LawTransform Effects of Rights & Law project builds virtual teaching material consisting of prequalified, relevant lectures that students and scholars can use and match. We aim to strenghten the use of new and innovative digital learning and teaching methods.
Here you will find useful teaching materials produced during previous Bergen Exchanges, organized by topics:
Here you will find useful teaching materials for courses as part of our INTPART project.
Videos taken during Bergen Exchanges 2019:
One of the core LawTransform’s activities is using knowledge produced by research projects based at the centre to improve courses taught at the University of Bergen. On this page you will find the course program and reading list for such courses, at the master’s level.
COURSES SPRING 2022
JUS286-2-A/AORG216: Constitution and Politics (University of Bergen, Faculty of Law and Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Administration and Organization Theory)
This is a course of lectures and seminars for MA and advanced BA students.
The course is an interdisciplinary project between the Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Administration and Organization Theory and the Faculty of Law, and addresses the topic both from a legal and a social science perspective.
The lectures will be given by teachers from both faculties, as well as invited guests. The aim is to bring together students who share the same interest or constitutional matters in the conjunction between law and politics, but who rarely meet in the spaces created by the university.
The course introduces students to ongoing research on central aspects of
constitutional development and bring students up to date on the frontiers
of research and literature in the field, encourages active participation and
independent thinking in engaging with the issues, and provide a forum for
students to exchange ideas and reflections. Through this course the student
will gain an overview of the research literature on constitutionalism and the relationship between rule of law and democracy in Norway and compared with other countries. A constitution is an outcome of political activity, and at the same time it constitutes rules and arenas for politics, establishing the boundaries for all branches of the state, including the parliament, the central administrative apparatus and the courts. The students will engage with the main theoretical perspectives to understand the dilemmas involved in securing the rule of law in a modern state, and the checks and balances between the executive, the legislator and the courts. This is done though group work and engagement with art and film, in addition to guest lectures and seminars.
Language of teaching: English
ECTS Credits: 10,00
Start: Spring semester 2022
Course plan: here
Reading list: here (NB: Reading list for spring 2021)
COURSES SPRING 2021
Lawfare: Law as Political Strategy (University of Bergen – Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Comparative Politics)
This is a course of seminar discussions, guest lectures and group work. The course offers an introduction to the debates on the potential and limits of law as an instrument of social change, and opportunities to engage with international research projects currently seeking better answers to these questions and will include guest lectures by prominent scholars. The course will be offered at irregular intervals.
Language of teaching: English
ECTS Credits: 10,00
Start: Spring semester 2021
Understanding Backlash Against Democracy (University of Bergen – Faculty of Law and Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Comparative Politics)
Description:
This is a course of literature seminars and workshop/writing seminars. Across the globe, democracy is challenged in ways that challenge the scholarly literature on democratic development. Breaking Bad: Understanding Backlash Against Democracy is a graduate research seminar focusing on theoretical and empirical analyses of the state of democracy in the world today, with a particular emphasis on new democracies in the global south. The graduate course project aims to develop a rigorous empirical basis for understanding the scope, causes, responses to and effects of the backlash against democracy. The course is structured around four distinctive democratic rights clusters, contestation rights, associational rights, gender rights and rule of law (judicial independence). To each rights dimension, we will present and discuss central theoretical arguments and empirical applications. The course is offered at irregular intervals.
Language of teaching: English
ECTS Credits: 10,00
Start: Spring semester 2021
To find out more about previous courses, email mathea.loen@uib.no
Partners’ courses
LawTransform aims to use knowledge produced in affiliated research projects to enhance teaching at the University of Bergen and partner instituions. Here you will find course programs and reading lists for such courses, at the PhD level.
One of the core LawTransform’s activities is using knowledge produced by research projects based at the centre to improve courses taught at the University of Bergen. On this page you will find the course program and reading list for such courses, at the bachelor’s level.
COURSE SPRING 2025
GOV216: Constitutions, Courts and Politics (University of Bergen, the Faculty of Social Sciences, the department of Government and the Faculty of Law).
The course is an interdisciplinary project between the Faculty of Social Sciences, the department of Government and the Faculty of Law, and addresses the topic both from a legal and a social science perspective.
The course will introduce students to ongoing research on central aspects of constitutional development and the political role of courts and bring students up to date on the frontiers of research and literature in the field, encourage active participation and independent thinking in engaging with the issues, and provide a forum for students to exchange ideas and reflections. Through this course the student will gain an overview of the research literature on the Norwegian constitution, and the relationship between rule of law and democracy in Norway and compared with a selection of other countries. A constitution is an outcome of political activity, and at the same time it constitutes rules and arenas for politics, establishing the boundaries for all branches of the state, including the parliament, the central administrative apparatus and the courts. The students will engage with the main theoretical perspectives to understand the dilemmas involved in securing the rule of law in a modern state, and the checks and balances between the executive, the legislator and the courts.
