The Lawster

Welcome

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Fri, 20 Aug 2100 18:04:00 +0000

'The Lawster' aims to interpret and discuss International Legal issues, whilst also providing useful advice for students aiming to break into a Law related field of work. I will also use 'The Lawster' as a way to connect with fellow Law students, in order to share answers and opinions, as well as providing useful advice on topics such as studying Law, revising for exams, saving money, writing a Curriculum Vitae, staying motivated whilst studying and where to find the best resources for studying Law.

For more information about the author, please visit the dedicated 'About' page.

If you like this blog, please share it to your favourite social media networks and click on the button below. You can also find The Lawster on YouTube, under the profile 'NMWolverson'. It only takes a few seconds to share this blog with friends, but it means a lot to everyone involved with The Lawster.

Iversity.org

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Thu, 10 Oct 2013 14:45:00 +0000

To sum up, Iversity.org is a website which offers free digital courses to anyone with internet access; the goal is to make higher education accessible to as many people as possible, all around the world. The subject topics offered are diverse and the idea is to share knowledge. Courses are offered digitally, without the need to physically attend a class and are taught by university lecturers or professors. Official course certificates are also allocated to students who succesfully complete certain courses.

The following is taken from the Iversity.org website:

"Who are we?

We are a diverse interdisciplinary team from Berlin. We’ve attended some of the world’s finest institutions. Yet, wherever we went, we were frustrated by the dearth of digital infrastructure in use. That’s why we set out to garner the wealth of opportunities to improve the quality of teaching and learning for future generations of students.

Following an EXIST-Founder Scholarship from the German Federal Ministry of Science and Technology, iversity received more than 1 million Euros in funding from the BFB Frühphasenfonds Brandenburg (EU 75% / Brandenburg 25%) and bmp media investors in July 2011. In December of 2012 Marcus Riecke joined the team and invested in the company together with the existing investors, the business angel Masoud Kamali and T-Venture, the venture arm of Deutsche Telekom AG.

Let's take the campus experience online!

The transformative potential of the Internet has yet to be utilized by the very institution that spawned it. As we move further into the digital age, it is becoming clear that the walled-in software solutions universities use today are glaringly outdated.

We want to move beyond the existing teaching formats to enable wholly new forms of online teaching and learning. In order to develop open courses we call upon individual instructors, universities and knowledge-based companies to join us in this effort to democratize education.

Our open course platform provides…

a structured course environment that features multimedia teaching materials;
assessment features such as multiple choice and peer review in order to keep students engaged and provide them with quantitative and qualitative feedback;
a discussion board where students can engage in peer-to-peer learning by asking and answering questions or sharing links, references and general observations;

We want to develop world-class courses that allow students to learn in an efficient and effective way. However, our aim is not to replace the university or the academics that work there. Our aim is to empower them. We want to allow the best professors to teach thousands of students. On the other hand we want to enable students to take classes from the best professors around the globe. In so doing we want to improve the quality of teaching at existing institutions, without raising the cost of instruction. We believe that open courses can be an important factor in that equation."

I have recently enrolled in three courses from Iversity.org:

Political Philosophy: An Introduction

Are you interested in politics? Do you feel the need to have a clearer understanding of it, beyond the conventional language of media and social networks? Well, this course might provide the help and the stimulus you are looking for.

Public Privacy: Cyber Security and Human Rights

Wild, wild web: Is the Internet a lawless no man’s land? Based on the recent public debate on data protection and massive privacy infringements, this course will explore the connection between cyber security and human rights.

The European Union in Global Governance

The EU is an economic giant but often perceived as a political dwarf and a military worm. By addressing the greatest challenges to EU external relations, the MOOC explains the law and policy aspects of the EU in global governance.

Other courses include:

Contemporary Architecture
Dark Matter in Galaxies: The Last Mystery
DNA - From Structure to Therapy
Design 101 (or Design Basics)
Monte Carlo Methods in Finance
The DO School Start-Up Lab
The Fascination of Crystals and Symmetry
The Future Of Storytelling
Vehicle Dynamics I: Accelerating and Braking
Vehicle Dynamics II: Cornering
Vehicle Dynamics III: Vertical Oscillations

Private Law - Contract Law - Introduction To Offers And Contracts

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 12:37:00 +0000

Offers

a) Offer
An offer normally starts off as a type of proposal. For example, someone may propose to you the idea of going on holiday together; at first this is just a suggestion, however when terms are created and formed, this turns into an offer and in some circumstances a contract. You may agree to share the costs with your friend, at this point, the idea is no longer a proposal but an offer to pay. If your friend accepts this offer, you then have a contract, where your duty is to pay the agreed sum, and your friend also has the obligation to pay his sum.

According to article II – 4:201(1) of the Draft Common Frame Reference, “A proposal amounts to an off if:
a) it is intended to result in a contract if the other party accepts it; and
b) it contains sufficiently definitive terms to form a contract”

b) Invitation To Treat
An invitation to treat is NOT an offer. An invitation to treat is where someone invites someone else to make an offer and then will consider whether to accept reject. If it is an invitation to treat there can be no contract. If displaying a good is considered an invitation to treat, rather than an offer, the shopkeeper is free to change the price of the product, as he is not bound by contractual terms.

Examples of invitation to treat are: articles in shop window, advertisements in newspapers and magazines

Rules about offers
1) Offer must be certain, i.e. both parties know EXACTLY what they have agreed to
2) Offer can be made by any method: writing / spoken / conduct (e.g. at an auction by raising your hand
3) Contracts can be between anyone – (Principle Freedom of Contract): to a single person or a group
4) Offer must be communicated in order to be effective: Person who accepts the offer must know that it is an actual offer when he accepts it, e.g. reward poster for cat, neighbour finds and returns cat but does not know of reward, is not entitled to rewards because does not know of offer.
5) Must be in existence, i.e. within specified time period or if this does not exist, within a reasonable time.

An Acceptance
Must be an agreement to ALL terms of the offer; It MUST be communicated to the offeror – silence will not do. Conduct will suffice, i.e. performing an action that shows you accept the contract, e.g. attending school. Any way of communicating will do as long as it is EFFECTIVE. E-mails are effective when they arrive at the person they were sent to.

POSTAL RULE states that an acceptance is effective as soon as it is posted, if the post is a REASONABLE method to use.

Consideration
Both parties must contribute (put something into) to the contract. Both sides must show that they have given something in return for the other person’s promise. In fact this is the whole purpose of the contract. Consideration must be worth something (value) but it does not have to be worth the same on both sides (adequate); If both sides are happy with the agreement it does not matter what the value is.

Following are NOT good consideration:

Consideration in the past – If the thing being offered already took place before the contract was signed then it cannot be consideration.

If you promise to do something which legally you have to do (a duty to do) then this can’t be consideration.

Cessation of an offer
An offer Ceases when:
1) When time limit for completion expires or lapses
2) If the offer is withdrawn before it is accepted – REVOKED – the person who the offer is being made to must know it is being revoked
3) When it is rejected; When the person selling says no to an offer
4) When a counter offer is made by the offeree, this ends the first contract

Contracts

Definition = According to article II - 1:101 of the Draft Common Frame Reference, "A contract is an agreement which is intended to give rise to a binding legal relationship, or to have some other legal effect. It is a bilateral or multilateral juridical act."

Intention to create legal relations
It is always accepted that in a business agreements it is always presumed by both parties that the agreement is legally binding unless one side can show that it did not intend this. Social and domestic agreements take place in the family and are not normally binding and cannot normally legally be enforced in courts.

Terms of a contract
(i) Express terms = These are very specific and easily understandable by both sides. Can be written or verbal.

(ii) Implied Term = This is not obvious, normally unmentioned and not written, but is assumed to be part of the contract. E.g. that there exists trust between a manager and a worker.

