Postgraduate Course: The Law of Advertising and Commercial Speech (LAWS11375)
Course Outline
| School | School of Law |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | In substantive terms, students will be introduced to the role of law and regulation relating to advertising and commercial speech. They will be encouraged to think critically about the social, political and economic impact of advertising and the role of law in shaping this field. They will explore the human rights dimension and the public and private interests that underpin advertising law and regulation. The course will consider the interplay of self-regulation and statutory regulation and the role of EU law in shaping domestic rules. Students will also be encouraged to think about how rules are enforced and jurisdiction in an increasingly integrated international marketplace.
Advertising plays an important role in driving sales and providing consumer information, it has also been one of the main bases for funding the mass media. Advertising continues to evolve, however, and there are increasing concerns about surreptitious and 'native' advertising and the way in which information on consumers is aggregated and sold. In an increasingly online sales environment - who can we trust and what role should international organisations, states - and industry - play in protecting individuals and consumers?
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| Course description |
An indication of the structure of the course is as follows:
I The fundamentals
1. Introduction - What is advertising? An international and comparative legal perspective.
2. Advertising and the human rights framework
3. Advertising and the European legal framework
II A Closer Look at Key Regulatory Goals: Protecting Consumers and Competitors
4. Misleading advertising and consumer protection
5. Comparative Advertising and Passing off
6. Reading week
7. Surreptitious and Native Advertising
(student groups to confirm selected topics with course organiser by 4.00 Monday of this week)
III The regulation of online marketing - some emerging issues
8. Digital Marketing and Behavioural Advertising
9. Social Media and online games
IV A closer look at key areas or topical issues
10. Student research-led presentations
11. Student research-led presentations
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- draw on relevant legal materials and use these effectively to develop their legal reasoning;
- understand the application of the law in its wider social, economic and political context;
- evaluate and criticise the law, using a variety of legal, policy-based, and theoretical arguments;
- carry out legal research in the field, in part so that the knowledge and understanding gained may be applied and adapted in future; and
- draw on learned transferable skills: (a) communication skills, oral and in writing; (b) intellectual skills, of collecting, organising, evaluating, synthesising and presenting material and arguments; (c) general skills, in managing time, working independently, and taking responsibility for their own work; (d) skills of co-operation and planning within a group to produce a professional oral presentation
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Reading List
Key texts include:
Giles Crown, Advertising Law and Regulation (Second Ed. Bloomsbury Professional, 2010)
Jan Oster, European and International Media Law (CUP: 2017), chapter 5
Barendt, Bosland, Craufurd Smith, Hitchens, Media Law: Text, Cases and Materials, (Pearson, 2014), chapter 6
Considerable material is also available online, in particular on the Europa and Advertising Standards Authority website.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
The course will encourage in particular self-directed learning, autonomy and initiative, communication and analytical skills, and working together. |
| Keywords | Advertising,Commercial Speech,Data Protection,Online Games,Freedom of Expression; |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Rachael Craufurd-Smith
Tel: (0131 6)50 2061
Email: r.c.smith@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mr David Morris
Tel: (0131 6)50 2010
Email: David.Morris@ed.ac.uk |
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