★ Must-know
Further detail
The course is taught by Aurélie Duffy-Meunier in lectures and Max Brouwer in tutorials.
Course lessons use reading lists, a bibliography, PowerPoint, and interactions, and are conducted without screens.
The course emphasizes consistency as the key to success in tutorials.
★ Must-know
In June 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6–3 in Trump v. Barbara / Trump v. State that the Constitution guarantees automatic birthright citizenship and struck down the executive order seeking to deny it to children born in the United States to undocumented immigrants or temporary visa holders.
In February 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6–3 in Trump v. IEEPA that the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act did not authorize the president unilaterally to impose global tariffs, which the Constitution reserves to Congress.
Further detail
In April 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ordered the administration in Noem v. Abrego Garcia to facilitate the return of a person mistakenly deported to El Salvador.
In the 2026 White House Ballroom case, the National Trust for Historic Preservation lacked legal standing because it had not shown a concrete injury.
The Secure America Act, advanced or signed into law in mid-2026, fully funds border-enforcement infrastructure and targeted removal of criminal non-citizens.
In July 2026, Prince Harry lost a distinct phase of his privacy litigation against Associated Newspapers in the High Court.
In 2026, the UK Supreme Court granted permission to challenge the lawfulness of proscribing Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act 2000 in R (on the application of Ammori) v Secretary of State for the Home Department.
In A Reference by the Attorney General for Northern Ireland of a devolution issue [2026] UKSC 16, the UK Supreme Court altered the legal definition of deprivation of liberty under Article 5 of the ECHR for people lacking mental capacity.
The European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 is identified as Brexit legislation in the United Kingdom.
★ Must-know
📌 The Cour de cassation held in June 2026 that a GDPR violation alone does not create a right to compensation; the claimant must demonstrate material or non-material damage caused by the violation.
Further detail
The course lists a French End of Life / Assisted Dying Act in July 2026 and an Agricultural Sovereignty Act 2026.
In June 2026, the Conseil d’État dismissed a challenge to the President of the Republic’s decision concerning the loan of the Bayeux Tapestry because it concerned France’s international relations.
On 14 August 2026, the Conseil constitutionnel issued Decision No. 2026-911 DC and struck down Article 1 of a law intended to protect minors from social-media risks.
★ Must-know
📌 Legal norms are distinguished from social, sports, fashion, moral, religious, and ethical norms by their source, authority, sanctions, and scope of application.
Further detail
Legal norms carry state-backed penalties; social, religious, fashion, and sports norms operate within their own communities.
★ Must-know
Further detail
French legislation is generally codified in codes, while legislation in the United Kingdom is not codified in the same way in the course’s comparison.
In common-law countries, equity may provide an injunction ordering a person to stop an action instead of merely awarding damages to the injured person.
International law includes international treaties as a type of legal norm.
★ Must-know
Civil law primarily relies on codified statutes and written codes, whereas common law primarily relies on precedent and judicial decisions.
Civil-law reasoning is deductive, applying general abstract rules to particular cases, whereas common-law reasoning is inductive, extracting general principles from particular cases.
In civil-law systems, judges apply law to facts and act as investigators in an inquisitorial system, whereas common-law judges interpret law and set binding precedents within an adversarial system.
Common-law precedent is binding, so lower courts must follow higher-court rulings, whereas civil-law decisions are not strictly binding and instead provide persuasive guidance.
Further detail
Civil law is associated with Roman law and is predominant in continental Europe, Latin America, and parts of Asia and Africa, while common law originates in English law and is predominant in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and former British colonies.
Both civil-law and common-law systems aim to maintain social order, resolve public and private disputes, enforce rights and obligations, recognize constitutional hierarchy, separate powers, and protect procedural fairness and the right to a defense.
Civil law reasons from codes down to cases; common law builds principles upward from cases.
★ Must-know
📌 In mixed jurisdictions, private matters such as contracts, property, family law, and successions are commonly governed by civilian codes, while constitutional, criminal, and administrative law and judicial procedure tend to follow common-law mechanisms.
Further detail
Louisiana combines French and Spanish colonial codes and Napoleonic Code influence in private law with U.S. federal constitutional law, state criminal law, and procedural rules.
The 1763 Treaty of Paris preserved French private law in Quebec, which later formally codified that tradition in the Civil Code of Quebec alongside Canadian constitutional, criminal, and administrative law.
Scotland combines Roman-law and continental roots with binding precedent and common-law commercial statutes, but has never enacted a single comprehensive Civil Code.
Examples of distinctive civilian concepts are:
Picture a jurisdiction with civilian private-law codes on one side and common-law public law and procedure on the other.
★ Must-know
Further detail
1066 conquest → royal courts → precedent and legislation.
★ Must-know
📌 Article 6 of the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen states that law expresses the general will, citizens may participate personally or through representatives in its formation, and law must be the same for all whether it protects or punishes.
📌 The statute of 16–24 August 1790 prohibited courts from participating in legislative power, making regulations, or interfering with administrative functions, and required judges seeking to interpret or create a law to refer the matter to the legislative body.
Further detail
📌 Article 4 of the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen defines liberty as doing anything that does not harm others and permits legal limits only to secure the enjoyment of the same rights by others.
The Revolution transfers lawmaking authority from the monarch to the general will, supporting legislation and codification.
| Feature | Civil law | Common law |
|---|---|---|
| Primary source | Codified statutes and written codes | Precedent and judicial decisions |
| Reasoning | Deductive: general rule to specific case | Inductive: specific cases to general principle |
| Judge and procedure | Investigator; inquisitorial system | Interpreter and precedent-setter; adversarial system |
| Precedent | Persuasive, not strictly binding | Binding on lower courts |
| Scholars | Influential in drafting and interpreting rules | Secondary to judicial opinions |
| System | Authority | Sanctions | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal norms | State, courts, and codes | Fines or imprisonment | State territory, subject to federal or regional variation |
| Religious norms | Sacred texts and clergy | Spiritual sanctions or conscience | Believers and religious communities |
| Social norms | Custom and etiquette | Disapproval or exclusion | Cultural and social groups |
| Fashion norms | Influencers, industry, and media | Perceived non-conformity | Transient subcultures and groups |
| Sports norms | Governing bodies, referees, and rulebooks | Cards, disqualification, suspension, or fines | Participants in specific sports |
Take a 26-question practice quiz on French Law and Common Law, with every answer explained.
1. Which combination of activities characterizes tutorials conducted without screens?
2. A student wants to improve their performance in tutorials over the term; what does the course identify as the key to success?
Memorize the key concepts of French Law and Common Law with 72 flashcards.
How are tutorials conducted regarding screens?
Without screens.
Which activities are included in the tutorials?
Reading, exercises, debate, essays or dissertations, case briefs and comments, moot court, and exam preparation.
What did the Supreme Court rule in June 2026 about birthright citizenship?
The Constitution guarantees automatic birthright citizenship.
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