College of Law (CL)
The College of Law is a world-class provider of legal education with an international reputation for quality and innovation in teaching and research.
Owing to its position at a global crossroads in terms of culture, business and geopolitics, Qatar is at the heart of a region that requires leaders who can manage multi-faceted relationships that span different legal systems and who have a command of a wide range of skills. College of Law addresses this need by offering four academic degrees to graduate students from a range of disciplines in the skills needed to understand the diverse legal systems – civil, common, and Sharia – that inform Qatari law and that govern complex events and transactions, both in the region and throughout the globe.
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Courses
Law
LAW 103 Law and Technology 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course examines the relationship between law and technology as well as focuses on Intellectual Property (IP) law. As technology continues to transform society, economy and professions, the course is designed to help students understand the implications of new technologies in policymaking, courts and the legal profession. It provides students with advanced knowledge on topics of law and technology from an international and comparative perspective, covering a broad range of new technologies such as digital platforms, artificial intelligence, blockchain and autonomous weapons.
LAW 600 Colloquium 0 Credits
Grade Mode: Pass/Non Pass
Outreach initiative, where influential guest speakers come to speak to our students and a larger Education City audience.
LAW 601 Law and Global Legal Systems 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course examines the foundations of the law and the formation of legal systems across the world. It focuses on key features of the three major legal traditions (civil, common, and Sharia), and basic elements of the international legal order. The course provides students with the intellectual capabilities that allow them to understand the nature of the Qatari legal system, as well as to reflect on the interaction of legal systems and traditions at the international level.
LAW 603 Global Legal Ethics 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course introduces students to ethical issues in the global practice of law. The course starts with a general introduction to different ethical theories and then situates these theories in different fields of legal practice to illustrate the dilemmas faced by legal practitioners, the approaches that may be adopted and their implications. The fields of legal practice covered will include international commerce, trade and investment, international development, international diplomacy, international human rights and humanitarianism, international dispute resolution and academia.
LAW 605 Research Methods in Law 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course is designed to provide students with the research skills required for graduate studies in law. The course serves three main functions: (a) help LL.M. students develop skills in legal writing as well as research and methodology; (b) expose students to the diversity of and intellectual challenges involved in good legal scholarship, with a focus on the relationship between law and the other social sciences; (c) serve as a forum of peers in which LL.M. students can discuss the methodological challenges involved in their own research.
LAW 611 Introduction to International Law and Foreign Affairs 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course aims to provide an overview of international law in the context of major theoretical traditions of world politics and international relations as well as case studies. It sets out the context, mechanisms and sources of international law and then goes on to focus on the basic concepts and questions, major scholarly traditions, as well as case studies in the study of international politics and foreign affairs. The course covers mainstream and non-mainstream approaches to international relations and foreign affairs as well as case studies, and examines how they have shaped international law.
LAW 650 Property Law 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course addresses the law of real property. Students will assess the historical and theoretical basis for protecting ownership rights and analyze problems relating to division of ownership interests, landlord/tenant relations, sale of land, recordation of property interests, and governmental regulation of land use.
LAW 651 Contract Law 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course examines key issues in contract formation, interpretation, legal capacity, formalities, good faith, gap filling, defect of consent, prohibited contracts, damages and other forms remedies, termination, rights of third parties, as well as elements of private international law of contracts. All topics are explored from the perspective of key civil law jurisdictions, English common law and Qatari law. In addition, contract law is viewed from its transnational lens, particularly the Convention on the International Sale of Goods and the UNIDROIT Principles on International Commercial Contracts.
LAW 652 Injury Law/ Torts 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course provides an introduction to the way common law jurisdictions deal with injuries to persons and property due to civil wrongs. The principal focus is on intentional torts, the tort of negligence, strict liability and vicarious liability. You will identify the remedies available to those who have been harmed and the defences available to those accused.
LAW 653 Constitutional Law 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
Constitutional Design addresses the foundations of the state. The course discusses different constitutional models and the role of the different actors within those different constitutional designs. After a general introduction into constitutional theory the theories are tested and cemented by exploring the role of human rights in different constitutional settings.
