An in-depth examination of selected aspects of consumer law, including (but not limited to) misleading and deceptive conduct, other unfair practices, unfair contract terms in standard form consumer contracts, consumer guarantees and uninvited direct sales.
The European Union has a population of about 448 million and is composed of 27 member States. Starting modestly with the management of coal and steel in 1951, it now covers areas as varied as a Union citizenship, foreign policy, fisheries, culture, human rights or tourism. It has the world’s largest single market.
The purpose of the course is to introduce students to the fundamental principles of the legal order of the European Union, its sources, institutions, enforcement mechanisms and relations with domestic legal orders. The course will also look at some core areas of Union policies and legal regulation, such as the free movement of goods.
This course can only be enrolled onto by those students who have been selected to compete in an approved international mooting competition in the year that they are competing. Students on this course will complete independent research, written submissions and oral argument on complex areas of international law. Students are supervised by Faculty advisors and assessable coursework will comprise (a) the three elements involved in preparing for and participating in an approved, international moot i.e. advanced legal research, advanced legal writing, and advanced oral communication skills, and (b) a reflective written report.
South Pacific Legal Studies offers a critical examination of the legal issues that South Pacific island nations face. The South Pacific region is comprised of many island nations with distinct and divergent societies, cultures, and legal systems. The course is designed to offer a broad introduction to these legal systems and related contemporary legal issues. South Pacific Legal Studies will cover traditional legal systems, customary law, and legal pluralism. The course will also explore modern constitutional law issues, democracy, governance, corruption, land tenure, and contemporary legal challenges encompassing the human rights of minority groups, environmental law, trade law, regionalism, and climate change in the region. The course critically examines the internal social, economic, and cultural context of Pacific nations through a legal lens and will feature a comparative approach in examining legal issues common to many Pacific island jurisdictions and within the backdrop of international law standards and norms.
Prerequisite: a background in law
The environment knows no boundaries, while national legal systems do. It is therefore of the utmost importance to develop international law approaches in order to deal with transboundary and global environmental problems. While environmental law originally focused on local problems like smoke and noise, today we are confronted with transboundary and global environmental problems like the continuing loss of biodiversity, long-distance air-pollution, and the threat of climate change. The conservation of important nature, the sound condition of air, water and soil, and the environmental safety of products and economic activities are core concerns.
Law serves as an important instrument to improve and protect the environment. The course International Environmental Law (IEL) discusses the role of international law – and the emerging body of global environmental law – in order to protect the environment. It takes a fundamental approach which means that we will examine environmental law from the perspective of principles, environmental rights, and the choice and design of regulatory instruments. Both strengths and, unfortunately, weaknesses will be discussed. As far as international law falling short, the importance of national approaches and private initiatives will be addressed. Some specific attention will go to the European Union as a regional international organisation addressing, inter alia, environmental problems. The world-wide problem of climate change serves as the leading case of this course.
This course presents the specific structural and phenomenological aspects of the various types of mafia operating in Italy and internationally. Topics analyze contemporary criminal, social, cultural, and political features of mafia-related groups and explore traditional and emerging illegal markets. The course describes main Italian and international law policies and legislations to contrast this type of organized crime and the experiences of leading individuals and groups developing a culture of legality to combat the mafia.
This module explores London and its criminal areas from the earliest times; changing nature of London criminal ‘underworld’ from modernity to late modernity; notorious criminal families as well as colourful underworld characters will be explored. Finally, the emergence of specialised law enforcement agencies to deal with this newly discovered threat will also be considered.
Essentials of contracts, agency, partnerships, corporations, and other select areas of law in a business environment.
Sociological theories of social origins, organization, and meanings of crime and criminal behaviors.
The aim of the course is to familiarise students with applications of psychology to the legal system and to raise awareness about the problems that arise when psychology is applied to law in practice.
In the course of 3 weeks, students will take part in an intensive educational program that covers the most important topics in the field of Forensic Psychology. During the course four main themes within the field of forensic psychology will be addressed.
- Eyewitness memory, which consists of eyewitness identification and (false) memories.
- Interviewing and interrogation. Within this topic,the students learn about police interrogation techniques, deception detection and (false) confessions.
- Cognitive biases in the legal context. Students will get acquainted with the interpretation and reliability of forensic evidence and the role of biases in experts’ decisions.
- Association of mental illness and crime. Within this topic students will examine the psychopathic mind and the psychology of sex offenders.
Different case studies, tools and experiments will be discussed in order to allow the students to get acquainted with the methods used in this discipline. In each tutorial, research articles and case material descriptions related to a theme will be studied and discussed. The examination will consist of question-based tests taken throughout the course, a final symposium where students will present and discuss topics related to Forensic Psychology and a final paper.
This module is designed to introduce students to the subject of Criminology through the lens of the Scottish Criminal Justice System. The module begins with an overview of the Scottish Criminal Justice System before examining the major avenues by which the public obtain information about crime – as victims of crime and from the media and official statistics. The module examines the processes that have developed our definitions of crime and the broader social and political context in which this crime occurs. In addition to this, the course provides the opportunity for students to engage in discussion with a Scottish Prison Service Warden, allowing a deeper understanding of punishment in Scotland and the incarceration of offenders.
Excursion(s): This module includes a visit to the Surgeon’s Hall in Edinburgh to discuss the criminal case of Burke and Hare, and the inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective, Sherlock Holmes.
