2012/2013

LLM (CRIMINAL JUSTICE)

NFQ Level 9, Major Award

Last revised on 22 October 2012

The LLM (Criminal Justice) is a full-time programme running for 12 months or a part-time programme running for 24 months from the date of first registration for the programme. A full-time candidate may not, during the currency of the LLM (Criminal Justice), simultaneously pursue any other form of education, training or

Entry Requirements
Candidates must be approved by the Faculty of Law. The LLM (Criminal Justice) has a compulsory clinical component at its core, which is undertaken in partnership with the Faculty's placement partners and involves significant interaction with the criminal justice system and its stakeholders. In this regard, the Law Faculty must be satisfied regarding the candidate's commitment to, and suitability for, the programme. Candidates should pay particular attention to satisfying this criterion when completing their application.

Candidates must also:
(a) hold a Law Degree with at least Second Class Honours Grade 1
or
(b) hold a Second Class Honours LLB Degree from UCC
or
(c) have such other relevant third level educational qualifications and/or professional experience as, in the opinion of the Faculty of Law, qualifies the candidate to undertake the LLM (Criminal Justice) Degree.

The number of places available in any given year is dependent on resources and all otherwise suitable candidates may not be admitted.

Programme Requirements

Full-time:
Students take 90 credits in total including LW6547 LLM (Criminal Justice) Thesis (30 credits) and LW6519 Criminal Justice (Clinical) (20 credits) and 40 credits from the list of elective modules set out below.

Part-time:
Students take 90 credits in total including LW6519 Criminal Justice (Clinical) (20 credits) to be taken in Year 1 and LW6547 LLM (Criminal Justice) Thesis (30 credits) to be taken in Year 2. Students choose from the list of elective modules to complete a total of 40 credits in Year 1 and 50 credits in Year 2.

Core Modules
LW6519 Criminal Justice (Clinical) (20 credits)
LW6547 LLM (Criminal Justice) Thesis (30 credits)

Elective Modules
At least 25 credits must be chosen from List A and 15 credits may be chosen from List B:

(It may be that not all modules will be offered each year)

List A (Students must choose at least 25 credits):
LW6525 Terrorism, Dissonance and Criminal Justice (10 credits)
LW6544 Criminology (10 credits)
LW6545 Penology (10 credits)
LW6546 Juvenile Justice (10 credits)
LW6550 International Criminal Law (10 credits)
LW6558 Mental Health Law (10 credits)
LW6560 Cybercrime (10 credits)
LW6583 Humanitarian Intervention and the Responsibility to Protect (5 credits)
LW6588 Enforcement and Sanctions in Antitrust Law (5 credits)

List B (Students may choose 15 credits):
LW6530 Contemporary Issues in Constitutional Law (10 credits)
LW6549 Children's Rights (10 credits)
LW6572 Contemporary Issues in International Law (10 credits)
LW6576 Disability and the Law (10 credits)
LW6584 Refugee Law (5 credits)
LW6585 Migration Law and Human Rights (5 credits)
LW6587 International Human Rights Law (5 credits)
LW6592 Mental Capacity Law (5 credits)
LW6593 Contemporary Issues in ECHR Law (5 credits)

Other modules may be available.

Note: In certain cases with the permission of the Programme Director, students may elect to take 10 credits from the non-Criminal Justice modules available in the LLM (Taught) (see here) (other than those listed above) in substitution for 10 credits of the elective modules in List B.

Module descriptions are contained in the Book of Modules 2012/2013.

Examinations
Full details and regulations governing Examinations for each programme will be contained in the Marks and Standards 2013 Book and for each module in the Book of Modules 2012/2013.

Presentation of Minor Thesis/Submission Dates
The thesis must be submitted for examination at the Winter Board, on a date in September to be specified by the Department of Law at the commencement of the programme.

See also General Regulations for the Degree of Master.

Programme Learning Outcomes for LLM (Criminal Justice) (NFQ Level 9, Major award):
On successful completion of the programme, students should be able to:

• Appreciate the roles and perspectives of the various actors within the criminal justice system in the context of clinical experiences;
• Critically evaluate primary and secondary legal materials including legislation, international instruments, case-law and academic commentary;
• Identify and explore interconnections between legal topics in the area of criminal justice;
• Demonstrate self-direction and originality in tackling and solving legal problems;
• Demonstrate original, independent and critical thinking;
• Connect changing values and sentiments in society with legal developments;
• Formulate research questions and develop appropriate research methodologies;
• Undertake scholarly research exploring legal themes;
• Conduct research on a legal topic in the area of criminal justice and write a masters-level thesis on that topic;
• Use Information Technology appropriately for legal research and writing;
• Prepare and deliver presentations on legal topics;
• Write clearly and in an appropriate legal style, in accordance with legal writing standards;
• Prepare and deliver presentations on legal topics;
• Evaluate the operation of the criminal justice system in reality in comparison with criminal justice theories.