Legal Studies

This course is designed to provide students with an introductory understanding of Anglo-American law. It starts with a detailed discussion of the establishment of modern judicial review and the workings of the United States Supreme Court. Next, general features in common law development and procedures are taught. The third part of this course is devoted to an understanding of how judicial power exercised in common law jurisdictions (particularly in the American federal legal system). Last, the course discusses some of the important developments in Anglo-American legal culture and education. 

This course studies civil procedure. It focuses on the organization and functioning of civil justice, including the organization of the court and the trial system. Topics include how cases (mostly non-criminal) are brought before a judge, the criteria for gaining an audience with a judge, the roles of various members of the court, and the general rules for conducting court proceedings.

This course provides an advanced introduction to the field of human rights by exploring and parsing out disagreement on divisive and polemical issues. The course analyzes how a variety of key issues of legal concern, such as hate speech, social welfare, dignity, the death penalty, and discrimination, are addressed by a variety of domestic and international institutions, such as the European Court of Human Rights, the UN, and the Supreme Court of the United States. This course is predominantly legal in character, social scientific explanation and understanding are not the focus of the course. Rather, the course concentrates on analyzing the justification of legal decisions in accordance with legal rules and principles.

This course introduces the framework of international law (IL), focusing on its basic history, philosophy, structure, and major principles. Previous study of law would be helpful; however, it is not required. 

The course also addresses topics such as the sources of international law; the law of treaties, and international law pertaining to personality, statehood and recognition; jurisdiction and sovereignty; nationality; statelessness, and international refugees. It also explores international law with regards to war and security; weapons (nuclear, biological, chemical), and infectious diseases. 

This course is part of the LM degree program and is intrended for advanced level students. Enrollment is by concsnt of the instructor. The course provides an overview of the different approaches and institutions available to identify the rules governing banking, financial, and insurance relationships, given the existence of relevant differences in national legal systems. In this regard, it provides an overview of the following topics: the regulation of financial conglomerates; the multi-level and multi-source model of the regulatory framework; the fundamentals of corporate governance and corporate compliance in financial institutions; special characteristics of the banking and insurance sectors in the light of systemic risk; the new regulation of the insurance market according to the Solvency II directive; the effects and characteristics of the 2007-08 global financial crisis; banking and insurance contracts; basic notions of Risk Management and Compliance; the single European market and third countries; supervision at national level and supervision of cross-border activities; insurance intermediaries; policyholder protection; and international insurance programs. Some insights on data protection and privacy in commercial disputes is provided, as well as on Fintech, Insurtech, smart contracts, and blockchain.

This course provides an introduction to the field of socio-legal studies. Socio-legal scholars are concerned with law in action and how law relates to society and social change. To this end, socio-legal scholars adopt a more interdisciplinary perspective to analyzing the law. This course examines key themes, insights, and methods from the field, drawing on different countries and contexts.

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale program. The course is intended for advanced level students only. Admission is by consent of the instructor. The course focuses on the basic aspects of contemporary constitutionalism in Western democracies, countries in transition to democracy and beyond. Emphasis is placed on comparative constitutional law because it allows for a deeper understanding of legal systems and legal cultures. Special attention is placed on an analysis of the foundations of individual legal systems and the strengths and limits of constitutional law in regulating social and political processes. Course contents: what is a constitution; why comparative constitutional law; constitutional models; judicial enforcement of the constitution and models of constitutional adjudication; horizontal separation of powers: Presidentialism and Parliamentarism; federalism vertical separation of powers; protecting fundamental rights: equality, minority and group rights; freedom of expression; freedom of religion and belief.