(iii) Conditions = These are the most important terms in a contract and are crucial to the contract taking place. If one side breaks a condition, the other can cancel and is entitled to sue.

(iv) Warranties = Less important part of contract. If broken the contract still carries on but innocent party can sue.

Consequences of entering into a contract:

the intended legal effect, as agreed by the parties to the contract
but also other legal effects, which are not intended by the parties, but is supplied by mandatory or dispositive law

Discharge (ending) of contracts
(i) Performance = Contract ends when both sides have done everything they needed to do to finish the contract: Whole contract (all parts) MUST be completed; must be performed within a reasonable or specified time.

= Both parties agree / decide to end the contract before it has been completed – can include compensation

(iii) Frustration = Something happens that means the contract cannot be finished or completed if:

Property involved in contract is destroyed e.g. by fire
Person due to perform / finish contract because they are ill
A law is passed that would make the performance (completing) a contract illegal.

Breach of contract
This happens when a CONDITION in the contract is broken. Innocent party can decide whether to continue with contract or end it

Damages:
Innocent party can claim for damages for “natural and foreseeable “ loss
Can claim for specific performance / injunction / rescission

Exclusion Clauses
A clause written in a contract that says how a person is not liable; this is disliked by courts.

Exclusion Clauses are limited by:
Unfair Contact Terms Act

person cannot be excluded from liability if death or serious injury is a result of negligence
exclusion clause has to be reasonable
in consumer law the liability of a person cannot be limited if the outcome of the contract is very different from that that was reasonably expected (performance)

Third Party Rights in a contract
The contract says they have rights or gives them a benefit provided they are made clear who they are in the contract:

By name
As a member of a group or class of people
OR Answers to a particular description

Minors’ capacity
Those under the age of eighteen are able to make a contract but:

The contract has to be for necessaries, e.g. food / clothing / housing / legal advice and is binding OR
The contract has to be a beneficial contract of service, e.g. work / training / apprenticeships or something similar and is binding.
All other contracts are not binding and are VOIDABLE and a minor can pull out of the contract at any time.

Parliamentary Sovereignty

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Sovereignty is a key concept in all constitutions; it defines the location of supreme constitutional power. Constitutions define the duties, powers and functions of the various institutions of government, whilst the sovereign body, or any body that shares sovereignty, has the ability to shape the constitution itself. In this way, it defines the powers of subordinate bodies. In the United Kingdom, sovereignty is located in parliament, or technically in the ‘Crown in Parliament’. Parliamentary sovereignty is strictly a form of legal sovereignty; it means that parliament has the ability to make, amend or dissolve and law it wishes. Parliamentary sovereignty is, without a doubt, the most important principle in the constitution of the United Kingdom. As J. S. Mill (1806-73) described it, ‘Parliament can do anything except turn a man into a woman’.

Where does the sovereignty come from?
The prime political leader to solve this problem was Thomas Hobbes. His book is called Leviathan, in which he compared the state to Leviathan. “In Leviathan, Hobbes set out his doctrine of the foundation of states and legitimate governments - based on social contract theories. Leviathan was written during the English Civil War; much of the book is occupied with demonstrating the necessity of a strong central authority to avoid the evil of discord and civil war. Beginning from a mechanistic understanding of human beings and the passions, Hobbes postulates what life would be like without government, a condition which he calls the state of nature. In that state, each person would have a right, or license, to everything in the world. This inevitably leads to conflict, a "war of all against all" (bellum omnium contra omnes), and thus lives that are "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short".”1 To escape this state of war, men in the state of nature accede to a social contract and establish a civil society. “According to Hobbes, society is a population beneath a sovereign authority, to whom all individuals in that society cede their natural rights for the sake of protection. Any abuses of power by this authority are to be accepted as the price of peace. However, he also states that in severe cases of abuse, rebellion is expected. In particular, the doctrine of separation of powers is rejected: the sovereign must control civil, military, judicial and ecclesiastical powers.”2

Hobbes is the first great political thinker who doubts that a human is a priori designed to live in a political order, society, that the human is a political creature. Ergo the state is a built, artificial and an unnatural way of living, but the only one that enables humans to leave peacefully.

Each state is based on ratio, because this is the only way of retaining our life. State is a necessary, but not always a sufficient means to curb social war. According to Hobbes states in the medieval world have failed, because they did not manage to prevent their own death; the death of their political order. Then what is a good state? - Hobbes’s answer: sovereign states; states that are not bound by religion or old privileges. Why? How? Because human beings are not designed to live together, because state is only necessary for installing peace; people bring about the state – Leviathan – in which one person has the sovereignty.

The origin of sovereignty, as viewed by Hobbes, is democratic – this is a political order, in which every citizen gives up his or her natural rights and chooses state instead. So the king brings about our rights to decide, because we have transferred to him our rights to decide. Even if a citizen disagrees, he still has to comply with his sovereign’s decisions – this is in essence the social contract. The state decides on right and wrong and because the origin of the state is democratic, it exists only as long as its citizens want it. However, the alternative is worse – a war and death. Hobbes believes that it is either civil war, or strong order.

Hobbes’s beliefs might sound totalitarian. However, Hobbes also states that there is no such thing like objective truth, ultimate veritas. We cannot know whether state is a good thing or not, because truth does not exist. Only the sovereign decides what is true. The sovereign cannot force us to believe, but can command us to comply with his orders. Hobbes introduces the difference between faith and confession. Faith is individual and unenforceable, while confession is enforceable. So he introduces the first human right, the first universal human freedom – the freedom of conscience. The state cannot rule our conscience, only our actions; it can bind us to a confession, not to a faith. As a result, faith becomes neutral. It is Christianity, not Catholicism or Protestantism. Before Hobbes, laws were holy, as they were Christian, there were no contradictions: Obey the state, obey the religion. After Hobbes the binding force of the law comes not from Veritas Christiania, but from Auctoritas. This is the logical and conceptual basis of positive law. Hobbes neutralizes the state and gives foundation for the possibility of the separation of the law and the state from the religion and faith. He makes clear that state is not natural, but cultural a human invention to protect people from war and extermination. He says that state is a mortal god. He is also the first thinker to distinguish between public and private space – a person is in one and the same time a citizen and individual. Jean Bodin is the first one to distinguish between public and private law.

Hobbes’s ideas give basis for the next idea, namely that sovereignty does not only originate from people, the people are the sovereign. This is the idea on which the American and the French constitutions are based on. This principle is legalized in the idea of written Constitution that originates from the people.

Examples:
USA’s Constitution, the first Constitution ever written, states: “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” This is a legal fiction – of course not everybody signed the Constitution! It simply shows that the sovereignty comes from the people. Although a small part of the USA citizens could actually vote, still it was true from a legal point of view that people were sovereign, because their representatives acted on their behalf.

Sources:
Infidels.org
Leviathan
OregonState.edu
SparkNotes
Wikipedia

What Is Constitutional Law?

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 15:00:00 +0000

Constitutional law focuses on the organization of the state. Constitutions do not just exist as a collection of simple rules defining and granting power, but instead these rules put into practice a legal framework of principles.

What is a constitution?
A constitution comprises a set of rules which aim to establish the duties, powers and functions of the various institutions and branches of the government. The rules enshrined in the constitution regulate the relationship between the branches of government and ensure that there can be no abuse of power by creating a separation of power and ensuring that there are sufficient checks and balances in place, allowing the three branches; legislative, executive and judicial, to function together without any one branch having a dominant and powerful position over the others. Additionally, the constitution also defines the relationship between the state and individuals and therefore defines the extent of civil liberty which shall be granted within a state.

“Substantively, a constitution is a body of law that:

Attributes power to public authorities
Regulates the fundamental relations between public authorities
Regulates the fundamental relations between the public authorities and the individual”

Introduction to Comparative Constitutional Law Second Edition, A. W. Heringa and Ph. Kiiver, Page 3.

