Commercial Law LLB (Hons) with foundation year

In this module, you will explore the main sources, institutions, and structures of the English legal system. You will develop an insight into the workings of the civil and criminal justice system, whilst exploring key challenges in providing access to justice for all. You will be introduced to sources of English Law, judicial precedent, statutory interpretation, legal personnel and the growing role of alternative dispute resolution and tribunals within the legal system. You will be encouraged to take a critical role by examining current legal issues that relate to the English legal system and debate different perspectives.

Compulsory

This module explores the law regulating state institutions, their interactions with each other and their relationship with the individual citizen. You will explore the constitutional arrangements for the United Kingdom and examine fundamental concepts such as the rule of law, legal accountability, and human rights. You will also develop an awareness of the global significance of a specific constitution and the role that international and comparative law can play in setting standards of constitutional behaviour. You will also examine how governments and various state institutions are held to account through the area of administrative law, with particular reference to judicial review.

Compulsory

Contracts affect companies in the way that business is conducted and impact every person’s daily life. Contracts, therefore, have significant effects on both business practice and social relations. This module introduces you to the key legal principles and rules governing contracts and how these give rise to legally protected and enforceable obligations. You will examine the formation, operation, and termination of contractual obligations and how factors such as technological advancement, social change and changing commercial priorities may influence the development of contract law.

Compulsory

The criminal law in England and Wales includes a wide range of offences ranging from minor motoring offences to the most serious crimes, such as homicide. You will gain an understanding of the current law through an appreciation of the purposes of the criminal law, the principles underpinning the law and how the criminal law continues to adapt to address changes in social behaviours and the emergence of new types of harm. This module takes a contemporary approach by exploring the development of the criminal law within modern society, including the creation of new offences and how the law works to protect a person’s protected characteristics.

Compulsory

This module encourages you to acquire an applied understanding of how the law can be a creative force for meaningful change. You will have the opportunity to work collaboratively with other students to tackle a ‘grand legal challenge’ and through this, practice and develop your key legal skills. The module will equip you with the ability to conduct effective legal research in order to present reasoned legal solutions to real-world problems arising from the grand legal challenge. You will examine the limits of the law and identify instances where reform of the law would aid the resolution of real-world problems.

Compulsory

This module aims to examine and apply your understanding of the law to new social, economic or technological change. You will explore how, and when, the law must adapt to meet these changes and how public opinion, the media, political thinking, and international pressure can influence the law’s development. You will explore several contemporary issues and will evaluate ways in which the law has or may contribute to resolving those problems by examining key debates within contemporary legal research and thinking.

Compulsory

Businesses engage lawyers at almost every stage of the commercial cycle. Lawyers will often advise on how to set up a business, including how to structure and finance an undertaking, the sale of goods and/or supply of services and the use of financial instruments such as contracts of insurance, negotiable instruments and securities. This module will provide you with an awareness and understanding of the various legal obligations, tools and remedies available to businesses and commercial ventures.

Compulsory

This module provides you with a working understanding of practical legal skills and professional ethical awareness in the areas of advocacy, drafting, interviewing and negotiation. The module is designed to introduce you to the type of work you would do in legal practice and inform your career aspirations. The skills you learn in this module are highly attractive and transferable to a variety of professional spheres both inside and outside of the legal profession.

Compulsory

European Union law remains hugely important to individuals and businesses both within the EU and beyond. Notwithstanding the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the Union, EU law continues to pervade many aspects of English law. Additionally, as one of the world’s largest single markets, knowledge and understanding of the European Union are crucial to any business, wherever located. Through this module, you will develop an understanding of the operation of European Union Law within the English legal system and the legal frameworks that operate within the EU. You will gain an understanding of both the public law of the European Union and the substantive rules of the internal market.

Compulsory

Tort law is the name given to the branch of law that imposes civil liability for breach of obligations owed by both individuals and organisations to one another. In this module, you will explore the foundational tort of negligence which has led to the growth of this discipline area. You will examine the kinds of damage the law permits recovery for and explore other torts such as nuisance, occupiers’ liability, trespass to the person and privacy/defamation, among others. Throughout the module, you will explore how tort law has developed in a changing social, economic and political climate, as well as how it relates to other legal areas such as contract, criminal law and human rights.

Compulsory

With a particular focus on land law, this module aims to acquaint you with the terminology, concepts, policy objectives and statutory schemes necessary to understand modern property law in England and Wales. It aims to provide you with the intellectual framework with which to identify, understand and resolve practical problems in property law and examine the underlying rationales which explain the current design and shape of the law of property. It will also introduce you to conveyancing practice.

Compulsory

This module introduces you to the equitable principles governing the creation, operation and administration of public and private trusts and examines the reasons for creating trusts in the contemporary social, economic and international context. Contemporary issues in this area may include the legal problems raised by crowd-funding and surplus funds, the potential problems of joint ownership of property outside of the family relationship and how philanthropy through the creation of charitable trusts provides funding that supports and advances UN Sustainable Development Goals. You will gain an understanding of the trust concept, the requirements for the creation of a valid trust, the different types of trust that may come into operation, the nature of trusteeship and liability for breach of trust. You will explore the flexibility of the trust concept, its traditional function in relation to family property and its contemporary role in commercial contexts.

