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Department of Law

(Erasmus/Law Associate)

Undergraduate Module Directory

2017-18 Edition

2

PART A – CORE MODULES YEAR 1

LAW4001 Public Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 4 Method of

Assessment: 25% coursework 75% exam

Module Description: General characteristics of the UK constitution; Institutions of the European Union; Rule of law; Parliamentary sovereignty; European Union law and the challenge to parliamentary sovereignty; Separation of powers; Accountability; Sources of power: primary and secondary legislation, prerogative powers; Constitutional conventions; European Union law-making process & EU Treaty change; Treaties, Parliament and Conventions; United Kingdom Supreme Court; Appointing, scrutinising and dismissing judges; EU judicial system and dialogue with the ECJ; European Convention on Human Rights; Human Rights Act 1998 and proposals for a Bill of Rights; Codifying the Constitution and constitutional reform.

Module Convenor: Dr Mario Mendez - [email protected]

LAW4002 Criminal Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 4 Method of

Assessment: 25% Multiple Choice Questionnaire 75% exam

Module Description: Introduction: the scope and character of the criminal law and its objectives; Deconstructing a typical crime – Criminal Damage; The General Principles of Criminal Responsibility; Criminal conduct - the actus reus; principles of causation; crimes of omission; Criminal fault - the mens rea; General defences; capacity and incapacity; insanity and diminished responsibility, intoxication, duress, necessity, self defence; Particular Crimes; Offences against the person: homicide; wounding and assaults, including assaults aggravated by hatred, sexual offences; Offences against property: theft and fraud; Preliminary or inchoate offences; Conspiracy; Attempt; Assisting and encouraging crime; 6. Participation in crime.

Module Convenor: Prof William Wilson - [email protected]

3

LAW4005 Elements of Contract Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 4 Method of


Module Description: This module begins with a consideration of the elements necessary to form a binding contract, including offer and acceptance, intention, certainty of terms and consideration. The major elements capable of vitiating a contract are examined, namely duress, mistake and misrepresentation (in relation to the Misrepresentation Act 1967). The incorporation of contractual terms, and their general regulation through the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 and the Consumer Rights Act 2015, is considered. The module concludes with the consideration of the performance of contracts, the methods by which contracts can be discharged, the relief available for a contract discharged through frustration and the remedies available for a breach of contract.

Module Convenor: Ms Christina Perry - [email protected]

LAW4006 Land Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 4 Method of


Module Description: Fundamental concepts; Contracts relating to land; Adverse Possession; Leases/Licences; Mortgages; Co-ownership; Freehold covenants; Easements; Protection of interests in land: registered land and unregistered land.

Module Convenor: Mr Rod Edmunds – [email protected]

4

LAW4007 Historical Perspectives on Law and Legal Thought Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 4 Method of

Assessment: 10% Oral presentation 20% Oral presentation 30% Essay 1 (2000 words) 40% Essay 2 (3000 words)

Module Description: This course will introduce you to the variety of historical perspectives taken on law and legal thought, and assist you to think critically about how it may be helpful to think historically about law. The course is structured into several themes, which may include: the origins and beginnings of law; the changing characteristics of legal argument across time; the ways laws travel across time and space; the uses of law in colonial and imperial contexts; and the various frameworks offered by historians for understanding the dynamics of change and stability in law and legal thought.

Module Convenor: Mira Siegelberg

5

YEAR 2

LAW5001 Tort Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 5 Method of

Assessment: 80% exam 20% Oral Case Law Assessment (OCLA) exercise

Module Description: Some introductory concepts in Torts; Introducing negligence (eg, where negligence causes death, the types of damages, statute of limitations); Duty of care: elements; scope; statutory exceptions; immunities; acts versus omissions; Setting the standard of care; Determining breach; Proving causation — classical test, exceptions thereto; Remoteness of damage; Defences to negligence; Negligently-inflicted pure economic loss; Liability of public authorities; Occupiers’ liability; Negligently-inflicted pure psychiatric injury; Employers’ liability; Vicarious liability; Breach of statutory duty; Misfeasance in public office; Product liability statutory regime; Private and public nuisance; The action in Rylands v Fletcher; Defamation; Intentional interference with economic relations; (in any given year, a wide selection, but not necessarily all, of the aforementioned non-negligence Torts will be taught); Reflections on the role of Torts in modern society.

