Legal Culture of the English-Speaking World is taught in English and aims to develop the ability of the students to work in a bilingual environment, as well as to develop their knowledge of Anglo-Saxon legal culture.
As the course is taught in English, the teacher always ensures that the subject matter is properly understood by explaining technical legal developments in French and translating elements that were not understood in English. The teacher constantly considers the students’ feelings about the English language.
Due to the limited number of teaching hours, the course focuses on two countries in the Anglosphere in particular: firstly, the United Kingdom because it is the cradle of the English language and, secondly, the United States of America where the largest number of English speakers live (330 million) and because of its position as a “superpower” at the global level.
The course aims to familiarize students with the Anglo-Saxon legal culture through a selection of current topics. In addition, it seeks to encourage students to read case law and legal scholarship in English and to gain confidence in expressing themselves orally in English.
After a general introduction on what “Legal culture of the English-Speaking World” covers, the course focuses on some of the major social issues that the United Kingdom and the United States are currently facing: the right to abortion, the right to carrying arms, the fight against obesity, Church and State relations, etc.
The course highlights how those two common law countries deal with these major legal and cultural issues in their own way.
The course is not ex cathedra but rather interactive, following the Anglo-Saxon teaching method. A significant part of the course is dedicated to discussion, which is even more important given the social issues addressed. Students can intervene in both French and English on this occasion. The lessons are built around the active participation of the students, based on what they have understood and retained from the readings available on Webcampus as well as their opinion on the subjects covered.
The exam (20 points) consists of:
The use of a dictionary (EN/FR) is authorised at any time (during the lessons and the exam).
The course material consists of:
Videos shown during the lessons.
| Training | Study programme | Block | Credits | Mandatory |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor in Law | Standard | 0 | 4 | |
| Bachelor in Law | Standard | 3 | 4 |