LAW 654 International Law 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course provides students with an introduction to law in its global context in this age of trans-national and inter-jurisdictional practice, with particular focus on public international law and its significance to Qatar. It will cover areas such as the use of force, international legal personality, the formation of states, the law of international organisations, the relationship between domestic and international law, the law of immunities, state responsibility and other areas of fundamental importance in the relationship between international actors.
LAW 655 Business Associations 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course introduces students to the different forms of business entities, including general and limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships, limited liability companies, and corporations. It examines both the common law and select regulatory codes regarding these forms of business entities, with a special focus on corporate governance and fiduciary duties of care and loyalty, as well as the important issues of policy that surround the regulation of business entities.
LAW 658 Civil Procedure 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course will examine law regulating civil litigation in common law and civil law systems. Students will assess the jurisdiction of courts, selection of venue, and choice of law.
LAW 659 Commercial Law 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course addresses advanced topics in business law. It will cover the comparative law of corporate control transactions including mergers and acquisitions, hostile takeovers, and leveraged buyouts. The course also introduces students to issues in commercial law and transactions that business entities utilize.
LAW 665 Administrative Law 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course addresses the function of law within the administrative process by taking a comparative perspective on the administrative state within civil and common law systems. The course will assess the goals of the administrative process, rule-making, and the structure of the regulatory state. Particular attention will be given to administrative agencies, judicial review, public inquiries and commissions, and the role of an ombudsman accountability.
LAW 666 Criminal Law & Procedure 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course will introduce students to the fundamental concepts defining criminal law and procedure. All topics will be covered from a comparative perspective, examining wherever possible common, civil, and sharia law.
The course will be divided into three units:
(i) the general theory of crime and punishment;
(ii) the causes of permissibility, such as the legitimate defense, the use of authority and the right of exercising some activities;
(iii) the general theory of punishment. The course concludes with discussions on the general theory of criminal preventive measures.
LAW 667 Legal Analysis, Writing, and Research I 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course introduces the skill of predictive writing: dividing a broad legal question into its component parts, and analyzing it. The course will introduce students to interpreting judicial decisions and carrying out legal research. It is the foundational course for learning about legal analysis and research and helps students synthesize what they are learning in all of the first-year courses
LAW 668 Legal Analysis, Writing, and Research II 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course introduces the skill of transactional drafting: how to evaluate client needs and goals while preparing to negotiate transactions. Introducing students to the types of issues that can arise in these transactions, in order to avoid the potential for litigation. It builds on the predictive methodologies developed in LAWR I.
LAW 669 Legal Analysis, Writing, and Research III 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course introduces the skill of persuasive writing and oral advocacy: turning a dispute record or predictive analysis of a client’s case into an argumentative/ persuasive document likely to persuade the court to rule in the client’s favour. It builds on the analytical and evaluative methodologies developed in LAWR I and II, and it introduces more complex legal research skills.
LAW 675 Ethics & Professional Responsibility 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course seeks to strengthen the ability of students to anticipate, analyze and appropriately respond to some of the critical ethical and social challenges that confront managers in a global economy, with a particular emphasis on the context of science and technology enterprises. It also will introduce students to the ethical framework that is particular to lawyers. Among the topics we will explore are ethical leadership and organizational culture, corporate social responsibility, conflicts of interest and confidentiality, and corruption.
LAW 676 Introduction to the Legal Foundations of the Global Economy 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course offers an overview of the legal foundations of the global economy from an international public and private law perspective. It examines the key aspects of the international regulation of cross-border economic activity, including the regulation of foreign business transactions, trade and investment, as well as the resolution of disputes arising out of cross-border economic activity.
LAW 678 Dispute Resolution (Negotiation and Trial Advocacy) 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course introduces students to approaches to resolving conflict both inside and outside of civil litigation, giving particular attention to trial advocacy, mediation, and negotiation. Introducing students to the skills required to carry out a negotiation, mediation or litigation.