Module Convenor: Prof Rachael Mulheron – [email protected]

LAW5002 Criminal Law (Level 5) Credits: 30 Prerequisites: none Semester: A and B Level: 5 Method of

Assessment: 75% exam 25% preparation of case notes

Module Description: Introduction: the scope and character of the criminal law and its objectives; Deconstructing a typical crime – Criminal Damage; The General Principles of Criminal Responsibility: Criminal conduct - the actus reus; principles of causation; crimes of omission; Criminal fault - the mens rea; General defences; capacity and incapacity; insanity and diminished responsibility, intoxication, duress, necessity, self defence. Particular Crimes: Offences against the person: homicide; wounding and assaults, including assaults aggravated by hatred, sexual offences; Offences against property: theft and fraud. Preliminary or inchoate offences: Conspiracy; Attempt.

Module Convenor: Prof William Wilson - [email protected]

6

LAW5003 Equity and Trusts Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 5 Method of

Assessment: 25% coursework (1,500 words) 75% exam

Module Description: Express trusts: The three certainties in the creation of trusts; The beneficiary principle and unincorporated associations; Formalities in the creation of trusts; Dispositions of equitable interests; The duties of trustees; Breach of trust. Resulting trusts: Trusts of homes. Constructive trusts: Proprietary constructive trusts; Personal liability to account for dishonest assistance and knowing receipt. Tracing and equitable proprietary claims: Theoretical aspects of equity, property law and restitution.

Module Convenor: Dr Stephen Allen - [email protected] Dr Isobel Roele – [email protected]

LAW5105 Law of the European Union – Semester A Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 5 Method of

Assessment: 50% multiple-choice questionnaire 50% essay

Module Description: The aim of the module is to introduce students to some fundamental characteristics of the law of the European Union. It draws on sources of law deriving from the underlying treaties, legislation and case law to illustrate the doctrinal, institutional and substantive legal foundations of the EU. Particular emphasis is placed on who litigates, where and against whom in the EU context. To this end, the module is organised in three blocks with the first block concentrating on the fundamentals of enforcement; the second block exploring the role of law in facilitating free movement; with the final block analysing the role of courts in reviewing the legality of EU action and in protecting fundamental rights. The module is, therefore, complementary to other modules including Public Law.

Module Convenor: Mr Nick Bernard – [email protected]

7

LAW5106 Administrative Law – Semester B Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: B Level: 5 Method of

Assessment: 100% exam

Module Description: The module in Administrative Law focuses on the principles of judicial review, the process by which the courts are asked to determine the validity or invalidity of the decisions, actions and inaction of government departments, local councils and other public bodies.

Module Convenor: Dr Daniela Nadj - [email protected]

8

FINAL YEAR

LAW6021 Jurisprudence and Legal Theory Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 100% exam.

Module Description: Main currents of modern Western legal thought: natural law theory (classical and modern forms); legal positivism (Austin, Bentham and the legal theory of sovereignty; Hart''s concept of law; Kelsen''s pure theory of law); classical social theory and law; aspects of legal realism and critical legal studies; Dworkin’s interpretative theory and law as integrity. In the second term students select three subjects from a list of six. Subjects previously offered in the second term are: punishment; corrective justice, civil disobedience; rights; feminist legal theory; economic analysis of law; legal autopoiesis, Holocaust and the Law, Law and the State, and Legal Fictions. In 2017 we hope to offer Indigenous People and Law as one of these options.

