Introduction to legal comparison and to the role of comparative law in the education of lawyers who intend to operate in a global context. In particular, the students will be exposed to the historical evolution and the main trends in the civil law and common law traditions, with a special focus on the sources of law.
V. Varano and V. Barsotti, La tradizione giuridica occidentale. Testo e materiali per un confronto civil law common law, 8th ed., Torino, Giappichelli, 2024, chapters I, II, III, IV, including the appendices.
As an alternative, students may use R. Sacco and A. Gambaro, Sistemi giuridici comparati, 4a ed., Torino, UTET, 2018, chapters from 1 to 10.
Learning Objectives
The course aims to provide an introduction to the comparative method and its role in contemporary legal education, as well as the knowledge of the differences and similarities of the civil law and common law traditions, mainly through the study of the sources of law.
Students will be able to understand and interpret correctly legislative materials, case law and doctrine of a foreign legal system in order to frame and solve legal problems through the comparative method.
Moreover, students will acquire the capacity to understand the differences and similarities characterizing the two Western legal traditions and the awareness of the importance of culture in the shaping of the legal traditions that will enable them to adopt a critical approach to legal categories.
This knowledge, together with a familiarity with different languages and legal concepts, will be useful also in view of a future career in in international institutions and profit and non-profit organizations.
Prerequisites
None
Teaching Methods
Classes are thought mainly through lectures, alternating with workshop to discuss doctrinal and jurisprudential materials made available in advance. The teaching will make use of e-learning methodologies using the Moodle platform and the Student Response System tools, both as a tool for students' self-assessment, and during the workshops. Students are constantly asked to express their opinions and to compare the knowledge they already have with the new information acquired during the lessons. Students are constantly encouraged to express their opinions and to compare what they already know with the new knowledge acquired through the course.
The course syllabus, Power point presentations and the materials used for classes and workshops will be available to attending students through the Moodle platform.
Further information
In order to attend the course, students shall subscribe to the Moodle platform by the first week of classes.
Type of Assessment
The exam is written and consists of three open questions. Students have 90 minutes to answer them. The result will be notified in time to reseat, if necessary, for the l exam in the next date.
The evaluation is sufficient if all answers are sufficient and there are no serious gaps or mistakes. The evaluation is excellent if all the questions are treated exhaustively, with a critical approach and a correct use of legal language and of the comparative method.
Course program
The first part of the course aims at offering to the students an introduction to legal comparison, to its nature and goals, to the role of comparative law in the education of lawyers who intend to operate in a global context.
In the second part of the course, the students will be exposed to the historical evolution and the main features of the common law and civil traditions. The analysis will touch upon some issues which show how the two great Western legal traditions are gradually converging. Besides their formative period, the course will deal in some detail with such topics as legal education, the legal professions, courts and procedure, constitutions and judicial review of legislation, the role of legislation, case law and doctrine as sources of law.
A syllabus with a detailed list of the topics and their distribution in time will be available on the Moodle platform at the beginning of the course.
Sustainable Development Goals 2030
This course contributes to the imlementarion of the SDG number 4 (Quality Education) and 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions).