Watergate

How has the president's position, executive power and federal prosecutorial power changed since Watergate? How pervasive is "quid pro quo" corruption in government today? Four professors answer these questions and others illuminating the constitutional significance of Watergate. Speakers include Richard Broughton, University of Detroit Mercy professor who worked previously in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice; Jonathan L. Entin, Associate Dean of Western Reserve University; Clara Torres-Spelliscy, Asst. Professor of Stetson University College of Law; and Stephen M. Griffin, Professor of Constitutional Law at Tulane University. Taped by Panther Productions at Chapman University.

Watergate remains an important marker in the development of modern law. Four panelists discuss the moral issues associated with Watergate. What exactly were the ethical dilemmas faced by the lawyers in this situation? Are the same rules still operating today? And, were these ethical lapses or hard criminal offenses? Issues like attorney-client privilege, fear of losing a client and lack of knowledge of criminal law are discussed to try to clarify why Watergate happened and if law today lives in an environment that allows for such scandals to develop. About the panelists: Jill Wine-Banks was the Watergate Special Prosecutor who cross-examined Rosemary Woods, the President's secretary, about the missing 18 and a half minutes of missing tape. Arnold Rochvarg is a law professor at University of Baltimore who served on Watergate defendant's Robert Mardian's team and secured a reversal of his conviction. James D. Robenalt, Thompson Hine LLP, is currently in a partnership with John W. Dean, Nixon's White House Counsel, to create a national continuing education program entitled "The Watergate CLE." Laurel Rigertas is an associate professor at Northern Illinois University College of Law whose research focuses on ethics, professionalism, and access to the legal system. Taped by Panther Productions at Chapman University.

Assistant Majority Counsel for the Watergate Committee and Chapman Law School Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence, Ronald Rotunda, closes the Watergate symposium by giving the young legals in attendance his key take-aways from the scandal. He says that the people involved didn't decide they would gravely violate the law, but instead that this happened through baby steps over time. He puts the case in perspective and illustrates lessons legal students can adopt to help them navigate their careers ethically and professionally. Taped by Panther Productions at Chapman University.

Former White House counsel, John W. Dean, moderates a discussion about the Watergate investigation and how evidence was found and used to persecute President Nixon. Panel guests include Scott Armstrong, Chief Investigator for the Senate Watergate Committee and Alexander Butterfield, the head of internal security at the White House at the time. Get an inside look at the evidence that caused President Nixon to resign, from two people who lived in the thick of it. Taped by Panther Productions at Chapman University.

"It is very rare for the Judicial Branch to come down so strongly on the Executive Branch," says Chapman University Law School dean, Tom Campbell, in regard to the 8-0 vote for impeaching President Nixon after the subpoena of the tapes. Dean Campbell gives insight into United States v. Nixon including what he calls Nixon's challenge to the Supreme Court and how this case was a defining moment between the Judicial and Executive Branches. Campbell explains that we are still feeling the repercussions of the case today. Taped by Panther Productions at Chapman University.

John W. Dean, former counsel to the White House, is in the process of collecting and analyzing nearly 2,000 conversations that were recorded as the events of Watergate were unfolding. What did Nixon know and when? Dean describes his plan to make a dialogue out of these transcripts to tell the "Inside Watergate"story in an easily understandable way. He explains the political reforms that came out of the scandal, then fields questions from the audience (beginning at 15:45). Why didn't people use the 5th amendment during the trials? What was the process and logic that Dean went through as one of the biggest whistleblowers of all time? Taped by Panther Productions at Chapman University.