37294 - Principles of Law

Learning outcomes

This course is designed to explore the legal foundations of the market, through the study in comparative perspective of a number of doctrines derived from different legal traditions. Particular emphasis will be placed on the law of obligations and business contracts, with a special focus on the European law of regulated markets. By the end of the course, students have acquired a general understanding of the working of the legal system and grasped the main peculiarities of the different legal traditions, by means of proper legal terminology

Course contents

20 classes; 60 hours

• Basic elements of the law of obligations, contracts and remedies

• Predictability in legal relationships. The notion of ‘good faith’: pre-contractual liability, contract validity and perfect performance

• Contract Law and the Protection of the Weaker Party (consumer contracts, abuse of dominance, agency and distributorship agreements)

• The “social dimension” of business and anti-discrimination law

• Islamic Law & Finance

• International Investments, Sustainable Development & Applicable Law
  
  
• International Sale Contracts (CISG)

Readings/Bibliography

Jan M. Smits, Contract Law: A Comparative Introduction (Edward Elgar Publishing)

Teaching methods

Traditional lectures, assisted by powerPoint presentations. Guided debates and seminars on controversial cases.

Moreover, in the second mini-term, students will be engaged in a "moot court" competition on the U.N. Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG). Students will act as legal counsels in defense of either the buyer or the seller in a trans-national dispute (based on real judicial/arbitral decisions).

Assessment methods

Partial oral exams and/or final oral exam on the whole program.

Relationship btw 1st and 2nd partial exam:

Students are given the opportunity of a mid-term exam, on the topics tackled in class up to that moment, announced on the instructor's website.

Students failing the mid-term test (or those who pass the mid-term test, but are not successful in the second partial test) are not eligible to sit again for another partial test in the same year. Hence, they are expected to take a final exam based on the entire course program.

Grading system (0-30 scale):

• <18: fail.
• 18-19: fair.
• 20-23: more than enough.
• 24-26: good.
• 27-30: very good/excellent.
• 30 cum laude/with honor.

Solid command of legal English is considered a "plus".
Participation in the "moot court" competition will be graded on an individual basis, too, contributing to the definition of final grade.
Active class participation will be considered favorably.

Teaching tools

Textbook, journal articles, additional handouts, and PowerPoint slides. Legal-economic databases and search engines.

Office hours

See the website of Francesco Quarta