Guidance Bachelor in Law
Professor Michael Riegner is the subject advisor for the BA Law. You can find answers to the most frequently asked questions on the faculty's FAQ website. Please direct any additional, subject-specific questions about the BA Law programme by e-mail to Christel Fliedner.Questions about your individual study planning and allocation should first be discussed with your mentor. General questions about studying that do not specifically concern law should be directed to the general student advice and counselling service.
Supervisor of BA and MA theses
Supervision requests for BA and MA theses in the major field of law and within the academic focus of the professorship should be directed to Prof. Michael Riegner, including a brief outline of the proposed topic.
Titles of previously supervised BA theses:
- "The Implementation of the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings in Germany: Necessity and Elements of a Rights-Based Approach" (BA Winter Term 2022/23)
- "Legal Remedies against Violations of International and Human Rights in the Context of the EU's Externalization of Migration Management" (BA Summer Term 2023)
- "The Global Networking of the Anti-Abortion Movement: Characteristics and Consequences Using the Example of Germany" (BA Summer Term 2023)
- "Germany’s Responsibility under International Law in the Case of Colonia Dignidad" (BA Summer Term 2023)
Titles of previously supervised MA theses:
- "The Impact of Court Rulings on the Rights of Nature on the Media Discourse: A Discourse Analytical Perspective" (MA Summer Term 2022)
- "Fixed-Term Employment Contracts With and Without Objective Grounds: Status Quo and Need for Reform" (MA Winter Term 2022/23) (Second Supervisor)
- "The Core Content of the Free Democratic Basic Order and its Constitutional Protection" (MA Summer Term 2025)
- "Special Police Units – Between High-Risk Operations, Public Order, and Fundamental Rights Interference. Subtitle: The Tension Between State Security and Individual Rights: A Legal-Dogmatic Analysis of the Legal Justification and Oversight of Special Police Unit Operations in Cases of Terrorism, Hostage Situations, and Organized Crime." (MA Summer Term 2025)
offered courses in winter semester 2024/2025
The Global Justice Clinic integrates three core activities: teaching, research, and legal activism. In the Clinic course, students engage in the analysis and resolution of actual cases pertaining to human rights. The seminar is structured around a series of interrelated thematic teaching units. In these units, the theoretical and practical issues related to the international protection of human rights and the relations between the Global South and North are discussed in depth.
The objective is to prepare students for the final deliverable, which is being developed in collaboration with the Slave Labor and Human Trafficking Clinic of the Faculty of Law of the Federal University of Minas Gerais (Clínica de Trabalho Escravo e Tráfico de Pessoas da Faculdade de Direito da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais), Brazil. The collaboration is centered on the issue of slave labor on Brazilian coffee plantations. The coffee produced in this region is exported to Germany and other countries within the European Union. In this regard, the enactment of the German Supply Chain Act (LkSG) and the adoption of the EU Directive on Corporate Sustainability Impact Assessments have brought the potential exploitation of laborers in the production of coffee imported from Brazil to the fore for Germany and the entire European Union.
In this context, students will undertake an interdisciplinary analysis of the existence of slave labor in the production chains of coffee consumed in Germany and the consequences of the German Supply Chain Act.
The course will be conducted in German, with guest lectures delivered in English. Moreover, a selection of the course bibliography will be made available in English.
The course can be accessed via Moodle under the title "[WS 2024] Global Justice Clinic (BA): Internationaler Menschenrechtsschutz und Modern Slavery " is open for enrollment using the provided enrollment key.
* The course is part of the teaching project, "Clinical Education in Global Justice," which is funded by the Foundation for Innovation in Higher Education. Further information can be found on the chair's website under "Projects" and "Global Justice Clinic."
Today, human rights practitioners are faced with a contradictory situation. On the one hand, the expansion of human rights claims into more and more areas of social life from supply chain due diligence to the climate crisis continues. On the other hand, the human rights community suffers from a growing sense of crisis. The existing framework of human rights seems incapable to address the magnitude of today’s global challenges and shrinking spaces for transnational civil society cooperation and various contestations challenge the very concept of human rights and the material conditions for human rights activism.
In this course, students work on real case studies from human rights practice supervised by practitioners. Over the course of the semester, they are introduced to the principles of human rights law and advocacy. As they cooperate with partners, students are furthermore encouraged to observe and reflect on human rights practice from ethnographic, critical theoretical, and organizational perspectives, thereby building a comprehensive practical and structural understanding of human rights today.
