Law School Modules involving Evidence, Criminal Law or Criminal Procedure

Foundation Year Law in action:

This year-long module is designed to introduce Foundation Year law students at Northumbria to the real world of criminal and civil legal practice. Working within the Law School’s vibrant community of academic and legal practitioners, students will focus on two fictitious case scenarios of the kind that criminal and civil practitioners regularly encounter in practice. They will begin to develop key legal skills of oral and written communication, fact management, case analysis and legal research – skills that are central to the work of the practising lawyer. Students will also begin to develop knowledge of crime and tort law as they start to address the legal issues in their case. The knowledge and skills Foundation Year students develop in this module will be invaluable in their later studies on the law degree, as well as in their future legal careers. Students will become more confident when identifying solutions to legal problems and when communicating with the public and their peers. They will also begin to appreciate the challenges and opportunities faced by the legal services sector in England and Wales and the broader context within which the law operates.

Criminal Procedure & Evidence: is a compulsory, integrated module on year 1 of the schools LL.B programme combining the study of criminal law, criminal procedure and evidence.
Civil Dispute Resolution: is a compulsory, integrated module on year 2 of the schools LL.B programme combining the study of tort (civil) law, civil procedure and evidence and dispute resolution.
Criminal Law LL.B Full Time: This module is a year 1 compulsory module in substantive criminal law delivered to students on the LL.B (hons) programmes, including Law with Business and Law with International Business and satisfied the qualifying law degree requirements for the study of criminal law on those programmes.
GDL Criminal Law: This module is a compulsory module in substantive criminal law delivered on the GDL (CPE) conversion course and satisfies the qualifying law degree requirement for the study of criminal law on the GDL.

Policing Apprentices

The PCDA is an exciting new degree apprenticeship in partnership with Northumbria police. This course enables student officers to gain practical experience whilst studying law and criminology modules in relation to their role.

The BSc in Professional Policing

The BSc in Professional Policing is a research rich programme which draws from criminology, law, forensic science, fraud management and investigation, and cybercrime. You will learn from the experts, from a range of subject-area backgrounds, about the future challenges facing contemporary policing and the innovative responses being developed to address them. The policing degree will address critical questions that span expertise in Social Sciences, Law, Psychology, and Business allowing you to explore problems not only from a criminological, but also a sociological, legal and cultural perspective relating to the role, function and philosophical approaches to policing.

LPC Criminal Litigation: This module forms part of the Legal Practice Course. The module comprises a concise overview of the key principles of criminal procedure and evidence in a practical context.
LPC Civil Litigation: This module forms part of the Legal Practice Course. The module comprises a concise overview of the key principles of civil procedure and evidence in a practical context.
BAR COURSE (Criminal and Civil Litigation): Criminal Litigation and Evidence & Criminal Professional Practice: These compulsory modules form part of the Bar Course and allow students to study key criminal and evidential principles in detail and in a practical context.
BAR COURSE (Criminal and Civil Procedure): Civil Litigation and Evidence & Civil Professional Practice: These compulsory modules form part of the Bar Course and allow students to study key civil and evidential principles in detail and in a practical context.

LLM Framework

Criminal Justice: Comparative Law of Evidence

Presenting and assessing evidence is an essential part of the criminal justice system in general and the criminal process in particular. This module takes a cross-jurisdictional look at evidence in legal settings. It articulates the decision-making process in various criminal justice systems by exploring the respective normative framework for information management. Different models of proof in domestic (England and Wales) and international criminal justice systems (common law) will be reduced to their central tenets and principles of evidence and proof. Particular emphasis will be laid on the area of law at the intersection of evidence and proof. We will investigate the way in which the criminal process employs expert witnesses and critically analyse the various issues arising from the way legal officials, factfinders and scientists/forensic practitioners communicate with each other. On completion of this module, students should be able to:

analyse and critically discuss principles of evidence law
demonstrate knowledge and understanding of contemporary debates in theoretical and empirical literature about the law of evidence
have an independent ability to further their knowledge about, and research into, the issues arising from the topics and themes and to write about these issues in a structured and academic way.

Criminal Justice and Forensic Science – This module introduces students to theories of justice, principles of criminal law, and criminal justice theory as well as practice. It critically examines the criminal process of England and Wales, and in particular, the institutions of criminal justice and forensic science, studying social and ethical implications of the criminal process, and international trends.

Financial Crime – This module helps students develop a critical understanding of financial crimes, their typologies, and the legal and regulatory framework underpinning responses to financial misconduct. It also encourages students to develop a critical understanding of the ethical and practical implications for individuals, institutions and society arising from investigation, prevention and enforcement of financial crimes such as money laundering, insider dealing, bribery and corruption.

Theories of Punishment

This module introduces students to the main theories of punishment, exploring retributive and consequentialist justifications for punishment, as well as theories which combine elements of both. Students will consider a range of issues including the ethics of imprisonment and capital punishment, as well as alternative approaches to punishment, including restorative justice.