The purpose of a constitution
Constitutions exist to control and regulate the power of the government. Power corrupts man, and citizens must be protected from the people in power; without this protection, citizens have no protection against tyranny. Without a constitution, the government would have the power to pass any laws, which could lead to the oppression of minorities, violation of freedom, and so on. We have seen cases of such power abuse during the reign of Hitler and Nazi Germany, where Jews were oppressed.

Codified and Uncodified Constitutions

Codified Constitutions
Codified constitutions are in theory enshrined in law. A codified constitution is one which is based on the existence of a single written authoritative document. This central written document lays down the core principles of the system of government. The main body typically outlines the duties, powers and functions of the major institutions of government.

Three key features of a codified constitution:

Authoritative – In a codified constitution, the end document itself is authoritative in the sense that it constitutes ‘higher law’. All political institutions are bound by the constitution; this creates a two-tier legal system, where the constitution stands above statute law which is created by the legislature.
Entrenched – The provisions laid out in a codified constitution are entrenched, which means that they are difficult to amend or abolish. The amendment procedure is more complex than the procedure for making ordinary statutes. Some constitutions contain certain clauses which prevent them being changed at all, such as the German ‘eternity clause’, whilst others prevent the changing or amending of parts of the constitution during times of conflict, or before a certain time period.
Judiciable – The constitution sets out all of the duties, powers and functions of the governmental institutions in terms of ‘higher law’; this means that all political bodies are subject to the authority of the courts, including the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court.

Advantages of a codified constitution

Clear Rules – Rules are clearly defined which results in less confusion and greater certainty that constitutional rules can be enforced.
Limited Government – Ends parliamentary sovereignty and thus ends the problem of elective dictatorship. Higher law would safeguard the constitution from interference by the government.
Neutral Interpretation – The constitution would be ‘policed’ by senior judges; judges would be the guardians of the constitution. This would ensure that provisions of the constitution are properly upheld by other public bodies. Judges are ‘above’ politics, they would act as neutral and impartial constitutional arbiters.
Protect Rights – Individual liberty would be more securely protected. The relationship between the state and the citizens would be defined, possibly through a bill of rights. Thus, they will be clearly defined and easier to enforce.
Education and Citizenship – The central values and overall goals of the political system are highlighted in a codified constitution; this would strengthen citizenship by creating a clearer sense of political identity, which may become particularly important in an increasingly multicultural society.

Uncodified Constitutions
Uncodified constitutions are becoming increasingly rare and at present there are only three liberal democracies which continue to utilize an uncodified constitution ; these are the United Kingdom, Israel and New Zealand.

Similarly to codified constitutions, uncodified constitutions have three defining features:

Not Authoritative – Laws and provisions within the constitution share the same status as ordinary laws; these means that states with an uncodified constitution have a single-tier legal system, where there is no form of higher law in the hierarchy.
Not Entrenched – The constitution can be changed through normal legislative processes for enacting statute law; this is reflected in the United Kingdom, where there is a principle of parliamentary sovereignty, through which parliament can make, dissolve and amend any law it wishes, including laws that directly affect the constitution.
Not Judiciable – Due to the absence of a higher law, judges do not have a legal standard, enshrined in a written constitution, against which they can declare that actions of other bodies are ‘constitutional’ or ‘unconstitutional’; this is known as ‘constitutional review’.

Advantages of an uncodified constitution

Less Rigidity – Higher law is harder to change than statute law. Due to this, the law constitution could become out dated and fail to respond to the ever-changing political environment. An uncodified constitution does not recognise ‘higher law’ and uses a single-tier legal system, meaning that it is easier to change the provisions within the constitution.
No Judicial Tyranny – It is argued that judges should not have the responsibility of ‘policing’ the constitution as they are unelected and socially unrepresentative. The constitution could thus be interpreted in a way that is not subject to public accountability.
Less Legalistic – Codified constitutions are created by people at one point in time, so they are often only properly understood by lawyers and judges. Uncodified constitutions are endorsed by history and have an organic character.
Less Political Bias – Constitutional documents are inevitably biased as they enforce one set of values or principles in preference to others. Codified constitutions can never be ‘above’ politics as they are based on political promises and principles; therefore they may precipitate more conflict than they actually resolve.

What Is SOPA?

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:48:00 +0000

Image by Kristie Wells

Within the last week or so it has been impossible to avoid the subject of SOPA; many large corporations are campaigning against it, including Wikipedia who took their content down for twenty-four hours in protest against the potential implementation of SOPA. Many people do not understand the implications that SOPA will have, or how it will affect them, so this article is dedicated to raising awareness and explaining the main facts behind SOPA.

Below is a short video provided by CNN which elaborates on the basics behind the SOPA bill. It explains who SOPA will affect, who supports SOPA and what will happen if the bill is passed.

What is SOPA?

SOPA stands for ‘Stop Online Piracy Act’ and is one of two bills which are designed to eradicate websites which provide or sell pirated media, including images, music and movies; this applied to media which is downloaded or streamed. The second bill involved is known as ‘PIPA’, which stands for ‘Protect Intellectual Property Act’.

Under federal law, law enforcement can shut down websites that offer pirated content, however this only applies to websites which are based in the United States, and is therefore not applicable to websites which are hosted or situated abroad. In order to tackle foreign based websites the two bills would grant the Justice Department prosecutors new powers to help prevent pirate websites from obtaining funding from the United States; additionally, the bills would also prevent those websites from gaining hits or visitors from the United States.

The powers in question include the ability to obtain a court order requiring internet providers within the United States to block access to pirate websites. Blocking access to certain websites could be achieved either by preventing users from typing a web address into an internet browser, and therefore preventing them from visiting websites such as Pirate Bay or Demonoid. The second method would require search engines, such as Google, Bing and Ask, to disable incoming links to the pirate websites. Essentially, this would cause the website to ‘disappear’ as people would no longer be able to reach it.

Furthermore, a court order could be issued which would require credit-card processors to prevent the processing of payments to websites which require premium or paid membership to download or view copyrighted content. Both of the proposed bills would give content creators and owners the right and ability to initiate private legal actions against websites or individuals that host pirated or stolen material.

The justification behind the two proposed bills, as claimed by supporters of the legislation, is that they will prevent copyright infringements. In turn the bills will assist copyright holders and content creators protect their content and intellectual property rights.

Why oppose SOPA and PIPA?

If the bills are passed by the Senate, the government of the United States could order any website to be blocked if it deems the website in question to be ‘providing pirated material’. Search engines could be forced to delete and remove websites from their search results, meaning that they would virtually no longer exist in cyberspace. These methods resemble the ones used by the Chinese authorities to keep their citizens in the dark with regard to government actions and world news.

“Scary Part - Even if a site is hosting completely legal content, it can be served copyright infringement notices under SOPA, claiming a "good faith belief" that the target site has infringed copyright. In an earlier version of the bill, the target site, Google, PayPal or the ISP had just five days to respond to the notice, either by taking down a portion of the site or by appealing in a U.S. court. However, now the 5-day clause has been softened, allowing any one to serve copyright notice, even a rival company, for the sole purpose of hurting its competitors.

RIP Internet, Almost - This may sound a bit extreme. However, it is almost certain that a good portion of the fun we now enjoy over the Internet will no longer be available under SOPA. No free movies, songs, games, software, streaming, videos, sharing and almost no free thinking - If this isn't the death of Internet what is?”

