Course Catalogue

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This course will provide an introduction to key debates in criminal law theory and then draw on these to explore areas of doctrine and/or controversy in the contemporary criminal law. The first part of the course will provide an overview of theoretical debates, putting these in the context of developments in the criminal law (e.g. the so-called preventive turn). The second part of the course will then look at areas of doctrinal change and controversy, focusing on the broad areas of offences against the person, sexual offences and property offences.

2 hours in person teaching (seminar) per week.

This course is only available to LLB students.

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The proposed assessment is for one formative/summative exercise worth 20%. This will be a critical case report of up to 1000 words in length. Students will be asked to choose one from a list of assigned cases and write a short critical analysis. The other summative exercise will be an essay of 4000 words. The essay topics will build on the areas/themes covered by the cases.

1. To analyse patterns of liability in the development of particular crimes.

2. To understand a range of different theoretical approaches to understanding the criminal law and its development.

3. To critically analyse the institutional and theoretical development of criminal law.

4. To develop an understanding of a range of comparative materials on criminal law.

By the end of this course students will be:

1. familiar with a range of theoretical approaches to the criminal law,

2. capable of critical evaluation of these approaches,

3. able to analyse primary and secondary sources on the criminal law in the light of these approaches,

4. able to develop and articulate their own understanding of the merits of these approaches.