Important Dates:

BACKGROUND

Notre Dame Law School began its Summer London Law Program for American law students in 1970, to provide students an opportunity for deepening their understanding of our own legal system through comparing it with British legal institutions; for studying common law subjects at their place of origin; and for learning comparative and international law at a leading center of those disciplines.

The Notre Dame program is the oldest American summer law program conducted in London. In the summer of 2007, there were 70 students enrolled. Slightly more than a third of those students were from Notre Dame Law School; a number were from Australia; the remainder were from some 40 different law schools in the United States. Based on past experience, it is expected that a similar number of students, from an equally diverse group of schools, from both the United States and Australia, will participate in the 2008 program. The curriculum emphasizes courses in the comparative and international law fields taught largely by British faculty. Students have found that the opportunity to study law in such a program not only facilitates their obtaining a law degree but enables them to learn about and enjoy the rich legal and cultural heritage of Britain.

[back to top]

FACILITIES

The Notre Dame London Law Center is located at 1 Suffolk Street on the northwest corner of Trafalgar Square in central London. The Law Center is next to the National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery, on the edge of theatreland and only ten minutes walk from Buckingham Palace and Downing Street to the west and legal London to the east. Public open areas such as St. James' Park, Waterloo Gardens, Embankment Gardens and the River Thames are less than five minutes walk, while King's College, the London School of Economics and the Royal Courts of Justice are nearby along the Strand.

The Law Center has a core collection of American law books in its library, as well as a small collection of comparative and international law materials. More extensive legal research may be done in the American and European collections of the Middle Temple Library.

The historical character of the facility housing the Law Centre, as well as London itself, may be challenging to students with disabilities. Disabled students interested in the program are urged to discuss accommodations with the program director at their earliest opportunity.

[back to top]

The Law Centre has a number of computers which are available to all students and which provide access to e-mail, the Internet and computer-assisted legal research.

[back to top]

ACADEMIC INFORMATION

The Summer Law Program is an integral part of the Notre Dame Law School and is fully accredited. Although other law schools have regularly approved transfer of credits, all students should ask their schools about credit prior to registration in London.

It is expected that nine courses providing a total of 19 hours of academic credit will be offered in the summer of 2008. A student may enroll in courses up to a maximum of six hours of credit. Auditing of courses is allowed with the permission of the particular faculty member and with the written approval of the director. The program runs for six weeks. Classes begin on Monday, June 23, and end Friday, July 25. Examinations are scheduled between July 28 and July 30. All courses comply with the standards of the American Bar Association and the Association of American Law Schools.

Credit for courses taken will be given in the same manner as for courses taken at Notre Dame's home campus, and grades received will be reflected on standard Notre Dame transcripts. The grading system used at Notre Dame Law School and in effect for the summer program is as follows: A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D, F. F is a failing grade. Some schools refuse to give transfer credit for any grade less than a C. Students should ask about transfer of credits at their home schools prior to enrolling in the program. An official transcript will be sent to your Law School, provided that you have sent a request to the Notre Dame's University Registrar. Transcripts may not be released without your signature in a letter or on a FAX. You may access information at the following website: http://registrar.nd.edu/transcripts.shtml.

[back to top]

QUALIFICATION FOR ADMISSION

Any student in good standing at a law school who will have completed one year of academic work prior to June 1, 2008, is eligible for the program. A completed registration form will be construed as a certification by you that you meet the requirements and that you will advise the program director of any change in your academic status. To be officially enrolled in the Notre Dame Summer London Law Program, each student is required to submit to the Admissions Office a letter of good standing from the student's law school.

Applications must be received no later than April 1, 2008. Because enrollment in the program is limited, students should apply as soon as possible. Spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

[back to top]

TUITION, FEES & PAYMENT SCHEDULE

Confirmation of Enrollment
Registrants for the Summer London Program must pay a $50 application fee which is nonrefundable unless the application is rejected due to full enrollment. Enrollment in the Program is considered finalized only after the tuition payment (or evidence of a loan) of $2,500 has been received by the University’s Student Accounts Office.

Billing Statement
A billing statement will be prepared and sent to you in late April. The billing statement will include charges for tuition ($2,565) and housing at Connaught Hall ($2,350). As noted above, tuition payment (or evidence of an approved loan) must be received by May 15 in order for your enrollment to be finalized; however, full payment for housing must be received by the Student Accounts Office before a room will be reserved for you.

Student Budget
The following is a budget for the 2008 Summer London Program. This budget represents the expected costs for tuition, living expenses, and transportation. This budget also represents the maximum amount of loan assistance that you can obtain for the Summer London Program.