LAW 679 Entrepreneurship Law 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course addresses the range of transactional legal issues encountered during the startup and growth phases of a business organization. The course considers aspects of the transactional process, from initial stages of advising clients on financing, to negotiating agreements, to drafting documents that memorialize agreements, to assessing the implications for conflict resolution where agreements break down.
LAW 692 Legal Internship 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Pass/Non Pass
The internship offers students the opportunity to develop skills within a workplace setting, and allows them to gain experience in an organization, which is focused on issues relating to the degree program’s scope.
LAW 695 LL.M. Thesis 1-6 Credits
Grade Mode: Pass/Non Pass
The LL.M. Thesis is a cornerstone of the LL.M. programs. The students, in consultation with a faculty advisor, will be required to write a research paper within the specialization of the relevant LL.M. program. The aim is for the thesis to be up to 30,000 words and of publishable quality. A final requirement is the successful oral defense of the thesis before the Thesis Evaluation Committee (TEC).
LAW 701 Law Seminar 1 Credit
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
The Law Seminar is an opportunity for students to study and research legal topics outside the regular curriculum. The students, in consultation with the Law Seminar sponsor, will be required to write a Law Seminar Essay within the specialization of the relevant seminar. The Law Seminar Essay must be approximately 7,000 words involving a substantial independent effort on the part of the student, and resulting in a meaningful and substantial scholarly contribution.
LAW 706 Independent Study 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
Independent Study is an opportunity for students to research problems in any field of law. Students enrolled in this course must prepare a research paper of minimum 10,000 words under the supervision of a permanent or visiting faculty member sponsoring their research. The final product must be embodied in a paper involving a substantial independent effort on the part of the student and resulting in a meaningful and substantial scholarly contribution. Work must be completed within one semester.
LAW 721 Qatari Criminal Law: Substance and Procedure 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course introduces students to the complexities of criminal law in Qatar. Particularly, the course delves into summons, arrest, temporary release, searches, and pretrial detention. Examines investigative powers, avoiding defaults, and the impact of defaults. Analyzes the purpose, legal basis, and challenges of criminal action, including military crimes and cybercrimes. In Islamic Criminal Law, focus on crimes within “Hudood,” legal conditions for Shari’a application, Qisas, Diyya, and the court of cassation procedure. Gain comprehensive insights into legal penalties versus Shari’a-based penalties.
LAW 722 Legal Aspects of the Qatari Administrative State 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course embarks on a deep dive into Administrative Contracts, exploring formation, defects, public interest, and contractual breaches. Analyze remedies, contract terms, interpretation, termination, and nuanced aspects like insurance. Uncovers fines on delay and exemptions, ensuring a comprehensive understanding. In Administrative Justice Law, study administrative circuits, first instance courts, and cancellation actions, delving into provisions, admissibility conditions, and appeals. Navigate excluded disputes and explore unique categories like employment, tax, and in persona disputes.
LAW 723 Civil and Commercial Procedure Law in Qatar 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course provides an in-depth exploration of civil law in Qatar including legal actions, procedural laws, and essential linguistic skills for effective legal practice. Examining aspects like indirect actions, debtor invalidation, fictitious lawsuits, detention proceedings, and complexities in will defects. Delving into Qatari procedural law for civil and commercial cases, addressing writs of execution, validity conditions, and implications. Focusing on enhancing Arabic language and literature skills for legal professionals. Students develop a comprehensive understanding, combining theoretical knowledge with practical proficiency.
LAW 724 Law and Society in Qatar: Public Law, Family Law, and the Constitution 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
Students will develop a deep understanding of the legal intricacies surrounding personal and family matters in Qatar, preparing them for legal practice. This course focuses on both Muslims and Non-Muslims. The curriculum is designed to equip students with the necessary knowledge and skills to navigate legal complexities related to personal and family matters in the Qatari context including personal and family status; conflict of laws implications; the legal framework regarding nationality; and labor law.
LAW 750 Energy Law 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course will examine the exploitation of a wide range of energy sources, as well as the national, regional, and international approaches to their regulation and to assessing and managing their environmental impact. An additional focus will be on the public-private relationships that are formed in the energy sector, with attention to international project finance of energy transactions and the use of international arbitration to address investor/state relations.