PREVIOUS COURSES
Spring 2022
JUS286-2-A/AORG216: Constitution and Politics (University of Bergen, Faculty of Law and Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Administration and Organization Theory)
Spring 2020
Constitution and Politics (University of Bergen – Faculty of Law and Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Comparative Politics)
Courts, Law and Politics (University of Bergen – Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Comparative Politics)
To find out more about previous courses, email mathea.loen@uib.no
The Bergen Exchanges will take place from 14-21 August 2020 and will be on a smaller scale than non-Covid19 years with 2-3 sessions per day in the afternoons. The main focus will be on Law & (In)equality – in cities, democracy, migration & knowledge, gender, child rights and natural resources and climate change. All events will also be streamed online at Bergen Global’s YouTube page. The program is available here.
We are delighted to be organising events with the Global Research Programme on Inequality (GRIP), Centre for Research on Discretion and Paternalism, and the Bergen Centre for Ethics and Priority Setting (BCEPS), and with the support of UiB Global Challenges (GSU), the Norwegian Research Council, the Rafto Foundation, Fritt Ord, and Bergen Municipality.
If you are interested in attending, please email info@lawtransform.no.
If you are interested in volunteering, click here.
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The Bergen Exchanges is a meeting place for scholars and practitioners from across the globe who seek to understand how law serves as an instrument of change – and how it shapes and is shaped by power relations. During a week of public discussions, we examine strategic uses of rights and law and how legal institutions function as arenas for political contestation (lawfare). Read more about the history and motivation behind the Bergen Exchanges here.
Practicalities
The Bergen Exchanges will take place in Bergen, Norway from 14-21 August 2020. The main events venue is at Bergen Global, Jekteviksbakken 31. You can attend the seminar physically at Bergen Global (limited places) or watch the seminars online.
Please note that according to corona virus regulations all participants must keep a distance of at least one metre from each other and maintain good hand hygiene. Your name and phone number will be registered and kept for 10 days. If you have any respiratory tract symptoms you should stay at home.
According to the infection control measures, we need to have an overview of who is present at all times and thus kindly ask all who plans to participate to sign up beforehand via this link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdkbDJM4caXtCkAoORiUBT-EexNr6_PP33olEAxNHLSkTVAHw/viewform?usp=sf_link.
For more information about travel and the city of Bergen, see here.
PhD course
Alongside the Bergen Exchanges, we run a PhD course on the Effects of Lawfare. The course runs from 10-21 August. For more information, see here. To learn more about the PhD course, here is what happened in 2019.
Project workshops
Alongside the events of the Bergen Exchanges, there are also project workshops for our active and developing projects . The workshops bring together researchers working on the projects for two days of discussions and presentations. The projects will host public sessions to present the ongoing project findings during the Bergen Exchanges.
To get in touch
For more information, please contact LawTransform director Siri Gloppen (siri.gloppen@uib.no). For information about the PhD course, contact Giedre Casaite (giedre.casaite@cmi.no). If you would like to volunteer at the Bergen Exchanges, contact Alida Steigler (alida.steigler@cmi.no).
You can find links to all the LawTransform events that we have streamed below. For all events streamed at Bergen Global, please visit their YouTube channel.
01.19 Paths for recognising LGBT rights in Latin America: the cases of Brazil, Colombia and Costa Rica – Watch here
01.28. Academic Freedom and Democratic Backsliding in Comparative Perspective – Watch here
02.03. Repeal abortion crime: a new path in the fight for legal abortion in Colombia – Watch here
02.04. Samehets og rasisme – hvordan kommer vi videre? – Watch here
02.05. Annual Lecture on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples – Watch here
02.18. Students in crisis: Corona measures under examination – Watch here
02.18. Book launch: Strategic Litigation and the Struggle for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Equality in Africa – Watch here
02.19. Menneskerettighetsby og smittevern. Hvor går grensen? – Watch here
03.08. Women on the Bench – The role of women judges in fragile states – Watch here
03.08. The Right to Water in National Constitutions – Master’s Week 2021 – Watch here
03.08. Looking for dialogue and recognition: transgender persons’ rights – Master’s Week 2021 – Watch here
03.11. Venezuela migration crisis: can Peruvian health system sustain it? Master’s Week 2021 – Watch here
03.11. Selection methods of judges – Master’s Week 2021 – Watch here
03.12. The dark side of combatting terrorism – Master’s Week 2021 – Watch here
03.12. Mandating inclusiveness: local actors and mandated governance networks – Master’s Week 2021 – Watch here
03.22. Climate activists in all arenas – Watch here
03.22. Elevating water rights to human rights: World Water Day – Watch here
03.24. Executive Order webinar with director Lázaro Ramos – Watch here
