The Constitutional law course in the Law degree aims to provide students with critical knowledge of constitutional law, as well as with the essential tools to understand the whole State structure, with a special focus on: the Constitutional organization of the State and the relations between the several Constitutional bodies; fundamental rights; freedoms both in their national, European and international dimension; judicial review of legislation and the role of the Constitutional court. During the course a special focus will be dedicated to the sources of law. The knowledge of this topic is preliminary to a right and full understanding of the main subject students will approach during their entire university law degree. The  course’s method combines a theoretical teaching ad a more practical approach, especially through the study of handbooks and main legislation as well as the analysis of case law and the analysis of several topics during seminars, with a particular focus on institutional reforms in Italy in a European and international perspective.

The course lasts one year and it is divided into two distinct semesters.

First semester – General Section

·  Constitutional law and juridical order.

·  State structure and other juridical orders.

·  International order.

·  European Union order: the EU institutions and their relations with the Italian State.

·  The sources of law.

·  Introduction to the study of sources of law: classification charachteristics.

·  The sources of law system: principles and ordering criteria.

·  The integration of sources of law system: national and supranational sources, regional and local sources.

·  Analysis of the main types: Constitution and Constitutional laws; primary sources; secondary sources, regulative facts.

·  Fundamental rights.

·  The organization of politcal power.

·  The sovereignity of the people.

·  The Parliament.

·  The President of the Republic.

·  The Government.

·  Regional and local governments in the State of autonomies.

·  Public administration.

·  Jurisdictional guarantees.

·  Judicial review and the role of Constitutional Court

·  The italian order and its evolution.

Second Semester – Special part

During the second semester, the lecturer will address some specific issues regarding individual constitutional rights, such as primarily the judicial construction of the sources of law and the specific treatment of individual rights, in order to show to the students, from the beginning of their individual training, the importance of certain topics related to the study of constitutional law.

Learning outcomes:

A) knowledge and understanding: Students must demonstrate their knowledge and ability to understand the matter with regard to the rules and to the main institutions of the Constitutional Law. Students must also demonstrate that they have acquired a good knowledge of the Italian constitutional system as well as a special ability to understand, starting from the normative data, the main practice through the development of their own original ideas also in a context of research of legislation, case law and juridical bibliography. 

B) applying knowledge and understanding: Students must demonstrate theri ability to interpret and apply the acquired knowledge along with  skills and understanding about problems of constitutional law. Students will be able to interpret and apply the rules of Italian constitutional order, including constitutional jurisprudence, with reference to concrete and specific contexts, identifying, interpreting and applying the rules that characterize each case-study. In this context students must demonstrate the ability to develop legal texts and documents in judicial and extrajudicial contexts. 

C) making judgements: Students must show ability to interpret national legal standards. Students will be able to integrate the knowledge gained from the references to both theoretical and practical enforcement of Constitutional Law. In this case students will consider the functional dynamics of the form of government and the concrete problems of protection of fundamental rights. Moreover students will consider the social responsibilities and involvements tied to the their developed knowledges and judgments. 

D) communication skills: Students must clearly communicate and argue theirobservations and conclusions in discussions during lectures, seminars, working classes, conferences (if organized). Students must demonstrate the ability to present the acquired knowledge with argumentative coherence and a logical, correct and systematic language. 

E) learning skills: Students must demonstrate that they havedeveloped the ability to understand the complexity of the legal and constitutional phenomenon, as well as the learning skills that can enable their to continue studying in a largely self-directed or independent way.  Students must demonstrate that they have achieved learning skills appropriate to continue legal studies with particular reference to a better understanding of additional areas of public law (European Union law, comparative constitutional law, public international law, regional law, administrative law). This also proceeding with a constant updating of their own skills and using the knowledge and tools acquired during the course.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

Special meetings will be organized for attending students in order to help them to get prepared for  mid-term tests

The teaching material made available by the lecturer can be found, together with other supporting activities, inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it. Professor can suggest additional materials and papers during lessons.

Teaching

For attending students:

General part (first semester): lectures

Special part (second semester): lectures, seminars on special topics and case law, conferences held by Italian and foreign scholars and professor; working groups; flipped learning.

During the course a tutorial activity will be organized to support students, as well as exercises on case law.

Attendance

Attending lectures and seminars is not mandatory.

Attending students can support mid-term test to verify their accomplishment. Professor will communicate manners and procedures of the mid-term test during lessons.

Course books

General part of the course, one of the following books:

A. BARBERA – C. FUSARO, Corso di Diritto pubblico, il Mulino, Bologna, last available edition;

R. BIN – G. PITRUZZELLA, Diritto costituzionale, Giappichelli, Torino, last available edition;

For a systematic study of the Constitution:

L. CALIFANO - M. RUBECHI, Guida ragionata alla Costituzione italiana, Maggioli, Rimini, last available edition;

Special part:

Further study and deepening material about the special part of the cours will be reported by Professor and made available to non attending students inside the platform Moodle-blended learning.

Assessment

At the end of the course, to verify the accomplishment, students will take an oral exam, preceded by a written multiple-choices test on the syllabus (30 minutes). Such test is selective and mandatory in order to take the oral exam.

Such method of assessment aims to check, at the same time, student's ability to synthesize, his/her communicative and expressive skills, as well as his/her  successful acquisition of the appropriate legal lexicon.

Attending students can take mid-term tests, following manners and procedures Professor will communicate during class. In any case, students can also decide to take the above-mentioned entire exam at the end of the course.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

During the course a tutorial activity will be organized to support students (also non-attending students), as well as exercises on case law. For any further information students can contact Professor to the mail address: licia.califano@uniurb.it

Attendance

Attending lectures and seminars is not mandatory.

Course books

General part of the course, one of the following books:

A. BARBERA – C. FUSARO, Corso di Diritto pubblico, il Mulino, Bologna, last available edition;

R. BIN – G. PITRUZZELLA, Diritto costituzionale, Giappichelli, Torino, last available edition;

For a systematic study of the Constitution:

L. CALIFANO - M. RUBECHI, Guida ragionata alla Costituzione italiana, Maggioli, Rimini, last available edition;

Special part:

Further study and deepening material about the special part of the cours will be reported by Professor and made available to non attending students inside the platform Moodle-blended learning.

Assessment

At the end of the course, to verify the accomplishment, students will take an oral exam, preceded by a written multiple-choices test on the syllabus (30 minutes). Such test is selective and mandatory in order to take the oral exam.

Such method of assessment aims to check, at the same time, student's ability to synthesize, his/her communicative and expressive skills, as well as his/her  successful acquisition of the appropriate legal lexicon.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Students with “formative debt” can get 3 CFU studying essays from the book:

1) the essay/chapter in L. CALIFANO - M. RUBECHI, Guida ragionata alla Costituzione italiana, Maggioli, last available edition.

2) another essay/chapter in the same book chosen by the student.

Students can request to take the final exam in French, English or Spanish (please, contact Professor).