Amrutha Gayathri - International Business Times

Sources:

http://money.cnn.com/video/technology/2012/01/18/t-ts-eitm-sopa.cnnmoney/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/19/what-is-sopa_n_1216725.html

http://colorlines.com/archives/2012/01/what_the_hell_is_sopa_and_how_it_would_affect_you.html

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203735304577167261853938938.html

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/248378/why_sopa_and_pipa_are_bad_for_small_business.html

www.ibtimes.com/articles/283654/20120118/what-sopa-mean-5-points-need-know.htm

https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/sopa-pipa/

Introduction To Natural Law

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 16:06:00 +0000

In this post we are going to take a look at natural law. To start off we are going to look at two different opinions to the question, ‘Why do people make laws?’. Both of these opinions stem from the Ancient Greeks; the first opinion is that of Epicurus, who believed that people made laws to escape the horrible nature of human beings. The second opinion is that of Zeno and the Stoa Poikile, who believed that laws were created in order for people to live justly amongst each other; they believed that you should not just look at who makes the law, but you should look at the content inside.

Natural law can be very hard to establish, because the whole idea of a law being ‘just’ is a hard criteria to meet when you consider that everyone has a different opinion on what ‘just’ really means. Natural law should be the same for all of the people, all of the time. The Roman view on natural was that if the same rule is found all over the world, then it must be considered natural law; marriage is a prime example, because marriage is accepted all around the world. The Romans called this the ‘Ius Gentium’, which translates to ‘the law of the people’. This is not however the same as natural law; for instance, slavery would be an example of a law that is part of the ius gentium, as at the time, it was found everywhere, however it is not ius naturale (natural law as referred to by the Romans) because it is not ‘just’.

There are two criteria that must be met in order for a law to be considered natural law; natural law must be rational and it must be equitable and fair. With regard to the second point, it is easier to see it as natural law must not be irrational or unfair, rather than it must be equitable and fair, because the terms ‘equitable’ and ‘fair’ can be deemed subjective.

In order for a law to be deemed as a custom, two requirements must be met; there must be sustained and durable application and there must be an approval of custom by the people. During the Middle Ages, Roman emperor Justinian wanted to ban incest. In order to do this he created a statute which would punish those guilty of incest with a death sentence, however the statute also stated that the children of the offenders must also be killed. The killing of children was against natural law in the Middle Ages, and as such this part of the statute was put aside by the people. Nowadays ‘Human Rights’ are able to put aside manmade laws. Human rights laws are manmade laws, and are therefore not deemed as natural law.

The Lawster Debuts On Youtube

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 20:59:00 +0000

Today The Lawster made its YouTube debut with a video which describes the meaning of law as a whole, as well as looking at substantive and procedural law. Additionally, the video gives a brief comparison between Common Law and Civil Law. It is a short video as we had to get used to working with Sony Vegas Pro 11, however we hope to upload a lot more in 2012. Please comment, rate and subscribe as we value your feedback.

Soft Drug Tolerance: Analysing The Impact Of A Change To The Soft Drug Policy Within The Netherlands

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:34:00 +0000

The tolerance of soft drugs within the Netherlands is one of the defining characteristics of the Dutch legal system. The reputation of the country is strongly linked to its policy towards soft drugs. Due to this, many foreigners choose to visit the Netherlands purely because of its tolerance towards the selling and consuming of soft drugs; it is one of the only counties in the European Union which allows for the sale of marijuana in registered premises, such as ‘Coffee Shops’. In recent years, politicians from the Dutch Christian democratic party have campaigned for a zero-tolerance policy in relation to soft drugs within the Netherlands, arguing that it promotes drug tourism within the borders of Europe. There should be no change regarding the tolerance of soft drugs within the Netherlands because people should have the right to purchase and consume soft drugs in safe premises if they so wish, and even if a zero-tolerance policy was utilized, it would not remove the soft drug problem.

Citizens are permitted to drink, smoke and consume medically supplied narcotics, and should also have the right to consume soft drugs within safe premises if they choose to do so. At the present time, soft drugs can be purchased and consumed in ‘Coffee Shops’, however the selling of soft drugs, such as marijuana is not permitted without a license; one can have soft drugs on their person if they are for personal use, but the sale of narcotics to other individuals is prohibited. The Dutch government currently allow citizens to purchase soft drugs through ‘Coffee Shops’, showing that the current soft drug policy is acceptable and does not put the general population at risk. Regulations are enforced by the Dutch government and the purchasing and consuming of soft drugs is not an issue which is taken lightly, however the Dutch have a very pragmatic way of thinking, and do not wish to create more problems by eradicating their tolerance policy towards soft drugs.

Preventing citizens from purchasing soft drugs through ‘Coffee Shops’ would force soft drug users to purchase narcotics through illegal means, such as criminal activities or through the black market. In return, this would lead to a more dangerous situation for citizens and increase the percentage of criminal activity within the Netherlands. Allowing narcotics users to consume soft drugs within certain premises acts as a safety net for the general population, as the narcotics users do not have the need to carry drugs onto the street, nor do they have to conclude deals in open public spaces with the risk of arrest. Concluding deals with random drug dealers would lead to an increase of narcotics users carrying weapons for protection because they have no protection from being attacked or conned; consumers of narcotics would also be made to act in a more paranoid fashion, unsure if the dealer is reputable and even running the risk of the dealer being an undercover police office acting to entrap narcotics users in the local community.

As we have observed in other countries, especially those within the European Union, making the purchasing and consuming of soft drugs illegal is not an effective way to solve the soft drug ‘problem’; it instead promotes narcotics users to find illegal means of purchasing soft drugs. Measures are taken by the Dutch government to regulate the selling of soft drugs within the Netherlands, and as long as these measures are enforced, there is no reason why the Dutch soft drug tolerance policy should be amended or abolished.

Modern Constitutions: Assessing The Need For A Codified Constitution Of The United Kingdom

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 11:00:00 +0000

The United Kingdom is one of three countries which still operates under an uncodified constitution.1,2 Rather than having one central document which states all of the constitutional regulations, the constitution of the United Kingdom consists of mainly unwritten sources. From the early seventies and onwards there has been a great demand for constitutional change, and more specifically for a codified constitution.3 However, it is important to assess whether a constitutional reform is really required, and in this case the answer is a resounding no. There should be no change to the constitution of the United Kingdom as it would lead to a loss of flexibility and would result in a highly legalistic constitutional document.

Utilizing a codified constitution would inevitably lead to the loss of flexibility which is associated with uncodified constitutions.4 Codified constitutions entail a very rigid structure as amending a codified constitution is a much harder task to undertake than amending an uncodified constitution; the main reason behind this is that higher law, which is present in a codified constitution, is much more difficult to change than statute law, which is utilized in an uncodified constitution.5 As the constitution of the United Kingdom is currently uncodified, it is easy for amendments to be made, as there are no specific rules which must be adhered to when making changes to the constitution.6 This however, is not the case when one looks at codified constitutions, as there are many rules stating who can make amendments to the constitution and under what clauses.

In addition to losing the flexibility that an uncodified constitution offers, the reform would also transform the constitution into a highly legalistic document; which would therefore only be understandable by lawyers, judges and other legal scholars. However, when one considers the purpose of a constitution it is clear to see that this would render the constitution futile; if the citizens of the United Kingdom cannot understand their rights and responsibilities as laid out in the constitution, it is clear that the constitution has failed to meet the expectations of the citizens. The aim of the constitution is to provide easy access to people’s rights, but if that person has to pay for professional legal services in order to be able to understand their rights then the constitution has failed to meet its aim. It would therefore be a useless document as it does not serve the people who are reliant on it.