Module Convenor: Prof Richard Nobles – [email protected]

LAW6056 Equity and Trusts (Level 6) Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 25% coursework (2,500 words) 75% exam.

Module Description: Express trusts: The three certainties in the creation of trusts; The beneficiary principle and unincorporated associations; Formalities in the creation of trusts; Dispositions of equitable interests; The duties of trustees; Breach of trust; Resulting trusts; Trusts of homes; Constructive trusts: Proprietary constructive trusts; Personal liability to account for dishonest assistance and knowing receipt; Tracing and equitable proprietary claims; Restitution of unjust enrichment.

Module Convenor: Dr Stephen Allen - [email protected] Dr Isobel Roele – [email protected]

9

LAW6003 Law and Globalisation: Companies, International Trade and Human Rights Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 50% exam 50% coursework (7500 words)

Module Description: Debate about globalization is often polarized with both sides making strong claims to knowing the truth. This module seeks to examine why this has happened and to investigate the realities underlying the claims. The system is based on law at various levels; domestic regional and international as well as the activities of international organisations (such as WTO, World Bank and IMF) established under international law.

Module Convenor: Prof Janet Dine - [email protected]

LAW6010 United Kingdom Human Rights Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 75% exam (Open book) 25% coursework

Module Description: In this module you will study the interpretation and application of the Human Rights Act 1998 and other important issues concerning the legal protection of human rights in the United Kingdom. There will be a significant focus upon substantive Convention rights including the right to life, freedom from torture and inhuman and degrading treatment, respect for private life, freedom of religion and freedom of expression. Procedural issues will also be examined although the assumption is made that you will already have some knowledge of these issues from completing the Public Law course. The module will conclude with an assessment of the success of the Human Rights Act, and an examination of future alternative mechanisms for the protection of human rights in the UK such as the proposed British Bill of Rights.

Module Convenor: Ms Merris Amos - [email protected]

10

LAW6015 Law and Literature: Justice in Crisis Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 100% coursework (7,500 words)

Module Description: Few artists match William Shakespeare in exhibiting the transition of European civilisation from pre-modern to modern forms of law, politics, economics and social relations. Fundamental questions about how law and justice are promoted, or destroyed, emerge through seemingly irreconcilable conflicts that have scarcely been resolved in our own day. In this half-option course, we spend one term examining plays pervasively structured by legal arrangements—master-servant, husband-wife, native-alien, parent-child, monarch-parliament, buyer-seller. All confront fraught transitions from pre-modern to early modern forms. Those fundamentally legal relationships fuel character and action, even where no conventionally legal norm or procedure is at issue.

Module Convenor: Prof Eric Heinze - [email protected]

LAW6016 Law and Literature: The Foundation of Law Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 100% coursework (7,500)

Module Description: One hallmark of Western modernity is perpetual crises about the legitimacy with which power is exerted over law. With William Shakespeare, a literary tradition emerges not to systematise, but to problematise the discourses used to assert the legitimacy with which control over law and government is exercised. Basic notions of ‘right’, ‘duty’, ‘justice’ and ‘power’ combine in discrete, but always encumbered ways, to generate a variety of legitimating discourses. Whilst legal scholars’ interest in Shakespeare has often focused on conventional legal rules and procedures, Shakespeare also explores the conditions for the very possibility of a legal system. What is the ‘rule of law’? What is required for law or justice to prevail? What undermines them? This course examines, through literature, the claims by which law is declared to be legitimately or illegitimately founded.

