HSUHK | CCCO

SSC2035 Law and Society

Common Core Curriculum Office (CCCO) > SSC2035 Law and Society
Department
Social Science
Cluster
A (Human Development and Social Responsibility)

Prerequisite

N/A

Exclusion

N/A

Module Description

This course aims to introduce students to the role of law in modern society. The course starts with an introduction to the meanings and functions of law. Students are introduced to such important concepts such as common law and civil law, such important branches of law as tort and contract, and such historical background to the major legal systems. Then the course discusses important social science concepts related to the law, such as the rule of law and separation of powers, as well as how law could impose moral obligations to citizens.

Module Intended Learning Outcomes (MILO)

Upon completion of this module, students should be able to: 
a. Explain key concepts of law, including the sources, rules, principles, legal categories, and other major legal terminologies;
b. Identify legal materials and law-related documents from various sources;
c. Explain and reflect on how law functions and imposes moral responsibility on us in broader social contexts;
d. Analyze cultural and technological challenges to legal systems of modern society;

Module Content

Theme 1: General Features of Law

  • What is law? How is the law different from morality and social customs? Are there any differences in the natures of social responsibility they impose on individuals?
  • Major components of a legal system: legislation, adjudication and sanction; the historical origins and social functions of these major components of law; the role citizens could play in the formation of legal norms.
  • Major traditions of legal systems and their histories: the continental law tradition, the common law tradition, the Chinese legal tradition and its modern evolution.

Theme 2: Different Branches of the Law:

  • Criminal law: public order and the relation between the state and individuals; punishment and its different justifications; procedure for the proof of criminal liability and its relations to the attribution of moral responsibility.
  • Private law:
    a. contract and the rationale of entering into enforceable obligations;
    b. tort, duty to care and the reasonableness test for negligence, and its relation to the attribution of responsibility to individuals in different social roles;
    c. property law and the legal ownership to things and land.
  • Constitutional law: the rationale for the regulation of the use of public powers and the protection of civil and political rights.
  • International law: international treaties and the institutional authority of international organizations; international human right regimes.

Theme 3: Law in the Social Context

  • Is there a moral duty to obey the law?
    I. utilitarian reasons;
    II. social contract theories;
    III. natural duty; IV. duty to fair play.
  • What is the point of the rule of law?
    I. justice and rights;
    II. the virtue of procedural fairness.
  • Law and social issues:
    I. law, public order and social morality;
    II. law and culture;
    III. law and economic development; IV. law and technology; V. law and international peace; role of individuals in peacekeeping through international law.

Assessment Methods

1. Class Participation (10%)
2. Group project (20%)
3. Reflective Report on Field Visits (20%)
4. Mid-term Test (25%)
5. End-term Test (25%)