2023-2024 / DROI3001-1

Introduction to the Laws of War

Duration

15h Th

Number of credits

 Bachelor in law2 crédits 
 Master in political sciences : general (120 ECTS)5 crédits 
 Master in political sciences : general (60 ECTS)5 crédits 
 Extra courses intended for exchange students (Erasmus, ...) (Faculty of Law, Political Science and Criminology)3 crédits 

Lecturer

Christophe Deprez

Language(s) of instruction

English 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

Although, at first glance, war and law may be viewed as distinct or even contradictory phenomena, many fields of international law contribute to governing situations of armed conflict. This course aims to map out these fields and to provide students with an overview of the main principles under each of them. Of particular interest will be the key mechanisms of the prohibition of the use of force (jus ad bellum), of international humanitarian law (jus in bello), of international human rights law, of international refugee law, of the law of international responsibility and of international criminal law.

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

Upon completion of this course, students should be familiar with the role of the law (and, in particular, of international law) before, during, and after an armed conflict.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

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

Face-to-face course


Additional information:

Lectures will be the basis of the course (active participation in class will nonetheless be encouraged). Each lecture will come with a Powerpoint presentation.

Recommended or required readings

A reader with key pieces of doctrinal literature will be made available. Students will be strongly encouraged to read the relevant portions of the reader in advance. This is to help them be familiar with the topic and relevant English terminology before each class.

Exam(s) in session

Any session

- In-person

oral exam

Written work / report


Additional information:

The evaluation method will be as follows:

- A short essay will be requested over the course of the semester. This short paper will determine 20 % of the final mark.

- An oral examination will normally (see below) determine the remaining 80 % of the mark. Students will be informed in due course what treaty provisions and other materials they may use during the exam.

- Around the end of the semester, a multiple-choice quiz will be organised on an optional basis. Students whose participation in this recap quiz is graded 14/20 or more will be offered the possibility to have their final grade for the course determined based on their paper only (i.e. 100 % of their final grade will, if they wish so, be determined based on the paper result). The oral exam therefore becomes optional for those students: if they are not satisfied with their paper result, they may still enrol for the oral exam. In that case, the initial grading distribution will be applied: 20 % of the final mark will be determined by the paper and the oral exam will determine the remaining 80 %.

- No recap quiz will be organised during the August/September session and the standard regime will automatically apply at that time: 20 % of the final mark will be determined by a paper and an oral exam will determine the remaining 80 %. Regarding the paper, students participating in the August/September session will have the opportunity either to keep their initial grade (paper submitted during the semester) or to write a new paper. New topics will be announced in July and the deadline for submission (if applicable) will be August 25, 2024.

Work placement(s)

Organisational remarks and main changes to the course

Contacts

Christophe DEPREZ (christophe.deprez@uliege.be)

Association of one or more MOOCs