Module LAW3146 for 2018/9
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
LAW3146: International Law, Conflict and Strategy
This module descriptor refers to the 2018/9 academic year.
Module Aims
The aim of this module is to draw on the broad expertise and research interest of the Strategy and Security Institute and the Law School in order to provide you with a fantastic insight into some of the most pressing contemporary legal and security dilemmas and the interaction between international law and strategy.
The relationship between international law and strategy is multifaceted and dynamic. International law plays a pivotal role in structuring the mutual interaction between States and as such shapes their strategic choices in fundamental ways. However, international law does not operate in a vacuum, but is itself influenced and shaped by international politics, security and strategy. The study of neither subject is complete without at least a basic understanding of the other discipline. Security strategy involves making complex decisions and judgements in conditions of uncertainty and, often, urgency. The permissions and constraints set out in international law are present at every stage of strategic decision-making. Accordingly, students of international politics, security and strategy benefit from an understanding of international law just as much as students of international law benefit from an understanding of the political, security and strategic context in which law applies.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. Demonstrate secure knowledge of the main features of the international legal system and of certain substantive branches of international law; 2. Demonstrate knowledge of the main elements of strategic thought and practice; 3. Demonstrate detailed knowledge and critical understanding of the dynamic interaction between public international law and non-legal processes; |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 4. Demonstrate knowledge of relevant legal and political science concepts and their contextual, social and political implications; 5. Demonstrate the ability to apply legal knowledge to a problem or case study and to discuss it; 6. Demonstrate the ability to select and explain relevant information from primary and secondary sources using appropriate interpretative techniques; 7. Demonstrate an understanding of the ways in which security strategy, as it is developed and applied, is shaped by international law; |
| Personal and Key Skills | 8. Demonstrate effective and accurate written and oral communication skills in a manner appropriate to the relevant discipline; 9. Demonstrate the ability to engage in debate effectively and to develop complex arguments and opinions with limited guidance; and 10. Identify, retrieve and use efficiently a range of library-based and electronic resources with limited guidance. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
It is envisaged that the syllabus will cover the following topics. Please note that this syllabus is indicative and may be subject to change.
Term 1
The Context: Law, Conflict and Strategy
- International Law, Conflict and Strategy: An Introduction
- Foundations of International Law
- Foundations of Strategy
Case-study I: The Use of Force
- The Rules Governing the Use of Force
- Iraq: From Resolution 678 to Resolution 1441
- Global War on Terror: From Afghanistan to ‘unwilling and unable’
- R2P: From Libya to the Ukraine
Case-study II: The Legal Regulation of Warfare
- The Law of Armed Conflict
- Status and Treatment of Captured Enemies: POWs and Unlawful Combatants
- Direct Participation in Hostilities
- The Fog of Law: Human Rights and Military Operations
- The Refugee Crisis in Syria and its Surrounding States
Term 2
Case-study III: The Challenge of Technology
- Cyber Warfare: The Tallinn Manual and Beyond
- Banning Weapons: From the Cross-bow to Cluster-bombs
- Stop the Bomb: Weapons of Mass Destruction
- Rage against the Machine: Killer Robots and Drones
Case-study IV: International Accountability and Justice
- International Criminal Justice and its Alternatives
- Selectivity in Confronting Evil: From Nuremberg to The Hague
- The Politics of the ICC
- The Crime of Crimes: Prosecuting Aggression
Law, Conflict and Strategy: The Lessons
- Lawfare
- International Law: A Strategic Studies Perspective
- Strategic Studies: An International Law Perspective
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 55 | 245 | 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 | 46 | 23 x 2 hour Lectures |
| Scheduled learning and teaching activities | 9 | 6 x 1.5 hour Workshops |
| Guided independent study | 120 | Individual reading and lecture preparation |
| Guided independent study | 35 | Workshop preparation |
| Guided independent study | 70 | Summative assessment preparation |
| Guided independent study | 20 | Formative assessment preparation |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
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 assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 1,500 words | 1-10 | Individual written 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.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 25 | 75 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 25 | 2,000 words | 1-10 | Individual written feedback, with supplementary oral feedback available |
| Examination | 75 | 2 hours and 15 minutes | 1-10 | Individual written feedback, with supplementary oral feedback available. |
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 | ||||
| 0 |
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 assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | Essay (2,000 words) | 1-10 | August / September referred / deferred period |
| Examination | Examination (2 hours and 15 minutes) | 1-10 | August / September referred / deferred 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.
Indicative Basic Reading List
V. Lowe, International Law (2007).
B. Cali, International Law for International Relations (2012).
J. Baylis, J. J. Wirtz and C. S. Gray, Strategy in the Contemporary World (4th edn, 2013).
D. Armstrong, T. Farrell, H. Lambert, International Law and International Relations (2012).
M. N. Shaw, International Law (6th edn, 2008).
P. Sands, Lawless World: Making and Breaking Global Rules (2nd edn, 2006).
D. McGoldrick, From '9-11' to the Iraq War 2003: International Law in an Age of Complexity (2004).
P. Bobbitt, Terror and Consent (2009).