Tuition is non-refundable unless failure to attend is for verified reasons of illness, military obligation, or a travel warning for England is issued by the US Department of State. The Summer London Law Program has never been cancelled. In the unlikely event that the program is cancelled, a full refund of tuition will be made within 20 days and efforts would be made to arrange for students to attend a similar program if so desired.

Loan Assistance for Law Students from Other U.S. Law Schools
If you will be relying on loan assistance to pay for some or all of the costs associated with the Summer London program, please be sure to initiate (with the financial aid office at your current institution) the Consortium Agreement paperwork. This should be sent to the Notre Dame Office of Student Financial Aid no later than April 15, 2008. The completed Consortium Agreement should be faxed to: Ms. Shari Fye, University of Notre Dame Office of Financial Aid: (574) 631-6899. Ms. Fye may be reached by email at sfye@nd.edu.

Loan Assistance for Notre Dame Law Students
If you are a current Notre Dame law student and you will be relying on loan assistance to pay for some or all of the costs associated with the Summer London program, contact the Office of Student Financial Aid by April 15 to inform them of your plans to enroll in the Summer Program. If you will be in need of student loans to assist with the expenses associated with studying in London, please be sure to complete the 2008/09 FAFSA. Financial Aid will then be able to take into consideration these expenses and divide your loan eligibility accordingly.

[back to top]

ADMINISTRATION AND FACULTY

Professor Geoffrey Bennett, Notre Dame Law School, is the director of the Summer London Law Program. Geoffrey Bennett first joined the Notre Dame London faculty in 1992 and has served as director of the program since 1995. He earned his B.A. from Cambridge University (England) in 1974 and was called to the Bar in 1975. He has taught at the universities of Liverpool, Leeds and City University, London and held visiting professorships at the University of Louisville, Kentucky. His areas of academic interest include cultural property, criminal procedure, the law of education, contact law and comparative law. Click here to learn more about Professor Bennett.

Other faculty members are expected to be as follows:

Professor Fitzmaurice received a LL.M. and Ph.D from University of Warsaw. She holds a chair in public international law at the Department of Law, Queen Mary, University of London. She also serves as editor-in-chief of the International Community Law Review.

Professor Hawker received a LL.B. from University of Buckingham and a LL.M. from the London School of Economics. She is a Senior Lecturer in Law at London Guildhall University. She previously served as Senior Lecturer in the Department of Law and course director of the postgraduate distance learning course in Maritime Law at London Metropolitan University.

Professor Humphreys received a LL.B. from University of Exeter and a Ph.D. from Anglia Law School. He is Head (Dean) of Law at Kingston University, South London. Prior to this appointment, he served as Senior Lecturer and Director of Education at the University of Surrey School of Law. He has also served as a Visiting Lecturer at Hong Kong University, and as an External Examiner at the University of Greenwich.

Professor Letsas received a LL.B. from University of Athens; an M.A. in Legal and Political Theory and a Ph.D. in Law from University College London. He is a Lecturer in Law at University College London. Prior to this appointment, he was a Lecturer in Law at Brunel University School of Social Sciences and Law, where he served as co-director of the Centre for International and Public Law.

Professor Moens received a Ph.B. and J.D. from University of Leuven (Belgium); a LL.M. from Northwestern; a Ph.D. from University of Sydney Faculty of Law; and GCEd from University of Queensland. He is Dean and Professor at the Murdoch University School of Law, Australia. In 1999, he was co-winner of the Australian Award for University Teaching in law and legal studies. He is editor-in-chief of the International Trade and Business Law Review.

Professor Vincent Rougeau received an A.B. from Brown University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. He is an associate professor of law at Notre Dame Law School where he serves as faculty advisor to the Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics and Public Policy. Professor Rougeau also serves as a Research Associate at the Von Hugel Institute, St. Edmund’s College, Cambridge University, and at the Contextual Theology Centre in London. Click here to learn more about Professor Rougeau.

Professor Thomas received a B.A. from McGill University (Montreal); a B.A. in Jurisprudence from Oxford; and a LL.M. in Public International Law from Cambridge. She is a Senior Lecturer and Deputy Head of the Law Department of City Law School, London.

Professor Upex received a B.A., M.A., and LL.M. from Cambridge. He is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Surrey where he served as Head of the Law Department from 2002-2005. He is also a Visiting Professor in English Law at the Université Jean Moulin in Lyon, France, and a member of the advisory board of Sweet & Maxwell’s Encyclopedia of Employment Law.

Professor Voyiakis received a LL.B. from Democritus University of Thrace (Greece); a LL.M. in Public International Law from London School of Economics, University of London; and a Ph.D. in Public International Law from University College London. He is a Lecturer in Law at the School of Social Sciences and Law at Brunel University, and a Visiting Lecturer in United Nations Law, International Human Rights Law, and Jurisprudence at the Faculty of Law, University College London.

