LLM Master of Laws

Certificate (four from the following)

• Fundamental Legal Principles of the European Union
• Governance of the European Union
• Freedom of Movement and EU Citizenship
• Laws of Peace and War: Foundations of Public International Law
• International Business Law
• International Dispute Resolution
• International Human Rights.

Diploma (four from the following)

• EU Anti-Discrimination Law
• EU Consumer Law
• EU Environmental Law
• External Relations of the EU
• The Law and Policy of the World Trade Organisation
• International Criminal Justice
• International Security and Defence Law
• Private International Law
• International Trade Law.

Masters

• Dissertation.

Postgraduate Certificate Stage

Fundamental Legal Principles of the European Union 
The aim of this European Union law module is to develop students’ understanding of the constitutive and amending Treaties of the European Union. Particular emphasis will be given to the critical appraisal of the Treaty of Lisbon, the status of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, the decision making process, the judicial architecture and the procedural law of the European Union.

Students will be encouraged to evaluate the legal principles of supremacy and direct effect and of interpretation and Member State liability. Students will be expected to appraise the relationship between European Union law and national law and the role of national courts in the application and enforcement of European Union law. The jurisdiction of the European Courts and, in particular, the jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice will receive critical appraisal.

Governance of the European Union
Starting from a historical perspective the origins of the European Union in the early and middle of the twentieth century will be discussed. Political theories of federalism, functionalism and inter-governmentalism will be explored in order to provide an understanding of the relationships between the Member States of the EU and the EU itself. The roles and competences ascribed to each of the institutions of the EU will be analysed. Questions will be posed in the module about the location of legal and political accountability in the complex system of governance which has emerged in the EU. Consideration will be given to the increasing use within the EU of ‘soft’ modes of governance which involve both state and non-state actors in extensive networks to deal with social issue (e.g. unemployment). The role of law and the work of the Court of Justice of the European Union courts as an integrative tool will be analysed. This will include discussion of the Court’s perspective on the ‘soft’ mode of governance approach – a contested notion with views varying from ‘fundamental incompatibility’ to the ‘best way forward’ in an EU of 27 states.

Freedom of Movement and European Union Citizenship
This module will examine the basic principles forming the law and policy on the free movement of goods, persons, services and capital within the internal market of the European Union. The module will provide students with a topical and contemporary programme of study in which the evolving concept of Union citizenship, the residency Directive and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice will receive critical appraisal. Aspects of the transitional arrangements pertaining to migrant workers from Central and Eastern European Member States will be treated as will current trends and developments in freedom of movement in the European Union.

Laws of War and Peace: Foundations of Public International Law
The aim of this certificate stage module is to introduce students to a dynamic area of law that has contemporary relevance in a rapidly changing world order. By examining theoretical and practical applications of International Law in both peaceful and non-peaceful contexts, the module serves as an introduction to key principles of International Law and provides a foundation for other modules for students opting to take the Master of Laws (LLM) (International Law) route. The seminars on the use of force, for example, will introduce students to key areas explored in more depth in the International Security and Defence Law module at Diploma stage. The module will also enable students to gain a critical understanding of the impact and operation of this area of law through applying what they have learned to topical subjects.

International Business Law
This course aims to provide students with an overview of international legal principles governing international trade and business activities, and to give an introduction into various fields of international economic law. Laws regulating the activities of States, private commercial actors and relevant international organisations are included to provide a background for further, more specialised studies (e.g. Law and Policy of the World Trade Organisation).

International Dispute Resolution
The course aims to provide students with an understanding of the social, economic and theoretical place of contemporary dispute resolution and the tactical decisions taken by parties or prospective parties, particularly commercial parties, involved in disputes or contemplating disputes arising out of transactional work. The course will deal with both court based dispute resolution (Litigation) and ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution).

International Human Rights
The aim of this module is to develop students’ critical understanding of international human rights and the way in which the concept of such rights is used to promote respect for certain standards and to protect the rights of individuals. The module will involve considering the role of international organisations (such as the United Nations), regional mechanisms (such as the European Convention on Human Rights) and the enforcement of international standards at the global, regional and domestic levels.

Postgraduate Diploma Stage

EU Anti-Discrimination Law 
The purpose of this module is to examine fundamental theoretical questions regarding EU equality law, its meaning, role and purposes. The module provides students with a contextual and historical overview of EU Equality Law in an enlarged European Union. The main focus will be on the objectives underpinning the notions of non-discrimination and equality and it will consider the shift in focus of EU Gender Equality Law, from an employment (and economic)-based approach to equality to a more human rights approach post-Amsterdam. The module will cover the principle of equal pay (and its application to pensions), the principle of equal treatment (as well as its application to pregnancy and maternity), and the law prohibiting discrimination in relation to social security. In this context, students will gain an appreciation of key concepts such as direct and indirect discrimination, harassment, positive action and gender mainstreaming. The module will also include the contribution of the Charter of Fundamental Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights and other instruments to gender equality and anti-discrimination law.

European Union Consumer Law
The aim of this module is to explain the development of European Union Consumer Law. The module examines the concept of consumer in European law and the need for protection from economic and physical risk. The different rationales for consumer protection will be examined, and the relationship between national and European consumer regulation. Students will be expected to identify the varying policy considerations shaping legal developments.