The course is interdisciplinary and addressed to students with or without prior legal knowledge. The course will be held in English language. Grading will be based on coursework done in project groups in cooperation with partner organisations from practice.
offered courses in summer semester 2024
The human rights responsibilities of businesses are gaining increasing importance in German and international law. In this course, students work on real case studies from business and human rights practice. A particular focus will be on human rights-based governance of transnational value chains, as exemplified by the German Supply Chain Law of 2021 and similar regulations in comparative and European law. Invited guests from human rights practice and business will give insights into their practical work and supervise the group work on the case studies. The course will be held in English language. Grading will be based on coursework done in project groups in cooperation with partner organisations from practice. The course is also open for MPP students. The course is part of the project “Clinical Education in Global Justice” funded by the Foundation for Innovation in Higher Education; more information on the project here.
Winter semester 2023/24
You can find more information about the course on the Moodle learning platform. Please enrol there using the university-wide enrolment key.
For the first course you will need a text edition of the Basic Law. Further literature and materials can be found on Moodle.
Course date
07.12.2023 - 08.02.2024 Thursday 12:00-14:00h, HS1 KIZ, individual dates online
08.12.2023 - 09.02.2024 Friday 08:00-10:00h, HS 1 KIZ, individual dates online
Module final exam on 09.02.2024, 08:00-10:00h
Repeat attempt on 08.03.2024 08:00-10:00h
Content
The aim of the course is to impart basic knowledge about some selected fundamental rights that are characteristic for the free democratic basic order as well as the economic constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany (Art. 5, 8, 9, 12, 14 as well as Art. 1, 2 and 3 GG). The most important elements of the general doctrine of fundamental rights (bearers of fundamental rights; scope of protection, doctrine of limits, proportionality and guarantee of essence) are integrated into this presentation. The entire presentation is guided by the leading cases of the Federal Constitutional Court.
Summer semester 2023
You can find more information on the procedure and literature in the corresponding Moodle course. Please enrol there yourself using the university-wide enrolment key for the summer semester.
Course date
Wednesdays 10-12h, LG 1/326
Content
The human rights responsibility of business enterprises is gaining importance in German and international law. In this course, students work on real case studies from practice in the field of business and human rights. A special focus is on human rights governance of global supply chains as required by the German Supply Chain Act of 2021 and comparable foreign and European regulations. Guest lecturers from human rights practice and business provide insights into their practical work and supervise group work on the case studies.
Information on the previous cycle of the clinic event can be found here.
Winter semester 2022/2023
You can find more information about the course on the Moodle learning platform. Please enrol there using the university-wide enrolment key.
For the first course you will need a text edition of the Basic Law. Further literature and materials can be found on Moodle.
Course date
01.12.2022-02.02.2023, Thursday 12:00-14:00h, HS1 KIZ, individual dates online
02.12.2022-03.02.2023, Friday 08:00-10:00h, HS 1 KIZ, individual dates online
Module final exam on 3.2.2023, 8.00-10.00h
Retest on 2.3.2023, 12.00-14.00h
Content
The aim of the course is to convey basic knowledge of some selected fundamental rights which are characteristic for the free democratic basic order as well as the economic constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany (Art. 5, 8, 9, 12, 14 as well as Art. 1, 2 and 3 GG). The most important elements of the general doctrine of fundamental rights (bearers of fundamental rights; scope of protection, doctrine of limits, proportionality and guarantee of essence) are integrated into this presentation. The entire presentation is guided by the leading cases of the Federal Constitutional Court.
Winter semester 2021/2022
Important note
Information on the end-of-semester exam can be found on the Moodle learning platform.
Information on the online lecture Basic Rights can now be found on Moodle.
Course date
02.12.2021-03.02.2022, Thursday 12:00-14:00
03.12.2021-04.02.2022, Friday 08:00-10:00
Exam dates
1st written exam: 11.02.2022, 08:00-10:00
2nd written exam: 11.03.2022, 08:00-10:00
Examination
3 LP (module examination)
Content
The aim of the course is to convey basic knowledge of some selected fundamental rights that are characteristic of the free democratic basic order as well as the economic constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany (Articles 5, 8, 9, 12, 14 as well as Articles 1, 2 and 3 of the Basic Law). The most important elements of the general doctrine of fundamental rights (bearers of fundamental rights; scope of protection, doctrine of limits, proportionality and guarantee of essence) are integrated into this presentation. The entire presentation is guided by the leading cases of the Federal Constitutional Court.