PUBLIC LAW II: ADMINISTRATIVE LAW - 2020/1

Module Overview

The module examines UK Administrative Law and the various contexts (political, legal, constitutional, historical, social) in which it operates.  It focuses on the principles and practice of judicial review, the legal proceedings by which the courts are asked to determine the validity or invalidity of the decisions, actions or inaction of public bodies.  It is a foundation subject for Qualifying Law Degrees.

Module provider

School of Law

Module Leader

BARCZENTEWICZ Mikolaj (Schl of Law)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 5

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Semester 1

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

None  

Module content

Indicative content includes:

• The history and evolution of Administrative Law


• Constitutional principles and Administrative Law


• Theories of Administrative Law and Judicial Review


• The purpose and nature of Judicial Review


• The Claim for Judicial Review


• Grounds for Judicial Review


• The reform of Judicial Review

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate achievement of module learning outcomes identified above in respect of knowledge gained, critical/analytical ability and skills acquired. The assessment address all learning outcomes listed above.

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:

Examination by two-hour, unseen examination paper.

Formative assessment and feedback

Formative assessment will comprise a mock exam of 1 hour.  Each student will be given individual written feedback and guidance on his or her mock exam.  In lectures, the cohort as a whole will be given verbal feedback and guidance on general themes and issues that emerged from the formative assessment.  Students will also have the opportunity to complete and receive feedback on practice exam questions in advance of the exam proper.  Verbal feedback is given in the tutorial setting as a matter of routine.  

 

The assessment method for each module has been selected to test a variety of key skills, competences and outcomes as required by QAA. As such, assessment method cannot be changed. Reasonable adjustment may be made on application subject to ALS approval AND only where such adjustment still allows for the required skills, key competences and outcomes to be assessed at an equivalent level.

Module aims

• Knowledge and understanding of the concepts, traditions and principles underpinning UK Administrative Law
• Knowledge and understanding of the nature, basis and continuing development and reform of judicial review in the United Kingdom
• An ability to identify, explain and analyse the links between Administrative Law and the exercise of political and judicial power
• An ability to analyse and critique materials and texts
• An ability to articulate and discuss issues relating to Administrative Law
• An ability to address practical problems in Administrative Law

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to:

Teaching is by lectures and tutorials and is designed to provide a layered approach to the acquisition of knowledge and its practical application in each topic.  Lectures will introduce the students to the subject areas and provide an overview to enable understanding of basic principles and underlying concepts.  Tutorials will expose students to the complexities of each topic, evaluating and examining key principles and theories in more depth and through the application of knowledge to hypothetical scenarios, such as they might encounter in legal practice.  The teaching strategy is also designed to encourage independent study and research.  Students will be provided with preliminary reading references but will be expected to undertake additional research into each topic under their own steam.  During seminars students will be expected to demonstrate their ability to apply that research to discuss given legal problems, to demonstrate self-direction and originality in tackling and proposing solutions to such problems, and to evaluate critically current research and advanced scholarship in relevant areas.

The learning and teaching methods include:

One, two-hour lecture slot per week x 11 weeks

One, one-hour tutorial slot per week x eight weeks

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: LAW2037

Programmes this module appears in

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2020/1 academic year.