LLM (Full Time)

This well-established course will give you the opportunity to make an advanced study of the law in a range of contexts that follow three distinctive themes: international law, intellectual property and criminal justice.

Course overview

 The course aims to enhance your ability to synthesise ideas and theories to solve complex problems with considered legal argument and creative alternative solutions. You are encouraged to critically explore the objectives which the law seeks to advance, and review the context and challenges in which proposed changes exist.

The course is also designed to develop skills in preparing coherent strategies for self-directed research, so that you are able to update and keep current an area of specialist legal knowledge and contribute to the fuller understanding of law in your chosen area.

The LLM will be of value to a wide range of highly skilled and professional individuals, some but not all of whom will either be or intend to become practising lawyers. Applicants who are not law graduates are especially encouraged to apply since specialist knowledge of legal issues is increasingly fundamental in a dynamic market place where those working in law and relevant fields will encounter increased competition.

Course content

The main objective of these units is to ensure that you have the essential foundation skills and knowledge necessary to succeed at this level. 

Negotiated Learning Agreement
This unit helps you to become a more capable learner who can be proactive, and recognise and use emergent learning opportunities.

The learning agreement consists of individual learning goals which relate both to maximising participation in the course and considering career aspirations. You will work in small self-managed learning groups to negotiate your agreement and reflect on the learning process with your peers.

Advanced Legal Research Methods
This unit focuses on the tasks necessary to develop a sound research proposal and considers the various methodologies available, the place of ethics in research, forming appropriate search strategies, and an initial review of literature. Analysis of what makes a viable piece of research, considering concepts of objectivity, reliability and validity; issues relevant to completing research, such as project management; the role of the supervisor and writing up, will also be discussed. 

Dissertation

The dissertation represents a culmination of progression within the LLM. It builds on your skills, subject knowledge and interests by encouraging independent working, reflection and development of a specialist area of knowledge. The dissertation is, for many students, also an important element of their career portfolio and you will be encouraged to consider the relevance of your chosen topic to current developments in the academic and professional legal environment. 

Option units
The selection of themed units is designed to maximise choice and enable you to tailor your studies to meet your own needs and aspirations. 

International law theme

International Environmental Law
This unit considers both the new body of law specifically aimed at the environment and the application of general international law to environmental problems. It investigates the allocation of rights and duties concerning the exploitation of natural resources, and the use of land between states and within the context of ‘the global commons’. This unit is studied in the context of the extent to which environmental imperatives, both moral and ethical, impact upon existing laws and legal developments in respect of sustainable development within modern, historical, doctrinal and cultural scholarship. 

The State, Law and Justice

This unit develops a critical understanding of the relationship between the state, law and justice, which is fundamental to social life. It examines the various criteria proposed for determining the existence of each of them, and how far these criteria are mutually dependent. It also considers theoretical analyses and practical implications by examining classic examples and current issues. This unit informs many other areas of study, as it provides a broad understanding of how these phenomena operate and interrelate in different social situations, and a basis for critical analysis of most issues of law and politics.

Law of International Trade

This unit examines the private English domestic law applicable to international sea carriage, bills of lading, international sale of goods contracts and letters of credit. It does not deal with public law or the conflict of laws. An international sale is more complicated than a domestic sale because the parties to the transaction are in different legal jurisdictions and arrangements must be made to transport the goods from one country to another. You will investigate the law applicable to the sale of goods between sellers and buyers in different countries where goods have to be delivered by sea.

Corporate Social Responsibility and the Ethical Company

Corporate social responsibility is a concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interactions with stakeholders on a voluntary basis. The base level of responsible behaviour for any organisation is legal compliance and the government has set standards in areas such as environmental protection, health and safety, and employment rights, including those of disadvantaged groups. This unit addresses the duties and liabilities of companies in respect of environmental law, employment law and human rights, and financial integrity, in addition to upstream and downstream stakeholders and employees. 

Intellectual property theme

Patents, Designs and Trade Secrets

This unit covers patent law under the 1977 Patents Act and under the European Patent Convention, with developments in the Community Patent system incorporated as they occur. In particular, topics studied include the structure of a patent specification, the requirements of novelty and inventive step, statutory exclusions to patent protection, infringement of a patent and entitlement to a patent. The law of industrial designs in UK and Europe with respect to registered rights, and laws relating to trade secrets and the law of confidentiality of information are also examined.

Trade Marks and Unfair Competition Law
This unit focuses on the expanding and rapidly changing area of law dealing with trade marks and unfair competition, including the law of passing off and legal regulation of unfair competition activities on the internet, such as Meta tag and domain name abuses. The study of this subject includes critical appraisal and analysis of various aspects of the law which pertain to the issues relating to the legal protection of brands against piracy and unfair competition, and the current issues under consideration by the legal community, at home and abroad.

Copyright, Unregistered Designs and Rights in Performances
This unit focuses on the expanding and rapidly changing area of law dealing with copyright and unregistered designs and rights in performances, including the applicability of this to areas such as new media, the internet and more traditional media. It focuses on technical alternatives to copyright and their legal regulation. You can gain a strong critical appreciation of the various aspects of the law which pertain to issues relating to legal protection of copyright works, their piracy and the current issues under consideration by the legal community. 

Criminal justice theme

Advanced Issues of Criminal Responsibility
This unit begins with an introductory stage to allow those who have not studied the English law of crime to become familiar with basic principles and to allow those who have previous knowledge of the law to refresh their understanding. You then proceed to consider some of the contentious issues of culpability in the law of crime to ascertain what principles are at play when citizens are subject to society’s strongest form of official censure: a criminal conviction.

Advanced Issues of Criminal Justice
The central theme of this unit is the tension between the interests of the community in bringing offenders to justice and the civil liberties of those persons suspected of crime. Is the criminal justice process in England and Wales achieving a fair balance between the exercise of power and sufficient respect for the law and the notion of due process? The adversarial system of the common law is in the ascent and the inquisitorial system in retreat, but this does not mean the criminal justice process in England and Wales has reached a state of perfection. Rather, there are areas where mischief and miscarriage can occur.

White Collar Crime
This unit is designed to provide you with an understanding of the history of the concept of white collar crime, its definitions and types, and the exposure and news reporting of it. It explores various forms of white collar crime, from corporate crime to state crime and political corruption, and examines the relationship between white collar, organised and enterprise crime, including assessing its costs and social impact. This unit further discusses the methods of regulating white collar crime such as coercion to compliance or improving ethics.

Assessment 

You will be assessed by means of examination, coursework and dissertation. You are encouraged to lead small seminar discussions, to present on an area of particular interest, present written commentaries on legal developments, and formulate a research proposal for the dissertation.

Key career skills

Problem solving, synthesis, presentation and teamwork.

Projects/work experience

You are given the opportunity to explore areas of international law when preparing presentations and also within your dissertation work.

Solent's special features

• This course has two intakes per year, September and January. Students starting in September will take 12 months to complete; those starting in January will take 16 months, with a four-month break between May and October.

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Fees

Fees for the 2011-2012 academic year are:
Full Time: UK and EU students - £4,100; Overseas students - £9,400