Undergraduate Course: Protection of Natural Persons in Scots Private Law (LAWS10263)
Course Outline
| School | School of Law |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course will examine the rights which natural persons hold by virtue of their status as such in Scots private law and the way in which such rights are defined and protected. |
| Course description |
This course will examine the rights which natural persons hold by virtue of their status as such in Scots private law and the way in which such rights are defined and protected. In particular, it will look at the rules in the law of delict which relate to bodily integrity, liberty and personality rights. It will consider the extent to which protection of these rights are balanced or set against other policy aims. It will also consider the extent to which these rules would be better understood by starting with rights rather than wrongs and what implications the balancing exercise mentioned in the previous sentence have for the plausibility of a rights-based approach. In doing so, students will consider both the policy debates which bear on the scope of the protection afforded to these interests and discussions about the best way to construct the law in conceptual terms. For further detail, please see the indicative teaching outline below.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Spaces on this course are allocated as part of the Law Honours Course Allocation process. Places are generally only available to students who must take Law courses. To request a space on this course, please email Law.courseselection@ed.ac.uk |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | This course is only open to visiting students coming through a direct exchange with the School of Law (including Erasmus students on a Law-specific Exchange). Exchange students outside of Law and independent study abroad students are not eligible to enrol in this course, with no exceptions.
**Please note that 3rd year Law courses are high-demand, meaning that they have a very high number of students wishing to enrol in a very limited number of spaces.**
Priority will be given to students studying on exchange within the Law department, and it is highly unlikely that there will be additional spaces for general exchange students & independent study abroad students to enrol; we will look into this on a case-by-case basis in September/January. Visiting students are advised to bear in mind that enrolment in specific courses can never be guaranteed, and you may need to be flexible in finding alternatives in case your preferred courses have no available space. |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2026/27, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
176 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
100% summative essay |
| Feedback |
The core opportunity for feedback is class discussion. In addition, there will be two opportunities for formative feedback: a short, written answer (1000 words) in week 3 and a longer piece (2500 words) to be submitted in week 7. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Outline how Scots private law protects natural persons¿ interests in their physical integrity, psychological well-being, reputation, privacy and liberty.
- Engage deeply with case law and secondary literature on these topics
- Assess the balance struck between these interests and competing interests or policy concerns.
- Analyse and evaluate the extent to which Scots law¿s protection of these interests can be helpfully understood in terms of primary rights held be natural persons.
- Present their arguments on these topics accessibly and rigorously
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Reading List
EC Reid, The Law of Delict in Scotland (2022)
EC Reid, Personality, Confidentiality and Privacy in Scots Law (2010)
A Beever, A Theory of Tort Liability (2016)
R Stevens, Torts and Rights (2007)
Extensive use will be made of case law and some journal literature relevant to particular seminars. |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Research and enquiry
Personal and intellectual autonomy
Communication |
| Keywords | Delict,Personal Injury,Personality Rights,Privacy,Defamation |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr John MacLeod
Tel:
Email: John.Macleod@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Miss Robyn Blyth
Tel: (01316) 514550
Email: rblyth@ed.ac.uk |
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