03.25. When a crisis hits: Vulnerable people in locked-down Bergen – Watch here
04.09. A taste of life under President Erdogan – Watch here
04.21. Global School Film & Reflections: Inequality – Watch here
04.28. Global School Film & Reflections: Migration – Watch here
05.05. Global School Film & Reflections: Health – Watch here
05.05. Byutvikling og arkitektur: Har menneskerettigheter noe å si? – Watch here
18.05. Ansvarlig næringsliv og Vest-Sahara: Vestland ett steg videre? – Watch here
19.05. Book launch: Adoption from Care – Watch here
03.06. Towards a better understanding of gender and genocide – Watch here
07.06. Amazoning Climate Governance – Watch here
18.06. Backlash against Women’s Rights and the Istanbul Convention – Watch here
16.08. Keynote by Ruth Rubio Marin: The Global backlash against women’s rights – Watch here
16.08. How to quota? Effects of legislating for equality of representation – Watch here
16.08. Keynote by Dan Brinks: Autocratic Legalism – Watch here
16.08. Autocratization dynamics in Africa – Watch here
17.08. Book launch and keynote by Marit Skivenes: The global typology of child protection systems – Watch here
17.08. European Court of Human Rights on Child protection and Children’s Rights – Watch here
17.08. Rethinking digitalization and the right to education post-COVID-19 – Watch here
17.08. Backlash against academic freedom – Watch here
17.08. Religious/conservative movements and fake news – Watch here
18.08. Addressing Sexual Violence: Technology and Truth Commissions – Watch here
18.08. Migrant Health in the pandemic – Watch here
18.08. Keynote by Alicia Yamin: Rethinking health systems beyond the pandemic – Watch here
19.08. Keynote: Criminal Insanity – Medical, Philosophical and Legal Perspectives – Watch here
19.08. Young people as Experts by Experience: Participatory Research, Policy-,and Service Development – Watch here
19.08. Learning law & social change – Watch here
20.08. Gender, Islam and Legal ordering in Post-US Afghanistan – Watch here
20.08. Women on the Bench – Watch here
20.08. Interview: Lunch with the judge – Watch here
20. 08. UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Articles 3 and 12: opportunities and challenges – Watch here
2020
01.10. Constitutional Interpretation: The Multiplicity of Actors – Watch here
01.10. The Impact of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control – Watch here
02.06. Annual Lecture – Watch here
02.10. The Quality of Life Agenda in Norway – Master’s Week 2020 – Watch here
02.12. Bits Before Bombs: Cyber-attack as a Breach of Article 2(4) of the UN Charter – Watch here
02.25. Fri rettshjelp – en illusjon? – Watch here
04.02. Barn i lock-down: Utfordrer korona-tiltakene barns rettigheter? – Watch here
04.30. Webinar: Trick or treat? Why do legal responses to Covid-19 differ across Europe? – Watch here
05.27. COVID-19: The situation of refugees and migrants – Watch here
06.11. Grassroot climate activism – from Paris to the Amazon – Watch here
06.17. Covid-19 and the Politics of Climate Governance in the Amazon – Watch here
09.24. EU-borgere; likhet for loven? – Watch here
10.09. Taushetskultur og politi-varslere i Vest: Hva koster det å være en politivarsler? – Watch here
10.14. Fires in Moria – law, migratory policies and asylum in Lesvos – Watch here
10.28. Women mobilising against violence – Watch here
11.03. Launching the Bergen School of Global Studies – Watch here
11.03. Barnevernsfrokost: Omsorgsovertakelse av nyfødte – Watch here
11.10. Towards a new debate on abortion law reform in Argentina? – Watch here
11.20. Abortion Backlash! The significance of 22nd October 2020 for Poland and the world – Watch here
30.11 Peru renewed political crisis: What happens next? – Watch here
02.12. Barnevernsfrokost: Til barnets beste – familieliv for barnevernsbarn – Watch here
04.12 Divine Intervention: The role of the Pentecostal Church in Democratic Backlash in Africa – Watch here
10.12. Human Rights Cities explained – why do we need them? – Watch here
10.12. Netthets mot kvinner – en trussel for demokratiet – Watch here
Friday 14 August
Monday 17 August
Tuesday 18 August
Wednesday 19 August
Thursday 20 August
Friday 21 August
03.15. Gender quotas on the rise – polarization or parity? – Watch here.
03.18. How to clean an election – Watch here.
09.23. Justice done? How Cambodia is dealing with its past – Watch here.
10.09. Breakfast seminar: Politics of corruption in Brazil and Peru – Watch here.
11.25. Indigenous reconciliation and land rights – Watch here.
12.03. Playing with the rules in the extractive industries sector – Watch here.
Monday 19 August
Tuesday 20 August
Wednesday 21 August
Thursday 22 August
Friday 23 August
LawTransform Courses
One of the core LawTransform’s activities is using knowledge produced by research projects based at the centre to improve courses taught at the University of Bergen.
Our project Effects of Rights & Law has allowed us not only to improve courses taught in Bergen but also in partner institutions by facilitating the exchange of scholars and students. Moreover, we have been able to use our annual event, the Bergen Exchanges to produce teaching materials made available at our webpage with the goal of reaching out to a broader audience.
On this page you will find the course program and reading list for several courses at different levels as well as teaching materials produced by experts to work as independent modules to be used as part of courses on related topics.
Photo credit: Green Chameleon, Unsplash