LAW 751 Global Economic Law and Governance 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This is an advanced course in international economic law. It covers the traditional areas of international economic law (trade, investment and finance); it goes beyond that to explore the foundations of the global economy and global governance, as well as new and emerging areas at the intersection between international and domestic law such as “sovereign financial law.”
LAW 752 Construction & Infrastructure Development 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course explores issues of infrastructure development from a law and public policy perspective. It provides students with an opportunity to understand how public policies and the subsequent legal rules adopted in the field of infrastructure development may diverge despite common inputs and underpinnings, or converge despite different political, social and cultural settings. The course is divided into 5 blocks: law and infrastructure development; infrastructure finance; building and construction law; international infrastructure development law; infrastructure regulation.
LAW 753 Healthcare Law 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This is a comparative course examining healthcare laws in the United Kingdom and Qatar. The purpose of the course is to give you a strong foundation in the major legal issues affecting the health sector. We will examine the structure of the healthcare systems, the influence of lobbyists on healthcare policies, ethics, consent, malpractice, confidentiality, abortion, pregnancy, reproduction, medical research, organ donations, mental health, artificial intelligence, genetics and end-of-life care.
LAW 754 Advanced Human Rights 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course examines the basic concepts and theories of international human rights law, and discusses topical human rights issues in light of international standards. Drawing from the jurisprudence of human rights bodies, it addresses the indivisibility and interdependence of civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights, and focuses on challenges related to their implementation, including in the GCC. It examines topics such as forced disappearances; women’s rights; freedom of speech; minority and indigenous peoples’ rights; and refugee rights.
LAW 756 Advanced Dispute Resolution 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course focuses on alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, with an emphasis on mediation, international commercial arbitration and investment arbitration. Key issues include: formation of the arbitration agreement, party autonomy, sources and rules, the arbitral tribunal and its powers, the relationship of the tribunal to domestic courts, procedural rules, the nature of arbitral awards, enforcement of awards. Similar issues will be explored in investment arbitration. Qatari arbitration law and practice is an important component of the course.
LAW 757 Environmental Law 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course examines the values, assumptions, and guiding principles, which underlie environmental protection and how the Qatari model of environmental protection compares to other comparative global models. This course will examine the robust values, assumptions, and guiding principles, that underlie global environmental protection; and how specific global problems such as climate change, stratospheric depletion of the ozone layer, transboundary movement of hazardous wastes, biodiversity, deforestation amongst others are addressed under domestic and international law.
LAW 760 Sports Law 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course addresses topics in the legal regulation of sports from the perspective of international institutions and select legal regimes including the European Union and the United States. Students will apply principles from such fields as contract law, intellectual property law, business law, administrative law and, and international law to the sport law context. Particular attention is given to issues in Qatari law that impact that development of sports infrastructure.
LAW 761 Law, Technology and Intellectual Property 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course is designed to provide students with advanced knowledge on topics of law and technology in a globalized world. We will analyze aspects of intellectual property law, copyright, data protection, cross-border online speech regulation in the context of platforms and first attempts at reigning in artificial intelligence. The course aims at 1) familiarizing students with legal developments in the United States, the European Union and emerging international standards, and 2) discussing the repercussions of these legal frameworks for Qatar and the region.
LAW 762 International Criminal Law 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course examines both substantive and procedural international criminal law with an emphasis on core crimes, such as genocide and crimes against humanity. The procedural part will focus on enforcement, particularly through the work of international criminal tribunals.
LAW 763 Law, Technology & Intellectual Property I 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course examines the relationship between law and technology as well as focuses on Intellectual Property (IP) law. As technology continues to transform society, economy and professions, the course is designed to help students understand the implications of new technologies in policymaking, courts and the legal profession. It provides students with advanced knowledge on topics of law and technology from an international and comparative perspective, covering a broad range of new technologies such as digital platforms, artificial intelligence, blockchain and autonomous weapons.
