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French Administrative Law

Module description

This course is designed for LLB in Eng. Law and French Law/Master 1 (Maitrise) students only. Anybody outside the programme wishing to attend this module should contact the module convenor, Dr Frédéric Olivier Rolland. The course is taught through a combination of whole cohort and small group sessions. The teaching methods involved are very specific in the sense that French Law is taught in French principally to English native speakers. In year 2, you are made familiar with French methods of university education and to French methods of legal thinking and writing. This induction to French methods ( dissertation juridique level 2 and commentaire d’arrêt level 2) is essential for this degree programme, in order academically for you to be prepared as you are aiming for simultaneous English and French legal qualifications. The nature of the LLB in Eng. Law and French Law/Master 1 (Maitrise) course and the size of the group are very conducive to active learning processes and interaction. You are encouraged to take responsibility for personal preparation, both linguistic and academic, and to take control of your own learning. You are required to reflect critically on your own working methods, and to learn from your interaction with the lecturer and your peers. The objective is to allow you to grow into critically-minded and well-informed independent scholars of French Law.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module constitutes the second part of the teaching of French Law in the LLB in Eng. Law and French Law/Master 1 (Maitrise) degree programme. It is taught entirely in French and closely reflects the way law is taught in France. After French Constitutional Law module taken at Level 1, this French Administrative Law module is designed to provide you with a deep understanding of another very important field of French Public Law. You are expected to acquire a confident grasp of the principles of the law applicable to administrative bodies and citizens in France so that you develop the ability to express yourself on French legal issues, to analyse them critically and to apply the law. An important part of the course is dedicated to French legal methodology and assessment techniques in order to prepare you for your year abroad and the study leading to the French Maîtrise en Droit. 

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

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

• 1. gain an accurate knowledge of French Administrative Law and the ability to use the French Law sources with confidence;
• 2. identify legal problems, efficiently research topics, critically analyse issues and apply the law;
• 3. handle a viva-voce examination in French;
• 4. write a French law essay and a case-study, correctly using French legal methodology.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

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

• 5. locate and use the relevant legal information in order to understand how French Administrative Law operates.
• 6. apply this information to practical legal exercises.

ILO: Personal and key skills

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

• 7. manage time to prepare a written exercise according to French legal methodology and French legal style to strict deadlines.
• 8. develop effective research techniques and your ability to select and analyse French legal material, to apply it to theoretical or practical problems and to present it according to the French methodological standards and assessment techniques.

Syllabus plan

(1) General Introduction: History of French administrative Law; The French administrative court system;
(2) Sources and definition of French Administrative Law (Le principe de légalité);
(3) L'action administrative et les actes administratifs unilatéraux;
(4) Le contrôle des actes administratifs unilatéraux - Le recours pour excès de pouvoir;
(5)  Le service public
(6)  La police administrative

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)

Re-assessment notes

If the module is failed and cannot be condoned the student will:

i) If the exam was failed: resit the exam and be capped at the pass mark (40%)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Indicative Basic Reading List

J. MORAND-DEVILLER,Cours de Droit Administratif, Montchrestien, Latest edition;
Y. GAUDEMET, Droit Administratif, LGDJ, Latest edition;
M. LONG, P. WEIL, G. BRAIBANT, P. DELVOVE & B. GENEVOIS, Les Grands Arrêts de la Jurisprudence Administrative, Dalloz, Latest edition.
- Editions are published every year

Key words search

French legal system, dissertation juridique, commentaire d'arret