LEGAL SYSTEM

Course Code

LS 1021

Credit Points

15

Course Coordinator

Mr David Lessels

Pre-requisites

None

Co-requisites

None

Notes

Available only to candidates for the degree of LLB and MA Legal Studies students.

Overview

The course will contain a coverage of: the characteristics of civil and criminal procedure; key events in the historical development of the Scottish legal system eg. the Treaty and Act of Union 1706-7, the Scotland Act 1998, the Human Rights Act 1998; the hierarchy and organisation of the Scottish civil court and tribunals system and (in outline) the main English courts; the formal sources of Scots law and their relative authority inter se; the rules and approaches to statutory interpretation; the operation of the system of binding precedent; European law making institutions and the European sources of law; the procedural stages through which a civil action moves from initiation to final resolution; nature, roles, structure, standards and regulation of the legal profession in Scotland; alternative methods of resolving disputes eg. mediation, arbitration.

Structure

36 one-hour lectures and 4 one-hour tutorials.

Assessment

1st Attempt: 1 two-hour examination (100%).

Resit: 1 two-hour examination (100%).

Formative Assessment

1. Two library exercises where students have to search for materials in the Law Library.


2. During one of the tutorials students have to work in teams of three answer a set of questions from a file of materials provided by the tutor who, at the end of the tutorial, reviews their written answers.


3. Two quizzes on the organisation and jurisdiction of the Scottish and English civil courts.


4. A Practice exam held in the seventh week of the semester.


5. On a less formal basis, verbal feedback is given during tutorial discussions.

Feedback

The assessment in para. 1 above is marked by the student's tutor and returned with detailed written comments.

The assessment in para. 2 - oral feedback is given by the tutor at the close of tutorial.

The quizzes in para 3 are gone over in a lecture after students have had time to prepare their answers.

For the Practice exam mentioned in para 4, very detailed written feedback comments are put on each script, supplemented by a lecture hour which goes over all aspects of the exam performance.

Appointments are given to all candidates who did particularly poorly,and there is a general invitation to any member of the class who wishes to do so to discuss performance in this foundational course.