| Module Identifier | LA36920 | ||
| Module Title | INTERNATIONAL LAW | ||
| Academic Year | 2001/2002 | ||
| Co-ordinator | Professor Ryszard Piotrowicz | ||
| Semester | Semester 1 | ||
| Other staff | Professor Christopher Harding | ||
| Mutually Exclusive | LA10810, LA10910 | ||
| Course delivery | Lecture | 40 Hours | |
| Seminar | 8 Hours Four, two hour seminars | ||
| Assessment | Essay | One assessed essay of 2000 words (required in week 11) | 33% |
| Exam | 2 Hours Seen Examination | 66% | |
| Resit assessment | Bt retaking the failed element (ie written assignment or examination or both, as applicable) | ||
A study of international law in addition provides some insight into the relation between different types of legal order, especially the interaction of international and municipal law. Much international law of both a global and a regional character is not translated into national legislation and some areas of national law are more easily understood when it is appreciated that they represent an implementation of international obligations.
The first part of this module comprises an introduction to the nature and working methods of the international legal system. The sources, subjects and methodology of international law differ from those found in most national (municipal) systems, and a study of the operation of the international legal system supplies illuminating comparisons for students of law generally. Stress is laid upon the way in which international law may work effectively in the absence of a compulsory judicial system and types of sanction commonly found in municipal systems. The study of international law alongside a system such as English Law is therefore also an exercise in jurisprudence.
The second part of the module builds upon this foundation by examining in greater depth selected areas of substantive law. The approach at this stage of the course is thematic, relating legal rules to contemporary issues of international concern, such as the protection of human rights, the preservation of the environment, the world economic order, and the legal control of terrorism and other crimininal activities which cross national boundaries.
The module is offered as an elective for both students of law and students in other degree schemes.
The coursework and examination are designed to encourage and enable the students to demonstrate their command of the principles and techniques of International Law.
The concept of legal personality in different legal systems
States as legal persons: the concept of statehood
The role of recognition in the creation of statehood
The personality of international organisations
The personality of individuals at the international level
2. Sources of international law and the international law-making process
Treaties: types of treaties and the treaty-making process
Custom: the requirements of custom and its nature as a source of law
General principles of law
Subsidiary sources: precedent and legal writing
Resolutions of the UN General Assembly
Problems in the development of international law
3. The relationship between international and municipal (state) law
'Monist' and 'Dualist' approaches to this question
The extent to which international law is part of the United Kingdom legal system
The relations between the European Community and state legal systems
4. State sovereignty
The concept of state sovereignty: the distinction between sovereignty and other legal regimes in international law
The principles of non-intervention and the sovereign equality states
Methods of acquiring sovereignty over territory
The relevance of the principle of self-determination
5. The settlement of disputes in international law
Different methods of dispute resolution employed at the international level
The role of force in dispute settlement
The use of United Nations procedures
Dispute settlement in the context of the European Communities
6. Jurisdiction and immunity from jurisdiction
The bases of jurisdiction
Sovereign immunity
Diplomatic immunity
7. The basic principles of state responsibility
8. International co-operation in relation to the enforcement of criminal law, with special reference to War crimes
Crimes against humanity
Acts of terrorism
9. The international economic order
The concept of the 'New International Economic Order' and sovereignty over natural resources
Expropriation of foreign assets
Maritime claims for the exploitation of resources
10. Protection of the global environement
Conservation and protection of the maritime environment
Antartica Cross-frontier environmental damage
Control of nuclear activities
11. The protection of the basic rights of individuals and groups under international law
Basic problems arising from state sovereignty and questions of legal personality
The major systems of protection, global and regional, established since 1945
Problems of standard-setting and enforcement
Detailed consideration of the system set up under the European Convention on Human Rights and comparison with other regional systems