It is therefore irrefutable that a constitutional reform is not required in the case of the United Kingdom. The present system of using an uncodified constitution works well, and provides the United Kingdom with one of the most flexible constitutions in modern society, proving that a constitutional reform is unnecessary. One must understand that the purpose of the constitution is to provide citizens with a way of knowing and understanding their rights, and due to the legalistic character of a codified constitution the majority of citizens would be completely unsure of their rights without obtaining professional legal assistance. Whether a constitution is codified or uncodified it will always contain the basic principles which are needed within a society, however national needs are complex and diverse, meaning that it is not always feasible to consolidate them into one central document.7

<br> Sources:

¹UK Politics: Talking Politics, The evolving British constitution,

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/88593.stm, published on 15^th September 1998, Accessed on 13^th November 2011

²Richard Gordon, Repairing British Politics: A Blueprint for Constitutional Change, 2010, p.7.

³Dr. Andrew Blick, Codifying – or not codifying – the UK constitution: A Literature Review, Centre for Political and Constitutional Studies King’s College London, Published February 2011, Accessed on 13th November 2011, P.3.

⁴[ibid]

⁵ Andrew Heywood, What Is A Constitution?, P.2.

⁶ [ibid] P.3.

⁷ Dorothy Skinner, Key principles of the British unwritten constitution, http://www.helium.com/items/1183665-key-principles-of-the-british-unwritten-constitution?page=2, Accessed on 13^th November 2011

Freedom Of Speech: Analysing The Conditions And Limitations Of The Right To Free Speech

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:37:00 +0000

The right to freedom of speech is an important value in western society.1 Without free speech there could be no true democracy; this is a right which protects the integrity of society, by allowing citizen’s to voice their opinions. It is a right which is protected under the Constitution,2 and is one of the most fundamental freedoms ever to exist. The lack of free speech would render elections and political debate meaningless,3 as no politician would be able to speak their mind or stand up for their values and beliefs. The importance of free speech cannot be refuted, but the amount of freedom that it gives certainly can. No right should be deemed as ‘free’ when there are restrictions imposed upon that right, and in turn speaking the truth becomes punishable.

The right to freedom of speech, as stated under Article 10 of the European Convention of Human Rights, stipulates that every citizen of a Member State of the European Union has the right to ‘the freedom of expression’,4 and that this freedom also extends to ‘the right to hold opinions’.5 Article 10 then describes the conditions and restrictions which can be placed on the right to freedom of speech, such as if a restriction is prescribed by law and is necessary in a democratic society, or in the interests of health and morals.6 If one was to read only the first paragraph of Article 10, they would be given a sense a sincere freedom, however, upon reading paragraph two of the same article, the thought and idea of freedom dwindles and slips away as one learns that the supposed right to free speech is not entirely free at all; instead it is subject to conditions and limitations

It is also important to consider the role that speaking the truth plays in the right to free speech. On first appearance one may think that there would be no law against speaking the truth, as that is the whole foundation of legal disputes. Every case tried in a courtroom is heard with the intention of discovering the facts and the truth, and as such the parties involved are required to take an oath, in which they pledge their honesty. However, in the case of free speech, it does not matter which party is speaking the truth, it only matters that what they say is considered offensive to someone somewhere in the world.

The famous saying, ‘nothing in life comes for free’, is becoming increasingly evident in the twenty-first century. The discrepancy between the grammatical meaning of the word ‘free’ and the usage of the word in modern societies shows how the meaning has changed over time. In previous years, the word ‘free’ would have implied that someone was given something, with no expectation or restrictions placed upon them; unfortunately this is no longer the case. The right to free speech cannot be described as free, because there are firm conditions and limitations in place, restricting the amount of freedom that one has. In certain cases the right to free speech even prevents one from speaking the truth, which is in theory an absurd concept; if something is known to be true, and has been proven, it is therefore impossible to argue against it in a logical manner.

Sources:
1 Doctor Mark Cooray, Freedom Of Speech And Expression, 1997,
http://www.ourcivilisation.com/cooray/rights/chap6.htm#6.1

2 Zack Whittaker, Twitter's 'landmark' court ruling: Why British free speech is over, 29 May 2011,
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/igeneration/twitters-landmark-court-ruling-why-british-free-speech-
is-over/10338

3 This Nation, American Government and Politics Online, http://thisnation.com/textbook/billofrights-
speech.html, (Visited on 27 November 2011)

4 Council of Europe, A guide to the implementation of Article 10 of the European Convention on
Human Rights, Human Rights Handbook No. 2, http://www.echr.coe.int/NR/rdonlyres/C3804E16-
817B-46D5-A51F-0AC1A8E0FB8D/0/DG2ENHRHAND022004.pdf, pp. 8
5 ibid
6 ibid, pp. 20-29

Recovering from bad exam results

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 19:57:00 +0000

With midterm examination week over it is likely that many students will be receiving their grades within the next week or so, which is where I figured this post may come in handy for some. Bad exam results are not uncommon, especially amongst first year students as you are still learning your way around the course, and bad results certainly do not signal the end of the world. It is very easy to become down, demotivated or depressed after suffering from bad grades, especially if you believe that you should have done better, however you must instead pick yourself up and start again for the next semester. So, putting the past results behind us, how do we move forward and improve for the next time?

Look at your preparation – Did you prepare enough for the examinations? Did you leave preparing too late? When looking back it is very important to be honest with yourself, and to decide if you could have spent more time studying, rather than talking to a friend on Facebook. As the saying goes, ‘the first step to recover is admitting your mistakes’, so it is important to assess your preparation properly in order to improve next time. If you didn’t spend enough time revising, then you know you should start revising a week or two earlier for your next exams, allowing you enough time to revise.

Get feedback – Most universities will give you the opportunity to look at your marked exam paper and talk to the teacher who marked it; this is a great time to get feedback on where you could improve and where you lost marked. Understanding WHY you got things wrong is very important, otherwise you don’t know how to improve in the future.

Revise in the library – Sometimes it helps to get out of your comfort zone and force yourself to work. I find that working in the library makes me more productive as there aren’t as many distractions as at home. You are also surrounded by other students who are working hard on their own assignments which puts you under some pressure to start working.

Join a study group – Perhaps joining a study group would be beneficial if you struggle to understand parts of your lecture, as you will have a group of people who help each other learn. Chances are that one or more of the other students will know a bit more about certain parts than you, and you know more than them on other parts, so that way you can help each other. It also lowers the workload if you have a lot of notes to type up or cases to brief as you can split the work amongst the group.

Do your best – If you have put the time and effort into revising, but still don’t get the grade you wanted, don’t beat yourself up over it. At the end of the day you will know that you tried your best, and as long as you firmly believe that you gave it your all, you won’t feel too bad about receiving a lower grade than you would have liked. Many people only feel down after an examination because they know that they could have done better if they had put the work in.

Don’t judge yourself on grades - It’s only natural that some people will be more talented in some subjects than you are and hence get a higher grade. Grades are not the be all and end all of academic or professional success; there are many successful businessmen and women who have not completed a degree at all, yet are still recognised as famous and successful. People like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs were university drop-outs and never completed a degree, so don’t worry about your GPA so much, instead just work hard on completing your studies and having a good time.

Midterm Exam Review

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 15:49:00 +0000

As I mentioned a few posts ago, I have my midterm examinations in October. Exam week started this week, Monday 24^th October 2011, and my first exam was for ‘Legal Skills A’. I completed assignments for this class each week and had revised for the exam, however I do not feel too confident after sitting the three hour examination.

Before the exam I was inevitably nervous, but I felt prepared. I had completed all of the reading and had revised so I felt comfortable. Yet as soon as I was handed the exam paper in the examination hall, my confidence soon deserted me… The exam was not what I had expected, or prepared for, and I spent the first ten minutes or so just staring at the exam paper.

I had been given an English case, which was about twenty pages long, and an answer sheet with nine questions; some questions had multiple parts. I had three hours – which I thought would be my saviour. I started by quickly skimming over the important parts of the case, just to get a basic understanding. There was no clock in the exam room, or at least none that I could see, which for me was quite unusual. Starting with question one, I started to formulate an answer, remembering to refer to lines in the case. I skipped question two, with the intention of coming back to it later. I worked on the rest of the questions and came back to questions two and four. I answered two, but four was a little hazy. I could not find the relevant part of the text, so I just noted down what I had in my head at that time.

