JD Health Law Concentration

 

J.D. Program: Health Law Concentration

Seton Hall Law School has specialized in health law for more than two decades. U.S.News & World Report has consistently ranked the Seton Hall health law program among the leading programs in the country. The health law faculty specialize in a wide range of topics, influencing health care policy throughout the United States and the world.

Seton Hall Law offers a Concentration in Health Law that provides J.D. students with a strong foundation in traditional health law or life sciences law. Students have increasingly integrated the Concentration with intellectual property courses too. Students pursuing the Concentration may list it on their resumes.  Upon graduation, the Concentration will be reflected on graduates' transcripts and they will receive certificates indicating receipt of the Concentration in Health Law. 

All students interested in the Health Law Concentration should submit a Concentration Declaration Form. This form must be submitted by the end of the first week of classes in the student's final semester.

Note: Students may not apply courses taken Pass/D or Fail toward the Concentration credit requirement.

Concentration Planning and Advice

Students seeking curricular advisement should contact Professor Jacob Elberg

 

1. Successful Completion of the following Courses: 

A.  Administrative Law

Number Name Credit Type Offering

PUBG7801

Administrative Law

This course studies the theory of administrative actions; administrative process; agency organization; determination and promulgation of the administrative regulations; right to notice and hearing; enforcement; judicial review; standing; and the Administrative Procedure Act.



3

Lecture

in-class

 

B.  Any two of the following: "core" health law courses:

Number Name Credit Type Offering

HLTH8500

Food and Drug Law

This course provides an overview of the laws and regulations of the Food and Drug Administration that restrict the sale of unsafe, deceptive or unproven foods and drugs. The pre-market approval system governing drugs will be examined along with the debate about the length of testing. Other topics include the prescription status of drugs, consumer advertisements, and the impact of commercial speech protections. Major issues concerning food regulation are considered such as the appropriateness of a no-risk policy for carcinogens and the use of biotechnology in foods. The justification for the deregulation of dietary supplements will also be explored. The course aims to provide students with an understanding of the principal regulatory means used by the agency, such as rulemaking, and court enforcement. In addition students will be able to consider the appropriateness of schemes based on disclosure and those that impose additional restrictions.



3

Lecture

in-class

HLTH8504

Healthcare Access and Payment

This course examines the public and private insurance programs connecting people to needed health care. The basic structures of the relevant law – Medicare, Medicaid, and the regulation of private insurance – are undergoing rapid change. We will examine sometimes-competing economic, political, and policy principles undergirding the structure of the system by which access and payment are governed, as well as less contested innovations in payment, such as social accountable care organizations and performance based reimbursement, that promise to improve care and moderate costs.



3/4

Lecture

in-class

HLTH9524

HealthCare Fraud and Corruption

This course introduces students to the various statutes and regulations used to address corrupt behavior in the health care system and the various government actors who enforce them. The course comprises a study of the health and non-health related laws that address corruption, both domestically and abroad, including the Anti-Kickback Statute, Stark Law, False Claims Act, and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Students will also learn about various Department of Justice and HHS-OIG policies (and those of other enforcers) which drive government efforts to prevent fraud and abuse and as a result impact the provision of care throughout the health care system.

Note: Course offered as a seminar up until the end of Spring 2020 and will transition to a lecture format after Spring 2020 semester has concluded.



3/4

Lecture

in-class

HLTH8520

Legal and Ethical Issues in Medicine

This course examines legal and ethical issues in medical treatment and research. Topics covered include the formation and termination of the physician-patient relationship, medical malpractice, informed consent, health care confidentiality, medical decision-making at the end of life, organ transplantation, the determination of death, health care decisions for minors, and research involving human participants.



2/3

Lecture

in-class

These four (4) courses generally are each offered once per year, either in the Day program or Weekend program. Day and Weekend students are permitted to take these courses regardless of when they are offered.


C.  Additional health law courses if needed to bring the total concentration credits (including Administrative Law) to 13. Students should consult with Prof. Elberg if they have questions about whether a course will count as a health law course for the purposes of the 13-credit requirement.  

2.  Completion of a paper that satisfies the Advanced Writing Requirement (AWR) through a Health Law AWR seminar or another AWR seminar on a health law topic that has been pre-approved by Professor Elberg or a journal comment on health law topic that has been pre-approved by Professor Elberg (1-3 credits).

  • 3. Maintenance of an overall 3.0 GPA in the health law courses counted toward the Concentration.

Students may not apply courses taken pass/D/fail toward the concentration credit requirement.

Compliance Track

Seton Hall Law offers students the opportunity to take additional credits for a certificate in compliance within the Health Law Concentration.  To qualify for this certificate, students must complete:

  1. the concentration requirements
  2. a health care fraud course (which can also satisfy the concentration requirements)
  3. the one week Compliance Certificate program offered in Newark, New Jersey.

 


 

Externship Program

Seton Hall Law School's externship program offers Health Law students an opportunity to apply their knowledge in a health care or policy setting. These externships provide students with unparalleled opportunities to meet attorneys who represent providers, payors, consumers, and manufacturers who become a bridge to their careers in health law. Students pursuing the concentration are encouraged to participate in an externship. However, an externship is not a requirement for completing the concentration.

To learn more about these exciting health law externship opportunities, please contact the Office of Career Services at [email protected]. If you wish to discuss your options with a faculty member, please see Professor Jacob Elberg.

Semester in D.C.

Students may earn 8 credits in a semester-long externship, plus 2 credits in a required attendant class, in a government agency. To qualify, students must plan their studies carefully to satisfy their course and residency requirements prior to the D.C. semester. Students are responsible for obtaining their own housing during their semester in D.C. Professor Tara Ragone oversees this program. 

Summer Compliance Fellowships

Each year, several health and life science companies offer paid summer compliance fellowships to students who have completed their first year of law school. These opportunities expose students to the world of compliance, thereby enabling them to compare the compliance profession to the practice of law after spending the second year summer in a law firm or other legal setting. Fellowship applications are generally available after first semester grades become available. Questions may be directed to the Center for Health & Pharmaceutical Law at [email protected] or the Office of Career Services at 973-642-8746.