Duration
Part : Public Law : 25h Th
Part : Private Law : 35h Th
Number of credits
| Bachelor in economics and business management | 5 crédits | |||
| Bachelor in business engineering | 5 crédits |
Lecturer
Part : Public Law : Frédéric Bouhon
Part : Private Law : Aurélie Nottet
Coordinator
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
Teaching in the second semester
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
Introduction to Law: aspects of public and private law aims to offer HEC-ULg students a legal knowledge base. It comprises two parts: private law and public law, presented by Aurélie NOTTET and Frédéric BOUHON respectively.
Part : Public Law
There are two main pillars in the public law part.
First, it offers students an opportunity to approach, from an abstract perspective, the fundamental concepts of public law like the State, sovereignty, power, the constitution, the government, freedom or equality.
Second, more concretely, the course paints a schematic picture of current institutions in the Belgian State. The focus will be on the broad lines of the federal system, on the way the main governmental authorities operate and on the relations existing between them. Given the importance today of the international dimension, we will also present the main European institutions as well as other international organisations. The last sessions will be devoted to elements of administrative and criminal law.
Part : Private Law
Although the course is entitled 'introduction to private law', it doesn't tackle all the branches of private law. Considering the public concerned and the law courses taught in the rest of the programme (commercial law, social law, fiscal law), we shall mainly focus on the law of obligations (contract and tort) in the private law part, conveniently placed at the beginning of the curriculum. On the other hand, the law of persons, liberalities and successions won't be studied as such.
After an introductory part, aimed at situating the subject taught in its legal and societal context, and explaining several concepts and basic rules, the course will initiate students in the law of obligations, i.e. a structured set of rules that govern the legal links that exist between a creditor (who can demand the execution of an obligation) and a debtor (who is required to execute the obligation).
The different sources of obligations are listed but only the two most important ones will be studied in depth:
- the contract (creation, effects, execution, nonfulfilment)
- and the (quasi-)offence (civil liability).
We continue the course by briefly examining the terms and the extinguishment of the obligations, as well as any possible accompanying assurances.
Lastly, the course will end with a brief presentation of property law.
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
Strategy : The course will allow students to understand the political and societal context of a complex situation, thanks to a better understanding of the legal system and of the public institutions. The course will allow students to understand the legal constraints of a complex situation. The course will allow students to demonstrate scientific precision and a critical mind in the analysis of a complex situation. Implementation : The course will train the student to analyze his managerial practice with a critical and ethical mind when confronted with a complex situation, by taking into account the legal constraints and consequences of his decisions. Quality and Performance Control : The course will allow students to plan and implement the performance and quality control in a company, an organization or a project, by measuring the compliance of the decisions with the law. Communication : The course will allow students to communicate efficiently, internally and externally, about a company, organization or project, by including legal aspects in his position. Adaptability : The course will allow students to adapt their managerial practice to the needs of a fast-evolving world, notably to the evolution of the law, - being conscious of the societal, economic, political and environmental issues - showing curiosity and a scientific precision of academic level
Part : Public Law
The addition of the two perspectives described in the preceding section aims to give the students an ability to understand Belgium's main operating guidelines. The course thus seeks to offer students the tools for understanding the legal context in which they evolve and to be in a better position to follow political developments.
Part : Private Law
In accordance with the programme's ILO - or intended learning outcome - (which consists of being familiar with and understanding the legal concepts that a manager or economist requires), students will be capable of the following by the end of the course:
- understanding and using the concepts and rules studied in class;
- associating the theoretical elements of the course with concrete examples and everyday situations (especially companies);
- visualising the law of obligations as a set of coherent and structured rules;
- quickly reusing the concepts and rules studied in the study plan (acquisition of reactions and automatic reflexes);
- identifying an obligational link and its characteristics in a real situation.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
There are no special prerequisites, aside from a strong command of French and meticulous use of the concepts.
Part : Private Law
There are no prerequisites, other than command of the French language and proof of rigour in the use of the concepts. Students whose mother tongue isn't French are asked to pay special attention to this aspect and to regularly work with a dictionary.
The private law part of the introductory course to law is a prerequisite for the following courses:
- DROI0174-2 Commercial law (F. Daerden and L. Stas de Richelle)
- DROI1262-1 Social law (P. Crahay)
- DROI1237-1 In-depth study of commercial and company law (R. Aydogdu and B. Kohl)
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
Lecture.
Part : Public Law
Lectures.
Part : Private Law
Lectures
Students are strongly recommended to attend for their own interest. They are expected to listen attentively and take note of what the teachers says. Students are also invited to address the teacher directly (by politely interrupting them if there is time, otherwise during the break or at the end of the lesson) if they have questions or don't understand something.
Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning)
Face-to-face.
Part : Public Law
Lectures.
Part : Private Law
Face-to-face (see above: "Planned learning activities and teaching methods").
Recommended or required readings
Students have to possess the constitutional and legal texts that are analysed by both professors.
Part : Public Law
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Part : Private Law
There is no syllabus but a lesson plan will be made available to students on New Lola (moodle platform). It is very important for them to acquire this plan, to use it to structure their personal notes and to study for the exam.
Students are asked to have an updated copy of the Belgian Civil Code, for example: Code civil belge 2019, Paris, Marabout, (available as of 29 August 2018).
It is useful for students to bring their Civil Code to class although it isn't compulsory (unless they receive specific instructions for certain classes whose date will be clearly indicated). On the other hand, it is in the students' interest to reread their notes after every class as well as the relevant articles of the Civil Code at the same time (underlining and highlighting is authorised and even recommended). Lastly, the Code will be a precious tool for the preparation of the exam.
If some laws or parts of laws (besides the Civil Code) are analysed in class, they will be sent to the students via the moodle platform.
There is no recommended reading other than the legal documents mentioned in class.
Assessment methods and criteria
A written examination will be held in both the first and second terms and will relate to BOTH PARTS of the course.
It will include deux elements:
- a multiple-choice section (+1, -0.5, 0) comprising questions on private law (55% of the total grade)
- a multiple-choice section (+1, -0.5, 0) comprising questions on public law (45% of the total grade)
Students may use the code and legislation used in the context of the private and public law parts. The documents must be bound : isolated pages are forbidden. The students may underline or highlight these documents but they may NOT include ANY annotations. Referrals to articles are not permitted. Post-it notes may be used in the Code and/or documentation but only as "bookmarks": no words may be written on them. The possession, during the examination, of other documents that the ones which have been authorised by the teachers is strictly forbidden.
The evaluation criteria are as follows:
-knowledge of the law as taught in the oral course (memorise - reproduce),
- understanding of the concepts and the rules learned (reformulating, giving examples, relating an example to a theoretical rule).
Work placement(s)
Organizational remarks
Part : Public Law
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Part : Private Law
The course is held during the second term, on Tuesdays, from 13:00 to 16:00 at Sart-Tilman, Building B4 (lecture theatre 604).
Contacts
Students may contact Marc Alexandre, Senior Lecturer and works head at HEC-ULg with any question related to the course (Marc.Alexandre@ulg.ac.be).
Part : Public Law
Students may contact either the professor directly (f.bouhon@ulg.ac.be) or his assistant.
Part : Private Law
Mme Aurélie Nottet - aurelie.nottet@ulg.ac.be