卡迪夫大学

Overview

Develop your knowledge of Ecclesiastical Law on the first postgraduate programme of its kind in the UK. Our LLM in Canon Law is the first degree of its type at a British University since the Reformation. The programme provides an opportunity to study the canon law of the churches of the worldwide Anglican Communion, particularly the Church of England, and the Roman Catholic Church as well as the regulatory systems of other Christian traditions worldwide. This programme provides an opportunity for critical appraisal of ecclesiastical and canon law, in the context of relevant national and international secular law, in fields such as church government and ministry, doctrine, liturgy and rites, and property. The course works from an inter-disciplinary perspective. Although its principal focus is the substantive law, it seeks to explain, understand and evaluate church law from the perspectives of theology, history, sociology, and civil law. One key element in study, is to uncover the ecumenical potential of the comparative study of church laws to promote Christian unity among different churches worldwide. The LLM Canon Law programme is suitable for those who practise or are involved in the administration of church law and for those wishing to pursue an interest in this developing field of legal scholarship. The teachers on this course are drawn both from the field of academic law and religion and the practice of church law.

Course structure

The programme is delivered in two stages. Stage one (the taught component) comprises four, compulsory 30 credit modules; stage two comprises the dissertation. Stage one will run over two years and you will take two modules in each year; you will be taught and assessed in one module per semester. You will progress to the dissertation upon successful completion of stage one.

Learning and assessment

Studying at postgraduate level is intensive and challenging and it is important that you take full advantage of the teaching that is provided in order to succeed. Attendance at all classes is compulsory and we will expect you to be well prepared. Your modules will be delivered through seminars and lectures during residential weekends, individual and joint written oral presentations and distance learning.Formative assessments do not count towards your degree but are designed to give you the opportunity to practice for your summative assessments and enable you and your tutors to assess your progress in your modules. Formative assessments will normally involve written coursework or a class test or may comprise individual student presentations. Your marks in summative assessments count towards your final award. Each LLM Canon Law module is summatively assessed by one 5000 word essay. The dissertation (up to 15,000 words) comprises the stage two summative assessment.

Career prospects

Students successfully completing the LLM Canon Law have the opportunity to continue their legal study through the School’s PhD programme or through the Centre for Professional Legal Studies professional programmes (the Legal Practice Course or Bar Professional Training Course).