LLM International Commercial Law

Delivery:
Full time according to Funding Council definitions, Part-Time

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The LLM International Commercial Law course draws primarily upon the common law tradition but is intended to provide the widest possible perspective through groundings in international economic law and contemporary economic and financial context.

Many businesses rely on their ability to trade internationally, so a solid understanding of international commercial law is attractive to prospective employers, including specialist forms with international clients.

Gain an in-depth understanding of the dynamics of international commerce, a common law perspective of the legal regulation of institutions and transactions, an appreciation of the problems associated with competing national jurisdictions and a critical awareness of corporate, intellectual property and tax law.

Tailor your studies toward the specific areas of international commercial law to suit your desired career through a range of option units

Enhance your career prospects, not only within the legal profession but in a variety of industries. Graduates have gone on to work as consultants, judges assistants, senior lawyers and associate directors.

See Course details for more information, including how this course will be delivered safely in autumn 2020 in response to Covid-19.

Key information

Next start date:

September 2020, January 2021, September 2021

Location:

Bournemouth University, Talbot Campus and Lansdowne Campus

Duration:

1 year full-time or 2 years part-time (September start); 16 months full-time or 27 months part-time (January start)

Entry requirements:

A Bachelors Honours degree with 2:2 in any subject. For more information check out our full entry requirements.

International entry requirements:

If English is not your first language you'll need IELTS (Academic) 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component of writing, speaking, listening and reading. For more information check out our full entry requirements.

Course details

On this course you will be taught by a range of staff with relevant expertise and knowledge appropriate to the content of the unit. This will include senior academic staff, qualified professional practitioners, demonstrators, technicians and research students. You will also benefit from regular guest lectures from industry.

Download the programme specification (pdf 579kb)

September 2020 – course information

During your first semester (September to January), your course will be delivered online, using interactive platforms that will replicate the experience of being in a lecture theatre or seminar room. You’ll have opportunities to interact with your lecturer and fellow students just as you would have done in any other year.

We hope to have a full programme of face-to-face sessions on campus for all courses from January if government guidelines permit.

You will be able to use the Library, the Student Centre, Open Access Centre and social learning spaces, subject to physical distancing measures to undertake group and other work.

There will be no other changes to the content of your course as a result of Covid-19; we will deliver all of the units we have previously promised we would, and we are not making any changes to the individual learning outcomes on your course.

It’s important that you know these changes are temporary and that we will be back to our usual on-campus experience as soon as national guidance makes it possible.

See our Coronavirus FAQs for the latest information from BU.

This is the latest information, updated on 20 July. We will update this page when more information is available, and we can confirm any additional on-campus activity.

Core units

Regulation & Policy of International Commerce: You’ll be introduced to key concepts of English commercial law forms and discuss several developments of the regulatory frameworks that control commercial practices.
Law of International Commercial Transactions: This unit aims to provide a comprehensive scrutiny of the transactional aspects of commercial law such as cross-border trade and financing of international sale of goods. It provides an opportunity to explore how the law on this subject matter regulates the activities of buyers, sellers and banks. Furthermore, it will provide you with a basis for a technical and academic investigation of the issues in the Law of International Trade.
Dissertation: The dissertation provides an opportunity to conduct research on an area of law associated with the knowledge and skills gained during the course. You’ll develop further skills in critical thinking, evaluate new and existing relevant research and enhance your conceptual understanding of law.

Option units

Choose 4 of the following option units:

