Through the historical-comparative method, the course aims, in the first part, to provide students with the tools to analyze and understand different concepts of law and different ways to legitimate the law in the main legal traditions (Civil law, Common law, legal systems of Islamic countries, main Asian legal systems, South American legal systems). In the second part, the course aims to deepen the historical-comparative aspects of the European integration process and the evolution of the Chinese legal system.
Curriculum
teacher profile teaching materials
2. Functions and Conceptions of Law
3. What Is a Legal System? Structure and Elements
4. Law and Justice: Antigone, Legality, and Civil Disobedience
5. Fundamental Rights and Levels of Protection
6. The Trial as a Rationalization of Conflict
7. Ius Commune and the Jurists’ Law
8. Canon Law and Methodological Transformations
9. Modern Natural Law and Codification
10. Legal Positivism and the Model of the Code
11. Origins and Structure of the Common Law
12. Precedent and Stare Decisis
13. Vertical and Horizontal Precedent
14. Judicial Style and Techniques of Legal Reasoning
15. Ratio Decidendi and Obiter Dictum
16. Equity in the English Legal System
17. Equity in Continental Legal Systems
18. Modern Constitutions and the Rise of Constitutional Review
19. Models of Constitutional Review in Comparative Perspective
20. The Constitutionalization of Private Law
21. Legal Realism and Critical Legal Studies
22. Soft Law, Regulation, and Independent Authorities
23. The Rule of Law in the English Tradition
24. Rechtsstaat and the Constitutional State Governed by Law
25. The European Rule of Law
26. Judicial Systems and Legal Professions
27. The Jury and Alternative Dispute Resolution
28. Islam and Law
29. The Chinese Legal System
30. Post-Colonial Legal Systems and Legal Pluralism
31. The Japanese Legal System
Programme
1. What Is Law? Normativity and Legitimacy2. Functions and Conceptions of Law
3. What Is a Legal System? Structure and Elements
4. Law and Justice: Antigone, Legality, and Civil Disobedience
5. Fundamental Rights and Levels of Protection
6. The Trial as a Rationalization of Conflict
7. Ius Commune and the Jurists’ Law
8. Canon Law and Methodological Transformations
9. Modern Natural Law and Codification
10. Legal Positivism and the Model of the Code
11. Origins and Structure of the Common Law
12. Precedent and Stare Decisis
13. Vertical and Horizontal Precedent
14. Judicial Style and Techniques of Legal Reasoning
15. Ratio Decidendi and Obiter Dictum
16. Equity in the English Legal System
17. Equity in Continental Legal Systems
18. Modern Constitutions and the Rise of Constitutional Review
19. Models of Constitutional Review in Comparative Perspective
20. The Constitutionalization of Private Law
21. Legal Realism and Critical Legal Studies
22. Soft Law, Regulation, and Independent Authorities
23. The Rule of Law in the English Tradition
24. Rechtsstaat and the Constitutional State Governed by Law
25. The European Rule of Law
26. Judicial Systems and Legal Professions
27. The Jury and Alternative Dispute Resolution
28. Islam and Law
29. The Chinese Legal System
30. Post-Colonial Legal Systems and Legal Pluralism
31. The Japanese Legal System
Core Documentation
They will be indicated at the beginning of the lectures.Attendance
RecommendedType of evaluation
Assessment consists of a written examination and an oral examination. The written exam is designed to verify knowledge of the fundamental concepts, comparative categories, and main differences between the legal systems studied during the course, as well as the ability to apply them to short questions or case-based prompts. The oral exam aims to assess the command of technical legal terminology, argumentative skills, the ability to draw connections between different legal models, and the student’s critical comparative analysis. teacher profile teaching materials
2. Functions and Conceptions of Law
3. What Is a Legal System? Structure and Elements
4. Law and Justice: Antigone, Legality, and Civil Disobedience
5. Fundamental Rights and Levels of Protection
6. The Trial as a Rationalization of Conflict
7. Ius Commune and the Jurists’ Law
8. Canon Law and Methodological Transformations
9. Modern Natural Law and Codification
10. Legal Positivism and the Model of the Code
11. Origins and Structure of the Common Law
12. Precedent and Stare Decisis
13. Vertical and Horizontal Precedent
14. Judicial Style and Techniques of Legal Reasoning
15. Ratio Decidendi and Obiter Dictum
16. Equity in the English Legal System
17. Equity in Continental Legal Systems
18. Modern Constitutions and the Rise of Constitutional Review
19. Models of Constitutional Review in Comparative Perspective
20. The Constitutionalization of Private Law
21. Legal Realism and Critical Legal Studies
22. Soft Law, Regulation, and Independent Authorities
23. The Rule of Law in the English Tradition
24. Rechtsstaat and the Constitutional State Governed by Law
25. The European Rule of Law
26. Judicial Systems and Legal Professions
27. The Jury and Alternative Dispute Resolution
28. Islam and Law
29. The Chinese Legal System
30. Post-Colonial Legal Systems and Legal Pluralism
31. The Japanese Legal System
Programme
1. What Is Law? Normativity and Legitimacy2. Functions and Conceptions of Law
3. What Is a Legal System? Structure and Elements
4. Law and Justice: Antigone, Legality, and Civil Disobedience
5. Fundamental Rights and Levels of Protection
6. The Trial as a Rationalization of Conflict
7. Ius Commune and the Jurists’ Law
8. Canon Law and Methodological Transformations
9. Modern Natural Law and Codification
10. Legal Positivism and the Model of the Code
11. Origins and Structure of the Common Law
12. Precedent and Stare Decisis
13. Vertical and Horizontal Precedent
14. Judicial Style and Techniques of Legal Reasoning
15. Ratio Decidendi and Obiter Dictum
16. Equity in the English Legal System
17. Equity in Continental Legal Systems
18. Modern Constitutions and the Rise of Constitutional Review
19. Models of Constitutional Review in Comparative Perspective
20. The Constitutionalization of Private Law
21. Legal Realism and Critical Legal Studies
22. Soft Law, Regulation, and Independent Authorities
23. The Rule of Law in the English Tradition
24. Rechtsstaat and the Constitutional State Governed by Law
25. The European Rule of Law
26. Judicial Systems and Legal Professions
27. The Jury and Alternative Dispute Resolution
28. Islam and Law
29. The Chinese Legal System
30. Post-Colonial Legal Systems and Legal Pluralism
31. The Japanese Legal System
Core Documentation
They will be indicated at the beginning of the lectures.Attendance
RecommendedType of evaluation
Assessment consists of a written examination and an oral examination. The written exam is designed to verify knowledge of the fundamental concepts, comparative categories, and main differences between the legal systems studied during the course, as well as the ability to apply them to short questions or case-based prompts. The oral exam aims to assess the command of technical legal terminology, argumentative skills, the ability to draw connections between different legal models, and the student’s critical comparative analysis.