LLAW6055 & JDOC6055

General Course Information

1.1 Course details

Course code: LLAW6055 / JDOC6055
Course name: Law of International Finance
Programme offered under: LLM Programme / JD Programme
Semester: Second
Prerequisite / Co-requisite: No
Credit point value: 9 credits / 6 credits

1.2 Course description

Law of International Finance 1 examines the fundamentals of financial transaction formation and its connection with national and transnational law, financial innovation and contemporary commercial practices — that is, “How deals work”, and how law and regulation influence the decisions of banks and other intermediaries operating in organised markets.

The aims of the course are to (i) create from first principles a usable understanding of four elemental capital market transactions; and (ii) provide a common scholarly platform for those new to financial law or to common law practices. This includes consideration of the institutional incentives that influence the commercial actions of transaction parties; contract formation; why transactions succeed or fail; important regulatory settings; and the forms of documentation used to structure transactions and allocate commercial and legal risks.

Four generic transactions will be examined using examples of recent real applications — international syndicated loans; major currency bond issues and debt issuance programmes; green finance and asset–backed securities; and interest rate and currency swaps. Standardised forms of legal documentation and topical materials will be used throughout the course.

1.3 Course teachers

Name E-mail address Office Consultation
Course convenor Angus Young alyoung@hku.hk N/A By email

Learning Outcomes

2.1 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) for this course

CLO 1 Develop a usable understanding of elemental debt capital market and financial derivatives transactions. This includes consideration of the parties involved and their commercial motives, contract formation, why transactions succeed or fail, the contracts used to structure transactions and allocate risks, and the impact of regulation on transaction design.

CLO 2 The use of generic transaction structures and documents will be accompanied by explanations of current transactions and entrenched commercial practices. With respect to legal doctrine and procedure, the course will provide an understanding of specific risks and the methods by which they are mitigated.

2.2 LLM and JD Programme Learning Outcomes (PLOs)

Please refer to the following link:

LLM – https://course.law.hku.hk/llm-plo/

JD – https://course.law.hku.hk/jd-plo/

2.3 Programme Learning Outcomes to be achieved in this course

PLO A PLO B PLO C PLO D PLO E PLO F
CLO 1
CLO 2

Assessment(s)

3.1 Assessment Summary

Assessment task Due date Weighting Feedback method* Course learning outcomes
Mid-term assignment TBC 10% 1, 5 1, 2
Take home exam TBC 90% 1, 4, 5 1, 2
*Feedback method (to be determined by course teacher)
1 A general course report to be disseminated through Moodle
2 Individual feedback to be disseminated by email / through Moodle
3 Individual review meeting upon appointment
4 Group review meeting
5 In-class verbal feedback

3.2 Assessment Detail

To be advised by course convenor.

3.3 Grading Criteria

Please refer to the following link: https://www.law.hku.hk/_files/law_programme_grade_descriptors.pdf

Learning Activities

4.1 Learning Activity Plan

Lecture: 3 hours / week for 11 teaching weeks
Private study time: 9.5 hours / week for 11 teaching weeks

Remarks: the normative student study load per credit unit is 25 ± 5 hours (ie. 150 ± 30 hours for a 6-credit course), which includes all learning activities and experiences within and outside of classroom, and any assessment task and examinations and associated preparations.

Learning Resources

5.1 Resources

Reading materials: Posted regularly at Moodle during the course
Core reading list: TBA
Recommended reading list: TBA

5.2 Links

Please refer to the following link: http://www.law.hku.hk/course/learning-resources/