LLM in E Law and Commercial Law

Dr Darius Whelan,

University College CorkLEFIS Workshop – Durham 2004

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UCC Faculty of Law

• Over 500 undergraduate Students (day and evening)

• Over 50 postgraduate Students

• 20 full-time staff

• Strong Research Record

• Website: www.ucc.ie/law/

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Law Online at UCC• Irish partner of BAILII – British and Irish

Legal Information Institute – www.bailii.org

• Irish Legal Information Initiative – www.irlii.org

• Irish Law Site – www.irishlaw.org

• Cork Online Law Review – colr.ucc.ie

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LLM in E Law and Commercial Law

• Only one of its kind in Republic of Ireland• Minor thesis plus six units• Minor thesis (12,500 words) must be on e-Law or

Commercial Law• Compulsory Units:

– Internet Regulation– Current Issues in CyberLaw– Electronic Commerce Law

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• Two units from the area of Commercial Law– Advanced EC Competition Law

– Information Law and Policy

– Principles of Environmental Law

– Intellectual Property Law

– Law of Credit and Security

– Mergers and Acquisitions Law

• One unit either from units above or from:– Contemporary Issues in Irish Constitutional Law;

Challenges in Medical Law and Policy; Criminology; Immigration and Refugee Law; International Criminal Law; Juvenile Justice; Penology

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Internet Regulation• Dr Darius Whelan• Topics:

– Policy Issues– Cybercrime– Intellectual Property– Aspects of Domain Name Law– Online Dispute Resolution (ODR)

• Participation in online mediation & arbitration competition

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Current Issues in CyberLaw• Professor Steve Hedley• Topics:

– Defamation and reputation management – IP issues generally – Jurisdiction – Ownership of links in civil law – Search engines and the law – Access to websites, and website policies – Cookies and anonymity online – Data retention and surveillance – Multi-national law making – Survival of old concepts, and a distinctive ‘cyberlaw’

– Law and control of computer users - Lessig’s Code

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Electronic Commerce Law (1)• Introduction• Online Transactions - Fidelma White:

– E-Commerce: the policy background and the legal framework

– The Formation and Terms of e-Contracts

– Protecting Consumer Buyers

• Electronic Banking - Mary Donnelly:– The Legal Framework for e-Banking

– Electronic Funds Transfers: Legal Issues Arising

– e-Banking: Consumer Concerns and Legal Protections

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Electronic Commerce Law (2)• Online Privacy - Professor Maeve McDonagh:

– Privacy issues in the online environment– Legal protection of privacy: data protection and

electronic communications privacy – Legal protection of privacy in the online

environment

• Electronic Signatures - Darius Whelan:– Electronic Signatures in Europe and USA

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Use of Technology in Teaching (1)• Students trained in use of Internet and Lexis-

Nexis for legal research since 1993

• Emphasis on Technology in delivery of courses– ‘Blackboard’ package– Hyperlinks

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Use of Technology in Teaching (2)• Dedicated computer laboratory for law

students

• Mobile IT Classroom acquired• President’s Award for Research into Innovative

Forms of Teaching – John Mee & Darius Whelan - Research into Use of Technology for Law Teaching and Learning

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Research - Examples• Maeve McDonagh and Louise Crowley working on the Irish

monograph for inclusion in the International Encyclopaedia of Laws: CyberLaw (ed. J. Dumortier), Kluwer Law International, The Hague, 2004

• E-SIGN PROJECT – Study for European Commission on implementation of European regulatory framework for electronic signatures. Researchers: Maeve McDonagh and Fidelma White

• Privireal: Study for the European Commission on the implementation of the Data Protection Directive in the area of medical research: Researchers: Maeve McDonagh and Deirdre Madden

• Donnelly, M. & McDonagh, M. ‘Maintaining Standards in electronic Banking: How does Ireland Measure Up?’ (2000) 7 Commercial Law Practitioner 211-217.

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Industry and Public Sector Links• Links with Matheson Ormsby Prentice, one

of Ireland’s top IT Law Firms, e.g. Postgraduate Scholarship in IT Law

• Link with Department of Communications, Marine & Natural Resources

• Student Placements – e.g. Data Protection Commissioner’s Office; Electronic Privacy Information Center (Washington)

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Other Activities• Seminar to be held 7 May 2004 on E

Law: Law for the Electronic Age • Franklin Pierce Law Center to hold

Summer Institute in Cork, 2005• Irish Partner in ‘Creative Commons’

project• E Law webpages at

– www.ucc.ie/law/lawonline/elaw/