General provisions

Determined on August 23, 2007 by Faculty of Law's Teaching Committee, Uppsala University, by virtue of Chapter 2 Section 5 a of the Higher Education Act and Chapter 6 Section 14 and 15 of the Higher Education Ordinance. The course plan enters into force on September 1, 2007.

In General

The course is 30 university points (30 ECTS credits) and an optional course at advanced level in the studies for the degree of Master of Laws, according to the degree requirements adopted 16 April 2007 by the Board of the Faculty of Law of Uppsala University. The course is held in Swedish.

Entry requirements

In general, students must have attained five passes out of the six courses given at level 1 of the LL.M programme. All the obligatory phases of the course in which the student has not attained a pass must have been fulfilled. Students must have passed the exam for Term course 2, 3 and 4.

If special reasons exist the board of exemption may grant exemption from the acceptance requirements.

Learning outcomes

The purpose of the course is to give the students a thorough knowledge of commercial contract and procedural law related to commercial disputes. The students will also gain ability to analyse difficult legal issues and to argue in commercial disputes. The course covers among other things studies of standard terms and of alternative dispute resolutions, particularly arbitration.

Skill training is emphasised on this course. After completed course the students will, in the fields of commercial contract and civil procedural law, have gained advanced ability

to independently identify legal issues even in a complex commercial and procedural context,

to identify available solutions to such legal issues,

to independently find relevant sources of law,

to analyse sources of law at an advanced level,

to use sources of law and teleological interpretation to identify and independently express relevant arguments pro and contra available solutions of complicated legal issues,

to independently decide on legal issues on basis of an evaluation and weighting of diverse legally relevant arguments pro and contra the available solutions, and

to present, orally and in writing, legal materials and especially advanced legal analyses and reasoning aiming at the solutions on legal problems.

After completed course the students also will have acquired advanced ability (goals specific for legal areas of the course)

to understand and apply the fundamental legal concepts and institutes of contract law as well as of civil procedural law,

to apply and to understand those parts of contract law and civil procedural law that will occur especially in commercial disputes,

to interpret and to apply general standard terms in commercial contexts,

to identify and to understand the in business life most often occurring types of alternative dispute resolution, with special emphasis on arbitral proceedings,

to read, interpret and present leading cases,

to analyse and solve contract law and civil procedural law issues that typically occur in commercial disputes,

to present, within the framework of a negotiation for a reconciliation, a mediation procedure or a court or arbitral proceeding, the preferred solutions to legal issues and the arguments supporting these in a clarifying and convincing way, and

to understand how the contractual and civil procedural rules work, interact and are handled in practice within the framework of a negotiation for a reconciliation, a mediation procedure or a court or arbitral proceeding.

Knowledge is acquired during the skill training. A main objective of the course is that the students will gain advanced knowledge of the in business life mainly occurring types of alternative dispute resolution and of how contractual clauses related to these are handled in diverse situations. When it comes to the basis of contractual and civil procedural law, the students can be expected to already have acquired basic knowledge. Here, an objective is that the students will gain a deeper understanding of the fundamental legal concepts and, on an advanced theoretical level, the nature of these. Another objective is that the students will gain an advanced understanding of how the rules work and interact within the framework of a negotiation for a reconciliation, a mediation procedure or a court or arbitral proceeding.

These are some major areas of contract law that will be dealt with on this course: formation of contracts, proxy, invalidity of contracts, adjustment of unfair contract terms, especially with regard of arbitration clauses, renegotiation clauses etc., legal consequences of breach of contracts, notification and limitation.

The major areas of civil procedural law are those related to legal proceedings and alternative dispute resolution. In addition to arbitral proceedings reconciliation and mediation will be dealt with. Special emphasis is on issues related to the formulation of the action, the most central among these concern claims, material facts and evidence, and strategic considerations in connection to these. Also questions concerning procedural time limits, service of process, limitation, joinder of claims, legal costs and documentary evidence are dealt with.

Content

The course deals with issues of contract law as well as issues of civil procedural law.

Instruction

The main part of the teachings is built on the student's own activity and comprises, among other things, lessons where the students, in small groups, act as plaintiffs, defendants and judges. The students also, in small groups, have to write some papers. In addition, some lessons are lead by the teachers. A more detailed description of the content of the course is given in the Study plan (annexed to this Plan). All teaching is mandatory.

For the course literature, see attached list.

Assessment

For passing the exam the students must have fulfiled all the obligatory phases of the course. The course director may however, when special reasons exist, grant exemption from this requirement. Examination is done on the basis of the students results from a written exam. The students' achievements during oral and written presentations, exercises and discussions are taken into consideration when deciding on borderline cases. The course director may decide upon individual exam.

Written law and mandatory and recommended literature are allowed as aids at the written exam. Allowed are also mandatory cases printed for the course, copies of overhead pictures distributed to the students, the students own notes from the lessons and Bylund, Repetitionskompendium i processrätt, Iustus förlag.

Where cheating during an examination, e.g. the use of books or notes not specifically part of the course, is proved, disciplinary measures will be taken in accordance with University rules.

The grades given are Fail (U), and the passing grades Pass (B), Pass with credit (Ba) and Pass with distinction (AB).