THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2015/2016

University Homepage
DRPS Homepage
DRPS Search
DRPS Contact
DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Law : Law

Undergraduate Course: Law in Context (LAWS08124)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of Law CollegeCollege of Humanities and Social Science
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 8 (Year 1 Undergraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits10 ECTS Credits5
SummaryThis course has three basic, integrated objectives:
To embed students¿ conceptualisation of the law and legal institutions within a broader understanding of the social, political, economic and ethical context in which they operate, imparting a sense of the way in which law at once draws upon yet stands apart from these related fields;
To further hone and develop the skills in critical thinking introduced during the Scottish Legal System course, providing students with both the capacity and the confidence to approach complex texts and claims from a critical/analytical perspective. This will include, inter alia, classes on different critical methods, and focus on the use of figures, graphs and statistics in the construction of persuasive arguments;
To function as a bridge between the Scottish Legal System course and the Jurisprudence (ordinary) course; providing some essential theoretical background and context to the technical issues and debates raised in the former, whilst introducing students to a wide range of the themes that they will go on to study in much greater depth in the latter during the first semester of their second year.
These objectives are integrated in the sense that they will infuse the course as a whole, rather than each being the focus of individual units. Each unit of lectures will, therefore contribute to the achievement of all objectives, developing themes raised in Scottish Legal System (such as statutory interpretation, judicial reasoning, portrayal of facts, etc.) by describing the theories underpinning debate in each area, and the ways in which these are informed by different moral, political and economic perspectives.
Course description Not entered
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesNone
Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered
Learning Outcomes
Having completed this course, students should be able to demonstrate a basic grasp of:
Theories of semantic meaning in general, and legal meaning in particular;
The key elements of the indeterminacy debate in legal theory;
The role of political, economic and ethical considerations in legal interpretation;
The importance of rhetorical analysis and narrative construction of facts in developing legal argumentation;
Different critical approaches to law, including those drawn from the field of identity politics;
The new issues and debates that are arise in the new, globalised context of law;
The ethics of legal practice, research and reasoning in the contemporary setting.
Reading List
None
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Having completed this course, students should be able to demonstrate a basic ability to:
Recognise, analyse and rank arguments and evidence in terms of relevance and importance by:
managing volume of legal sources and select key material to construct written or oral answers to a problem.
identifying the legal problem from information provided.
addressing problems by reference to relevant material.
bringing together and integrating information and materials from a variety of different sources.
acknowledging ranking of sources and relative impact in context.
application of the law and problem-solving in a legal context.
presenting arguments for and against propositions.
Be aware that arguments require to be supported by evidence, in order to meet legal requirements of proof by showing awareness of the need for evidence to support arguments
Apply knowledge and analysis:
in a legal context
creatively to complex situations in order to provide arguable solutions to concrete problems by presenting a range of viable options from a set of facts and law.
Think critically and make critical judgments on the relative and absolute merits of particular arguments and solutions
Act independently in planning and undertaking tasks in areas of law which he or she has already studied
Reflect on their own learning, and seek and make use of feedback.
KeywordsLaw in Context
Contacts
Course organiserDr Euan Macdonald
Tel: (0131 6)50 9832
Email: Euan.MacDonald@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMrs Heather Haig
Tel: (0131 6)50 2053
Email: Heather.Haig@ed.ac.uk
Navigation
Help & Information
Home
Introduction
Glossary
Search DPTs and Courses
Regulations
Regulations
Degree Programmes
Introduction
Browse DPTs
Courses
Introduction
Humanities and Social Science
Science and Engineering
Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
Other Information
Combined Course Timetable
Prospectuses
Important Information
 
© Copyright 2015 The University of Edinburgh - 18 January 2016 4:16 am