[back to top]

COURSE OFFERINGS

Participants in the Summer London Program will be notified, in late April, the procedures for course registration. Participants are able to enroll in a maximum of seven credit hours of classes.

This list is subject to change or cancellation depending on sufficient enrollment and availability of faculty members; no prerequisites unless otherwise indicated; any changes will be reflected on this page.

CARRIAGE OF GOODS BY SEA, 2 credits, Hawker (LAW 74453) 3625. This course looks at the carriage of goods in international trade. This is an exciting subject: we live in a world in which the transportation of goods is a fundamental part of both international and domestic business, and litigation in respect of these carriage disputes is inevitable. The course is based on English Law, with comparisons made with practice under other jurisdictions where appropriate. English law is frequently chosen to govern shipping contracts, the common law nature of English law allowing for judicial "creativity." We see, therefore, the development of this area of contract law, which aims to meet the needs of those involved with the international shipment of goods. The course predominately covers contacts for the carriage of goods by sea and charterparties, as most goods are shipped by this mode of transport, although carriage by air and land is introduced. The course also considers difficulties that arise when goods are the subject of a mutimodal contract of carriage, and problems that arise when carriage contracts are negotiated by freight forwarders. The combination of the intellectual rigours of the law and trade realities make this a rewarding subject.

ENGLISH LEGAL SYSTEM, 2 credits, Humphreys (LAW 74451). This course examines the principal features of the English legal system and of the constitutional structure, institutions, law and practice of the United Kingdom. Topics studied are designed to draw attention to differences between the English and UK systems and the position in the United States. Topics include the structure and organization of the courts; the legal profession; legal education; judges; the jury; costs and litigation; legal aid; the UK parliament; sources of constitutional law and practice; the UK government; the European dimension; and human rights in the UK.

EUROPEAN AND INTERNATIONAL LABOR LAW, 2 credits, Upex, (LAW 70406). This course has three parts. In the first part, we will look at European Labor Law. In doing that, we will consider the relevant treaty provisions and the relevant provisions of European Directives relating to Equality, Working Conditions, Employee Rights on Restructuring Enterprises and Worker Representation. In the second part, we will examine aspects of Private International Law relating to Labor Law, including the Brussels Regulations and the Rome Convention on Applicable Law. In the third part, we will consider international labor standards and the work of the International Labor Organization.

EUROPEAN UNION LAW, 2 credits, Moens (LAW 74459). This course introduces students to the legal system of the European Union (EU). Emphasis will be placed on the constitutional, administrative and commercial law of the EU. The topics that will be discussed in this course include the political and economic origins of the EU, its institutional structures (with emphasis on the European Court of Justice), the Union (Maastricht) Treaty, the interrelationship between EU law and the laws of the twenty-five member states, and the four fundamental freedoms: free movement of goods, workers, services and capital. The course will concentrate on the transnational protection of economic and social rights and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice.

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS LAW, 2 credits, Moens (LAW 74465). This course provides students with an introduction to the law of international trade. It begins with an examination of the concept of free trade and the international structures that have been created to foster the liberalization of international trade. It then focuses on the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG), followed by a consideration of Incoterms 2000. The course then focuses on the Uniform Customs and Practices for Documentary credits (UCP 500) and financing of exports. Finally this course also deals with the resolution of international commercial disputes by arbitration and discusses a number of relevant international documents, including the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration and the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards.

INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW, 2 credits, Fitzmaurice (LAW74432). The protection of the environment is one of the main issues of the contemporary world. The protection of climate change, of biodiversity, of marine areas is of concern to all of us. The object of this course is to introduce the main principles governing the cooperation of States in environmental matters. It is divided into two main parts: the first part of the course will deal with the general principles underlying international environmental law, such as the precautionary principle, polluter pays principle, environment impact assessment. The second part of the course will deal with particular areas of environmental protection, such as the protection of the marine environment, international watercourses, and global issues, such as the protection of biodiversity.

INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW, 2 credits, Letsas and Voyiakis (LAW 74467). This course will examine the place of the individual in international law and focus on the promotion and protection of human rights at both international and regional levels. Particular emphasis will be given to the procedures developed by the United Nations, Organization of American States and Council of Europe, examining their effects on both international and domestic law. Consideration will be given to the role of non-governmental organizations in the protection of human rights.

