Legal Studies

This course introduces students to the legal regulation of commercial relationships having strong connections with more than one legal system. Although the focus is on litigation before English courts, an international perspective is adopted. The implications of Brexit in jurisdictional and recognition rules are to be considered. The traditional English principles and rules concerning international commercial litigation form the basis of the law in many, primarily common law, jurisdictions and regained relevance in the light of Brexit. Emphasis is also be placed on the relevant principles and rules of European Union law applicable before the courts across Europe.

The course provides a general overview of the U.S. legal system. It introduces students to the concept of common law and covers constitutional law (incl. the legislative process and its political implications), the U.S. court system as well as selected areas of substantive and procedural U.S. law, such as contracts, torts, criminal, and corporate law. The course is taught through a combination of lectures and in-class discussions and encourages active participation in order to acquire and practice legal terminology.

This course covers gender issues such as employment discrimination, sexual harassment, and reproductive rights. The course explores how feminist legal theory has questioned the way the law is constructed and applied according to certain stereotypical views of sexual identity and the roles of women. The seminar also investigates how queer theory has influenced the legal field by rejecting traditional gender identities which do not fully encompass the issues that concern the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, transsexual population. Students use a comparative perspective to consider what can be learned from these different legal standpoints as we encounter changes in family law and employment law, how queer theory influences gender law, and what might be new ways to consider legal concepts such as consent, personal autonomy, and discrimination.