LW6028 - International Family Law

The module will utilise lectures and workshops to initiate your practical thinking on the areas mentioned above. The lectures will cover the basic legal frameworks of the topics outlined above. Workshops will provide an opportunity to apply the law to practical situations thereby consolidating your understanding and emphasising the implications of the law. You will be assessed by way of a two hour exam, which will take place in the January assessment period.

The members of staff who teach on this module have practical and/or research experience in this area. As such, they will provide academic support where necessary. All lectures will be recorded and made available to students to aid in learning and understanding. You will be encouraged to use this resource to develop your appreciation of the interrelated nature of the disparate areas of law studied as part of the module.
The module will make use of the eLearning Portal where lecture materials, recordings, and other learning support will be made available. The module site will also direct you to supplementary resources which you are encouraged to explore in addition to the material covered in lectures and workshops.

The module will make use of an online reading list. The reading list will provide you with links to key texts and information on their availability in the university library.

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

Knowledge & Understanding:

• Students will develop knowledge of the fundamental principles of family law as it effects families across borders. (LO1)

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:

• Students will develop an understanding of the essential domestic and international statutory family law provisions and be able to apply them in a specific factual context. (LO2)

• Students will be able to identify relevant procedures, to apply them to a given factual scenario and to draft appropriate documentation. (LO3)

• Students will be able to understand the nature and implications of proposed changes in international family law and the social, cultural and political factors influencing international family law. (LO4)

Formative Assessment

Students will be given regular feedback throughout the module in workshops.

Summative Assessment

Students will be assessed in a two hour exam, which will take place in the January assessment period. The assessment will be broken down in 3 parts:

Part A will be a compulsory element in which students wil understake an exercise of elicting the correct information from a statement of facts in order seek a particular court order.

Part B will provide 2 scenario questions from which they will have to select 1 to answer.

Part C will provide 2 essay questions from which they will have to select one.

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You will gain an analytical and practical insight into the rationale and jurisprudence of family law as it affects families and individuals across Europe and the rest of the world. Specifically, the module will examine how the law regulates family law issues with an international dimension, how the law in England and Wales compares with the law in other jurisdictions and how international laws and treaties relating to family law are implemented, interpreted and enforced. The issues that will be explored include choice of law and jurisdiction, international child abduction, recognition and enforcement of Judgments in other jurisdictions, female genital mutilation, forced marriage, marriage validity and religious marriage contracts. This module may be of particular interest to you if you intend to study family law, child care or international human rights law. You will learn on this module through a combination of lectures and workshops. You will receive support, guidance and feedback from your tutors. The module is assessed through a two hour exam which comprises essay questions and problem based scenarios.