Goals

The primary objective of the Dutch Legal Terminology course is to enable students to read and understand case law and legal scholarship published in Flanders.

While passive knowledge of the written language and appropriate vocabulary is a priority, the course also aims to prepare students to handle concrete situations in which they may need to use Dutch, both orally and in writing.

The main objectives of the course can be summarized as follows:


  • Sound understanding of Dutch-language case law and legal scholarship, and, where relevant, Flemish legislation;
  • Strong command of frequently used legal terms as well as terminology specific to certain areas of law;
  • Comprehension of short news reports and presentations related to legal and political current affairs;
  • Confidence in speaking (on a legal topic).


Content

The course (24 h) is structured according to 11 chapters, covering the different fields of law.

Each student would have to participate to one compulsory session of "TP", where (s)he will have to give an oral presentation (permanent evaluation)

Teaching methods

Each class will be divided into several parts, each designed to develop one of the objectives mentioned above:


  • Discussion on a legal and political current affairs topic, based on a newspaper article (e.g. De Standaard, De Morgen) shared in advance, or a news clip (VRT) (10 minutes)
  • Vocabulary exercise (sentence translation, fill-in-the-blank text, definitions, etc.)
  • Analysis of one or more judgments and/or doctrinal texts through general and targeted questions
  • Review of the material with a short quiz

Preparation: before each class, students will be expected to prepare in advance. This means reading the assigned newspaper article and/or listening to the news clip, as well as completing the syllabus exercises provided and published on Webcampus. Thorough preparation is a key factor in success: by working ahead, each student can take the time they need to read and reflect at their own pace. Moreover, learning a language cannot be achieved in just a few days of cramming before exams. On the contrary, it requires regular practice and repetition.

Assessment method

Use of AI

The exam is a written, on-campus exam with no materials allowed. Students are therefore expected to prepare adequately. However, the use of AI as a training tool, or to help understand texts or vocabulary during class preparation, is permitted.

For the oral presentation, students are allowed to use AI as support. Out of intellectual honesty, they must mention this at the end of the presentation. The use of AI is not penalized, as students are primarily assessed on their communication skills. As for the content of the presentation, which is also evaluated, AI may serve as an aid. Nevertheless, it is the student’s responsibility to ensure the accuracy of the information provided.


Assessment

The course will be assessed as follows:

  • A written exam (16 points) consisting of open-ended questions on one or two legal texts (case law or doctrine) and a presentation, sentence translations, as well as explanations of concepts and/or excerpts from legislation, case law, or doctrine.
  • An oral presentation (4 points). Students will be assessed on their research on the topic, the vocabulary used, the clarity of their presentation, their fluency, and the quality of their answers to questions.

Bonus:


  1. Particularly active participation in class may positively influence the oral presentation grade.
  2. During the final or penultimate class (date to be confirmed), there will be a short test based on the comprehension of a spoken news excerpt, allowing students to earn up to 1 bonus point on the written exam.

The written exam will take place in January and in August/September.

Sources, references and any support material

A course syllabus will be made available to students. It will include the exercises and texts to be read, as well as the related vocabulary.

Language of instruction

French
Training Study programme Block Credits Mandatory
Bachelor in Law Standard 0 3
Bachelor in Philosophy Standard 0 4
Bachelor in Law Standard 2 3
Bachelor in Philosophy Standard 2 4
Bachelor in Philosophy Standard 3 4