People's Law School | 2020

The People's Law School 2020 offers a half-day curriculum of courses designed to educate consumers about their legal rights and to make the law "user-friendly." The courses are taught by volunteer attorneys and legal experts.

Baylor Law School will host the People's Law School on February 15, 2020. Check-in begins at 8:30 a.m., with 9:00 being the start time for this year's People's Law School. Our day will run until 12:45 p.m.

This has become an annual event sponsored by Baylor Law School and other organizations for the benefit of the Central Texas community. It is absolutely free to attend.

The People's Law School is your opportunity to learn some fundamentals that may help you in your day-to-day personal and business life or satisfy your curiosity about the law and how it works.

Our full list of courses is below

Pre-Registration is now closed, however, Walk-Ins are Welcome, so even if you haven't pre-registered you can still join us. Check-in at the registration tables when you get to the Law School Saturday morning at 8:30am.

Full Course List for 2020

Animal Law

Pets are often considered members of the family, but what are your rights with respect to your pets? What obligations do you have regarding your pet? In this course learn a little bit about this growing area of the law.

City Government 101

Open Records Act, Open Meetings Act, building permits, zoning notices—city government can be quite mind-boggling. In the course, attendees will have an inside look at city government with an opportunity to understand who does what in city government and how better to work with city officials.

Contesting Your Property Taxes

Concerned about your property taxes and the valuation of your real property? In this course, the instructor will address the process for challenging your property valuation and strategies that may result in lowering your property taxes.

Data Breaches: What You Need to Know

Chances are that like millions of Americans, you are the victim of a data breach. When a breach happens, what are your rights? What steps can you take to protect your identity and other important information. This course will address those questions and more.

Don’t Learn Your Law from the Movies

Hollywood tends to take a great deal of creative license in portraying the law, which can result in misunderstandings about the law, as well as how trials actually work. Through a series of clips from movies and television shows, the instructor will illustrate what Hollywood gets wrong (and sometimes right) about the law.

Elder Law

This course provides an overview of issues important to senior citizens and those who care about them, including a review of long-term care planning, including Medicaid eligibility.

Family Law I

The instructor of this course will provide a brief overview of divorce, protective orders, and related issues.

Family Law II

In this course, participants will learn about the law regarding child custody and visitation duties and rights, child support, and grandparent's rights.

Guardianship

Guardianship is a legal process that allows one person or entity to make decisions for another (a ward), particularly where the ward is incapacitated or disabled. The presenter for this course will address the process of guardianship appointment, the responsibilities of a guardian, and other key information about guardianship.

Insurance Law

The instructor in this course will cover some basics of insurance law, including claims, claims appeals, and your rights as an insured.

Keeping Your Church Out of Court

Churches face a wide variety of legal issues. In this course, the instructor will address some of the most common issues faced by churches while offering suggestions on organizing, operating, and insuring to protect against those issues.

Landlord/Tenant Law

This course will provide valuable information for both landlords and tenants on the Fair Housing Act; security deposits; the landlord’s responsibility for repairs; and eviction.

Law School: How to Get In

Whether you are currently in college or contemplating a second career, this course will provide you the information you need if you are considering applying to Baylor or another law school.

Pitfalls for Nonprofits

Nonprofit law is surprisingly complex. The instructor of this course will identify some of the most common pitfalls faced by nonprofit corporations and address how to avoid them.

Presidential Power

Both President Obama and President Trump have been accused of abusing their powers as President of the United States. What powers does the U.S. Constitution grant to the President? The instructor of this course will help attendees gain a better understanding of this important question.

Social Security Disability Law

Understanding the social security disability law and process is no easy matter. This course is designed to provide basic information about eligibility for benefits, disability determination, the appeal process, and other important questions.

Texas Community Property: What is it and How to Protect It

This course is for individuals who want to have a better understanding of Texas community property. What determines whether something is community property or separate property? Can a premarital agreement change the nature of the property? What about post-marital agreements? This course will provide a general overview of the law in this area.

Understanding the Supreme Court

Is it true that the Supreme Court is not allowed to make law? Is the Court limited to just interpreting the Constitution based on the original intent of the Founding Fathers? The presenter for this course will address some of the questions about the Supreme Court.

Veterans’ Rights

This course will provide veterans a basic review of rights and benefits available to them, as well as a basic overview of services offered by the Veteran’s One-Stop.

Wills and Estate Planning

Everyone should have a will. Students in this course will learn the requirements of a valid will and basic estate planning considerations. The instructor will additionally cover the new SECURE Act as well as special needs children’s trusts.