Written by: Blake Etringer

Mihailis Diamantis, Ben V. Willie Professor in Excellence, will teach a new one-credit-hour course in May 2027 that uses Magic: The Gathering to strengthen students’ legal reasoning and interpretation skills.

The course combines gameplay with lessons on interpreting complex texts, researching rules and precedents, identifying ambiguities, and developing persuasive arguments. Students will draft briefs, analyze disputed card interactions, and present their interpretations to an expert judge as part of a capstone project.

Diamantis, whose teaching and scholarship focus on business law, previously developed a course that used Dungeons & Dragons to teach corporate law concepts. Inspired in part by his experiences playing Magic: The Gathering with his son, he designed the course to help students build practical legal skills through an engaging and collaborative learning environment.

Read more about Diamantis’ upcoming course from the Iowa Capital Dispatch.