Module LAW3165 for 2020/1
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
LAW3165: Charity Law
This module descriptor refers to the 2020/1 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:
- Legal forms of civil society or non-profit organisations and the significance of charity in the not-for-profit sector; the role of charity trustees; charitable fundraising and appeals; investment of charitable funds; fiscal treatment of charities
- The legal meaning and definition of charity; the advantages and disadvantages of a statutory definition; alternative approaches to defining ‘charity’, eg based on notions of altruism or public goods or autonomy
- Religion and charity: the historical connection; judicial approaches towards religion; the definition of religion; the meaning of ‘advancement of religion’ and the merits of its inclusion as a charitable purpose
- The impact of charities charging fees for their services; the place of poverty in charity
- The interface between politics and charity: the meaning of ‘political purposes’ and the rationale for their exclusion from charity; the scope for charities to be involved in political campaigning
- Charity and discrimination: the freedom for charities to select beneficiaries according to defined characteristics
- Alternative approaches to charity (including in relation to questions concerning religion, politics and fee-charging) in other jurisdictions, such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland
- Regulation of the charitable sector: the Charity Commission; registration, reporting and auditing requirements; the Charity Tribunal; the doctrine of cy-près
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 |
---|---|---|
56 | 244 | 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 Activity | 32 | Lectures (16 x 2 hours) |
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activity | 16 | Seminars (8 x 2 hours) |
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activity | 8 | Drop-in sessions (8 x 1 hour) + |
Guided Independent Study | 16* | Reading in advance of lectures |
Guided Independent Study | 80* | Reading and preparation for seminars |
Guided Independent Study | 16* | Consolidating learning post-seminar |
Guided Independent Study | 28* | Reading and preparation for case note |
Guided Independent Study | 18* | Preparation of essay plan |
Guided Independent Study | 86* | Research, planning and execution of summative essay(s) |
+ Drop-in sessions are designed for module-specific queries and discussions. You are welcome to attend with specific queries or to discuss proposed summative topics or completed formatives, or simply to discuss charity-related matters. | ||
* For guided independent study, the hours spent on each task are for guidance only and may vary depending on your own study needs and learning style. |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
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.
Cases and decisions:
Aid/Watch Inc v Commissioner of Taxation [2010] HCA 42 (HCt Australia)
Catholic Care (Diocese of Leeds) v Charity Commission [2010] EWHC 520 (Ch)
Human Dignity Trust v Charity Commission (2014) FTT (Charity) No. CA/2013/0013
Re Greenpeace of New Zealand [2014] NZSC 105
Decision of the Charity Commission on an application for registration by the Temple of the Jedi Order, (December 2016)
Books and articles:
Chan, K - The Public-Private Nature of Charity Law (Hart Publishing, 2016)
Dunn, A – The Voluntary Sector, the State and the Law (Hart Publishing, 1998)
Harding, M – Charity Law and the Liberal State (CUP 2014)
McGregor-Lowndes, M and O’Halloran, K (eds) - Modernising Charity Law: recent developments and future directions (Edward Elgar Publishing. 2010)
McKenna, A – Applications to First-tier Tribunal (Charity) by Persons Affected (2012-13) 16 CL&PR 147
Parachin, A – Charity, politics and neutrality (2015-16) 18 CL&PR 23
Picarda, H – Thornton v Howe: A sound principle or a seminal case past its best buy date? (2013-14) 16 CL&PR 85
Synge, M – The ‘new’ public benefit requirement: making sense of charity law? (Hart Publishing, 2015)
Walton, C – McGovern v AG: constraints on judicial assessment of charitable benefit (2014) Conv 317