Undergraduate Module Descriptor

LAW2035B: Constitutional and Administrative Law

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

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:

  • The nature of constitutions and the purposes of constitutionalism;
  • The constitution of the United Kingdom: institutions; legal and non-legal rules underlying
  • principles: parliamentary sovereignty, the rule of law and separation of powers;
  • The impact of European law on parliamentary sovereignty and the constitution of the United Kingdom;
  • The impact of devolution on the constitution of the United Kingdom;
  • The Human Rights Act 1998, ECHR and the protection of rights and freedoms within the United Kingdom;
  • Judicial review of administrative action; and
  • Where appropriate comparisons with similar legal systems law based on the Westminster constitutional paradigm (e.g. Canada, New Zealand and Australia). 

Learning and Teaching

This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:

Scheduled Learning and Teaching ActivitiesGuided independent studyPlacement / study abroad
582420

...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:

CategoryHours of study timeDescription
Scheduled Learning and Teaching activities2222 x 1 hour Lectures
Scheduled Learning and Teaching activities13.59 x 1.5 hour seminars
Scheduled Learning and Teaching activities13.59 x 1.5 hour syndicate workshops
Scheduled Learning & Teaching activities99 x 1 hour Q & A sessions
Guided Independent study17ELE materials
Guided Independent study40Syndicate workshop preparation
Guided Independent study40Seminar preparation
Guided Independent study25Consolidation of learning
Guided Independent study30Formative assessment preparation
Guided Independent study60Summative assessment preparation
Guided Independent study30Individual reading and study

Online Resources

This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).

https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=1261

Other Learning Resources

You are expected to keep up to date with topical events. This is best done by reading newspapers such as The Times or The Independent. Tabloid newspapers are not suitable.

You may also find recent and current editions of specialist journals, such as Public Lawand Modern Law Review, which are available in the Law Library (physical and electronic), useful for this purpose.

How this Module is Assessed

In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.

Formative Assessment

A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.

Form of assessmentSize of the assessment (eg length / duration)ILOs assessedFeedback method
Seminar questions to be researched and answered both individually and in groups of the syndicates9 x 1.5 hours1-10Immediate feedback from tutors and peers
Timed essay48-hour turnaround, 2500 words1-7, 9Written and oral feedback

Summative Assessment

A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.

CourseworkWritten examsPractical exams
10000

...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.

Form of assessment% of creditSize of the assessment (eg length / duration)ILOs assessedFeedback method
Timed essay10048 hour turnaround, 5000 words1-7, 9Written and oral feedback

Re-assessment

Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.

Original form of assessmentForm of re-assessmentILOs re-assessedTimescale for re-assessment
Timed essayTimed essay (48-hour turnaround, 5,000 words)1-7, 9August / September reassessment period

Indicative Reading List

This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.

M Loughlin, The British Constitution: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) (OUP, 2013) https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780199697694.001.0001


C. Turpin & A. Tomkins, British Government and the Constitution ,7th ed. (Cambridge University Press, 2016) https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139060738

Andrew Le Sueur, Maurice Sunkin, and Jo Eric Khushal Murkens, Public Law - Text, Cases, & Materials, 3rd ed (OUP, 2016). ISBN: 9780198735380.