Law – Constitutional Law

This programme gives the students a thorough knowledge of the major provisions of Bunreacht na hEireann 1937 and of their effect on other areas of law.

This programme is an ECTS 10 credit module of the Law Degree.

On completion of this programme, students should be able to:

Describe the basic structure of government in Ireland and its historical development;

Describe, evaluate and explain the role of constitutional law in ensuring respect for human rights and democratic governance;

Identify and apply relevant constitutional law principles and doctrines for the purpose of solving hypothetical factual problems;

Critically examine the role of judicial interpretation in the development of constitutional law;

Apply critical analysis and problem solving techniques to both essay and problem-based questions on the implications of constitutional provisions;

Construct and produce analytical and persuasive writing on fundamental issues in the development of Irish constitutional law, grounding such analysis in the text of the Constitution and constitutional case law;

Critically appraise case law interpreting the Constitution and formulate reasoned and persuasive positions on the future development of constitutional law;

Critically evaluate and distinguish between the efficacy of the Irish constitutional framework and the constitutional frameworks of other jurisdictions.