Module Convenor: Prof Eric Heinze - [email protected]

11

LAW6018 Law Modernity and the Holocaust Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 50% exam 50% coursework

Module Description: This module explores the Holocaust and the related Nazi racial-biological world view with particular reference to the role of law. Students will examine issues such as the occurrence of genocide in modernity, the role law played in reinforcing European anti-Semitism, the lessons for law and legal philosophy arising from Hitler’s rise to power and the use of constitutional means to rule using emergency powers, the divergent views in legal theory linking law with democracy or dictatorship, the legalization of the Nazi racial-biological world-view through eugenics and anti-Jewish legislation, the coordination of legal and administrative officials throughout occupied Europe, the difficulties posed to notions of legal and moral accountability by ‘state crime’ and ‘state sanctioned massacre’. The post WWII ambivalent role of law in responding to the holocaust will be examined along with the rise of 'genocide' as a concept of international criminal law, a subject of research and a prism for understanding the 'dark side' of modernity.

Module Convenor: Prof Wayne Morrison - [email protected]

LAW6026 Revenue Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: The objective of this module is to introduce you to the fundamental principles of taxation law in the United Kingdom. The policies underlying fiscal legislation, the budgetary process, and the place of tax within English legal structure all are considered. A background in mathematics is not a prerequisite for this module, as the module focuses on legal principles, policies and regulation. Included amongst the topics addressed are the taxation of trades and earnings, capital gains tax, corporation and inheritance tax, and the jurisprudence of tax avoidance. Tax law is taught in context. The module fosters the skill of handling complex legal material, and teaches you to write clearly and persuasively. More specifically, the abilities to read and interpret statutory material, to understand and interpret the structure of language, and to perceive varieties of meaning and nuance all are taught. These are vital skills for any lawyer - regardless of intended area of practice. You should develop an ability to apply the law as derived from the cases, statutes and other sources to a set of given facts which are similar but not identical to those encountered in the cases. The module should also improve your ability to read and distinguish between cases.

Module Convenor: Mr Richard Walters – [email protected]

12

LAW6031 Family Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: The scope and function of family law in society; Marriage/nullity/civil partnerships; Divorce and divorce reform; The parent and child relationship; The Children Act 1989 and private disputes relating to children; Family property rights; Financial provision and property adjustment on divorce; Domestic violence, abuse and molestation; The Human Rights Act 1998.

Module Convenor: Dr Shazia Choudhry - [email protected]

LAW6032 Public International Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: This is an introductory module in Public International Law. The broad aim is to introduce students who have not studied international law before to its core principles, including methodology, sources and techniques of legal reasoning. Topics covered include: The nature and purpose of international law; subjects of international law; state jurisdiction and immunity, including diplomatic immunity and jurisdiction in criminal matters; the law of treaties; the law of the sea; implementation and enforcement; international law and the individual; state responsibility; state succession, the law of international organizations including United Nations Law; the settlement of disputes; international law and national legal systems especially the municipal law of the United Kingdom.

Module Convenor: Prof Phoebe Okowa – [email protected]

13

LAW6034 International Human Rights Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: The demand for international human rights law is growing and demand far exceeds supply. This International Human Rights law module aims to provide students with a unique and thorough practical and theoretical understanding of the subject. The module will also examine the effectiveness of the United Nations system of human rights protection as well as the European, Africa and Inter-American systems. International human rights law is challenging and will provide students with practical knowledge of how to use international human rights law and plead human rights cases. The module will also contribute to the development of a comparative and cross-cultural perspective on the basic rights and freedoms. The module will focus on civil and political rights and on economic, social and cultural rights. The protection will be analysed from the perspective of industrialised and developing states.

Module Convenor: Prof Geraldine Van Bueren - [email protected]

LAW6037 Law of Evidence Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: Theories of fact-finding; Burden and standard of proof; Sexual history evidence; Illegally and unfairly obtained evidence; Identification evidence; Confessions; Privilege against self-incrimination and the right to silence; Hearsay; Evidence of previous bad character and other misconduct; Expert and opinion evidence in criminal trials.

