| Unit name | Criminal Law and Criminal Justice |
|---|---|
| Unit code | LAWDM0086 |
| Credit points | 30 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Russell |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | University of Bristol Law School |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
This unit will develop a contextual approach to understanding crime, criminal law and criminal process. In particular, it will focues on the definition, measurement and perception of crime; the criminal justice system (policing, prosecution, trials, sentancing, appeals); the structure of criminal liability (including inchoate offences, complicity and defences); bodily autonomy and the criminal law (violent offences, sexual offences, homicide), property offences and corporate crime. Students should be advised that it is most appropriate for students who have not previously studied English/Welsh Criminal Law.
The unit aims to develop an understanding of criminal law and develop a contextual approach to the study of crime, criminal law and criminal process, along with associated socio-political and theoretical perspectives. After completing the unit, students will be able to: (i) display a general knowledge of the principles of English criminal law and process, (ii) appreciate the contextual background to the construction of crime, criminal law and the workings of the criminal justice system,
(iii) research further material in the field,
(iv) apply this to the solution of legal problems and the discussion of legal issues, and
(v) engage in critical analysis of the law from informed socio-political and theoretical perspectives.
Students should be able to state the law accurately, to apply legal principles to problem case scenarios, and to think critically about ways in which the law could be reformed.
The examination includes both problem type and essay type questions, designed to assess both whether students were able to understand and apply the law across the breadth of the syllabus, and whether they were able to think critically about it.
11 x 2 hour seminars. Optional attendance at relevant LLB lectures.
One 3000 word essay and One three-hour examination in May/June, in which students answer 3 questions (at least one essay and at least one problem) from a choice of 8 questions. Students may take unannotated statutes into the examination. In terms of formative assessment, there is a 1500 word essay assessment in the Autumn term.
A Ashworth, Principles of Criminal Law (6th edition 2009, Oxford University Press) N Lacey, C Wells & O Quick Reconstructing Criminal Law: Text and Materials (4th edition 2010, Cambridge University Press) J. Herring, Criminal Law: Text, Cases and Materials (OUP: 2010), C M V Clarkson and H M Keating Criminal Law – Texts and Materials (7th edition 2010, Sweet and Maxwell) Blackstone's Statutes on Criminal Law 2011-2012 ed., Peter Glazebrook (OUP)
