Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Exercising the Legal Profession
Other languages of instruction: Catalan
Teaching staff
Reyes Alcón: ralcon@uic.es
Office hours: Monday to Friday from 9.30 a.m. to 1.30 p.m. In all cases an email should be sent in advance to arrange an appointment.
Any queries regarding the progress of the module, its content or its assessment should be addressed to the course coordinator, Prof Carlos de Miranda at cdemiranda@uic.es.
Introduction
There are some areas of knowledge and skills that lawyers do not learn during their undergraduate studies, but which then are absolutely essential to developing their career, either autonomously or as a member of a collective. These areas include such disparate issues as legal marketing, office tools or economic-administrative aspects of the office (budgets, order sheets, billing, etc.).
Pre-course requirements
None required. The theoretical elements required are contained in the attached materials, in the recommended bibliography and also communicated in the classroom.
Objectives
That students should learn, directly from experienced professionals, the main complementary tools to legal knowledge, which facilitate the proper functioning of a law firm (legal marketing, computer science and office management programmes, administrative and economic management of the firm, etc.).
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- CA04 - Know the different techniques for reconciling conflicting interests and how to find solutions to problems through methods other than the jurisdictional route.
- CA05 - Know and be able to apply professional ethical rights and duties in the lawyer’s dealings with clients, third parties, courts, public authorities and other lawyers.
- CA06 - - Know and assess the different responsibilities associated with professional practice, including the basic principles of offering free legal assistance and promoting the social responsibilities of the lawyer.
- CA07 - Know how to identify conflicts of interest and know the techniques used to resolve them, establishing the scope of professional confidentiality and upholding independent judgement criteria.
- CA08 - Know how to identify the key requirements for the provision and organisation of legal consultancy.
- CA09 - Know and be able to apply in practice the organisational, management and commercial aspects of the legal profession, as well as company, tax and employment law and legislation on the protection of personal data.
- CA10 - Develop skills and abilities to choose the correct strategy for defending the rights of clients, taking into account the demands of the different areas of professional practice.
- CB07 - Know how to apply acquired knowledge and problem-solving abilities in new or little-known surroundings within broader (or multidisciplinary) contexts related to their field of study.
- CB08 - Know how to incorporate acquired knowledge and deal with making complex judgements based on information which, being incomplete or limited, includes reflections on social and ethical responsibilities linked to how they apply their knowledge and judgements.
Learning outcomes of the subject
Students will learn how to:
- Handle the various ways of exercising the profession with ease, as well as the social welfare system that corresponds to it.
- Know and be able to apply to their professional work the regulatory requirements in relation to the prevention of money laundering and the protection of personal data.
- Know the scope and consequences of their potential professional, civil, criminal and disciplinary responsibility, and also to master the legal assurance mechanisms associated with such responsibilities.
- Acquire essential knowledge in terms of professional fees and the essential rudiments relating to a lawyer’s accounting and taxation matters.
Syllabus
• Legal framework for the practice of law: status and legal regime of law and lawyers; access to the profession; professional practice in Spain and abroad.
• Civil, criminal and disciplinary responsibility of the lawyer.
• Forms of exercising the profession and social protection of lawyers.
• Protection of personal data in the practice of law.
• The prevention of money laundering from the professional perspective of the lawyer.
• Essential and indispensable aspects regarding professional fees, accounting and taxation of lawyers.
Teaching and learning activities
In person
The University Master's Degree in Advocacy bases its methodology on the "case method" which consists in studying real-life scenarios and problems that law firms deal with. Students prepare and analyse cases, identify issues and, once in class together with the teacher, either individually or in groups, look for solutions and share the possible alternatives available.
Our intention with the case method is to help students acquire the main skills of a good legal professional such as logical reasoning, ease of oral expression and language proficiency, among others.
The module on the practice of Law consists of 4 ECTS of which 40 hours are teaching and then a minimum of 50 hours work by each student on which they will be assessed.
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
The evaluation consists of two parameters:
• Participation in class: Accounts for 60% of the final mark.
• Written examination consisting of a test and a case study: The average mark of the two parts accounts for 40% of the final mark.