| Unit name | Rich Law, Poor Law |
|---|---|
| Unit code | LAWD30017 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Katie Cruz |
| 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 |
Rich Law, Poor Law is a unit that was borne out of both anger and concern – anger at the way the poor are treated compared to the rich; and concern that the law facilitates wealth and punishes the poor. In short, the rule of law that everybody is treated equally is something that does not bear any sort of close examination. Court and Tribunal fees in themselves exclude many, particularly as they are now so dear. You will likely appreciate that these sentiments have become part of a clarion call post-crash, but academics and others have pointed to these effects ever since the Greeks. It is not the purpose of this unit to gain a full, in-depth appreciation of all the nuances of “Rich Law, Poor Law” – that would be many lifetimes’ achievement. Rather, its purpose is to seek explanations of law and policy problematics as best we can, taking account of the way each has developed over time and demonstrate the consistently differentiated experiences of law. Key to the structure of this unit is that seminars are paired together around central themes. There are five such themes: commercial and social security; social justice; criminal justice; fraud and justice; and property justice. The purpose of the pairing is to “match” an aspect of “rich law” with an aspect of “poor law”. There are key questions to consider as a result of these pairings. How are the rules different? How can difference (if it exists) be explained? Are the pairings appropriate? Is it just a case of the law discriminating between the deserving and undeserving? Is it possible to change “the system” so that equality (if that is desirable) becomes possible? And, finally, to what extent does the binary rich/poor work?
By the end of the unit students will be able to demonstrate the following:
Teaching will be delivered through a variety of asynchronous and synchronous activities
1 x summative assessment: coursework with a specified word count (100%)
The assessment will assess all of the intended learning outcomes for this unit.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. LAWD30017).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the Faculty workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. If you have self-certificated your absence from an
assessment, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (this is usually in the next assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any extenuating circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
