Undergraduate Module Descriptor

LAW3003H: Criminal Law

This module descriptor refers to the 2018/9 academic year.

Overview

NQF Level 6
Credits 30 ECTS Value 7.5
Term(s) and duration

This module ran during term 1 (12 weeks) and term 2 (11 weeks)

Academic staff

Dr Charlie Bishop (Convenor)

Pre-requisites

none

Co-requisites

none

Available via distance learning

No

Crimes are the laws with the most serious consequences: commit a crime, and you could go to prison, even for the rest of your life. So pervasive is the criminal law that most people who have never studied law before are already aware of a range of crimes. In this module, we start by drawing upon your background awareness of criminal law, or at least your sense of right and wrong, and from there build a methodical knowledge and useable understanding of some of the major crimes found in the law of England and Wales. This module is an opportunity for you to explore the legal details and moral underpinnings of such crimes as murder, rape, theft and criminal damage, and the defences available to such crimes, like self-defence or intoxication. You will be encouraged to adopt a critical attitude towards the criminal law, reflecting on why the law is the way it is, and how it can be improved. Also, it is one of the foundations of legal knowledge required for those ultimately wishing to practice as a barrister or solicitor in England and Wales.

Module created

1/10/2002

Last revised

10/01/2019