Module Convenor: Ms Amber Marks - [email protected] Prof Peter Alldridge - [email protected]

14

LAW6045 Criminology Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 75% exam 25% coursework

Module Description: This is an introductory study of the board field of criminology which, broadly conceived is the study of crime and the social and institutional reactions to it. Topics include: the definition of crime both in a theoretical and a practical sense; criminal statistics and their alternatives, the historical legacies of the classical and positivists schools; psychology and the idea of the psychopath; labelling and moral panics; the urban context and the idea of special justice; crime and the mass media including representations of crime/criminals in film; the attractions and emotions of crime; punishment, prisons and the penal crisis; going beyond the nation state and conceiving of the state as criminal, genocide.

Module Convenor: Prof Wayne Morrison – [email protected]

LAW6045A Criminology A Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: Introduction to Criminology and Criminal Justice; Defining crime; Rhetoric and reality of crime; Policing and prosecution of crime; Punishment of crime.

Module Convenor: Prof Wayne Morrison – [email protected]

15

LAW6048 Competition Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: The purpose of this module is to teach you the basic provisions of both EU and UK competition law. The module will provide you with a flavour of the economic and market context in which EU and UK competition law is applied. The module will aim to consider important business phenomena in the market such as anticompetitive agreements, abuse of market dominance and mergers between firms. It is hoped that by the end of the module you will gain a good understanding of the competition rules of the EU and the UK in order to help you identify situations in which such phenomena may arise. The module is taught on the basis of a one two hour lecture each week and a one hour tutorial held biweekly. In addition, the module includes several case studies based on real cases. You will be asked to prepare the case studies beforehand and be ready to discuss them in the class. The case studies will give you a taste of what competition law in practice is really like. They will also provide an excellent guidance on how to approach competition law problems in the examination room and beyond.

Module Convenor: Prof Eyad Maher Dabbah – [email protected]

LAW6061 Equality and the Law Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 15% coursework (1000 words) 25% video presentation 60% research essay (4000 words)

Module Description: Students will learn about the law in the UK on equality and anti-discrimination. They will be introduced to the legal rules through case studies in particular topical areas such as education, the labour market, especially the legal profession and the judiciary, political representation and public appointment. The law will be scrutinised and evaluated through these case studies, with teaching covering different methodologies for investigating law and legal phenomenon. The module will be assessed through students working up research proposals to investigate self chosen topics from the case studies, presentations about their projects and a research essay of 4,000 words in which their research proposals are fleshed out and developed.

Module Convenor: Prof Lizzie Barmes – [email protected] Prof Kate Malleson - [email protected]

16

LAW6159 Labour Law: Contract Law, Dismissal Rights and Workplace Justice Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 25% oral presentation 75% research essay (5000 words)

Module Description: Students will learn about the essential building blocks of UK labour law in the law of the contract of employment, the right not to be unfairly dismissed and the employment tribunal system. The evolution in recent decades of law, practice and ideology relevant to the regulation of working life will be studied, with particular emphasis on whether current approaches are working to deliver justice in working lives. The module will provide opportunities for students to develop their awareness of, and capacity to deploy, different methodological approaches to law and legal phenomena, and to enhance their analytical and evaluative capacity. There will be an emphasis on combining internal legal doctrinal scholarship with the wider theoretical and empirical investigation of law, legal process and policy relevant to the workplace. Assessment will be based on group presentations and a research essay, both on assigned questions.

Module Convenor: Prof Lizzie Barmes – [email protected]

LAW6160 Comparative Constitutional Law Credits: 15 Prerequisites: Public Law (or relevant

constitutional law module for visiting students)

Semester: B

Level: 6 Method of Assessment: 100% exam Module Description: This course will examine from a comparative perspective the legal structures

and concepts typically found in constitutions, including constitution-amending & constitution-making; constitutional interpretation and judicial review; the distinction between legislative and executive authority; federalism and subsidiarity; rights controversies (e.g. free speech); the relationship between the domestic constitution and international law. Throughout our study of specific topics, it will consider questions such as: What separates “constitutional” law from other domestic law? What is the role, if any, of comparative constitutional law in domestic constitutional law adjudication? How does our study of comparative constitutional law adapt to a global society? A wide range of constitutional systems will be engaged with in relation to specific themes including: the UK; Australia; Canada; EU & ECHR; Finland; France; Germany; Hungary; India; Japan; New Zealand; Poland; South Africa; Spain; Sweden; United States

