LLM Specialisms 2012/13

Banking Law and Financial Regulation

[please note: links below are to the 2011/12 course guides; they will be updated when new guides are made available during the summer vacation]

London is a leading international financial market, and the UK is pre-eminent in developing new approaches to financial regulation. The LSE has been at the academic forefront in interdisciplinary thinking about financial regulation and practice. The LSE's Law Department boasts one of the strongest teams of regulation and financial practice lawyers in the country and many of their books are standard texts in the field. The LSE's location, moreover, allows close contacts with regulators and financial institutions. The courses offered cover the whole field of banking and securities law, both transactional and regulatory. The emphasis is largely international and European, to reflect the globalisation of the financial markets.

Banking Law (H) (LL4Z9): this half-course examines the legal relationship between banks and their customers, its regulation and, in more depth, the payment services which banks provide, domestically and internationally. It is designed to complement other units offered, which explore the financing activities of banks, and the regulation of banks and banking activities.  

Corporate and Financial Crime (LL4B9): an analysis of crimes committed within the commercial and business environment, with particular emphasis on the legal response to the challenges presented by financial crime and unacceptable corporate practices; current perspectives on the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of corporate and financial crime in both civil and criminal jurisdictions

European Capital Markets Law (H) (LL4K9): this half course examines the EU's regulation of the capital markets from regulatory and market integration perspectives. Topics covered include the regulation of investment services and stock exchanges and the EU's attempts to build a culture of household investing. With LL4G9 it forms the full course LL425 (European Monetary and Financial Services Law).

European Monetary and Banking Law (H) (LL4G9): this half course examines the institutional structures and legal rules which underpin the EU's monetary system and its integrated banking market. Topics covered include the legal underpinnings of European Monetary Union and the EU's regulation and supervision of banking markets. With LL4K9 it forms the full course LL425 (European Monetary and Financial Services Law). [not offered 2012/13]

European Monetary and Financial Services Law (LL425): the institutional and legal underpinnings of the European financial economy, including banking, securities and insurance. [not offered 2012/13]

Financial Law (H) (LL4H4): the traditional financial market sectors of insurance, commercial banking, derivatives, capital markets and asset management are converging in practice, but their academic analysis is still largely sector-based. This course offers a cross-sectoral, functional analysis, permitting students to grasp the big picture. It highlights certain anomalies in differing legal treatment of the respective sectors, and considers key trends.

Investment Funds Law in Europe (H) (LL4A5): this course examines the law and regulations governing collective investment funds in the UK and selected European jurisdictions (e.g. Germany, Italy, Sweden) and also relevant EU regulation. It will include a study both of investment funds law of the countries selected and a comparative assessment of the development and current features of the collective investment fund industry in the European context.

The Law and Practice of International Finance (H) (LL4F2): legal analysis of the transactional practice of the international financial markets, broadly based on the activities of investment banks operating in London.

Law of Corporate Finance (LL437): the types of capital structures which are available to companies; the agency problems which different types of financing generate between management and investors; and the operation of capital markets as intermediaries between investors and issuers, or as facilitators of the transfer of investor interests independently of the ownership of corporate assets. (this course is also available as two half units LL4G8 and LL4K8) [not offered 2012/13]

Law of Corporate Finance A (H) (LL4G8): the course examines the private law rules governing how companies raise finance. The issues covered include e.g. capital structures, identifying and protecting shareholder rights, issuing shares, initial legal capital and alternatives, dividends, reduction of capital and share buy-backs, reform and moving to a solvency test and financial assistance. The course will focus on English law, but will also look at other legal systems in particular at German law.

Law of Corporate Finance B (H) (LL4K8): this half course addresses the regulation of capital-raising through the markets. Topics covered include: disclosure theory; the role of trading markets in finance-raising; prospectus disclosure; ongoing disclosure; market abuse; and the internationalization of capital-raising. Together with LL4G8 it forms the full course LL437 (Law of Corporate Finance). [not offered 2012/13]

Law of International Economic and Financial Sanctions (H) (LL4K2): covers economic and financial sanctions against States and non-State actors. The course addresses multilateral programmes established by the UN and EU and unilateral measures instituted by individual States, implementation of sanctions within domestic legal systems, issues arising in international law and human rights, and effects on third parties.

Legal Risk in the Financial Markets (H) (LL4D5): examines the relationship between legal risk and legal reform in the financial markets including political, reputational and other kinds of key risk and relationships.

Project Finance and Public Private Partnerships (H) (LL4C9): An examination of legal issues involved in project finance and public private partnerships, including analysis of transaction structures and risk allocation, the principal legal issues arising in finance and project documentation (including government concessions) and particular issues affecting transitional jurisdictions.

Regulation of Financial Markets (LL484): the regulation of financial markets, focusing on the economic theories of how markets operate and the different forms of financial market regulation.

Regulation: Legal and Political Aspects (LL446): theories and case studies of regulation encountered in public policy, administration, legal literature, examining the origins, development and reform of regulation; the styles and processes of regulation; the issues surrounding enforcement; the inter-organizational and international aspects of regulation; and questions of evaluation and accountability.

Secured Credit in English, Comparative and International Law (LL4K3): this course deals with the grant of proprietary security in lending transactions and with title-based devices that serve the same security purpose. It covers a wide range of transactions and focuses principally on English law with extensive treatment of international conventions and model principles, as well as numerous references to other legal systems, both common law and civil law. [not offered 2012/13]

Secured Financing in Commercial Transactions (H) (LL4F1): the nature of property rights, the legal and policy issues raised by the creation of and special protection afforded to proprietary interests, and the impact of different property rights on insolvency.