Course description

• Course content
• Learning outcome
• Admission
• Prerequisites

• Teaching
• Examination
• Evaluation

Course content

New course code and course code starting from the fallsemester 2011 - please see the website for JUS5912 – Legal Writing and Oral Advocacy in International Law (discontinued) (the course now gives 10 credits).

Students will litigate a (fictitious) public international law or human rights case, commencing with the filing of an international complaint to the final judgment or decision of an international court or tribunal. Students will play the various roles of lawyers for the applicants, government agents, and judges/members of the international tribunal(s). Each team has to represent the parties substantively both in writing and through pleadings before so-called moot courts. The students' memorials and oral argumentations will be judged by legal experts.

Learning outcome

Students will experience in-depth how international legal standards are applied and interpreted, how lawyers operate in international practice, and how arguments are similar or different depending on the forum. Students will also learn the art of evaluating arguments independently and how the roles of international judges are defined.

Admission

Admission is open for students enrolled in the L.L.M. Public International Law (master's 1 1/2-years). It is also open for students enrolled in the 5-years Master of Law (master i rettsvitenskap) at the University of Oslo. Students enrolled in the LL.M. programme in Public International Law will be given priority to this course.

Prerequisites

Formal prerequisite knowledge

No obligatory prerequisites beyond the minimum requirements for entrance to higher education in Norway.

Teaching

Teaching will consist of 20 hours of seminars where students are divided in teams and work associated with a mock trial.

Students will have regular team meetings during which strategies are devised and briefs/oral arguments prepared (lawyers’ teams), or briefs and arguments studied and decisions/judgments prepared (judges’ teams).

Examination

The final grade consists of an oral presentation during a mock trial and a written assignment. The assignment will consist of legal briefs and judicial decisions.
Students who fail or do not deliver the assignment will not be allowed to take the oral exam.

More details about the written assignment will be published on the information page for this course (click on current semester).

Examination support material

No examination support material is allowed.

Language of examination

English

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a pass/fail scale. Read more about the grading system.

Explanations and appeals

• Explanation of grades and appeals

Resit an examination

• Illness at exams / postponed exams
• Resitting an examination.
• There are special rules for resitting a passed examination in the master's programme in Law.

Withdrawal from an examination

It is possible to take this exam up to 3 times. If you withdraw from the exam after the deadline or during the exam, this will be counted as an examination attempt.

There are special rules for resitting a passed examination in the master's programme in Law.

Special examination arrangements

Application form, deadline and requirements for special examination arrangements.

Evaluation

The course is subject to continuous evaluation. At regular intervals we also ask students to participate in a more comprehensive evaluation.