LW6042 - Maritime Law

The module will utilise lectures, workshops and seminars to initiate your practical thinking on the areas mentioned above. The lectures will cover the basic legal frameworks of the topics outlined above. Workshops and seminars will provide an opportunity to discuss the theory of maritime law and scholarly research undertaken in the area. This will support and complement an examination of real-life cases, hypothetical scenarios, as well as other issues faced by practitioners, thereby consolidating your understanding and emphasising the implications of the law. You will undertake tutor-guided independent learning, which will complement and support self-study and independent learning. Formative feedback will be provided by your tutor through the course of the module. You will be assessed by way of a written piece of coursework, which will take place in the Semester 1 assessment period.
Directed learning will focus on pre-reading, activity based learning through specially designed seminar exercises, and engagement with the e-Learning portal.

Independent learning will centre on you identifying further reading and research to provide deeper/broader knowledge and understanding of legal and practical issues relevant to maritime law.

Regular formative feedback will be provided by the teaching team and module tutor during timetabled sessions. You will be provided with detailed feedback on your summative assignment for this module and, as part of your reflective development, such feedback can be utilised in the preparation of subsequent module assessments on the programme. You are therefore able to demonstrate self-reflection and reflective practice within the module and on the programme as a whole, with feedback of appropriate quality and the positive application of formative feedback on learning.

The University is well-placed to support you in learning and research through its library and teaching facilities, access to on-line legal databases and resources and appropriate software.

This module will be designed and managed by your designated module tutor who will be responsible for guiding you in your engagement and learning on the maritime law module. The members of staff who teach on this module have significant research experience in this area. As such, they will provide academic support where necessary. All relevant materials and instructions, including notes for lectures and seminars, will be accessible online through the module’s eLP site. The site is maintained by your module tutor, who will also provide updates on issues of current legal significance as appropriate.

At programme level you will be supported by the programme leader, who will provide pastoral support throughout the module and the programme as a whole.

The programme administration and student liaison teams are responsible for the non-academic administration of the module.

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

At the end of the module you will have:

Knowledge & Understanding:

Developed knowledge and a critical understanding of key areas of maritime law.

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:

Developed an ability to conduct rigorous and independent legal research in the area of maritime law, selecting, using and applying the relevant material to identify issues, construct reasoned arguments and present accurate legal information clearly, coherently and substantiated by authority.

Developed an awareness of legal and practical issues regarding maritime law and the ability identify sources, communicate, explain and identify solutions to a range of legal and practical problems arising in the context of maritime law.

Personal Values Attributes (Global / Cultural awareness, Ethics, Curiosity) (PVA):

Gained a critical awareness of how maritime law works in a global economy.

Formative assessment will be achieved by self-test questions in module materials, group discussion, informal peer assessment and assessed and non-assessed exercises. Individual and group feedback will be given to students in the small group sessions on their performance after the submission of practice assignments and/or workshop tasks.

Summative Assessment will be undertaken on an individual basis by way of assignment which constitutes 100% of the marks for this module. This assignment aims to encourage a deep and critical approach to learning, developing an ability to think widely about the issues presented within the module and to explore these in-line with directed and independent learning.

The module is assessed by coursework with a maximum word limit of 2,500 words. The assessment will take the form of a problem-based scenario which will be designed to facilitate examination of specific aspects of relevant law and related legal research and may include discussion of recent developments, where appropriate assessment criteria will be provided to enable you to understand what is expected of you and how you will be judged on your performance.

You will be provided with appropriate written or oral feedback (as appropriate), and, as part of your reflective development, such feedback can be utilised in the preparation of subsequent module assessments on the programme.

None.

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Maritime Law encompasses a variety of areas of law, including the law of the sea, shipping law, and the regulation of maritime safety and pollution. The Maritime Law module introduces you to the basic concepts of maritime law, including the role of the UN’s International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in regulating international maritime law. The module involves a close examination of key international laws and treaties, such as the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS) and the International Safety Management (ISM) Code, as well as relevant case law.