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99 Detroit Mercy L. Rev. Online J. 1 (2021)

handle is hein.journals/dtmercyl99 and id is 1 raw text is: Anecdotes from A Collaborative Classroom: Teaching the Intersection of Litigation and Transactional Law JAY PASKAN & JEAN STEADMAN Teaching a law schoolclasscan be an isolating experience, and that was true well before COVID-19. There might be other people in the classroomwithyou, butthe whole pointofthe classroomsettingisto convey information fromthe brainofthe professorto the brains ofthe students. More often than not, itis a one-way transmission ofknowledge. Sure, there are situations where a student asks a pointed question that fosters an intelligentdiscussionofthesubjectmatter, butthe knowledgecomesfroma single source. For anyone thatdid notstartoffin academia, itis clearthat this unilateralexchange is nothing like the practiceoflaw in the realworld where a more collaborative approach is required. To better replicate a practicallaw officesetting,we setoutto create a classthatwouldallowfor collaboration,overpontification. Ourobjectivewasto showthe students howbouncing ideas offone anotherand relying onboth professors' and students'expertise allows forbettercriticalanalysis oflegalissues,problem solving, and a more realistic application ofthetheorythattheyare tasked with learning in law school. Aside from a love for teaching, we have few overlapping similarities. Professor Steadman teaches contracts and sales, has an extensive backgroundininternationalcross-bordercommercialtransactions, and wants to talk and write aboutcontract drafting ad nauseum. Prior to his teachingpositioninCharleston, SouthCarolina, ProfessorPaskan worked at a medical malpractice defense firm in Ohio, where the Rules of Civil Procedurewereappreciatedfortheirsword/shield dualpurpose. The two of us exemplify theage old paths thatmostlaw students think theyneed to decide to walk:transactionallaw or litigation.However, perfecting each of these skillsets in a bubble or vacuum does not make for a well-rounded practitioner;wewanted to seeifthere was a way to create an engaging course to highlight the reality thatthese tracks are not alwaysparallel and separate, butfrequently intersect. How then can we get the students to appreciate that these areas of law are both opposing forces and symbiotic? The solution was simple, contracts are not always performed perfectly or properly because not everyone does what is legally required; if everyone upheld their end of the bargain, there would be no need for liquidated damages, indemnification and