The LLM in Advanced Legislative Studies offers a unique opportunity to drafters, legal officers, policy makers, and those interested in the process of lawmaking and in drafting to study the legislative environment and legislation as a tool for regulation. The programme aims to promote an understanding of the principles of legislative studies, and an in-depth awareness of what constitutes legislative quality and how this can be achieved. The programme is not prescriptive and allows participants to naturalize their knowledge and apply it in their own national environments. Capped class numbers allow individualized tuition. Alumni are usually employed by governments and international organizations.
Legislative drafting is often perceived as a technical skill, which one learns on the job. The view of the Sir William Dale Centre, as eloquently put by its founder and its staff in numerous publications, has always been that legislative drafting is a phronetic discipline requiring awareness of the theoretical principles of drafting along with experience on the job. Legislative drafting has evolved to become the bedrock of political, economic and social transformation. It is still, however, relatively unexplored as an academic discipline. The LLM examines issues related to the policy process, the legislative process, and the drafting process. Legislation is viewed as a tool for regulation. Effectiveness of regulatory aims is the scope and aim of the drafting process.
LLM in Advanced Legislative Studies is also offered via distance learning (DL).
The LLM in ALS via DL includes a compulsory week-long intensive residential course in London. This gives students a chance to meet the tutors and other students, and to start their studies with the maximum level of support.
Teaching methods for the remainder of the course include extensive online materials per session, such as PowerPoint presentations, hand-outs, and a number of academic sources for essential and further reading; online discussions with tutors and fellow students on the traditional LLM and the LLM via DL; private reading and independent research; individual tuition and support via email for coursework and dissertation for which a dissertation supervisor is assigned.
LLM in ALS - Degree code: JTALS | Credit value: 180
LLM in ALS via DL - Degree code: JTDIL | Credit value: 180
The LLM is divided into two pathways: the Common Law direction and the EU direction.
The Common Law direction core modules:
Comparative Legislative Studies 1 and 2
Legislative Drafting 1 and 2
Themes of Legislative Studies 1 and 2
The EU direction core modules:
EU Legislative Studies 1 and 2
The Jean Monnet Module ‘Legislating for EU Membership and Accession’
The Jean Monnet module ‘Theories of European Integration’
Themes of Legislative Studies 1 and 2
Plus a dissertation of 10,000-15,000 words
Students take all modules from the selected pathway and the dissertation.
Assessment is by coursework, namely by two written essays of 3,500 words each for each of the courses of the LLM. For the two modules students are assessed by one essay of 5,000 words. The pass mark for all examinations and the dissertation will be fifty per cent (50%), the Merit Award will be between 65 and 69% and the mark for Distinction will be seventy per cent (70%), as required by Regulation 10.25 of the Regulations for Taught Masters Degrees.
12 months full-time or 24 months part-time.
Part-time students take four modules in the first year of study, and two modules and the dissertation in the second year of study.
LLM via distance learning: 24 months part-time only. Part-time students take four modules in the first year of study, and two modules and the dissertation in the second year of study.
