International Law LLM

The module is primarily concerned with those customary and treaty rules governing relations between States. This module aims to give candidates a thorough grounding in the principles of PIL. The basic topics include:

• nature of international law
• sources
• actors in the international legal system
• jurisdiction and state responsibility

Written work on a legal topic of your choice resulting from individual research and normally based upon material falling within the area covered by the degree for which you are registered.

An introduction to international criminal law issues, with particular emphasis on institutions (such as Nuremberg and Tokyo IMTs, the ad hoc Tribunals and the International Criminal Court) as well as substantive and procedural aspects of international criminal law.

The module focuses on the institutional developments in international criminal law as well as the definition and application of the crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and aggression. Principles of liability and defences will also be covered.

International Environmental Law is a foundations module on international environmental law (IEL). It will provide a broad overview of IEL and allow you to develop a number of research-related skills.

At the start of the course, you will study the basic principles of IEL. The next block of seminars cover some major multilateral environmental agreements, primarily concerned with pollution, climate change, and biodiversity. You will develop an in-depth knowledge of these instruments: their key mechanisms, institutional architecture, and related legal/policy frameworks.

In the final set of seminars, you will apply this knowledge by researching how contemporary and emerging issues of IEL are addressed through the law. The selected topics will cut across two or more environmental treaties and so you will develop a deep understanding about the connections between different areas of the law.

This module deals with key aspects of the international system for the regulation of foreign investment. The module focuses mainly on issues arising from investor-host state relations under Bilateral Investment Treaties or BITs but also touches upon international investment contracts. Special attention will be given to the means of regulating investment using BITs, including standards of treatment, such as fair and equitable treatment, full protection and security, national treatment and MFN, and breaches thereof, the taking of foreign property and the settlement of investment disputes by means of third party dispute settlement.

Attention will focus on the substantial and procedural aspects of international investment arbitration with specific reference to ICSID, as well as ad hoc arbitration, using UNCITRAL arbitration rules or the rules of other relevant arbitral fora.

This module looks at principles and laws governing unilateral and multilateral resort to force by states under the United Nations Charter and in customary international law. Instances where force is permissible will be considered as well as the more controversial claims to use force.

This module begins with a consideration of the historical origins and philosophical underpinnings of economic and social rights (ESR). Key themes that will be developed throughout the course include perceptions of the nature of such rights and the related question of the extent to which such rights are, and should be, justiciable.

You will evaluate the different ways in which ESR are protected and implemented, both domestically and internationally. The module will consider litigation and judicial enforcement of ESR in various jurisdictions.

The module will equip you with the knowledge and understanding necessary to engage in, and critically analyse, the debates surrounding ESR that exist both amongst legal commentators and at a broader societal level.

In this module, you have the opportunity to explore issues of equality and discrimination in the context of the criminal justice system. Theories of equality are examined to understand how equality is conceptualised, protected and promoted in law.

Focusing on key protected characteristics including gender, race, disability and sexuality, the experiences of victims and defendants in specific contexts are discussed to evaluate the extent to which law and policy effectively prevents discrimination and promotes justice for all.

Global Data Protection Law explores the obligations of data controllers and processors, the rights of data subjects, and the powers of data protection authorities across international, regional, and national data protection laws. It analyses the differences between those data protection laws and critically evaluates their effectiveness in balancing the protection of personal data with other values and interests.

This module will introduce you to the law and practice related to international human rights. You will be encouraged to explore the foundations of international human rights law. The global, regional and national mechanisms of human rights protection will be introduced and evaluated.

A selection of substantive human rights will be examined and contemporary challenges to human rights protection will be discussed.

This module examines issues relating to the regulation of public procurement from perspectives other than trade liberalisation. Issues covered include the pursuit of value for money through competition avoidance of corruption outsourcing and procurement for privately-financed infrastructure projects. The module pays particular attention to the UNCITRAL Model Law on procurement and the procurement rules for developing countries' projects financed by the World Bank.

International disaster law is an emerging field of international law, which is seeing growing prominence within international legal research, international law and policymaking, not least since Coronavirus emerged. States, international organisations, NGOs and community actors are increasingly addressing the effects of disasters in terms of human rights law, refugee law, and international humanitarian law, particularly when it comes to laws regarding humanitarian assistance.

