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A module which studies the legal constitution and regulation of personal relationships, as well as how that regulation affects individuals’ relationships with the state.

In this module you will study the legal constitution and regulation of personal relationships, and how that regulation affects individuals’ relationships with each other and with the state. We look at the problems people encounter in those relationships and the legal responses to those problems. We are as concerned with what actually happens in practice and the policy behind it as with the law as stated in the books.

We will explore law’s role in constituting, regulating and dissolving family relationships, including those between adults, between adults and children and between families and state institutions. You will be asked to think about financial issues, family violence and the care of children.

We will look at families and family law in their social and cultural contexts. We consider not just what the law is but why it is what it is and what significance, if any, attaches to this. The following texts are recommended: R George, S Thompson and J Miles, Family Law: Text, Cases and Materials (OUP, 2023) and J Herring, Family Law (Longman, 2023). To get to grips with the social and policy implications of the subject, though, you’ll be directed also to a range of reading beyond cases and textbooks.

This module should engage you with current controversy and give you an insight into state policy; the position of women and men, of parents and children and of families and the state; and the way the law interacts with and regulates the contemporary family.

Full module information is available in the ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Module Catalogue.

·¡±ô¾±²µ¾±²ú¾±±ô¾±³Ù²â:ÌýStudents from other ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº departments or UoL institutions must be in their final year of study, and must have a background in law or have successfully completed at least one Laws module for entry onto this module.

Students outside of the ¹û¶³Ó°Ôº Faculty of Laws should consult the registration instructions on our website.