Stetson to present free People’s Law School sessions(2)

Contact Aaron Reincheld
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law’s People’s Law School will present three free programs in March and April at its Tampa Law Center, 1700 N. Tampa St., on timely legal issues.

  • March 8, 6 p.m., “Basic business organizations: What consumers and business owners need to know,” Professor Joseph Morrissey
  • March 31, 6 p.m., “How to do free legal research on the Internet,” Professor Sally Waters
  • April 14, 6 p.m., “Harassment and discrimination in the workplace,” Professor Michael Finch

The People’s Law School is a continuing series of free programs to provide information about legal issues of general interest. The series is not intended to offer legal advice to individuals or groups, or to substitute for legal counsel provided by a personal attorney.

RSVP to Stetson by calling (813) 228-6625.

Basic business organizations: What consumers and business owners need to know
Professor Joseph Morrissey will discuss the basic types of businesses: sole proprietorships, general partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability companies and corporations. The discussion will focus on the fundamental concepts of limitation of personal liability and limiting tax exposure.

Professor Morrissey specializes in corporate, securities and international private law. He practiced corporate and securities law at Mayer, Brown & Platt in Chicago and later ran the firm’s office in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, formerly a part of Soviet Central Asia. In Uzbekistan, Professor Morrissey was a founding member and director of the local American Chamber of Commerce, which focused on local law reform issues. Professor Morrissey also practiced corporate law with Kirkland & Ellis in Chicago and managed a Russian asset portfolio for UniFund Inc. in Geneva, Switzerland.

How to do free legal research on the Internet
Professor Sally Waters will discus how to find free legal information such as cases, statutes, regulations and government information for the federal and state levels. She will cover the best legal Web sites and demonstrate how to use them.

Professor Waters has led the reference desk in Stetson’s Law Library for 23 years. She teaches advanced legal research and has made presentations to the National Association of Law Placement, Southeastern Association of Law Libraries, Central Florida Association of Law Libraries and the Tampa Bay Library Consortium about legal research and using the Internet. She is a frequent contributor to “Stumpers,” an e-mail list for hard-to-answer legal questions.

Harassment and discrimination in the workplace

Professor Michael Finch will provide an overview of law governing sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace, including what is permitted and what is prohibited in the workplace and the process of raising complaints.

Professor Finch teaches civil rights law and is a practicing lawyer who has handled these types of cases. Finch is widely published and also teaches in the areas of civil procedure, conflict of laws, appellate practice, constitutional litigation, and law and behavioral science. His work has appeared in the Minnesota Law Review, the Wisconsin Law Review, the Ohio State Law Journal, and the Business Lawyer. His work has been cited by numerous federal and state courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. In 2006, Aspen Publishing Company will publish An Illustrated Guide to Civil Procedure, a book Professor Finch is co-authoring with Professor Michael Allen.