In addition, international conferences on disaster risk reduction including the Sendai conference in 2015, and arguably the Paris Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals, show appetite within the international community to develop a unified ‘International Disaster Law’.

This module addresses international disaster law both as the application of existing international law as applied to disasters, and as a new legal field, which draws on, and adds to, existing principles. This module addresses current issues affecting all actors and people within the international community from humanitarians, to politicians, to economists, to academics, to the people on the ground affected by disasters.

This module examines the legal constraints of international and national warfare. It traces the historical and contextual development of the law and focuses upon the principles which govern warfare. During the module, you will also study the mechanisms for the enforcement and the implementation of international humanitarian law.

International law of the sea regulates the order of the oceans. It is one of the oldest branches of public international law and one of the most dynamic areas of law.

Topics cover: maritime boundary disputes and delimitation, exploration of hydrocarbons in contested waters, the use of marine genetic resources from maritime spaces beyond national jurisdiction, maritime terrorism, and the protection of human lives at sea.

This module examines some of the relationships between law and development. After examining both the notion of development per se and the right to development as a human right, the module moves on to cover a number of individual issues where the relationship between law, development and human rights can be explored.

Subjects covered include:

• the concept of development and the role of international law in promoting "development"
• the regulation of aid
• the WTO and developing countries
• intellectual property and access to medication
• the protection of traditional knowledge
• agriculture
• food aid and food security
• sustainable development
• gender and development

International law recognises a human right to seek asylum. Nonetheless, states are increasingly labelling asylum seekers as “illegal” immigrants and responding to asylum seekers through the criminal law. This interdisciplinary module combines international law with theoretical insights from criminology to explore state responses to asylum seekers.

This module examines the international institutional law and general international law governing the United Nations, including the central organs (for example the Security Council and General Assembly), subsidiary organs (such as the UNEP and the UNDP), and the specialised agencies (for example, the WHO, UNESCO, ICAO). 

It considers:

• the UN's constitutional basis
• its legal personality and powers
• membership and budgetary matters
• representation and decision making
• sanctions regimes
• the UN's military options
• issues of responsibility, accountability and immunities
• the UN's contribution to the development and enforcement of international law

This module considers how business increasingly conducts its operations with responsibility to its stakeholders and to society at large. It examines the emergence of the business and human rights regime, which forms the basis for addressing both legal developments and voluntary initiatives across a spectrum of business and industry sectors and different types of business, operating both globally and locally.  

This module adopts a critical and cross-disciplinary approach to the study of criminal justice (drawing from insights in sociology, race and gender studies, postcolonial thought and global law, psychology, and criminology). It looks at topics such as 'the war on terror' and the 'war on drugs' through the lens of criminal justice.

This module aims to provide students with an introduction to a broad range of critical approaches to the study of crime, social control, and criminal justice. The overall aim is to provide students with a variety of critical analytical tools which will be useful to them in the study of all the other modules in the programme (whether domestic, transnational, or international in focus).

This module is concerned with the European Union's (EU) status as a global power. Topics may include: the EU's powers to conduct international trade law, to promote human rights and international development, to pursue foreign policy objectives on the global stage and the emergence of the EU into other international policy arenas.

The module aims to provide a thorough grounding in the application of international law standards to minorities and indigenous peoples. There is a strong focus on the decisions of international and European courts and international human rights bodies.

This module studies the key characteristics of multilateral and regional trade law. The multilateral context reviews World Trade Organisation Law in light of contemporary challenges to multilateral trade, while the regional dimension considers the relationships within and between various regional blocs, and how these blocs fit into the broader multilateral trade law regime. These matters are studied in the context of the global economy, paying attention to whether the current system of international trade rules addresses the challenges presented by increasing globalisation.

This module provides an introduction to energy law. Through scholarly works and practical case studies, it will address some of the most important legal issues which relate to energy such as: the exploration of natural resources in disputed areas; transparency and control of oil revenues; environmental law issues; and justice and gender in energy transitions. Although both fossils and low carbon/renewable resources will be examined, considerable attention will be paid to hydrocarbons, as they still dominate the energy sector.

The module will explore the rights of the child in international human rights law, focusing on topics such as the concepts of childhood and the best interests of the child, family rights and the right to family life, education, child soldiers, child labour, gender and the rights of the girl child.