General Course Information
1.1 Course details
| Course code: | LLAW6160 |
| Course name: | Legal System and Methods |
| Programme offered under: | LLM Programme |
| Semester: | First |
| Prerequisites / Co-requisites: | No |
| Credit point value: | 9 credits |
| Cap on student numbers: | 40 |
1.2 Course description
The aim of the Legal System and Methods module is to provide students who do not have a first degree in law to acquire sufficient knowledge and understanding of the Hong Kong legal system. tort law and legal research, legal analysis and legal reasoning. The module will provide an introduction to the Hong Kong legal system and introduce students to sources of law, categories of law, the courts, the civil process in Hong Kong, the personnel of the legal system and other relevant aspects. Students will be trained in the use of legal materials and introduced to the case law process, the precedent system, the legislative process and approaches to statutory interpretation. Students will acquire and develop basic legal skills such as legal research, legal analysis and legal reasoning.
1.3 Course teachers
| Name | E-mail address | Office | Consultation | |
| Course convenor | Alex Mak | makalex@hku.hk | CCT 704 | By email |
Learning Outcomes
2.1 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) for this course
CLO 1 Understand the salient features of the HK legal system which act as a sound foundation for the study of other courses in this degree.
CLO 2 Engage in discussion of a variety of legal issues surrounding the HK legal system and critically evaluate some current issues.
CLO 3 Understand the development of common law and civil law systems of law, in particular the nature of case law and the rules of judicial precedent, as well as the significance of statute and its interpretation. The place and use of conventions (CISG) and common used principles such as PICC, PECL and UNIDRIOT principles of international commercial contracts will be explored.
CLO 4 Understand the principles of the tort of negligence, the duty of care, pure economic loss, negligent misstatement, nervous shock, breach of duty, causation and remoteness of damage, contributory negligence and consent, vicarious liability, occupier’s liability, trespass, nuisance, disputes and their application and operation.
CLO 5 Understand and appreciate the potential overlap between tort and contract claims and their remedies.
CLO 6 Acquire sufficient legal research skills to locate relevant materials.
CLO 7 Identify crucial issues in hypothetical factual scenarios covering topics of substantive law such as tort, contract and criminal law, apply the law in analyzing the problems and reach a solution.
2.2 LLM Programme Learning Outcomes (PLOs)
Please refer to the following link: https://course.law.hku.hk/llm-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 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 5 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 6 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 7 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Assessment(s)
3.1 Assessment Summary
| Assessment task | Due date | Weighting | Feedback method* | Course learning outcomes |
| Class participation | TBC | 10% | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 | |
| End of term test on Torts (1.5-hour limited open book) | 30 Nov 2023 | 30% | 5 | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
| Research essay | 18 Dec 2023 | 60% | 1 | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
| *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
| Seminar: | 3 hours / week for 12 teaching weeks |
| Private study time: | 9.5 hours / week for 12 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 announced further by course convenor in the first seminar of the course.
Learning Resources
5.1 Resources
| Reading materials: | Reading materials are posted on Moodle |
| 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/