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Constitutional and Administrative Law

Module description

The constitution of the UK is extremely dynamic and developing incrementally through changes in relationships with Europe, devolution to Scotland, Wales and the regions and human rights legislation. This module will help you to analyse and challenge some of the basic tenets of the constitution of the UK. Developments in judicial review will enable you to understand the relationship of judges and the government and the impact of this relationship on both the law and the state.

 This module will develop your analytical skills and your ability to understand the role of public law which although complex and technical allows for exciting discussion on issues which are both current and shifting.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module aims to enable you to develop:

• An understanding of the concepts, traditions and principles underpinning the constitution of the UK.
• An understanding of the main recent constitutional reforms of the United Kingdom constitution.
• An understanding of the nature, basis and continuing development of judicial review in the United Kingdom.
• An ability to analyse the links between public law and the exercise of political and judicial power.
• An ability to begin to use, analyse and critique materials and texts.
• An ability to articulate and discuss issues relating to public law.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the law, institutions and procedures covered on the module, using appropriate concepts, interpretative techniques and terminology;
• 2. identify and analyse (with guidance) the general concepts and principles relating to constitutional and administrative law, together with related theories and academic commentary;
• 3. research a legal question and demonstrate competence in applying constitutional and administrative law in order to formulate and evaluate a response to it;
• 4. demonstrate competent understanding of some of the relevant legal practice, social, economic, political, historical, philosophical, ethical and cultural contexts within which constitutional and administrative law operate;

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. demonstrate knowledge and understanding of a range of legal rules, concepts, values and principles, and the ability to explain and discuss the relationships among them;
• 6. make an informed judgement about the merits and relevance of particular information and make reasoned choices between alternative solutions or arguments;
• 7. communicate technical legal information and argument effectively and concisely, in a manner appropriate to the discipline;

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 8. take responsibility for own learning (with support), and to work effectively with others within a group, meeting obligations to the other members of the group;
• 9. identify, retrieve and use efficiently a range of resources with some guidance;
• 10. manage time efficiently in preparing for learning activities, and to work independently within a limited time frame to complete a specified task.

Syllabus plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:

• The nature of constitutions and the purposes of constitutionalism. 

• The constitution of the United Kingdom: institutions; legal and non-legal rules; underlying  
  principles: parliamentary sovereignty, the rule of law and separation of powers.  

• The impact of European law on parliamentary sovereignty and the constitution of the United Kingdom.  

• The impact of devolution on parliamentary sovereignty and the constitution of the United Kingdom.  

• The protection of individual liberties within the constitutional framework of the UK; the Human Rights Act 1998. 

• Introduction to the theory, origins and nature of administrative law.

• Functions and characteristics of administrative powers and controls.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Lisa Webley and Harriet Samuels, Complete Public Law: Text, Cases and Materials (OUP): most recent edition
• John Stanton and Craig Prescott, Public Law (OUP): most recent edition

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE – https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=9902

Key words search

Judicial review, human rights, constitution, rule of law