PUBLIC INTERNATIONAL LAW, 3 credits, Reece-Thomas and Cassel (LAW 74401). This course examines the vital role of law in contemporary international society; the nature and sources of international law; the relationship between international law and municipal law; international personality; states and non-state actors; dispute settlement; the use of force and peace-keeping; the United Nations system; jurisdiction and immunities; diplomatic law; terrorism; human rights; treaties and state succession; state responsibility and foreign investment protection; law of the sea; and international environmental law.

TERRORISM, IMMIGRATION, AND MULTICULTURALISM, 2 Credits, Rougeau (LAW 74438).Through a broad range of reading, particularly in law and political philosophy, this course will explore three major issues that have been the source of a great deal of legal and public policy debate in the world's major democracies over the last decade. Since the September 11th attacks in the United States, the American government has sought terror suspects around the globe and has worked aggressively to keep terror suspects/sympathizers from penetrating America's borders. One notable aspect of this effort has been the identification and isolation of "enemy combatants." The EU, Canada, and Australia have struggled with similar issues, but have taken different approaches to dealing with terrorism. At the same time, all of the nations of the "West" have been confronted with increasing diversity within their domestic populations as a result of high levels of documented and undocumented immigration. This diversity has raised new questions about these nation's commitments to democratic pluralism. What is the relationship between the fear of the terrorist outsider and a growing sense that diversity at home may provide a breeding ground for terrorism? Finally, the course will consider multiculturalism as a solution and a problem in this new environment. Does mulitculturalism undermine liberal democratic values or enhance them? Can the West balance its need for immigrants and its concern for security without undermining its commitment to human rights or opening the door to increased terrorist attacks?

Click here to view class schedule and exam schedules.

Lodging in Connaught Hall is $2,350 per student, with each student having his or her own room. Each room is furnished with a bed, chair, desk, wardrobe, and telephone; bedding and towels are provided. There are bathroom facilities on every floor. The residence has recently been significantly refurbished to ensure that it complies with current UK law in respect of access for persons with disabilities. This includes the provision of ramps for wheelchair use and modifications to the restrooms. In addition, the student housing is monitored by the Notre Dame Facilities Coordinator to ensure that it continues to comply with both disability and related health and safety requirements. Breakfast is included in the price of a room; an evening meal is available at an additional cost of approximately £7.00 per person.

Given that the supply of rooms in Connaught Hall is limited, and that we will assign rooms on a first-come first-served basis, we encourage you to submit payment as soon as possible after you receive your billing statement. A room in Connaught Hall will be assigned to you only after full payment of $2,350 has been received by the University Office of Student Accounts. Unlike tuition, the payment for housing must be received before a room will be reserved for you. Regrettably, no exception can be made to the policy requiring full payment. All housing payments are non-refundable unless it is possible to reassign the room or obtain a release from the University's contractual obligation to pay for the room. If the program were to be cancelled before its commencement, housing payments would be refunded. If it was cancelled after commencement, for reasons beyond the control of the University, a refund would be made on a pro rata basis.

Summer London participants residing in Connaught Hall may check in on Saturday, June 21. Students must vacate their rooms by noon on Thursday, July 31.

[back to top]

INSURANCE
Participants in the Notre Dame Summer London Law Student are required to have medical insurance coverage. If you do not have a medical insurance plan already, you must participate in the plan administered by HTH Worldwide. We encourage you to complete the required application no later than May 15.

• HTH Worldwide - Medical Insurance
• HTH Insurance Enrollment Form

As a participant in the Summer London program, you also may be interested in taking advantage of the services provided by AIG Assist. There is no cost for these services.

• AIG Assist - Travel Assistance Services

If you wish to insure your personal property while participating in the Summer London program, one option available insurance plan is offered by HF&C. Please note that this insurance coverage is completely optional and the price varies with coverage.

• HF&C - Personal Property Insurance Coverage

Students attending the Summer Law Program are expected to make provision for transportation to and from London. Notre Dame cannot assume any responsibility for such transportation.

Scheduled airlines provide a variety of reduced fare plans. Your local travel agent should be helpful in this regard. Because summer flights to Europe are filled quickly, we suggest making your travel arrangements as soon as possible.

The latest information and warnings about travel overseas can be obtained on the State Department's web site:  http://travel.state.gov/.

Questions?

Questions regarding registration procedures and deadlines may be directed to the Notre Dame Law School Admissions Office: lawadmit@nd.edu, or 574-631-6626.

Questions regarding the operation of the Summer Program may be addressed to:
Professor Geoffrey Bennett
Notre Dame London Law Centre
London SW1Y4HG
England
+44-207-484-7822
+44-207-484-7854
Email: Bennett.24@nd.edu

APPLICATION

Download Part I of the London Summer Application in the pdf format (Adobe Acrobat required for viewing).

Part II of the London Summer Application. Course selection form.

[back to top]