A lot of the questions also asked for the reasoning of the court, and asked us to explain why they reasoned that way. This was definitely a hard point, although I had revised methods of interpretation and reasoning, it is very hard to apply it to such a large case.

After handing in the exam paper and leaving the building, I felt relieved that the test was over, but I immediately felt that I would have to re-sit the exam in January 2012. I will not get my results for at least a week, but I have already prepared myself for the worst; that way anything better is a bonus.

Evernote Application

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 21:35:00 +0000

With my midterms approaching I have been going over a lot of my notes and typing them up so that I have them available in different formats. After recently purchasing a new mobile phone I was just browsing the Android app market when I noticed a free app called ‘Evernote’. I downloaded it as it had a lot of good reviews and claimed to be a great way of syncing my notes from my laptop to my phone and other computers. After a few days of using it, I have to say that I am quite impressed!

It took around thirty seconds to create a free account, allowing me to use Evernote where it is installed. I started by creating Notebooks on each of my modules that I have notes. I would then create individual notes in each notebook for each lecture on that specific module. The program automatically saves any updates made to notes every minute or so. Once I have finished with the note, I can log in on another computer, or on my phone, and sync my notes. Notes created only ten seconds ago will quickly show up on my phone and I can browse through them with ease.

The program also hasa a useful search feature, so that I can search all of my notes for a certain term or phrase, making it simple to locate a specific note, or part of a note that I may want or need to revise.

Another thing that I thought was pretty cool and useful was the ability to take snapshots using my phones camera. I can take a photograph of say a page in my textbook, add a title, some specific notes or tags and then add it to my notebook. It is quite nice if you want to have a reminder of what to read, or if you don’t have time to type your notes up. I didn’t think that it would be that useful as I thought the small writing would be eligible on the image, however you can zoom and pan with ease.

Overall I think that the app is great, and even better when you consider the fact that it is completely free. Whether you type your notes straight into the program, or use it just as a way to access your notes on the go, it is a great little app, and definitely one that I would recommend to Android users!

Midterm Examinations

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 12:13:00 +0000

The word ‘examination’ normally evokes a nervous reaction from students all around the world, and when you add the word ‘midterm’ law students everywhere start to cringe. Unfortunately for me my midterm exams are approaching much more swiftly than one would like; I am still struggling to believe that tomorrow (Monday 10^th October 2011) will be the start of my sixth week as a law student.

Last week was the official examination registration date for the first term and I had to enrol myself for my midterm examinations which begin around October 20^th. To enrol my university uses a program called ‘ProgressWWW’ which lets you enrol for both courses and exams; it will also indicate your exam grade when it has been marked. Luckily I had no trouble enrolling because I was already fully enrolled for the university and had my student card, however some other students had to ask the International Student Office to enrol them, as ProgressWWW didn’t recognise them as students yet.

I have multiple exams in October, including English, Legal History and Legal Skills. I also have assignments for Legal Skills and IT For Lawyers. The final assignment for IT For Lawyers should be assigned tomorrow, and upon successful completion I should have finished the module – meaning that I will have a free day on Monday!

Out of the exam modules listed above, I think the one I am most concerned about is Legal Skills, which may surprise a lot of people, even myself to a point! I expected to be more cautious of the Legal History examination, however after spending five weeks in both classes, Legal History isn’t quite as bad as it sounds, and can even be interesting – occasionally. In all seriousness, the main reason behind my analogy is that Legal History is a subject where there are set right and wrong answers, and you can study the subject to understand it, whereas Legal Skills is more of an actual skill of being able to read and analyse cases. Although I have read multiple cases up to this point, all of my assignments that have been based on cases didn’t set me under exam conditions where I only had two hours or so to complete the task. On a positive note I should already gain the ‘bonus point’ for Legal Skills, which means that if I score a five in the test, the extra point will be added to make it a six. In order to acquire this point I had to complete seven assignments (so far I am on five, because we have one a week and we are now starting on week six), attend every class and perform an oral presentation (which I completed in week two).

So with my exams quickly approaching it is needless to say that I am spending more and more time reading and studying. I am also trying to become familiar with the layout and style of cases so that I can analyse them quicker and hopefully gain a better understanding before my exam approaches.

Current Class List

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 12:14:00 +0000

As you may be able to tell from my less frequent posting, the last few days have been quite hectic. I have a lot of reading to do, not to mention assignments and question papers to prepare. This last week, starting Monday 19^th September, was probably my busiest week so far, as I now have all of my first semester classes on my timetable.

Legal Skills A – IT For Lawyers
Workshop – Starting Your Academic Career
Introduction to Law and Legal Systems
Legal History
English Writing for Lawyers
English Oral for Lawyers
Legal History
Constitutional Law

In the past five days I have passed my first assignment for Legal Skills A – IT For Lawyers, as well as a test in the same subject. I only have one more assignment to pass for this course and then I have passed this part of the module, however I will only get credits when I have also completed Legal Skills A.

I still have a lot of reading to do for my lectures this week and also need to work on an assignment for Legal Skills A, and prepare work for my working groups in Introduction to Law and Legal Systems, Legal History and both English classes.

Luckily at the minute we only have lectures for Constitutional Law, and no working groups – which basically means that we just have to read a lot and take notes! My working group for this module starts in week 44. For the second half of this course we have to complete a Wiki assignment, which is worth 25 points, but we must also take an examination, worth the final 75 points. I will describe the Wiki assignment in more detail before I must undertake the task, but at the moment it is still a little unclear.

I am planning on going to the library today to get some quiet study time in, and I will probably spend the three hours I have between classes in there tomorrow.

First LLB Presentation

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 19:02:00 +0000

This post is a little later than I anticipated, but I have had a lot of reading and assignments to keep up with. In this post I am going to talk about the presentation that I had to give on Thursday (15^th), as it was the first one of my course so far, and caused me a few sleepless nights!

The presentation was on the ‘Codification of the European Union’ and had to last fifteen minutes. I worked with a partner and we came up with some good ideas together, and built the PowerPoint presentation as a team, before then splitting it into sections for both of us to present.

Now, I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t nervous, because I was definitely feeling the nerves, although I felt confident that we had all the information we needed in the presentation, I just didn’t feel very comfortable about being one of the first to give a presentation in front of people who I had only known for a week or two.

I had known NOTHING about the topic before it had been assigned to me, however after a lot of researching and planning, I did feel a little more confident. I printed my notes onto A4 paper, three sheets worth of notes, with subheadings for each topic highlighted in yellow, to remind me to change slides on the PowerPoint Presentation.

Days before I was due to give the presentation I was reading my notes on the bus, whilst cooking, before bed, and so on to try and cement the information into my brain. I have to say that it worked somewhat, as I successfully managed to remember the first page of notes – on a topic I had no prior knowledge of. I practiced giving my presentation in front of my boyfriend and other friends and felt quite comfortable after a few attempts. This all changed Thursday morning – the dreaded morning! I woke up with a pounding headache and a sore throat. I made it into class and I think that it was obvious as to how nervous I was, because people in my class were trying to reassure me. Everyone was really great and supportive, which definitely eased the pressure a little.

Well to keep this short and sweet, I stood up at the front of the class, introduced the presentation and then began. I started off weak and I knew straight away because I could hear the nerves in my voice. After the first subheading change I had picked up a little confidence and had managed to look at every single one of my peers. Time passed quicker than I had expected and soon my part was over, so after introducing my partner, I sat down near the computer to assist in changing the PowerPoint slides.

