THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2021/2022

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Law : Law

Postgraduate Course: Fundamentals of Comparative Private Law (LAWS11380)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of Law CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) AvailabilityNot available to visiting students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryIn a globalised era, markets, societies, cultures, and political systems are interconnected. What is more, the growing permeability of frontiers, the openness of national economies and societies, has a deep impact on the evolution of the law, as legal concepts and principles flow across borders. Anyone envisaging a career with an international dimension, whether in practice or in academia, will need to engage not just with foreign laws and foreign legal concepts, but will also be confronted with different legal cultures. It is therefore crucial to be familiar with the opportunities but also the difficulties that arise when stepping outside one's own legal system.

The aim of this course is to provide students with a general introduction to the basics and the methodology of comparative law, and to equip them with the tools necessary to conduct comparative analysis. Attention will be given to different methodological approaches to comparative law, and to the purposes and problems of the legal comparison. The course will also assess the taxonomical debates in comparative legal scholarship through the lens of the main sources of law. This course thus offers an ideal foundation for students who want to study core areas of private law across both civil and common law jurisdictions.

The course is structured in two parts. While Part I of the course allows students to gain an understanding of the history of comparative law, its objectives and main methodological approaches, Part II introduces them to the taxonomical debates, the main sources of law in both common and civil law jurisdictions, as well as the challenges and potential pitfalls of the comparative enquiry.
Course description Outline content

The course is structured in two parts:

Part I
Aims and Purposes of the Comparative Inquiry
What does it mean to compare and what can and do we compare?
Methodological Approaches ¿ The Functional Approach
Methodological Approaches ¿ ¿Legal transplants¿
Comparative Legal Studies and Language

Part II
Comparative legal studies and the taxonomy of legal systems
Codes and Codification
Judges and Case Law
Jurists and Juristic Writings
Reflections on Taxonomies and the Civil Law/ Common Law Divide

Student Learning Experience

The course will be taught by a series of 10 two-hour seminars, for which students will be provided in advance with reading lists, and questions to guide their reading and the development of ideas. Active participation in seminar discussions will be strongly encouraged.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2021/22, Not available to visiting students (SS1) Quota:  25
Course Start Semester 1
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 200 ( Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20, Feedback/Feedforward Hours 4, Formative Assessment Hours 2, Summative Assessment Hours 4, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 166 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) The course is assessed by a 5,000-word essay to be submitted in early January. A choice of topics will be given.
Feedback All students will be required to give an oral presentation concerning a particular paper on the reading list or on a specific topic. This will not be part of their summative assessment but will enable them to develop soft skills and to explore certain topics in greater depth. In addition, they will be given the opportunity to submit a piece of formative written work. The formative assessment does not contribute toward the overall course mark.

Feedback on the formative assessment may be provided in various formats, for example, to include written, oral, video, face-to-face, whole class, or individual. The course organiser will decide which format is most appropriate in relation to the nature of the assessment.

Feedback on the formative in-course assessed work will be provided in time to be of use for the summative assessments within the course.

Feedback on the summative assessment will be provided in written form via Learn, the University of Edinburgh's Virtual Learning Environment (VLE).
No Exam Information
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Understand comparative private law as a distinct discipline which is separate from the study of national laws.
  2. Understand the main methodological approaches to the comparative exercise in the field of private law.
  3. Discern the value but also the challenges of the comparative enterprise.
  4. Understand some of the core features of the main legal traditions examined.
Reading List
The literature published in this area is substantial. The essential reading for each seminar is indicated on the handout accompanying the particular seminar. Among the books that students will frequently use are:

* K Zweigert and H Kötz, Introduction to Comparative Law (OUP, 3rd edn 1996 transl T Weir)
* M Reimann and R Zimmermann (eds), The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Law (OUP, 2nd edn 2019)
* HP Glenn, Legal Traditions of the World (OUP, 5th edn 2014)
* M Bussani and U Mattei (eds), The Cambridge Companion to Comparative Law (CUP, 2012)
* A Watson, Legal Transplants. An Approach to Comparative Law (2nd edn 1993)
* S Koch and J Ø Sunde, Comparing Legal Cultures (Fagbokforlaget, 2nd edn 2020)
* E Örücü and D Nelken (eds), Comparative Law: A Handbook (Hart Publishing, 2007)
* M Siems, Comparative Law (CUP, 2nd edn 2018)
* W Menski, Comparative Law in a Global Context (CUP, 2nd edn, 2006).
* G Frankenberg, Comparative Law as Critique (Elgar, 2016)
* VV Palmer, Mixed Jurisdictions Worldwide: The Third Legal Family (2012 2nd edn CUP).
*C Valcke, Comparing Law. Comparative Law as Reconstruction of Collective Commitments (CUP 2018)
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Students will develop the skills of working independently in the critical analysis of legal and source materials across different jurisdictions. They will gain experience in comparative methodology, and will be equipped with the tools necessary to conduct comparative analysis. They will develop sensitivity to the nuances of language and terminology. By interactive discussion, they will learn the value of shared dialogue to the formation and refinement of their thinking.
KeywordsComparative Private Law,Civil and Common Law,Mixed Jurisdictions,Legal Transplants,Functional Method
Contacts
Course organiserProf Alexandra Braun
Tel: (0131 6)51 5560
Email: Alexandra.Braun@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMiss Bethan Walters
Tel: (0131 6)50 2386
Email: bethan.walters@ed.ac.uk
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