Master s Degree Programme in International Business Law and Public International Law

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1 Master s Degree Programme in International Business Law and Public International Law International Business Law (IBL) Structure and content of the programme for students starting in autumn 2016 Master s Degree Programme in International Business Law is a full-time graduate programme aiming to prepare a selected group of participants for a high-level legal career. The programme offers students the possibility to study such business related subjects as contract and consumer law, commercial law (including company law, securities markets law, competition law and IP law) and commercial dispute resolution from an international point of view. All teachers of the programme are highly qualified academics and legal practitioners. The language of the programme is English. Master s Degree Programme in International Business Law is meant for graduates interested in developing their expertise in practical international business law and commercial dispute resolution. These skills are necessary when applying for jobs that are focused on such matters. The programme is well known and appreciated by both private and public sector employers such as law firms, banks, insurance companies, ministries and courts. Master s Degree Programme in International Business Law advantages employability especially on sectors focused on international business law and commercial dispute resolution. The courses included in the programme are such that they demand the participating students some basic level of knowledge on the subject. In other words the purpose of the program is not to teach the very basic elements of international business law but to improve and broaden the skills the students have obtained from their earlier legal studies. The level of difficulty of a course included in the programme is informed in the course description. The Faculty of Law at the University of Helsinki is the leading law Faculty in Finland and one of the most prestigious law Faculties in Europe. It is focused on educating both national and international legal experts for the most demanding legal careers. All teaching given in the Faculty is based on the academic research work and practical experience of the teachers. The Master s Degree Programme in International Business Law is an integral part of the Faculty of Law and offers the students quality education. Structure and content of the programme (120 credits*) General studies 8 credits Compulsory studies 30 credits Optional studies 12 credits Advanced studies 70 credits * Students who have completed their secondary high school in Finnish or Swedish in Finland must in addition to other degree requirements complete Finnish and Swedish language studies required for Finnish Bachelor s of Laws degree (5+5 credits). These language studies can be included in the minimum requirements of the programme (120 credits). 1

2 International Business Law (IBL) Course work (50 credits) Advanced studies (70 credits) General studies 8 Research seminar exam Compulsory IBL studies (30 credits): Contract Law and Consumer Law Commercial Commercial Dispute Resolution Writing seminar Law Research seminar Optional studies Thesis 40 Optional studies (12 credits): 12 Total 50 Total 70 Staff of the IBL programme Responsible teacher Docent, Senior Lecturer Ville Pönkä Other teachers (TBC) Professor Johan Bärlund Dr. Ellen Eftestøl-Wilhelmsson LL.D. Katri Havu Professor Mårten Knuts Professor Nari Lee LL.M. Daria Kozlowska-Rautiainen LL.M. Heikki Marjosola M.Soc.Sc. Beata Mäihäniemi Professor Heikki Pihlajamäki Docent, Senior Lecturer Klaus Viitanen Professor Seppo Villa Professor Thomas Wilhelmsson 1. General studies (8 credits) Orientation (2 credits) - Orientation course (1 credit) - Personal study plan (1 credit) Elements of Modern Law (6 credits) 2

3 2. Compulsory IBL studies (30 credits) Contract Law and Consumer Law 8 credits Teachers: Dr. Ellen Eftestøl-Wilhelmsson, professor Heikki Pihjalamäki and professor Thomas Wilhelmsson (contract law 4 credits); and Docent, Senior Lecturer Klaus Viitanen (consumer law, 4 credits) ECTS credits: 8 (contract law 4 credits, consumer law 4 credits) Period: Autumn The course is divided into two modules: 1. contract law and 2. consumer law. 1. After having completed the module on contract law students should have thorough knowledge on the main principles of Nordic and international contract law. The module provides information on how contracts are made and terminated, interpreted and modified and what national and international sources of law govern contracts. Also the consequences of contract breaches are covered by the module. The module on contract law focuses mainly on commercial contracts. Such contracts include trade agreements, lease agreements, loan agreements, transportation agreements, shareholders agreements etc. The specific characteristics of different types of commercial contacts are not covered by the course excluding the most common boilerplate provisions that can be found from contracts regardless of the type of contract. 2. On the behalf of consumer law the course focuses on the rules designed to ensure the rights of consumers as well as fair trade. After having completed the course students should understand what rules of law govern consumer contracts and consumer marketing and how consumer complaints are handled by courts, specialist boards and consumer authorities. The course has both a national and international perspective on consumer matters. Consumer interests can also be protected by promoting competition in the markets serving customers. This topic, however, is treated later in competition law. Commercial Law credits Teachers: LL.D. Javier Reyes (company law I, 2 credits), Professor Seppo Villa, Professor Jukka Mähönen and Professor Mårten Knuts (company law II, 2 credits), LL.D. Katri Havu (competition law, 3 credits) and Professor NN (IP law, 3 credits) ECTS credits: (IP law 3 credits, competition law 3 credits, company law 4 credits) Period: Autumn/spring The course is divided into three modules: 1. company law and securities markets law, 2. competition law and 3. IP law. 1. After having completed the modules on company law and securities markets law students should have thorough knowledge on the main principles of EU company law and securities markets law. In Finland these two fields of law are seen as separate entities but in the EU and in many of its member states securities markets law is understood as an integral part of company law. This is why company law and securities markets law are taught together. The module on company law and securities markets law will provide more detailed information on the most common forms of companies used within the EU. The main focus here is, however, on 3