At the end of our presentation we got some great feedback and I was definitely relieved that it was over and out of the way, but it certainly went better than expected, and just showed that I had no real reason to worry. Classmates are human too, and public speaking is a common fear – more common than the fear of spider or that of dying!

My advice to anyone preparing a speech or presentation would be just to prepare well and create ample notes – just to make you feel comfortable when you are standing in front of class. Even if I don’t read my notes, they make me feel comfortable knowing that they are there if I do forget what to say. Another tip would be to talk slowly, the faster you speak the more prone you are to making mistakes. Prepare, speak slowly and breathe!

First Week of University (LLB)

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 20:07:00 +0000

Right, so the first week of university is complete, but how do I feel it went?

My main worries about starting university were not being able to keep up with the workload, and I think that the workload for the first week was a bit more than I expected before starting the degree. The first week we had a few less classes than we will have next week, as we didn’t have ‘Constitutional Law’ yet this week. Although the contact hours are quite a lot less then high school, there is a lot more mandatory reading and assignments which have to be done after our lecture on the subject, in preparation for our working groups which are normally a day or two later.

I also met some really nice people from all different countries and backgrounds, which was quite an experience. I did worry before my course started about not getting along with people, or struggling to fit in, however this hasn’t been a problem as I am yet to find a person in the university who isn’t friendly and helpful.

I did worry about having free time to continue with my hobbies, however I think that as long as I manage time effectively, I will still be able to do the things that I enjoy. I just have to make the most and not ‘waste’ time, for example, I read what I can whilst waiting for the bus, or on the bus so my travel time is used constructively, giving me extra time when I get back home to update my blog.

In general, I think that my first week has been very successful, with the exception of getting lost once or twice! There were quite a few early starts and that has definitely taken its toll, but I now have the weekend to have a little lie in to recuperate. The worries I had before starting my LLB degree definitely haven’t come to light – well not yet anyway, so I hope that the next few weeks will also go smoothly…

First Written Examination!

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 19:07:00 +0000

As I wrote in my most recent post prior to this one, I had a written examination yesterday, Tuesday 6^th September 2011. The purpose of this examination was to decide who needed to attend the first semester English class - if a person achieves a score of C1.1 then they do not have to attend the first semester of English, however they will have to attend the second lecture as it is focused more on debates and forming legal arguments. Native English speakers are not automatically exempt from the first semester, so like the rest of the first year international students on the LLB degree, I had to sit the exam.

The task of this test was to write an argumentative essay of 500 words, give or take 10% - so no fewer than 450 but no more than 550, or else it was an instant fail and the exam wouldn’t be marked – on one of the following topics:

Euthanasia – Is it ever right to assist in the death of another person?
Capital Punishment – Should criminals ever be sentenced to the death penalty?
United Nations – (Can’t remember the actual question as I didn’t choose it)
Free Speech – Should Free Speech be abolished?

I was torn between euthanasia and capital punishment, but decided to write about euthanasia. It took a while for my words to flow, but then I fell into the trap of finding my writing flow and just writing down the first things that entered my mind. After a short while of typing, I realised that I had written around 800 words and drastically needed to cut down. I deleted two paragraphs and changed the direction of my essay to make 600 words. I then went through shortening some sentences and removing a lot of the ‘fluff’ and less relevant points until I had 547 words.

This was the first non-IT examination that I have ever taken on the computer as all of my exams in England were done on paper. I do much prefer using a computer for writing and especially for written exams because it is much faster to type, and also easier to format and edit your document without making the paper look a mess with crossed out writing.

I’m not really feeling too confident, but I never am after an exam, so I guess I’ll just see how it goes when I get my results back! I also have an oral examination next Thursday, which I am REALLY looking forward to… not. I hate examinations but I’d rather do 100 written exams than one oral exam or presentation…

First LLB Class

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 20:28:00 +0000

At 11:00 today, Monday 5^th September 2011, my academic year officially started with my first class, ‘Legal Skills A –IT For Lawyers’. With this being my first class, it is obvious to say that I felt quite nervous and unsure of what to expect.

I arrived twenty-or-so minutes early, allowing myself enough time to find my classroom, and let’s just say that it was a good job I did, as yes, I did end up getting a little lost! Now, I admit to being a bit lost, but it wasn’t completely my fault as the university did print the building number wrong, and then change the room to what was listed to a room in the law library.

The class started at 11:00 and took place in a computer room. The lecturer started off the class by discussing the aims and purpose of the class itself. The aims of the class are to teach us how to research treaties, legislation and directives effectively, ensuring that we use reliable sources and to help us determine whether a source is really reliable or not.

We were given a hand-out which contained instructions on how to find, and use, ‘libguides’. ‘Libguides’ are put together by the university library and contain relevant links, pages, information and videos on set topics, such as European or International Law. It basically acts as a hub, containing all of the sources that we will need for our assignments.

Our task for that lesson was also given to us and we worked through it at our own paces, until the lecturer stopped us to recap and check that we all had the correct answers. We worked individually, researching different treaties and directives using different sources to see which were the most useful and reliable.

Overall I think that the class went well and was a nice introduction into legal research, providing us with useful resources to help us with our research. I definitely had nothing to worry about, but it was just the nerves of not knowing what to expect which made me worry a little. Everyone that I spoke to in my group seemed really nice and in the same position as myself, so we could all relate to each other. I have a workshop to attend tomorrow, and also an English Writing Examination, so I will post when I can to let you know how it went!

First Semester Schedule

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 14:49:00 +0000

Tomorrow is Monday 5^th September 2011. Tomorrow is the day that my LLB degree officially starts. You guessed it, tomorrow is the day of my first LLB lecture. After having a quick look at my first semester schedule, I thought that I would share it with you; hopefully it will be useful to you, especially if you are currently considering applying to study law or haven't received your schedule yet and would like to see what to expect.

All first year LLB students were split into three smaller ‘working groups’ – I was assigned to group 3. These working groups are set out to encourage students to take a more active participation in class, as there are less students in the group, allowing the lecturer more time to interact with each student.

After a quick look at the schedule for the first semester, it does seem like working group 3, my group, drew the short straw, as we have the majority of the early starts; on the plus side it does mean that we finish earlier and have more of a free day. Our first lecture will be Monday at 11:00 and is expected to last until around 13:00. The class is called, ‘Legal Skills A – IT for Lawyers’ and will last the entire semester. I’m not too sure what to expect from the lecture, but I am fairly confident that I at least know where the class is being held!

As for tomorrow, that is the only class that I have on that day, so will have a bit of free time in the afternoon and will be looking at taking advantage of that time to take my camera into town – albeit that the weather is on my side!

Tuesday I have a workshop to attend – ‘Workshop: Starting your Academic Career’, however this time I will be in working group 3B. 3B is basically the original working group 3, but split into two additional groups, group A and group B. The workshop starts at 11:00 and lasts for around an hour. However, I also have a written English examination from 16:00 to 18:00, giving me a four hour break in between.

Wednesday is also quite a light day, and luckily no more examinations, for this week anyway! My first and only lecture of the day, ‘Introduction to Law and Legal Systems’ starts at 9:00 and ends at 11:00.

Now we reach what I think are going to be my busiest two days academically. Thursday my class, ‘Legal Skills A’, once again starts at 9:00 and lasts two hours until 11:00, when I then have another lecture, this time on ‘Legal History’ which also lasts two hours. So I start at 9:00 and finish at 13:00; meaning four hours of lectures without a break… definitely getting busier as the week progresses.

Friday I get a bit of a lie-in, as I start at 10:00! My second ‘Legal History’ lecture for the week, and it only lasts an hour, although it is followed (again, with no break!) with another hour class of ‘Introduction to Law and Legal Systems’ which finishes at 12:00. I then have a three hour break before my next class, ‘Introduction to Dutch Language and Culture’ which starts at 15:00. Luckily, I can get home in around 20 minutes, plus waiting time, on the bus, so I won’t have to wait around for three hours up town.

