Module LAWM689 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
LAWM689: The Family, Law and Social Change
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
This module will through the lens of family law and policy critically examine the way in which law responds to social change. It aims to evaluate the theoretical explanations for the nature of this relationship, the doctrinal influences on a domestic and international level and the direct and indirect impact on it of inter-disciplinary socio-legal research.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. Engage in critical reading of national and international theoretical, doctrinal and socio-legal writing on family law to achieve a developed understanding of the various critiques of the relationship between the family, law and society. 2. Appreciate the sometimes controversial role of socio-legal research in uncovering and identifying the changing processes and social developments which lie behind it. |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. Develop an inter-disciplinary approach to socio-legal issues, express their own thoughts on the topics studied, such as sociological, political or policy-oriented reflections. 4. Combine and draw on both theoretical approaches and inter-disciplinary empirical research, while demonstrating the ability to address competing arguments. |
| Personal and Key Skills | 5. Capacity to conduct independent study and group work and meet deadlines. 6. Develop critical approach to legal and socio-legal research in the family law and policy domain. 7. Develop high level of competence in accessing legal and socio-legal bibliographic sources. 8. Assemble systematic and sustained argument in a family law context. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics (with some possible variation in the order of delivery):
- Family definition and the law – responses to social change and medical technology.
- Equality and vulnerability – autonomy, financial remedies and shared parenting.
- The legal meaning of domestic violence – a struggle between accepted and marginalised knowledge.
- Cultural and religious diversity, child protection and marriage.
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 15 | 135 | 0 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | 15 | 6 x 2.5 hour seminars |
| Guided independent study | 135 | Independent study |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
