, registration priority, and deadlines to add and drop, in accordance with AR 103. Registration deadlines are different for weekday and weekend classes. Students register using Piperline.

For non-Piperline registration and after the add/drop period has ended, students should use an Add/Drop form available in the Office of the Registrar and online. Faxed or e-mailed add/drop requests may not be processed. The OTR cannot override holds placed by other offices and students should not use the Add/Drop form with the intention of bypassing holds.

Wait Lists: Students wishing to enroll in a closed class may place themselves on a wait list on Piperline by clicking Submit Registration when offered a wait list seat. Students are not automatically placed on the wait list.

If a seat opens in a closed class, it is offered to the next student on the wait list by a notification of eligibility to enroll email sent to Hamline email addresses only. Once the notification is sent, students have 72 hours to accept the seat by changing their registration status in Piperline. Without exception, if the student fails to register for the course by the deadline stated in the notification email, he or she will be dropped from the wait list and the seat will be offered to the next eligible student. Wait list waivers do not override any other registration constraints (such as pre/co-requisites, registration holds, professor consent, etc.) Even if the wait list waiver expires later, the student must register for the course before the deadline to add a course.

Paper Registration Forms: The following forms for special registration permissions are available on the Office of the Registrar’s online Forms Menu:

  • Consortium Course Request
  • Graduate Course Registration Form (to register for a non-law school Hamline graduate course)
  • Independent Study Registration Form
  • Petition for Internal Transfer (to change to/from weekday/weekend)
  • Underload/Overload Request Form

Course Adds: No course additions are permitted after the start of the second week of class meetings. First year students approved to go from part-time to full-time may only add foundational (“first year”) courses.

Course Drop: J.D. students not in their first year may drop a course within the drop period without a notation of the course on their record or financial penalty. This period generally ends within 10 calendar days after the course begins but the dates posted for the term on the Academic Calendar govern. If a student drops a course after the drop deadline, a “W” will be recorded on his or her transcript.

J.D. students may not drop Contracts; Civil Procedure; Legal Research and Writing I or II, Constitutional Law I; Criminal Law; Property; Practice, Problem-Solving and Professional Responsibility; or Torts without the permission of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. J.D. students cannot drop any course after the course’s last class session for the semester or term. (AR 103)

Special Rules for Institute (BLI, DRI, and HLI) Summer or J-Term Course Registrations

Non-Hamline Law Students Enrollment: Any degree-seeking students currently enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school must submit an application for summer or J-Term Institute courses, along with permission from the home institution for the student to take the Hamline course(s) as a visiting student.

Attorney Enrollment: Attorneys may apply for admission to take summer and J-term courses by completing the appropriate section of the Application Form found on the Institute websites. CLE credits will be granted upon successful completion of each course where applicable.

Other Professionals: Other professionals may apply for admission to take summer or J-term courses by completing the appropriate section of the Application Form found on the DRI and HLI websites. To be considered, applicants must furnish an official transcript demonstrating completion of a B.A. or advanced degree (or international equivalent), unless waived by the particular Institute course or program in which they are enrolled.

Non-Refundable Deposit Required: All students in Institute courses will be charged a deposit to hold their seat in these courses. This deposit is non-refundable even if the student cannot attend the course because of exigent circumstances, whether or not caused by the student. The amount of the deposit is listed on the websites for DRI and HLI.

Hamline Student Registration Procedures: Specific procedures for online registration for Hamline law students for J- term and summer courses are distributed to students prior to each registration period.

Institute Summer or J-term Course Drops: Students are typically permitted to add and drop Institute courses via Piperline without financial penalty for two weeks after registration opens. After that point, requests to add or drop an Institute course must be made using an Add/Drop Form (available from the Office of the Registrar) or by submitting such request in writing to the administrator of the Institute offering the course.

Institute Term Rules Supersede: In any particular J-term or summer term, an Institute may provide for special registration procedures on its website. Those rules may supersede these rules; students are advised to check the website for special registration procedures.