LW101-4-SP-CO:
Contract Law

The details
2020/21
Essex Law School
Colchester Campus
Spring
Undergraduate: Level 4
Current
Sunday 17 January 2021
Friday 26 March 2021
15
21 October 2020

 

Requisites for this module
(none)
LW108
LW108
(none)

 

LW201, LW224, LW241, LW242, LW251, LW363

Key module for

LLB M122 English and French Law (Maitrise),
LLB M100 Law,
LLB M100MD Law,
LLB M100MS Law,
LLB M101 Law (Including Foundation Year),
LLB M107 Law (Including Placement Year),
LLB M120 Law (Including Year Abroad),
MLAWM199 Law,
MLAWMA98 Law (Including Placement Year),
MLAWMA99 Law (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MN00 Law with Business,
LLB MN01 Law with Business (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MN02 Law with Business (Including Placement Year),
LLB MN10 Law with Finance,
LLB MN11 Law with Finance (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MN12 Law with Finance (Including Placement Year),
LLB M123 Licence English and French Law (Double Degree)

Module description

This 15 credit module will introduce students to key aspects of contract law. It will build on knowledge acquired in the Foundation of the Law of Obligations module taught in the autumn term and will also serve as a bridge for other optional commercial law courses that students may wish to study in subsequent years.

Module aims

The module aims to introduce students to key aspects of contract law, to enable to students to understand and critically evaluate the relationship between key contract law rules and principles and to apply these to hypothetical legal problems.

Module learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of the module students will be able to:


1. Understand key aspects of contract law


2. Understand the relationship between key contract law rules and principles


3. Critically evaluate key contract law rules and principles


4. Identify legal issues in hypothetical case studies


5. Construct legal arguments


6. Apply contract rules and principles to hypothetical legal problems


7. Interpret statutory provisions and recognise their interplay with common law rules and principles of contract


Module information

Students will acquire the above knowledge and skills via a combination of lectures and tutorials, focusing around the following topics:


Terms of the Contract
- Express and implied terms
- Terms and representations

Vitiating Factors:
- Misrepresentation
- Mistake
- Duress
- Undue Influence
- Frustration

Control of Unfair Terms:
- Common Law
- Statutes

Damages for breach of contract:
- Basic principles of damages compensation
- Expectation, reliance and restitution damages
- Principles and rules for assessment of damages

Learning and teaching methods

This module is taught through a mixture of weekly live webinars, pre-recorded videos, and tutorials. Each week, the module teaching team will first produce and make available on Moodle two 25-minute pre-recorded video lectures. The module teaching team will then deliver a weekly live 50-minute webinar in which they further explore key legal concepts and answer your questions about the topics. These lectures and webinars will subsequently be available online through Moodle so that you can re-watch them as part of your independent study. Alongside this, there will be five bi-weekly 50-minute small group tutorials. The module teaching team will also produce and make available on Moodle short guidance notes. These notes will introduce the material to be covered in the lectures, webinars and required readings. The notes will also contain tips designed both to help you navigate the material to be covered in the lectures and webinars and to equip you to analyse the required readings.>br>
You will be expected to have completed the required readings in advance of your tutorials. Your tutorials will enable you to discuss the material covered in lectures, webinars and the required readings, obtain feedback on your pre-class preparation and deepen your understanding of key concepts. To help you prepare in the best possible way for your tutorials, you will be completing regular Multiple-Choice Quizzes on Moodle. The quizzes will be based on the reading set for that week so that the quiz forms part of your preparation for each tutorial. The quizzes will enable you to track your progress, understand what you are doing well, and give you clear feedback to help you manage your studies and your progress.

Bibliography

  • Chen-Wishart, Mindy. (©2018) Contract law, Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.

The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course. The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students. Further reading can be obtained from this module's reading list.

Assessment items, weightings and deadlines

Coursework / exam Description Deadline Coursework weighting
Practical   LW101 - Multiple Choice Questions    100% 
Exam  Main exam: 24hr during Summer (Main Period) 

Additional coursework information

Exam Period and Duration: 2.00 hour exam during Summer Examination period

Exam format definitions

  • Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
  • In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
  • In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
  • In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary, for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.

Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.

Overall assessment

Coursework Exam
20% 80%

Reassessment

Coursework Exam
0% 100%
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Dr Nikhil Gokani, email: nikhil.gokani@essex.ac.uk.
Nikhil Gokani, Andrea Fejos
Law Office: lawugadmin@essex.ac.uk

 

Availability
Yes
No
No

External examiner

Dr Mateja Durovic
Kings College London
Reader in Law
Resources
Available via Moodle
Of 8616 hours, 0 (0%) hours available to students:
8616 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s).

 

Further information
Essex Law School

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