Introduction to Public International Law

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

• the relationship between international law and the domestic law of the UK and selected comparator jurisdictions and how each treats and applies the other;
• the development of public international law over time to place the current international situation in its historical context;
• the relevance of public international law's socio-political context and history to its nature and function through a range of theoretical approaches to and understandings of these;
• the international legal rules concerning treaties and their application to factual scenarios.
• the methods and processes by which public international law is made by identifying, interpreting and applying international legal rules and principles;

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• critically analyse academic literature on public international law and situate your argument in relation to the arguments or positions advanced in that literature.
• construct arguments through the analysis of relevant legal materials and literature;
• apply the legal rules and principles studied on the course to factual scenarios;

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• demonstrate skills of self-management including an ability to reflect on the content and quality of your own work;
• make critical judgments about international legal materials and relevant literature.

The following is an indicative list of module content. These topics may change year-by-year, reflecting current developments and allowing syllabus evolution:

The Nature and Structure of Public International Law

The Sources of Public International Law

The Law of Treaties

The Relationship between International Law and Domestic Law

International Legal Personality, Statehood, and Recognition

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching methods include:

Teaching will be delivered by lectures and tutorials.

Lectures will provide you with an overview of the law and the key principles / issues relevant to particular topics. After each lecture, and before the relevant tutorial, discussed below, you will be expected to complete independent study including reading of literature, cases, and international legal materials. You should refer to, and be guided by, the content of the lectures in carrying out this independent study.

Learning activities:

Tutorials will focus on questions supplied in advance. You will be expected to prepare answers to these questions and to come to the tutorial prepared to share their answers with the class in order to receive feedback from fellow-students and the tutorial leader. For some tutorials you may be asked to prepare a short presentation or to complete a short piece of written work.

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

M.D. Evans (ed) (2017). Blackstone's International Law Documents. Oxford University Press.

D. Harris & S. Sivakumaran (2015). Cases and Materials on International Law. Sweet and Maxwell.

M. Dixon (2013). Textbook on International Law. Oxford University Press.

Formative

This is how we’ll give you feedback as you are learning. It is not a formal test or exam.

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.

Repeat Information

Repeat type: Internal & External