LLAW6055 & JDOC6055
General Course Information
1.1 Course details
| Course code: | LLAW6055 / JDOC6055 |
| Course name: | Law of International Finance I |
| Programme offered under: | LLM Programme / JD Programme |
| Semester: | First |
| Prerequisites: | Non LLM(CFL) and LLM(CR) students must demonstrate a workable understanding of contract and commercial law or a strong professional background in contemporary finance. |
| Credit point value: | 9 credits / 6 credits |
| Cap on student numbers: |
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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 sector 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; simple asset-backed securities; and interest rate and currency swaps. Standardised documentation and topical materials will be used throughout.
1.3 Course teachers
| Name | E-mail address | Office | Consultation | |
| Course convenor | Paul Lejot | plejot@hku.hk | CCT 304 | Mon – Fri afternoons by appointment |
Learning Outcomes
2.1 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) for this course
CLO 1 Develop a usable understanding of elemental debt capital market and financial derivative transactions. This includes consideration of the parties involved and their motives, contract formation, why transactions succeed or fail, the documentation involved in structuring transactions and allocating risks, and the impact of regulation on transaction design.
CLO 2 The use of generic transaction structures and documents will be accompanied by commercial and contextual explanations of current transactions. With respect to substantive law, the course intends to provide an understanding of specific legal risks and the customary methods by which those risks may be mitigated or avoided.
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 group assignment | Class A
Presentation: 21 & 28 Oct 2021 Written submission due: 4 Nov 2021 Class B Presentation: 20 & 27 Oct 2021 Written submission due: 3 Nov 2021 |
10% | 1, 2 | |
| Take home exam | 27 Dec 2021 | 90% | 1, 2 | 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(s).
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.
4.2 Details of Learning Activities
To be advised by course convenor(s).
Learning Resources
5.1 Resources
| Reading materials: | Reading materials posted on Moodle at intervals during the course |
| Core reading list: | TBA |
| Recommended reading list: | Provided in Course Outline, to be posted on Moodle prior to Class 1 |
5.2 Links
Please refer to the following link: http://www.law.hku.hk/course/learning-resources/