LAW 764 Law, Technology & Intellectual Property II 1 Credit
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
This course examines the relationship between law and technology as well as focuses on Intellectual Property (IP) law. As technology continues to transform society, economy and professions, the course is designed to help students understand the implications of new technologies in policymaking, courts and the legal profession. It provides students with advanced knowledge on topics of law and technology from an international and comparative perspective, covering a broad range of new technologies such as digital platforms, artificial intelligence, blockchain and autonomous weapons.
LAW 765 Media and Cultural law 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
This course examines the legal framework that governs media and the cultural/creative sector, including the press and broadcasting; social media; entertainment media; and the audiovisual. It further examines legal principles related to cultural heritage and applies them to museums and cultural institutions. It combines different areas of legal knowledge to address questions related to media freedom and media regulation, cultural heritage preservation, as well as broader questions related to arts, creativity, cultural policies, and the promotion of cultural diversity.
LAW 766 TradeLab 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
Students will work in small groups, supervised by Faculty Members (Academic Supervisors), Teaching Assistants and Mentors, on specific questions of international economic law posed by Beneficiaries, such as government agencies, international organizations, SMEs and NGOs, to help build lasting legal capacity in the relevant areas. The focus areas of the clinic are the international economic law and international trade aspects of industrial policy with a focus on digital and sustainability policies, as well as National security and Geo-economics. At the end of the semester, the students will submit and present output tailored to the Beneficiary’s needs.
LAW 800 S.J.D. Colloquium 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Audit/Non Audit, Pass/Non Pass
The SJD Colloquium aims to provide S.J.D. candidates with an opportunity to present their research projects to their peers, as well as other colleagues and scholars who possess professional expertise in the specific area of law; each S.J.D. candidate has the obligation to present his or her work at least twice per semester. It moreover gives the opportunity to the S.J.D. candidates to be exposed to and discuss seminal scholarship among themselves, other peers and invited faculty members. Twice per semester, the SJD Colloquium convenes as the “Graduate Seminar” with the participation of all graduate students at HBKU College of Law.
LAW 805 Advanced Research Methods in Law 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The main objective of this course is to equip S.J.D. candidates with the necessary set of skills required to carry out independent research at the highest academic level. Participants will be supported to design the theoretical framework of a research project, and a variety of methodological approaches to law and their practical application in individual research projects. Moreover, the aim of the course is to assist S.J.D. candidates to improve their academic writing skills.
LAW 810 Advanced Global Legal Ethics 3 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter
The course provides an in-depth introduction to different ethical theories and their relevance to legal thinking. The ethical theories covered will include utilitarian ethics, deontological ethics, virtue ethics, pragmatist ethics, ethics of care, existentialist ethics, religious ethics, among others. S.J.D. candidates are encouraged to draw on insights from these ethical theories and integrate them into their research.
LAW 890 Dissertation Hours 1-9 Credits
Grade Mode: Pass/Non Pass
The S.J.D. Dissertation is the cornerstone of the S.J.D. program. The S.J.D. Candidates, in consultation with their supervisor, will be required to write a dissertation of publishable quality. S.J.D. Candidates are required to complete an S.J.D. Dissertation up to 100,000 words that makes a substantial and original contribution to legal scholarship. Successful oral defense of the S.J.D. Dissertation is also a compulsory requirement for graduation.
Qatari Law
QL 500 Administrative Law in Qatar 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course covers administrative contracts (and their relationship to other contracts) and administrative justice law.
QL 501 Criminal Law in Qatar 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course covers Criminal Procedure in Qatar (pretrial and trial) and key aspects of Islamic Criminal Law (e.g., “Hudood”; legal conditions for application of Shari’a, Qisas, forgiveness; Diyya; and legal penalty v. Shari’a-based penalty).
QL 502 Practice before Qatar Courts 2 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
The course covers civil actions, civil and commercial procedural law, and Arabic Language and Literature.
QL 503 The Individual in Qatar Society: Legal Aspects 4 Credits
Grade Mode: Standard Letter, Audit/Non Audit
Covers four topics: Personal and Family Status for Muslims;
Personal and Family Status for Non-Muslims (and dealing with Conflict of Laws); Nationality; Labor Law