Principles of International Law & International Organisations: This unit will provide you with a sound grounding in the principles underpinning international law. You’ll be encouraged to understand theory of international law, structures of international legal obligations and the subjects of this international legal order. Secondly, you’ll examine international organisations and their role, purpose and relationship with states. You’ll familiarise yourself with institutions, their origins and structures as well as challenges faced within the globalised world.
Corporate Law: Theory & Practice: This unit will expose you to the theoretical basis of corporate law. You’ll examine key issues in contemporary corporate law and learn to evaluate corporate law issues from key theoretical and practical perspectives.
International Cyber Law & Governance: This unit will provide you with a thorough grounding and critical appreciation of online policy, regulatory scope for online activities and strategic impact on business decisions.
International & Comparative Intellectual Property Law: Gain an understanding of the international framework of IP law and national IP law in major jurisdictions has become indispensable for professionals working in the context of modern economy. This unit will provide you with a thorough grounding and critical appreciation of both international and national IP law.
Regulating Informational Interests: The unit provides knowledge and understanding of the wider legal context associated with the creation, collation, processing, communication and storage of information. It specifically addresses the disruptive impact of modern technologies on existing legal and regulatory categories and frameworks and will enable you to identify current and future areas of disruption, and to critically evaluate the use, success and appropriateness of law and regulation as a response mechanism to the management of ‘Informational Interests’.
International Law of the Environment: This unit will examine the particular sectors of environmental policy that are the subject of international legal regulation and obligations. This will involve an appraisal of how international legal regulation has developed in these areas, taking into account various challenges, legal and political, that have been influential in shaping their respective evolution. It will also focus on selected legal topics concerning the implementation of international environmental law. In particular, it will consider various relatively recent developments in international environmental law that have served to broaden participation beyond the level of the nation state as regards the monitoring and enforcement of international environmental protection obligations.
International Taxation: This unit aims to provide a technically and academically challenging examination of the issues in international taxation faced by multinational corporations and individuals. You'll develop the ability to apply the fundamental principles of international taxation to a wide range of situations.
Contemporary Issues in Intellectual Property Law: Intellectual property law requires a study of contemporary issues, brought together by a study of the substantive law in the context of emerging technologies, creative industries, businesses and market practices. It is of increasing significance in the legal profession as well as at a policy level. This unit aims to provide an understanding of the general principles of the substantive laws relating to contemporary intellectual property laws and their application within industry.

*Please note that option units require minimum numbers in order to run and may only be available on a semester by semester basis. They may also change from year to year.

Programme specification

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry. If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

Entry requirements

General entry requirements

The normal requirements for embarking upon a postgraduate taught degree are:

A Bachelors Honours degree with 2:2 in any subject
For post-experience and professional qualifications, there may be additional entry requirements set by the association or institute that ultimately administers the qualification in question. The qualification description on the course information pages should tell you what these are but please get in touch with the Future Students Enquiry team.

If you lack the formal academic qualifications needed to enter a postgraduate or post-experience degree, there are several alternative routes to follow - some based on experience. Contact the Future Students Enquiry team for more information.

International entry requirements

You can find details of the international qualifications we accept, and what level of study they apply to, on our entry requirements for non-UK students' page.

Please see below some examples of the qualifications for entry:

China: 学士学位 (Bachelor degree) with a minimum of 65% overall
Nigeria: Bachelor's degree from a recognised institution in Nigeria
Thailand: Thai Bachelor's (Honours) degree from a recognised higher education institution.
Vietnam: Bachelor's degree/Bang tot nghiep dai hoc with an average score of at least 7.0, or a Master’s degree/Thac si.
Turkey: Bachelor’s Degree (Lisans Diplomasi -four years) to be considered for a postgraduate course at BU.

All applications will be subject to a minimum grade and your degree may need to be in a relevant subject area.

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, you will need to provide evidence that you understand English to a satisfactory level. English language requirements for this course are normally:

IELTS (Academic) 6.0 with minimum 5.5 in writing, speaking, listening and reading or equivalent.

View further information about our English language requirements.

Bournemouth University International College offers a number of pre-sessional English and preparatory programmes to prepare international students for postgraduate study at BU. Admission to the degree is guaranteed on successful completion of your course to the required level.

Your application

For International Commercial Law we are looking for applicants who:

Have a legal background or demonstrate true passion for law
Are enthusiastic about issues surrounding international commerce and international legal provisions
Can evaluate legal situations, develop arguments and contribute to group discussions and debates
Are prepared to work hard to meet strict deadlines and rise to the challenge of postgraduate study.

What we're looking for

We encourage applications from individuals with excellent research, analytical skills and enthusiasm for debates. We are looking for self-managed learners who are happy to work hard to meet the demands of this rewarding course. Furthermore, we seek individuals with a keen interest in developing new skills and who will draw upon their existing experiences, to enhance their legal expertise and careers prospects

Selection methods

How and when to apply

There is no application deadline for this course. However, if you will need a visa to come to the UK to study, think carefully about the length of time it will take for your visa application to be processed and make sure your visa will be ready in time for the beginning of your course.

Click the green ‘Apply now’ button to submit your application free of charge online through myHub, our application portal. You will create your own myHub account so that you can track the progress of your application. Don’t forget to save your application as you go; you can return to it at as many times as you want before you submit it. For more information visit our How to apply section.

Careers

The course will provide a challenging and stimulating opportunity to enhance your career prospects within a variety of industries and/or the legal profession.

