Commercial Law and Market Regulation

• Credit value: 30 credits at Level 7
• Convenor and tutor: Guido Comparato
• Assessment: a 4000-word essay (100%)

This module focuses on the relationship between commercial law, market regulation and society. It addresses the evolution of commercial law placing it in its socio-economic and historical context from a comparative and international viewpoint. It introduces and critically appraises the interaction between private autonomy and market regulation, the role of legal certainty and market efficiency in the regulation of private economic relationships, and the different theories of market regulation. The module will give you a critical theoretical understanding of commercial law and of the role that it plays in our society.

Indicative module syllabus

• Old and new lex mercatoria
• Private autonomy and public policy
• Legal certainty, economic efficiency and justice
• The regulation of national and international markets
• Theories of the firm and corporate entities
• Varieties of capitalism and the law
• Financial stability and sustainability
• Private power and competition
• Business ethics and corporate social responsibility
• The future of commercial law

By the end of this module, you will:

• understand and be able to assess key principles of commercial law and market regulation
• understand the socio-economic dimensions, both national and international, of commercial law
• be able to critically appraise the different approaches to the regulation of market relationships
• possess a solid theoretical framework to critically understand the specific commercial law topics which will be addressed in other modules.