So as you can see, some days definitely busier than others and quite a few ‘early’ starts. I was told before applying to study law that it was much more of a ‘self-study’ degree, meaning that I wouldn’t have as much contact time with teachers or lecturers as other degrees, such as Business or Psychology, and I think this will be a nice change of pace from what I have experienced in the past. As a whole, I don’t think that the schedule is too bad and should give me a bit of time to do any reading that I have between classes and to also carry on progressing with my hobbies.

Faculty of Law Introduction

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 12:58:00 +0000

My first apprehensions about the day were abolished almost immediately as I found the correct building on time, and managed to find fellow law students on my second attempt! I was also lucky enough to ‘bump into’ two LLB students who I had already conversed with on FaceBook. It was nice to feel like I actually ‘knew’ someone else and to be able to talk about things that I was unsure of.

The day started at 14:30 with a few speeches by the head of the Faculty of Law, and also by the senior International Student Co-ordinater. We were given a ‘Study and Information Guide’, which provided us with a vast amount of information, including things such as exam dates and regulations, course details, contact information and the overview of the academic year. A presentation was given to talk us through the important parts of the study guide, and to ensure that we understood what was expected of us.

A second year LLB student also gave a presentation on how to use the electronic systems that the university had in place, such as Nestor and ProgressWWW. It was nice to get a visual demonstration on how to enrol for courses as well as an actual experienced view on their uses. The presentation also showed us how to use our university mail – showing us where we had to go to login and how to automatically forward any mail we received there to our normal personal email accounts.

Other presentations were given by the head of the Faculty of Law, as well as a student law organisation known as ‘Nexus’. They gave us some information about the organisation and talked about the benefits of becoming a member. The presentation also detailed all of the events that they arrange, such as monthly drinks and ice skating.

After the presentations and speeches concluded, we were split into groups and given a tour of the university, including the Harmonie Building, the Academic Building, the Law Library, the University Library, the Printing Store and the ‘Wall of Tears’ (this is a wall where all of our exam results will be posted, in full view to everyone who walks by!).

There was then a few drinks and snacks laid on by the university, to help us get to know other people on our course. The day finished at around 17:00 and I arrived back home at around 17:30, so just in time for tea!

In general I think the day was successful as I managed to find my way there on time, gained a lot of useful information, learned my way around a little better and even met some new people who seemed really friendly.

Welcoming Ceremony - Brief Summary

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 20:42:00 +0000

So today’s Welcoming Ceremony kicked off at 11:00 a.m. with a few speeches from the Mayor, the Head of the university and an English Professor. Each talked about life in Groningen as well as studying abroad, and gave a little background about the city. There was also music played before the event started and as the speeches came to an end. The music was by a bunch of talented violinists who perform under the name ‘BRAGI’. As the ceremony took place in a church (Martinikerk) there was also a few songs played on a very old and impressive looking organ.

There was one speech in particular that I found quite enjoyable, and that was the one from the English professor, whose name I can’t recall. He said that there are two ways to study at university, an easy way and a difficult way; the easy way would involve staying in our home countries, with family and friends that we know, a language that we know in a surrounding that is very natural and comfortable to us, he then added that we we’re all quite mad for choosing the difficult way of studying abroad, in a country and city we didn’t know, with people we don’t know, surrounding by a unique language and culture. I have to admit, it did make me stop and think. He then added that there may be many reasons for someone to choose to study abroad, but that he considered the main reason to be self-discovery – to explore ourselves and push our boundaries to see if we can adapt and cope to a whole new lifestyle. The professor seemed really friendly and approachable, and I think the majority of students in the church related to his speech, making it even more fascinating.

After the speeches in the church we walked over to the main university building, the Academia Building, where different student organizations had stalls set up outside, offering different opportunities to join or just receive information. There were also a few information stalls set up which gave information about the city and places to see, such as the museum, the library and the town hall.

Inside the main building there was a chance to sign up for ESN week, which is an introduction week for all international students. This week includes a tour of the city, a few pub crawls, parties and trips places such as the museum and the cinema – making it a great way to meet new people and learn more about the city.

At 13:00 I had a lecture on living and studying in Groningen, which also included the experiences of two students, one from Ethiopia and the other from Indonesia. The lecture also talked about different student help centres, such as the ‘Student Service Centre’ and the ‘International Student Office’. It also included a talk on where to find help if students were struggling, homesick or stressed.

Overall I think that the Welcoming Ceremony was a nice way to introduce international students to the city of Groningen, and also to the university. It detailed some useful information, but without seeming dry or excessive. The staff all seemed very friendly, and the students I managed to speak to also seemed polite, albeit a bit nervous and not knowing what to expect.

(I didn't take my camera due to having too many things to worry about, however there was a photographer at the ceremony, so I will try and update this post with pictures if any become available over the coming days!)

Welcoming Ceremony Itinerary

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 14:12:00 +0000

Tomorrow I have to attend a Welcoming Ceremony which is being put together for all of the students starting on their LLB degree. Below is the schedule of events:

Wednesday 31 August 2011

Venue: Martini Church

10:30   Music by BRAGI
11:00 – 11:30   Official Welcome to all international students. Speeches by:
            • Mayor Peter Rehwinkel of Groningen
              • Rector Magnificus Elmer Sterken
              • Prof. Dr. Gregory Ashworth
            • And other distinguished guest speakers

Venue: Academy Building

12.00   Lunch
12.00 – 15.00   The University of Groningen Information Fair presents:
               • Information about student organizations
             • Information about social, cultural, language, sports,
                              housing, computer and other facilities
             • Information about getting a Rabobank account
                       • Health insurance information from AON
         • EU students can make an appointment to register at
                             the City Hall
12.00 – 15.00   Meet ‘n Greet with the international offices of the faculties
12.00 – 15.00   Registration ESN Groningen – Introduction Programme
13.00 – 13.30   Lecture about studying and living in Groningen
14.00 – 14.30   Lecture about studying and living in Groningen
15.00 – 17.00   Music by KOI, drinks and snacks

My LLB Reading List

noreply@blogger.com (N.M.Wolverson) — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 14:42:00 +0000

So I am back in The Netherlands and preparing to start my LLB degree at University of Groningen. My Welcoming Day is 31st August and I also have to attend another Information Day on the 1st September.

Today I received my the main part of my Reading List, and I thought that I would share it with you:

Constitutional Law
-Documentation: to be announced during first lecture
-Textbook: to be announced during first lecture

Criminal Law 1/Substantive Criminal Law
- George P. Fletcher, Basic Concepts of Criminal Law (ISBN: 0-19-512171-6)

English Language for International and European Law 1
-Janene van Loon, Arnoud Thüss, Nicole Schmidt & Kevin Haines, Academic Writing: A Process Based Approach, Coutinho, Bussum, 2011(ISBN: 978 90 469 0256 1)

English Language for International and European Law 2
(None Listed)

Introduction to Economics
-Sean Masaki Flynn, Economics for Dummies (ISBN: 0-7645-5726-2)

International and European Law
-Elementair Internationaal Recht 2011(ISBN: 9789067043168)
-Foster (Oxford University Press, latest edition), EU Legislation & Treaties (ISBN: 9780199581597)
-R. Wallace, International Law, Sweet & Maxwell, Sixth Edition, 2009(ISBN: 9781847036315)

Introduction to law and legal systems
-Taekema, H.S. (ed.), Understanding Dutch Law (ISBN: 978-90-5454-432-6)

Legal History
-Reader ‘Legal History’ (around 300 pages)
-Workbook ‘Legal History’

Legal Skills A
(None Listed)

Legal Skills A- IT for Lawyers
(None Listed)

Legal Skills B
(None Listed)

Private Law 1
-Will be announced on Nestor.