In particular, the course will appeal to:

International students looking for an understanding of commercial trade
Lawyers seeking a specialism or an accreditation to advise commercial clients
Managers in the banking, insurance, carriage and other constituent industries
Recent or mature Graduates (and equivalents) seeking more focused career opportunities
Academic lawyers seeking to expand their knowledge base.

Typical starting job roles

Our students have previously worked for*

Further study

Costs and fees

You can find full information about the deposits required and how to pay your fees in our postgraduate fees and funding section, including details of the new Postgraduate Loans Scheme, offering up to £10,000 of support (subject to fee status).

All fees are quoted in pounds sterling and are per annum. Fees quoted are for tuition only unless stated otherwise. Your tuition fees will be the same for each year of your course.

Find out more about living expenses for postgraduate students

No hidden extras

What’s included in your tuition fee?

Your tuition fee covers expenses associated with your course including tuition materials, access to facilities, mandatory field trips and the following:

Materials for laboratory and field-based teaching activity
Support for finding placements (UK or abroad) and fieldwork, and non-financial support whilst on placement.
A range of student services – advisors, help desks, counsellors, placement support and careers service
The Library – access to a wide range of electronic resources (databases, e-journals and e-books), print and multimedia collections, subject librarians and study spaces
IT labs (some open 24/7), wireless network, AV equipment to borrow
Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) scheme
Disability and additional learning support
The BU Language Centre to help you develop/improve foreign or English language skills
24 hours a day, 365 days a year security team.

Costs of living and other expenses you need to consider

Additional costs

We are committed to offering you value for money and ensuring there are no hidden costs while you are studying with us, therefore we have listed below any additional costs you may incur that are not covered by your tuition fee:

Accommodation and living costs. Our accommodation price guide can be found on our website.
Optional fieldwork travel, outdoor wear and footwear (where applicable)
Text books, general stationery and other supplies. Our award-winning library is stocked with a large range of text books and online resources, free of charge. The Students’ Union shops stock a wide range of stationery supplies on both campuses.
Travel costs to and from your placement (both in the UK and overseas). Information about funding your placement year can be found on our website.

Repeat units

Deposits

International (non-EU) students need to pay a non-refundable £2,000 deposit to secure their place on a postgraduate course. You will need to pay your deposit by the date stated in your offer letter. The remainder of your fee will be payable on registration/enrolment. There are two exceptions to the non-refundable rule on the deposit:

You fail to meet the academic or English requirements of your offer
You are refused a visa to enter the UK, provided the reason for the refusal is not a fraudulent application.

Financial help available from BU

Our staff

On this course you will be taught by staff with relevant expertise and knowledge appropriate to the content of the unit. This could include senior academic staff, qualified professional practitioners and research students, many of whom are actively engaged in research and/or professional practice which is integrated into the teaching of this course. Please note that staff can change.

Dr Marc Mimler - Programme Leader

Dr Marc Mimler is a Senior Lecturer and joined Bournemouth University in 2016. He is a fully qualified German lawyer after obtaining his undergraduate degree in law from the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich and completion of his bar school (Referendariat) at the Higher District Court of Munich. He then obtained a Master’s degree in intellectual property law and a PhD in patent law from Queen Mary’s Intellectual Property Research Institute (QMIPRI) in London. He has been teaching on all fields of intellectual property at various higher education institutions in the UK (e.g. Queen Mary, King's College London, UCL, LSE and Warwick) and abroad. He also used to be founding General Editor of the Queen Mary Journal of Intellectual Property (QMJIP) and currently acts as one of the General Editors of the Interactive Entertainment Law Review (IELR) published by Edward Elgar.

View Marc Mimler's staff profile

Course changes

Changes for 2020 entry

Date	Changes to this course
20/01/20	Where the change was made: Key information Change: 2 year part-time route added for September intake Previous text: 1 year full-time (September start); 16 months full-time (January start)
27/07/20	Where the change was made: Key information Change: 27 months part-time route added for January intake Previous text: N/A
27/07/20	Where the change was made: Course details Change: New core units: Regulation & Policy of International Commerce; Law of International Commerical Transactions New option units: Principles of International Law & International Organisations; International & Comparative Intellectual Property Law; Regulating Informational Interests; International Taxation; Contemporary Issues in Intellectual Property Law Previous text: Units removed: Principles of International Law, International Organisation & the World Trade Organisation; International Dispute Resolution; Law of International Trade; International Intellectual Property Rights; International Direct Taxation

Changes in 2018

Date	Changes to this course
24/10/18	Where the change was made: Key information Change: Location changed to Bournemouth University, Talbot Campus and Lansdowne Campus Previous text: Bournemouth University, Lansdowne Campus.