International Banking and Finance Law - LLM/Postgraduate Diploma/Postgraduate Certificate

The LLM in International Banking and Finance Law consists of nine modules in total, including a dissertation of up to 15,000 words.

To gain the Postgraduate Certificate, you will study two compulsory modules (Research Methods and Banking and Finance Law) and two optional modules.

To gain the Postgraduate Diploma, you will complete the necessary modules to gain the Certificate (as above), one further compulsory module (International Financial Crime) and another three optional modules.

To achieve the LLM, you will complete the necessary modules to gain the Diploma (as above) and also write a dissertation.

Core modules

• Research Methods - We will develop your approach to legal research by introducing you to key skills and concepts.
• International Banking and Finance Law - Covers the law relating to the international banking and financial sectors. You will consider the historical development of the sectors, the policy adopted by the UK and the USA towards financial regulation, along with the impact of the credit crunch on financial institutions.

Option modules

You will choose two modules from following options:*

• International Contracts - This provides you with a sound knowledge of the main principles of international contracts and their application, enabling you to gain an overview of the different legal and economic elements involved in an international transaction.
• Globalisation and the Law - This introduces you to what globalisation means in economic, political, cultural and social terms, and the legal consequences in these contexts. You will assess whether international law is equipped with instruments and institutions to regulate the consequences of globalisation.
• International Competition Law and Policy - This provides you with the opportunity to develop a thorough awareness and understanding of competition law and policy in an international context.

If you are continuing onto the Diploma or LLM, you will then take the following compulsory module:

• International Financial Crime - This provides a critical understanding of the international legal principles and concepts relating to financial crime.It also enables you to evaluate and discuss the effectiveness of European Law in terms of the prevention and detection of financial crime.

You will then choose three option modules from the list below:*

• Shipping Law - This gives you an understanding of the issues, constraints, interests and risks involved in the shipping industry and the role that sea transportation plays in international trade.
• Corporate Governance and Corporate Social Responsibility - This focuses on the difference between the concepts of corporate governance and corporate social responsibility, enabling you to assess the effectiveness of corporate governance and self-regulatory schemes.
• International Employment Law - This centres on employment law in an international context. The module relates to many of the themes explored in the materials of the International Labour Office (ILO), in particular globalisation, flexicurity (flexibility v security), human rights and sustainability.
• International Commercial Disputes - This gives you an understanding of the international legal principles and concepts relating to international commercial disputes, and how to apply them in a variety of practical contexts.
• Information Technology Law - This gives you a thorough understanding of the complex legal issues created by the use of information technology, with particular application to the UK, the European Community and the USA.
• International Intellectual Property Law - This covers the law relating to intellectual property (copyright and patents) from an international and European perspective.
• World Trade Organisation Law - This examines the laws, law-making and adjudicative institutions of the World Trade Organisation. Particular attention is given to the procedures for dispute resolution and other 'covered agreements' relating to international economic law.

Or one option*, not listed above, offered on any of the other LLM courses.

Dissertation

Finally, if you are undertaking the full LLM, you will need to write a 15,000 word dissertation. This needs to be an original piece of work. You can satisfy this requirement by:

• carrying out empirical work that has not been done before
• synthesising issues not put together before
• looking at topics not looked at by people in the discipline before
• examining existing knowledge in an original way, or
• bringing new evidence to bear on an old issue.

You don't need to meet all of these criteria. Your dissertation topic must broadly relate to your LLM award.

* Option modules are dependent on numbers so may not all run every year.

Please also note this structure is for the full-time course delivery only. For part-time delivery, the same modules will be studied. However, the structure will differ.

The University continually enhances our offer by responding to feedback from our students and other stakeholders, ensuring the curriculum is kept up to date and our graduates are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need for the real world. This may result in changes to the course. If changes to your course are approved, we will inform you.

The flexible nature of the course allows you to study with us full or part time. The course involves both extensive independent research and discussion in the context of workshops, designed to encourage the development of your critical, analytical and reflective skills. You will be expected to prepare for each workshop and to participate actively in discussion with your tutors and peers.

You will also have access to course and module information through our online Blackboard system.

For more details see our glossary of teaching and learning terms.

Full-time attendance

The full-time course takes one year, with approximately six to nine contact hours a week. However, as independent study is fundamental to the course, the total study time should be around 36 hours a week.

Part-time attendance

The flexible part-time route takes two to three years. You will usually have around three hours of contact with your tutors a week, depending on the route you are following, and you should spend between 12 and 18 hours a week studying independently.

Dedicated support

You will receive a high level of support both during your studies and after you have graduated. You will be allocated an LLM academic tutor to support you throughout the course. We also organise events to help you plan your career after the LLM.

Taught modules on the LLM International Banking and Finance Law course are assessed through a combination of written coursework assignments and oral presentations. The culmination of the course is a dissertation of up to 15,000 words, which constitutes an original contribution to the corpus of legal knowledge within an area of international banking and finance law.

For more details see our full glossary of assessment terms.