Compulsory

This module² provides you with an opportunity to reflect upon and gain experience for an approved placement undertaken during your programme. A placement should usually be at least 26 weeks or equivalent; however, each placement will be considered on its own merits, having regard to the ability to achieve the learning outcomes.

Optional

This module² provides you with an opportunity to reflect upon and gain experience for an approved international study/work placement undertaken during your programme. A work/study placement should usually be at least 26 weeks or equivalent; however, each placement will be considered on its own merits, having regard to the ability to achieve the learning outcomes.

Optional

During the Project module, you will have the opportunity to apply and develop your research skills and extend your knowledge, understanding and ability to critically analyse a topic in a specialist area of interest. There are three routes for study in this module, which are:

• Route 1: An individual research-based dissertation on a topic of your choosing, supported by a project supervisor
• Route 2: An individual work-based project report
• Route 3: An individual work-based project report on their engagement in the Coventry Law School’s Law Clinics² (this option is subject to securing a placement at Coventry Law Centre)

Compulsory

In a legal system with increasing costs and delays, the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is becoming more prominent. You will be introduced to the alternative methods of resolving commercial law disputes, focusing on the key methods of negotiation, mediation and arbitration. You will develop your practical skills in relation to ADR by immersing yourself in simulated scenarios addressing issues with multiple parties who have differing economic goals. You will also be encouraged to take a critical approach toward the use of alternative dispute resolution in the context of commercial justice.

Compulsory

In the field of trade law, free and fair trade has been of fundamental importance to the prosperity of the global economy. Economic globalisation and world events such as Brexit and trade wars have thrown a spotlight on the issues, challenges and complexities of international trade and trade negotiation. In this module, you will examine the role of the rule of law in the regulation and liberalisation of international trade. You will examine the role of international treaties and institutions in developing international trade law, as well as the settlement of disputes. You will also explore how trade law operates in practice, from the conclusion of international contracts of sale, to export, carriage and import.

Compulsory

Any two optional modules from the following:

Company Law – 20 credits

Registered companies conduct most of the economic activity in the United Kingdom. Therefore, lawyers and other professional persons require an understanding of the concepts that shape company law, as well as the rules that govern corporate activities. Consequently, this module aims to develop your critical understanding of the laws that govern registered companies, as well as other business models such as Partnerships and LLPs. In this module, you will examine the legal regulation of the formation, administration, financing, and governance of companies.

Employment Law – 20 credits

Employment law is a dynamic subject as it responds to changing, and sometimes conflicting, economic, political and social demands, within the UK, in addition to the impact of the European Union and the wider global context. The module aims to provide you with a critical understanding of the regulation of employment by law and to place the legal rules in their broader economic and socio-political context. You will examine the legal regulation of the employment relationship from recruitment through to termination, the nature of employment and the rights and duties of both employers and employees.

Law, Innovation and Intellectual Property Law – 20 credits

Innovation is a major driver of added value and economic growth. This module considers the legal frameworks for the protection, harnessing, and exploitation of the economy of ideas. You will learn about the terminology, concepts, policy objects and statutory schemes necessary to understand Intellectual Property Law in the UK and the international protection measures which provide protection for intellectual property assets across national boundaries. You will further consider the ways in which innovation and new technologies can impact both the substance and practice of the law.

Family Law – 20 credits

This module will aim to develop your knowledge and understanding of family law, and the ways in which these areas of law operate in practice in their socio-legal context. You will primarily explore the ways in which English law regulates relationships between adult partners (in marriage, civil partnership, and co-habitation), and relationships between parents/carers and children. You will also develop your understanding of the operation of human rights law principles in family law, with a particular focus on the ways in which both private and public law operate to safeguard children and adults from violence and abuse in a family context.

International Criminal Law – 20 credits

This module will explore those crimes which are considered ‘international crimes’ i.e. the most heinous crimes which operate across national borders or those within states which warrant international scrutiny. This module examines the development of International Criminal Law (ICL), beginning with the aftermath of the Second World War, before focusing on the establishment of the more contemporary international criminal courts and tribunals. You will explore the basic principles of public international law which are relevant to ICL, before looking at the four ‘core crimes’ (genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and aggression), as well as various other aspects of international criminal prosecution, including the modes of criminal responsibility, defences and the international criminal trial process.

Environmental Law – 20 credits

This module will introduce you to the legal and policy issues surrounding the protection of the natural environment. The module will focus on the UK and its relationship to international, regional, and bi-national law as the global community seeks to adapt and mitigate the effects of a variety of environmental issues. You will study the historical development of environmental law and focus on key contemporary issues such as the responsibility of businesses towards the environment, climate change and environmental crime.

Optional