View Specification DocumentCriminal Responsibility LAW4177
- Academic Session: 2026-27
- School: School of Law
- Credits: 20
- Level: Level 4 (SCQF level 10)
- Typically Offered: Semester 2
- Available to Visiting Students: Yes
- Collaborative Online International Learning: No
- Curriculum For Life: No
Short Description
This course explores core concepts of criminal responsibility which shape legal doctrine and practices of blame ascription in criminal law. It traces the development of ideas of responsibility from a socio-historical perspective, and engages with key theoretical debates regarding the meaning, scope and significance of criminal responsibility in our present time and place. Consideration is given to the part played by greater forces that bear on questions of responsibility, such as developments in mind sciences and issues pertaining to social justice. In the second half of the course, a doctrinal focus on excuses, exemptions and justifications acts as a springboard for thematic analyses relating to the role of emotion, mental health conditions, and addiction in ascriptions of blame. The course emphasises close textual analysis and student-led discussion.
Timetable
10 x 2 hour seminars
Thursday 1-3pm
Requirements of Entry
This course is only available to LLB students.
Excluded Courses
None
Co-requisites
None
Assessment
4000 word essay
Course Aims
The course aims:
1. to develop knowledge and understanding of core concepts of criminal responsibility which shape legal doctrine and practices of blame ascription, excuse and punishment;
2. to understand the evolution of ideas of responsibility and to analyse diverse theoretical debates relating to the nature, scope and significance of criminal responsibility;
3. to assess and apply critically the positions taken in these debates through the use of case studies, and to consider their practical implications, and;
4. to consider selectively the contribution to understanding criminal responsibility offered by other disciplines such as moral and political philosophy, psychology and neuroscience.
Intended Learning Outcomes of Course
By the end of this course students will be able to:
■ Explain how ideas of criminal responsibility have evolved over time.
■ Describe and assess critically key theories of criminal responsibility.
■ Evaluate core doctrines relating to criminal responsibility, such as exemptions, excuses and justifications, and apply them to specific scenarios.
■ Explain how theories of criminal responsibility both legitimate and co-ordinate the law in practice, and develop confidence in both critiquing and recommending proposals for reform of the law where appropriate.