This course provides an introduction to legal institutions in Latin America, with particular emphasis on how Latin American legal cultures and practices differ from those of United States and Europe; and on how legal practices relate to social, political and economic practices in the region. Topics will include legal education and the legal profession in Latin America, Latin American legal systems and the civil law tradition, rule of law and transitions to democracy, the Inter-American human rights system, corruption, the role of law in economic development, international actors and recent judicial reforms, interactions of the legal system with cultural and racial minorities, etc. The course is aimed at providing practical knowledge about how law is understood and practiced in the region for those interested in working with or in Latin America; as well as an interdisciplinary analysis of Latin American legal systems for those who would like to know more about the region. There are no prerequisites for this course.