LLAW6229 EU Law Post-Brexit: Course Descriptor

Course Overview

Despite British independence from the European Union, the SRA/BSB Joint Statement still defines EU Law as a foundation of legal knowledge, albeit with some equivocation as to the status of the subject. So, while that is the case, students are obliged to study it to obtain a qualifying law degree. This course aims to give students an understanding of the key constitutional and substantive elements of EU Law, and the areas in which EU and UK law diverge, and why. In the specific context of a changing relationship between the EU and UK, there is also emphasis on comparative analysis between the EU, UK and other legal systems so as to develop a sophisticated legal view of differences and similarities between the jurisdictions in this high-profile debate.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

Knowledge and Understanding

Subject Specific Skills

Transferable and Employability Skills

Teaching and Learning

This course has a dedicated Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) page with a syllabus and range of additional resources (e.g. readings, question prompts, tasks, assignment briefs, discussion boards) to orientate and engage students in their studies

The scheduled teaching and learning activities for this course are:

• Interactive lectures/seminars 

40 scheduled hours – typically including induction, consolidation or revision, and assessment activity hours.

• Version 1:all sessions in the same sized group

OR 

• Version 2: most of the sessions in larger groups; some of the sessions in smaller groups

Faculty hold regular ‘office hours’, which are opportunities for students to drop in or sign up to explore ideas, raise questions, or seek targeted guidance or feedback, individually or in small groups. 

Students are to attend and participate in all the scheduled teaching and learning activities for this course and to manage their directed learning and independent study.

Indicative total learning hours for this course: 150 

Assessment

Both formative and summative assessment are used as part of this course, with purely formative opportunities typically embedded within interactive teaching sessions, office hours, and/or the VLE. 

Summative Assessments

Further information about the assessments can be found in the Course Syllabus.

Feedback

Students will receive formative and summative feedback in a variety of ways, written (e.g. marked up on assignments, through email or the VLE) or oral (e.g. as part of interactive teaching sessions or in office hours).

Indicative Reading

Note: Comprehensive and current reading lists are produced annually in the Course Syllabus or other documentation provided to students; the indicative reading list provided below is for a general guide and part of the approval/modification process only.

• Text and casebooks will be advised based on the specific needs of a comparative course.
• Journals: Modern Law Review, Cambridge Law Review, Law Quarterly Review, Common Market Law Review, European Law Review, European Law Journal 
• Electronic Resources: Westlaw, Lexis and Bailii provide access to the main cases.

Indicative Topics

Note: Comprehensive and current topics for courses are produced annually in the Course Syllabus or other documentation provided to students; the indicative topics provided below are used as a general guide and part of the approval/modification process only.

• An Introduction to the European Union 
• EU Institutions and Law-Making 
• EU litigation and its comparison with other procedures (e.g. UK judicial review; U.S. evidence standards for regulation) 
• How far the EU Treaties support free movement, e.g. of capital, labour, services and goods.
• Retained EU law: convergence and divergence between EU and UK law
• Comparative assessment of regulation across the EU, UK and other comparators.