History of law

Duration

36h Th, 15h Lect.

Number of credits

Lecturer

Wim Decock

Language(s) of instruction

French language

Organisation and examination

Teaching in the second semester

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

The course is subdivided into two parts.
The first classes deal with the different currents of thought that have shaped the European legal tradition. They also draw attention to the shifts in constitutional values that underly certain changes in the history of private law. Particular attention will be paid to the persistence of Roman law throughout the centuries as the common basis of law in regions across Europe (ius commune), even if the simultaneous rise in national legal traditions (ius particulare), often based on customs will also be considered. In this first part, dealing primarily with what is known to be "external legal history", the public law dimension of the historical evolution of private law will be highlighted, for instance to explain the change in private law rules after the French Revolution, and to see the continuity and discontinuity between the laws of the ancien régime and the Codes.
The second part of the course starts from specific questions deriving from specific fields in private law such as contract, property, torts, family and successions. It deals with what is known to be "internal legal history". Selected issues from the history of commercial law will also be dealt with, since, historically speaking, there are a lot of connections with the development of private law. Finally, questions concerning the enforcement of subjective rights will be addressed, especially in light of the revival of alternative dispute resolution.  
Plan of the course:

• The multiple lives of Roman private law: the reception of Roman legal categories from the medieval ius commune to the new ius commune
• The rise of national identities and states and the "rediscovery" of customary laws
• Constitutional values and private law: from a system based on collective privileges to the principle of non-discrimination among individual citizens
• Codifications and the rise of a liberal paradigm in private law (France, Belgium, German): a metter of identity
• Autonomy of the will and contractual fairness: the search for equilibrium in exchange from the moral philosophers to the socialist critique
• Private property: its medieval origins, its consecration in art. 544 CC, and the ideological wars in the 20th century
• Marriage and succession law through the prism of time: the sanction of disinheritance for marrying without parental consent in the ancien régime 
• Commercial law between autonomy and regulation: the different lives of the lex mercatoria and public economic privileges
• Enforcing rights: the development of procedural law and the return to alternative modes of conflict resolution

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

The course offers an introduction to the historical foundations of modern private law, from the renaissance of Roman law in the late middle ages through the twentieth century. In addition to its propedeutic aspirations, the course primarily aims at learning students how to approach legal questions from a historical perspective, so as to see the roots of certain norms while being able to understand them in a critical way.
Some suggestions for studying the anthology of text:
Rather than learning those texts by heart, it is better to see them as working instruments that help you reflect on the course matter. The use of the anthology will be required at the exam. In other words, only the material seen in class (ppt, annotations) is meant to be learnt by heart. The efforts and time required for reading the anthology should not be underestimated. The analysis of those texts comprises at least three stages of reading: (a) an exploratory stage, (b) a stage of concentrated reading; (c) a stage of consolidation. During the first stage, limit yourself to reading the introduction and conclusion of the text, and merely skim through the body of the text. Attentive reading of the entire text is something to do during the second stage. Make sure that you can follow every step in the argument and underline those words or sentences that are important. If necessary, use a dictionary. Glossing the text, however, is forbidden. The last stage should help you to consolidate your understanding of the text by reading it again in its entirety. Make sure you see the links with other texts or the material presented in class, since many similar questions are treated in more than one text/class.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

No prerequisites, even if basic knowledge of Roman law is an asset.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Ex cathedra teaching, combined with self-study of an anthology of texts which is a full part of the course. By way of compensation, about ten hours of ex cathedra lectures will make way for autonomous reading of texts.

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

Face-to-face and self-study

Recommended or required readings

There is no syllabus in the strict sense of the word, but ppt-slides and an anthology of texts will be provided to the students. Taking notes during the course is necessary. The anthology of texts will be available for sale at Liège University Press. The ppt-slides will be put online. 

Any session :

- In-person

written exam ( multiple-choice questionnaire )

- Remote

written exam ( multiple-choice questionnaire )

- If evaluation in "hybrid"

preferred in-person


Additional information:

Written exam, consisting of twenty Multiple Choice Questions. The exam will be organised on campus, unless the pandemic deterioriates. The students can take the anthology of texts with them to the on campus exam.

Work placement(s)

Organisational remarks and main changes to the course

Lectures during the second semester.

Contacts

Mr. Wim DECOCK: wim.decock@uliege.be

Association of one or more MOOCs