ELLM: Upcoming modules

This module examines the legal and administrative regulation of newsgathering and content production practices undertaken by journalists and others working in the media sector. The module is introduced with consideration of a number of themes that underpin the rest of the syllabus: the role(s) of the media in society (including conceptions of the 'public interest'); the main social, technological and regulatory influences that shape media newsgathering practise, and rights jurisprudence (in particular, the freedom of expression and freedom of the press in national and international law).

The module then examines a number of newsgathering practices that are either facilitated or proscribed by law and/or other forms of regulation. These include protection of sources (in general; vis-a vis police and security interests; payment of sources); access to information held by the state (official secrets; news management; freedom of information); access to the justice system (secret justice / physical access to courts; access to court documents; technology and the courts - text-based reporting and broadcasting; access to prisoners); media-police interaction; harassment and media intrusion, and surreptitious newsgathering practices (hacking, tapping, entrapment and subterfuge).

Lecturer: Dr Andrew Scott

Module Code: LL424

The module examines the private law rules governing how companies raise finance. The issues covered include e.g. capital structures, identifying and protecting shareholder rights, issuing shares, initial legal capital and alternatives, dividends, reduction of capital and share buy-backs, reform and moving to a solvency test and financial assistance. The module will focus on English Law and German Law and reference will be made to the relevant EU rules.

Lecturer: Edmund Schuster

Module Code: LL419E

Investment treaties are instruments of economic governance at the heart of international arbitration and current policy debates. After the Second World War, many states agreed to minimum standards of conduct towards foreign investors to promote capital inflows in the face of political risks. Today, the standards contained in nearly 3,000 bilateral treaties (or chapters in trade agreements) serve to delimit the lawful exercise of governmental authority from a state’s international responsibility to make reparation for injury to investors, usually in the form of compensation. These treaties typically include each state’s consent to arbitration on the notice of any protected investor, known as investment treaty arbitration or investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS). With around 1,500 cases, investment treaty arbitration has become an important vehicle for the development of international law. At the same time, diverse voices have protested the alleged chilling effect of large compensation awards on public interest regulation, not least amid the renewable energy transition, whilst there are live debates among governments as to the future law and procedure of foreign investment disputes.  

The aim of the course is to introduce students to international investment law, focusing on the rules of public international law that regulate foreign investments and are applied by arbitral tribunals in investment treaty disputes. The course has five main elements: (1) the historical, theoretical and policy background behind investment treaties and dispute settlement by arbitration; (2) the rules governing jurisdiction and admissibility of investor-state arbitration cases; (3) the substantive principles and standards – such as national treatment, most-favoured-nation treatment, expropriation, protection of contracts by umbrella clauses, and the minimum standard in international law – that may apply to investor-state relationships; (4) annulment, recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards and the interaction between international tribunals and national courts; and (5) the discussion of the future of international investment law.

Lecturer: Dr Oliver Hailes

Module Code: LL430E

Human and constitutional rights are increasingly and properly discussed in a global, as opposed to domestic or regional, context. This module provides an introduction to theories of human and constitutional rights by focusing on the emerging global discussion about their structure, substance, and justification.  Topics to be discussed will include: Robert Alexy’s Theory of Rights as Principles; Ronald Dworkin's Theory of Rights as Trumps; The Debate about Proportionality; Absolute Rights; The Debate about Judicial Review; The Culture of Justification and the Right to Justification.

Lecturer: Professor Kai Möller

Module Code: LL426E

This module covers the international law dealing with climate change with a view to assessing how risks and uncertainties caused by climate change are governed and allocated in different legal regimes. The module adopts the stance that the political and legal questions raised by climate change cannot be addressed by reference to climate change law (or indeed international environmental law) alone. Climate change gives rise to a series of profound problems touching upon a range of bodies of law (international economic law, human rights law, state responsibility, international migration law) in a complex political and ethical environment. In approaching climate change as a concrete concern relevant to these various bodies of law and practice, the module will address the normative and/or ethical bases for choosing between actions designed to prevent and/or manage climate change and its consequences, attentive to developmental imperatives and the theoretical concerns raised by the 'fragmented' nature of international law.

Lecturer: Dr Stephen Humphreys

Module Code: LL420E

International business parties can choose which legal system's rules will govern their contract disputes; taken together, English law and New York law dominate the market. Anglo-American Contract Law will acquaint students with the fundamental ideas of the common law of contracts. Students will also learn how these common-law ideas have developed differently in England and the United States. The module's main themes include: freedom of contract and its limits; the tension between documentary certainty and tacit understandings; the relevance of extracontractual notions of fairness; and the nature of the judicial role in contractual dispute resolution. We will explore these themes by working through both hypothetical and real cases. Though some historical understanding is crucial, the emphasis is on issues with contemporary practical importance. Additionally, we will focus on ideas peculiar to the common law of contracts and otherwise inaccessible to students from a civil law background. We will also pay special attention to areas where English and American law have diverged. Along the way, students will become familiar with the distinctive styles of legal reasoning on display in each country. 

Lecturer: Dr Paul MacMahon

Module Code: LL451E

Personal data is an important factor of production in data-driven economies, and the processing of personal data can generate significant economic and social benefits. Personal data processing can also have a detrimental impact on established rights and values, such as autonomy, privacy and data protection. As a result, legal frameworks to regulate personal data processing have been enacted across the world, with the EU legal model used as a blueprint. Yet, despite the development of such legal frameworks across the globe, critical questions remain unanswered. For instance, the objectives of data protection frameworks differ with some prioritising a fundamental-rights approach to data protection regulation while other frameworks are based on an economic free-trade rationale. Disagreement also persists regarding how the balance should be struck between effective data protection and other rights (such as freedom of expression and freedom of information) and interests (such as innovation and national security).

This module will critically evaluate the legal framework applicable to personal data processing. It will be do this predominantly with reference to the EU framework, as this has served as a model for over 100 other jurisdictions. However we will also examine aspects of the US legal framework as it differs considerably from other global legal regimes. Participants will be introduced to techniques and technologies for monitoring and processing personal data in the information society. In order to bring key issues to life, a number of case studies will be considered, including the application of data protection and privacy rules to online behavioural advertising and to State surveillance.

Lecturer: Dr Orla Lynskey

Module Code: LL440E