4 companies limited by shares including both (large) public corporations and (small) private companies. Also such topics as protection of shareholders and other parties concerned with companies, freedom of establishment for companies throughout the EU, cross-border cooperation between companies in different member states and the modernization of EU company law and corporate governance are covered by the module. 2. Competition law is a field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain competition in the markets by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Lectures on competition law will focus on EU competition law and especially on its four main policy areas: cartels, market dominance, mergers and state aid. Also the right to demand damages under EU competition law is covered by the module. 3. Intellectual property rights include such rights as copyright, trademarks, patents and industrial design rights. Protection of intellectual property is covered by many international conventions, most of which are implemented by the World Intellectual Property Organisation and the World Trade Organisation. The module on IP law focuses mainly the characteristics of different intellectual property rights and on the international conventions covering them. Also EU IP law is covered by the module. Dispute Resolution 6 credits Teacher: LL.M. Daria Kozlowska-Rautiainen ECTS credits: 6 The course covers arbitration as a method of dispute resolution and the focus is on international commercial arbitration. After having completed the course the students should know the differences between litigation and arbitration, understand the basic principles and process of arbitration, have a basic idea about law applicable to arbitration, be familiar with basic issues refering to arbitral tribunal and know about the enforcement and recognition of an arbitral award. Students are also taught how to draft an arbitration clause. Writing seminars A writing seminar focuses on basic knowledge and skills needed in writing a scientific seminar paper. During the course students will work alone or in pairs and progressively write a scientific paper under a topic given. The students will submit their work for the teacher responsible for the seminar and present their findings in front of the class. Instructions on how to write a scientific paper will be provided during the course. All students have to include one writing seminar in their compulsory IBL studies. A writing seminar is always worth 6 ECTS credits. In addition to one compulsory writing seminar, students can take other writing seminars as well and include these in optional studies. The following writing seminars are offered for IBL students (subject to chance): Writing seminar on business law Teacher: Professor Johan Bärlund Period: Autumn Writing seminar on consumer law Teacher: Docent, Senior Lecturer Klaus Viitanen 4

5 Writing seminar Financial markets, law and regulation Teacher: LL.M. Heikki Marjosola Writing seminar on competition law Teacher: M.Soc.Sc. Beata Mäihäniemi Writing seminar on international arbitration and alternative dispute resolution Teacher: LL.M. Alexander Gurkov 3. Optional studies (22 credits) (subject to chance) All students must complete at least 22 credits worth of optional studies. Students are allowed to take optional courses before having completed all compulsory IBL studies. The following optional courses are especially recommended for IBL students: English and EU Company and Commercial Law Teacher: LLM David Fletcher Contents of the course: Lectures and essay ECTS credits: 4 Period: Autumn Arbitration as a Method of Dispute Resolution Teacher: LL.M. Santtu Turunen Contents of the course: Lectures and essay ECTS credits: 8 Insurance Contract Law in International Context Teacher: prof. Jaana Norio-Timonen ECTS credits: 3 International Carriage of Goods Teacher: Dr. Ellen Eftestøl-Wilhelmsson ECTS credits: 4 5

6 Business Law in Russia Teacher: LL.D. Vladimir Orlov ECTS credits: 2-6 Competition Law and Intellectual Property Rights Teacher: LL.M. Juha Vesala ECTS credits: 4 Moot Court Competitions offered by the Faculty. 4. Advanced studies 70 credits Research seminar and thesis 60 credits Teacher: Docent, Senior Lecturer Ville Pönkä Contents of the course: Research seminar, project exam and thesis ECTS credits: 60 Period: Autumn Spring Level of the course: Advanced Research seminar and research exam ( + credits) The research seminar is an academic year-long project during which students will participate on seminar meetings, complete seminar assignments, take a seminar exam, write their master s thesis and present their findings in front of the class. The purpose of the research seminar is to improve the academic argumentation and writing skills of the students. The seminar also includes methodological studies. The detailed program for the research seminar is given on the first seminar meeting. The research seminar starts with a research exam. The purpose of the exam is to introduce the students to the topic of the seminar. The literature for the project exam will be named later. The students may take the research exam on a general Faculty examinations day (tiedekuntatenttipäivä). These days are confirmed annually by the Faculty. Students have to apply for the research seminar by sending a written application to the responsible teacher. The application has to include at least the following information: full name and student number of the applicant; starting date of IBL studies and completed courses, grades and total amount of credits. No more than 20 students may attend the seminar. Thesis (40 credits) IBL students are required to complete a master's thesis, which is a research assignment with a workload corresponding to 40 credits. Writing of the thesis will be supported by participation in the 6

7 research seminar and by the research exam. The topic for the thesis shall be agreed individually with the responsible teacher. Students are encouraged to choose such a topic for their thesis that supports their academic ambitions. The recommended length of a thesis is 60 to 80 full printed pages (A4, 12 pt, Times New Roman or similar, spacing 1.5, normal margins). The thesis must be bound and contain a summary page after the title page. Advanced optional studies ( credits) See 3. optional studies above. 7