European Union Environmental Law
The primary aim of this module is to develop students’ knowledge of European Union environmental law and policy. Students will be expected to identify the legal basis for European Union environmental policy and law and in particular, the objectives, principles and procedures in the Treaty which respectively guide and govern European Union environmental regulation. The relationship between environmental protection and the free movement of goods in an internal market will be evaluated. The contemporary European Union environmental action programme will be examined. Aspects of the enforcement of European Union environmental law will be treated, with attention being devoted to the jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice on the protection of the environment through criminal law and its constitutional significance. Students will be asked to appraise selected substantive sectoral and horizontal environmental laws.

External Relations Law of the EU
External relations of the EU includes the process of enlargement of the EU, the European Neighbourhood Policy in relation to countries of the former Soviet Union, North Africa and the Middle East (including the issue of energy security), the ‘leadership’ of the EU in international environmental agreements and the role of the EU in global humanitarian and development action. In addition the evolution of the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy and European Security and Defence Policy has widened the debate about the legal basis for the EU as an external actor.Beginning with the constitutional foundations for the development of an external ‘face’ for EU action, this module will analyse the legal basis for international action. The complexity of the basis for the EU’s external relations will be highlighted before moving to consideration of the potential for future developments, for example those of the Lisbon Treaty.

The Law and Policy of the World Trade Organisation
This course aims to introduce recent law & business graduates and practising lawyers to the scope, principles, effect and practice of WTO law, to examine the position of the WTO and the regulation of international trade in its economic, historical, political and social context and to consider the constitutional arrangements of the GATT and the WTO and how its dispute resolution system has developed over time. The role of regional trading blocks, such as the EU, within the international trade and WTO context will be discussed, including case studies on specific disputes.

International Criminal Justice
The aim of this module is to develop students’ critical understanding of international criminal law, its main principles and practical fields of application, and the legal and political environment in which international criminal courts and tribunals operate. The module will involve considering the structure and law of the various modern international criminal courts, especially the International Criminal Court, and ventures to analyse whether these bodies are effective mechanisms to address mass human rights atrocities and to restore justice in post-conflict societies.

International Security and Defence Law
The aim of this module is to supplement and build on legal issues raised in the Laws of Peace and War module by examining the law on security, defence and intervention. It is also designed to allow students to specialise in the jus ad bellum/use of force arena and to focus on International Law’s response to new international developments such as novel threats to security and the importance of post-conflict reconstruction. The module will examine theoretical and practical applications of International Law in the security and defence arena. It will enable students to gain a critical understanding of the impact and operation of this area of law and to apply what they have learned to case studies and topical subjects.

Private International Law
This module will examine the application of English Private International Law rules in cases involving an international dimension. It will enable students to analyse the theoretical and practical applications of English Private International Law and to gain a critical understanding of a subject whose scope extends beyond English law and the EU to national legal systems throughout the world. The module will also examine the impact on Private International Law of more recent developments such as internet libel.

International Trade Law
The International Trade Law course builds upon and complements the Private International Law module to the extent that this module refers to private international commercial law. International trade is crucial to England’s economic prosperity and domestic economy which has traditionally been a centre of international trade and trade law. The subject is therefore of practical importance. However, wider issues involving conflicts of political and economic interests are also encountered as the trend to international harmonisation of international trade law continues. The module, therefore, focuses primarily on the English law of international commercial transactions but also tackles the wider issues presented by the examination of the law in its international and economic context. More specifically, the module, prior to an examination of the modern law and practice of international trade law, traces the development of international trade law and outlines the key issues which have shaped this development. The module then considers the five principal contracts that the seller and buyer may enter into in order to perform their obligations in international trade i.e. of sale, insurance, carriage, financing and, potentially, dispute settlement (arbitration).

Modules are offered subject to student numbers. The modules at the Certificate and Diploma stage are all 15 credit points. In total students will take eight taught modules and the dissertation (which includes a Research Methods element) of 60 credit points.

For students opting for the European Law pathway, the Fundamental Legal Principles of the European Union, Governance of the European Union and International Human Rights modules are core modules. For students opting for the International Law pathway, the Fundamental Legal Principles of the European Union, International Human Rights and Laws of Peace and War: Foundations of Public International Law are core modules.

Students selecting the European Law pathway will be required to study at least 75 credit points of European Law modules in addition to a Dissertation on a European Law related topic. Students selecting the International Law pathway will be required to study at least 75 credit points of International Law modules in addition to a Dissertation on an International Law related topic.

The LLM has been designed to provide students with an understanding of the economic, social and political contexts in which law is made. It harnesses the expertise and research interests of staff within the Law School to provide a contemporarily relevant menu of modules allowing students to select either a specialised route in European Law or International Law. The programme includes a taught curriculum and a period of independent research supplemented by Research Methods workshops, culminating in the submission of a dissertation.

Class contact time for the full-time programme is eight hours per week. The programme commences in September and finishes in September the following year with the submission of the dissertation. All the taught units on the Certificate and Diploma stages are assessed by means of assignment. The Masters stage is assessed by dissertation.

The programme can be studied on a full-time basis over one year or on a part-time basis over two years. Individual modules may be studied without reading for the full award for weekly two hour sessions over ten weeks.

You may wish to draw on your studies to apply for employment in a high-level position where you can make use of your findings and your research skills. The programme provides specialist education for those wishing to progress to further legal training.

Possession of a good honours degree, the conferment of which included a substantial study of law. In exceptional circumstances students may be admitted to the programme where they can produce evidence, based on undergraduate study (or its equivalent) that they have been adequately prepared for the learning outcomes of the award.

Programme Leader
Anne Dennett
adennett@lincoln.ac.uk 

For further information about fees, scholarships and bursaries please see our Fees & Funding pages.

Fees and Funding