Module Convenor: Prof Sionaidh Douglas Scott – [email protected] Dr Mario Mendez – [email protected]

17

LAW6163 Health Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 40% coursework (4000 - 6000 words) 60% coursework (7000 - 9000 words)

Module Description: Why is removing a kidney for donation lawful, but not voluntary amputation of a limb? Does restricting access to abortion, or assisted suicide, do more harm than good? When clinical commissioning groups make decisions about funding treatments like cancer drugs, should they take social roles (e.g. caring for a child) into account? Why do adults have an absolute right to refuse treatment such as blood transfusions, but not teenagers? Is it right that volunteer participants in clinical research trials may be paid but not blood donors? Should the 14-day limit on embryo research be extended? In addressing legal responses to such questions this module equips students with knowledge of key debates, concepts and approaches in health law. In providing a collaborative learning environment where students draft and discuss work-in-progress through formative assignments, the module develops students’ creative thinking and critical writing skills.

Module Convenor: Dr Ruth Fletcher – [email protected]

LAW6164 Comparative Law Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 60% research essay (4000 words) 20% research proposal (1000 words) 20% oral presentation

Module Description: This module offers a general introduction to comparative law. It offers information on other Western legal systems, predominantly as to private law, most notably French and German law, which have strongly influenced many legal systems within Europe and beyond. It will show how legal systems have to be understood in their (historical, social and economic) context and how law in action may sometimes be rather different from law in the books, so that in practice there may be more similarities or differences than the written law would suggest. In order to understand a legal system one has to understand its underlying legal (and general) culture.

Teaching Method: One, two hour weekly seminar Module Convenor: Prof Mark Van Hoecke

18

LAW6453 Chinese Law and Institutions Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: B Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 40% coursework (3,000 words) 60% Exam

Module Description: The module analyses the origins, evolutions, and practices of the Chinese legal system. It starts from the viewpoint that future generations of global lawyers need to understand how China conceives the roles played by law and regulatory structures in order to account for China’s rising importance as a global economic and political actor. The first part addresses the historical and institutional foundations of the Chinese legal system. The second part provides critical insights into a number of selected aspects of Chinese private and public law with the overall purpose to critically assess the main legal challenges China is facing today. Taking stock of China’s central role in the globalisation process, the third part considers the interactions and interdependence between the Chinese legal system and the international legal order.

Module Convenor: Dr Matthieu Burnay – email TBC

19

LAW6458 Cultural Diversity and the Law Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None. Semester: B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: This module explores how legal systems manage cultural diversity. While the English legal system is the core case study the course is taught by taking into account the wider comparative context of managing cultural diversity. The topics for discussion include a variety of conceptual problems such as culture; cultural difference; multiculturalism, assimilation and integration; legal pluralism; and the significance of long-standing and newer diversities introduced through immigration. The course will also involve a study of individual substantive areas ranging from crime to anti-discrimination law.

Module Convenor: Dr Prakash Shah - [email protected]

LAW6459 International Environmental Law Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: The module focuses on origins, development, main principles of international environmental law. It addresses the historical origins of IEL (the Stockholm Conference on Human Environment; the Rio Conference on Environment and Development; the Johannesburg Summit on Sustainable Development. It also deals with sources of IEL and underlying main principles such as the environmental impact assessment; the precautionary principle; intergenerational equity; human rights and environmental protection' human rights and environment. Further, it deals with sectoral particular subjects of IEL, such as climate change; biodiversity; protection of marine environment.

