Law of Tort

Key information

Start date
End date
Year of study
Year 2
Duration
Full
Module code
155200072
FHEQ Level
6
Credits
30
Department
School of Law, Gender and Media

Module overview

This core undergraduate module is designed to introduce students to the law of tort, as developed and practiced in England and Wales. Approximately two thirds of the module are spent studying the tort of negligence, including various specific liability regimes. These include employers’ liability, occupiers’ liability, liability for pure psychiatric illness and pure economic loss. The remainder of the module studies torts such as trespass to the person and the land-based tort of nuisance.

Objectives and learning outcomes of the module

  • A systematic understanding of the key aspects of Tort Law, including knowledge of contemporary debates and leading scholarship in the field
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the different methods used in analysing and arguing about Tort Law and critically evaluate the appropriateness of different approaches to solving problems in the field
  • Have developed the conceptual tools to develop and defend arguments or solve problems using the key argumentative and methodological techniques within the field
  • Be able to engage with cutting edge scholarship and debates in the field of Tort Law and appreciate the uncertainty, ambiguity and limitations of both the key rules and principles in the field, and their own understanding of them
  • Demonstrate an ability to manage their own learning, and to make use of scholarly material and primary sources relevant to the field
  • Have the ability to apply the methods and techniques that they learn to review, consolidate, extend and apply their knowledge and understanding of the field
  • Be able to critically evaluate arguments, assumptions and concepts, to make judgements and frame appropriate questions to achieve a solution (or suggest a range of solutions) to a problem
  • Demonstrate the ability to communicate their understanding of Tort Law to both specialist and non-specialist audiences

Students will also gain a number of transferable skills necessary for employment, including:

  • the exercise of initiative and personal responsibility
  • decision-making in complex contexts
  • the learning ability needed to undertake appropriate further training of a professional or equivalent nature

Workload

  • Weekly 2 hour lecture
  • 1 hour tutorial (please see syllabus for details of when tutorials are scheduled)

Method of assessment

  • Problem Question: 30% (3000 words)
  • Unseen Written Exam: 70%

Suggested reading

  •  K. Horsey & E. Rackley, Tort Law (7th edition, 2021);  
  • M. Lunney & K. Oliphant, Tort Law: Text and Materials (6th edition, 2017) 

Disclaimer

Important notice regarding changes to programmes and modules.