Online Graduate Law Programs London Study Tour 2024

Adjunct professor Marc Goodman and Online Programs director Veronica Basadre led a group of online graduate law students through a five-day study tour in London, England. The course examined the roots of the US legal and governmental systems, within a comparative analysis framework of the US and UK systems. The students reviewed UK political history, which provided a foundation for a deeper exploration of the structure of the UK government and political systems and its unwritten constitution. Students examined the elements of the UK systems that the Founding Fathers found both attractive and problematic, resulting in the necessary compromises leading to the drafting of the US Constitution with its three branches of government.

During the study tour, the class visited Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, Big Ben, Whitehall, Benjamin Franklin’s house, and the London Mansion House. The class's learning highlights included attending a Supreme Court hearing and visiting the Inns of Court, which are the professional associations for barristers. All barristers must belong to one of the four Inns of Court, which are Gray’s Inn, Lincoln’s Inn, Inner Temple, and Middle Temple. The students met with the director of education at Middle Temple, learned from Lauren Suding, a barrister and Middle Temple member, and then toured the Royal Courts of Justice.