Module Convenor: Prof Malgosia Fitzmaurice - [email protected]

20

LAW6460 Law and Religion Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: This module explores the relationship of law and religion and how law deals with religion. While using material from British legal systems it also includes theoretical material from non-legal writing and, as relevant, comparative material. The course explores what religion is and how it is theorised. It covers historical material drawing links between the dominant legal culture and religion. It explores how secularisation has been variedly theorised. It includes discussion of legal responses to religious claims and how different religions are positioned or treated by the dominant legal order and public sphere.


LAW6461 Law in Asia Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: This module introduces students to the basic elements that make up the range of legal systems in Asia including their histories, diversity, complexity and differences with Western legal systems. Through a study of a selection of legal systems in Asia, the course will enable to students to examine certain legal topics and explore how they compare with each other. These may include aspects of constitutional, criminal, civil and family law systems.


21

LAW6006 Media Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: Media law is the study of the regulation of the media, whether in traditional print form, the broadcast media, or in the online arena. Increasingly, media regulations must be, and are being, adapted to take account of new technological developments as the dividing line between online media and traditional forms becomes less pronounced. Primarily we will be using English law as our starting point with cross jurisdictional comparisons being discussed as and where appropriate. In general however the course is thematic in nature and English law should be considered as a case study exploring how certain themes may arise and be dealt with in practice, as opposed to the be all and end all of the module coverage. The broad themes which we will explore include regulation of the distribution of material by the media – for instance, the regimes in place under the Data Protection Act 1998, or the Contempt of Court Act 1981 and how and in what circumstances those may restrict the information which the media is permitted to distribute. Information privacy and the media’s right to withhold the identity of sources will be considered. Laws regulating media output on the basis of the actual content distributed will also be analysed, including defamation issues faced by the media, blasphemy, hate speech and obscenity. In addition to considering how the general law applies to the media, we will also analyse sector-specific regulation (televisual broadcasting, advertising), and extra-legal measures such as the voluntary codes of conduct for print content administered by the Press Complaints Commission and the Advertising Standards Authority.

Module Convenor: Mr Gavin Sutter – [email protected]

22

LAW6013 Medical Negligence Credits: 30 Prerequisites: LAW5001 Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: The Law of Medical Negligence will closely delve into medical negligence by examining the principal difficulties associated with the common law cause of action. The module will begin with a detailed consideration of the conundrums associated with proving a duty of care (whether to a patient or to a non-patient), and will then proceed onwards through breach, causation, remoteness of damage, and finally to the defences available to a culpable healthcare professional. The course will also have regard to the variety of remedies which may be (or become) available in medical negligence claims. The aims of the course are three-fold: (1), first and principally, to deepen subject knowledge, particularly the understanding and appreciation of recent developments of legal doctrine in medical negligence; (2) to engender a critical appreciation of the dynamic nature of the law of medical negligence, and to enhance the ability to anticipate the manner in which the law may and should develop in the future; and (3) to understand and appreciate the cross-jurisdictional fertilisation of medical negligence jurisprudence. A comparative perspective will be adopted, in many of the topics, so as to enable a wider appraisal of the ways in which similar problems arising from medical negligence claims have been dealt with across different jurisdictions. Please note the following further information, in case of assistance: The subject will be offered in a weekly 2-hour lecture/seminar format. There will be no tutorials. The assessment will be by way of 100% exam (which will be ‘closed-book’, but with statutory materials provided if necessary). The exam will take the form solely of theory and/or case-related questions (i.e., the exam will not follow the ‘Torts approach’ of containing principally problem-based questions which entail applying the law to a detailed fact situation, given that tutorials are not offered in this option subject).

Module Convenor: Prof Rachael Mulheron – [email protected]

23

Code TBC Commercial and Consumer Law Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: This module will mainly cover: Sale of goods: Nature of a sale of goods contract; Terms implied into the contract of sale by the Sale of Goods Act; Passing of property and risk in goods; Liability of a seller without the right to sell; Delivery obligations; Remedies of the buyer; Remedies of the seller. Consumer Rights Act: Consumer rights, passing of risks, remedies.

