module specification

Consumer Rights Law is a 30-week module providing students with a thorough understanding of modern consumer rights in relation to the acquisition of goods and services.  As well as studying the traditional requirements of a sale of goods contract, students will also examine the laws of consumer financing and credit, statutory liability for dangerous and defective products, the law regarding the unfair trading practices and the principles and responsibility for regulation of the consumer market.
 
The module will be of interest to all students who wish to develop a comprehensive understanding of modern consumer rights and responsibilities in relation to goods, services and digital content.  The module is relevant to a range of careers in law, retailing and consumer advice and marketing of goods and services.

The module aims to provide a detailed, critical and evaluative knowledge of laws which regulate modern commerce; enable students to appreciate the regulation of the consumer market and create an awareness of consumer advice roles. 

There will be a formative in-class assessment which will test the students’ basic understanding of key legal principles and concepts.  This will be designed to ensure that their knowledge is adequate for the summative assessments to follow.

The syllabus includes the following:

Introduction

Commercial awareness of consumer sale transactions in a modern economy

Regulation of the Consumer Market

The powers and work of the Competition and Markets Authority and Financial Conduct Authority
Trading Standards Departments
Codes of Practice. 

Consumer Sales Contracts (goods and digital content) and Supply of Services Contracts

The Consumer Rights Act 2015
Formation of consumer contracts
Express and implied terms
Exclusion clauses and unfair contract terms
Passing of ownership and risk
Passing of title and third party rights (and exemptions)
Rejection and financial remedies.

Supply of Services Contracts and Consumer Remedies

Liability for dangerous and defective products under the tort law
The Consumer Protection Act 1987
The General Product Safety Regulations 2005.

Unfair Trading Practices

Misleading advertising and price descriptions
Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008

Consumer credit and financing under the Consumer Credit Act 

Financing consumer transactions.

LO 1 and 2

Learning and Teaching Strategy

Weekly two-hour lecture and one-hour seminar. 

The lecture will be used for:

Dissemination of knowledge through an overview of each topic with detailed guidance on appropriate aspects;
An introduction to relevant academic literature;
Guidance on learning strategies;
Use of blackboard and IT resources;
Whole group questions and discussion.

The seminar will be used for:

Development of skills necessary to attain the module learning outcomes through:
Written and oral questions/answers designed to reinforce fundamental rules/principles/cases;
A range of step by step writing exercises;
IT tasks such as research of cases and statutes
Problem-solving
Legal writing

Blended Learning

All learning materials, previous examination questions and sample Q/A’s will be on blackboard for use in directed private study.
Student engagement will be encouraged in both lectures and seminars through weekly use of Weblearn for access to all of the above materials.
There will be required use of the professional legal databases, especially Westlaw and Lexis Library, for legal research

Opportunities for Reflective Learning/pdp

Each weekly seminar will contain space for students to reflect on what they have learnt in relation to the overall syllabus. There will be frequent feedback opportunities structured into the timetable and a range of sample answers posted onto Weblearn.

Employability

Knowledge of the topics covered will enhance students’ employability both within the legal profession and more generally in a range of consumer related activities.  These include legal advice work (e.g. in Consumer Advice Bureaux or in a Trading Standards Department), retailing (e.g. liability for defective products), and consumer regulatory bodies such as the Competition and Markets Authority.  After studying this module, students will possess a substantial body of relevant legal knowledge applicable to the consumer sector. They will appreciate the importance of legal liability and regulation in relation to goods, services and the financing of consumer transactions.

Student’s Study Responsibilities

The need for attendance, punctuality, preparation and engagement will be emphasised with particular reference to written and IT research, problem-solving, team-work, discussion, debate and critical awareness of the subject.

On successful completion of this module, students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate critical thinking, problem-solving and communication skills in the context of the legal principles applied in a realistic modern commercial environment

2. Work both independently and collectively to locate, examine and interpret primary and secondary sources of consumer rights law, and to present a critical analysis in the form of a properly drafted and referenced written essay or report.

1. Written coursework (2,000 – 2,500 words)

The first assessment will be a piece of written coursework which focuses on a practical application of legal principles in a commerce environment. A flexible simulation will be used and will allow students to demonstrate knowledge of legal principles applied in a realistic simulated modern commerce environment. This assessment will target the development of students’ critical thinking, problem-solving, communication and presentation skills.

2. Written coursework (2,000 – 2,500 words)

The second assessment will be a piece of written coursework which will test students’ research skills as well as their critical and evaluative knowledge of the laws which regulate modern commerce.  Work for the preparation of the assessment task will begin in the seminars and will involve students working together in groups for a common purpose.  The final coursework will be an individual piece of writing and will demonstrate a culmination of knowledge and skills developed throughout the module.

Core Texts:

Rose, Blackstone’s Statutes on Commercial and Consumer Law (Blackstone)
Woodroffe and Lowe, Consumer Law and Practice (Thomson Sweet and Maxwell)

Other Texts:

Atiyah, Adams and MacQueen, Atiyah’s Sale of Goods (Pearson)
Bridge, Benjamin’s Sale of Goods (Sweet and Maxwell)
Dobson, Sale of Goods and Consumer Credit (Sweet and Maxwell)
Dobson and Stokes, Commercial Law (Sweet and Maxwell)
Goode and McKendrick, Commercial Law (Butterworths)

Electronic Databases:

Westlaw and Lexis Library

Websites:

UK Government Legislation: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/
The Competition and Markets Authority https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/competition-and-markets-authority
The Financial Conduct Authority: https://www.fca.org.uk/
EU Consumer Affairs: http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/rights/index_en.htm
UK Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-business-energy-and-industrial-strategy
UK, European Consumer Centre: http://www.ukecc.net/
UK Trading Standards Institute: https://www.tradingstandards.uk/consumers