Selected Problems of International Law and International Institutions

6 ECTS credits
150 h study time

Offer 1 with catalog number 6018181FEW for working students in the 1st semester at a (F) Master - specialised level.

Semester

1st semester

Enrollment based on exam contract

Possible

Grading method

Grading (scale from 0 to 20)

Can retake in second session

Yes

Enrollment Requirements

NOTE: registration for this course is only possible for working students. Day students can register for courses whose code ends with an R. At Inschrijven / studentenadministratie@vub.be you must be registered at the VUB as a working student for the current academic year.

Taught in

Dutch

Partnership Agreement

Under interuniversity agreement for degree program

Faculty

Faculty of Law and Criminology

Department

International and European Law

Educational team

Cédric Van Assche (course titular)

Activities and contact hours

39 contact hours Lecture
80 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study

Course Content

the content of this course consists in two parts:

Part 1 consists in a rehearsal of the methodology in public international law (the formal sources of international law; the informal solo consensu agreements; the subsidiary means for the determination of international legal norms; the legal status of soft law and MOUs; the principle of equivalence of the sources (but not of the legal norms); the principle of relativity of international law; the study of the principles of interpretation of the international norms; the (formal or informal) agreement as legal basis of the binding character of international norms; the use of primary ‘sources’; the forms of legal reasoning and argumentation; etc.);
Part 2 consists of resolving (real or fictitious) cases (from simple to complex). Students receive afterwards all model answers in order to focus on the problem-solving thinking method and on the application of the correct methodology and in order to enhance the interactivity during lectures.

Course material

Course text (Required) : International Law, Cédric Van Assche, last edition, VUB edition, 2220170019956, 2023
Course text (Required) : Doorwerking van het internationaal recht in de Belgische rechtsorde, Cédric Van Assche, last edition, VUB edition
Handbook (Recommended) : Sourcebook International law or code, Free choice

Additional info

Students have to bring and consult their primary sources (sourcebooks and code) during the exam.

Learning Outcomes

General Competencies

The student has specialised knowledge of general international public law and of the various branches of law in particular;
The student has specialised knowledge of international public law methodology, defined as the study of scientific and legal technical methods which are aimed at the acquisition of scientific knowledge with which they are able to solve complex international legal issues;
The student is able to apply his specialised (legal and methodological) knowledge to complex international legal cases;
The student has mastered general competences such as thinking and reasoning skills (analytical and synthetic thinking capacity; inductive and deductive reasoning skills) in the field of international public law;
The student is able, independently, to qualify material facts as legal facts;
The student is able to determine the rules of public law and their exact content and, where necessary, to interpret these rules with the aid of the appropriate public law interpretation rules;
The student is able to consult and comprehend legal documents in English, French and Dutch;
The student is able to apply the relevant rules of law to the facts, using deductive, syllogistic reasoning(major, minor and conclusio);
The student is able to apply inductive methods in order to induce, one the one hand, where necessary, rules of customary law from the State practice and opinio juris sive necessitatis (known as 'precedents') and, on the other hand, general principles of law from the basic principles in foro domestico, i.e. of the various national legal systems;
The student has a capacity for solution-oriented thinking, and is therefore capable of solving complex international legal issues;
The student is able to reason and apprehend legal issues in a context of a multi-layered legal order (where public international law, private international law, EU law and national law may, if applicable, jointly govern in part the respective legal issues at stake;
The student is able to construct and defend a correct and logical legal argument concerning complex cases;
The student is able to clearly and concisely present and report an analysis and synthesis of solutions to complex international legal cases in a scientific way;
The student has the ability to form a judgement in an uncertain context (controversies, lacunas, etc.);
The student is able to place international legal concepts and reasoning in the nature of time, pace, value and context specific to the international community (principle of the relativity of international law);
The student has a capacity for creativity and critical reflection;
The student is able to comprehend legal philosophy and epistemological considerations in the field of public international law;
The student is aware of his role in society and his responsibility as an internationalist.

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Written Exam determines 100% of the final mark.

Within the Written Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

Written exam with a relative weight of 100 which comprises 100% of the final mark.

Additional info regarding evaluation

Allowed unsatisfactory mark

The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context