Module Convenor: Dr Iris Benohr - [email protected]

LAW6455 Intellectual Property - Copyright and Related Rights Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: A Level: 6 Method of

Assessment: 100% coursework

Module Description: The module focuses on the substantive law of copyright and related rights in the United Kingdom. It covers (i) the subsistence, ownership and term of copyright, (ii) exclusive economic rights and infringement (iv) exceptions and limitations to infringement and (v) moral rights. Particular attention will be paid to areas of current controversy in the law.

Module Convenor: Mr Jonathan Griffiths - [email protected]

LAW6456 Intellectual Property - Industrial Property Credits: 15 Prerequisites: None Semester: B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: The module focuses on the law of the United Kingdom (and the European Union) relating to those forms of intellectual property that are sometimes described as industrial property. It covers (i) patent law, (ii) the law of trade secrets, (iii) the law of registered trade marks and (iv) the tort of passing off. Particular attention will be paid to areas of current controversy in the law

Module Convenor: Mr Jonathan Griffiths - [email protected]

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LAW6036 Company Law Credits: 30 Prerequisites: None Semester: A and B Level: 6 Method of


Module Description: The principles of modern Company Law including the formation of companies, the corporate constitution, the protection of persons dealing with a company, corporate financing, management, the duties of directors, corporate governance, the protection of minority shareholders and insolvency.

Teaching Method: One two-hour weekly lecture, plus one fortnightly one hour tutorial Module Convenor: Dr Shalini Perera - [email protected]

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LAW6158 Corporate Insolvency Law Credits: 15 Co-requisites: This module must be

taken at the same time at LAW6036 company Law

Semester: B

Level: 6 Method of Assessment:

100% exam

Module Description: The global financial crisis heightened interest in and increased calls for efficiency with respect to insolvency procedures, the insolvency aspects of the taking of security, rescue mechanisms, the accountability of decision makers in the context of insolvency, and the structuring of transactions involving credit and security. The aim of this course is to analyse from a UK perspective the different aspects of the insolvency and/or debt restructuring of corporations. To achieve this aim, the module covers the various procedures available in cases of insolvency and restructuring, the relationship between the general law of property and obligations and insolvency, the law of credit and security issues in the context of distress scenarios, and corporate rescue mechanisms. The course would enable students to identify common aspects in the dynamics, techniques and mechanisms to deal with distress scenarios and discover innovative trends in a continuously developing area.

Teaching Method: One, two hour weekly seminar Module Convenor: Dr Shalini Perera – [email protected]

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LAW6162 Law Review Credits: 30 Prerequisites: Students wishing to take this

module are required to submit a writing sample (from their current year of study if possible, or from a previous year if no essay was written in the current year). The sample does not necessarily have to be from a law module.

Semester: A and B

Level: 6 Method of Assessment:

25% coursework 1 (3500 words) 25% coursework 2 (3500 words) 10% oral presentation 40% reflective portfolio

Module Description: In this module, you will take on the role of legal editor, publisher, and potential legal author while working to support the Queen Mary Yearbook of Interdisciplinary Legal Studies and the Queen Mary Human Rights Law Review. You will consider the role of law journals in the dissemination and impact of scholarship; be exposed to, critique and evaluate a diverse range of legal scholarship; and develop skills in copy-editing (including writing style, conformity with citation guides and accuracy of quotations and footnotes), law review production (including arranging for peer review and author liaison), and writing for publication. You will work both individually and in small teams. This module will require your active participation and full commitment.

Module Convenor: Dr Jessie Hohmann - [email protected] Caroline Morris - tbc

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Documents

Department of Law · PDF fileUnion; Rule of law; ... The action in Rylands v Fletcher; Defamation; Intentional ... Deconstructing a typical crime – Criminal Damage;