Course description

• Course content
• Admission
• Prerequisites
• Overlapping courses

• Teaching
• Examination
• Evaluation

Course content

Data law refers to the substantial and broad development in the regulation of data and rights in data, especially from the EU. Data are increasingly looked upon as a resource or a commodity. The EU is in the process of developing a legal framework for regulation of rights in data, markets for data, and administration of data as a resource in the digital economy. The course critically explores current trends for implementation of these rules and how they will transform transactions and markets for data and databased services.  

The course invites the students to carry out further studies within four regulatory perspectives:  

• Market regulation, such as data as a ¡°fifth freedom¡± within the European market, the rules on data portability and access to data from the public sector, where relevant legal acts include the Digital Markets Act (Regulation (EU)2022/1925) and the Open Data Directive (2019/1024).  

• Rights in data, including the legal approach to ¡°ownership¡± of personal and industrial data, including database rights and other intellectual property rights, and the EU Data Act (regulation 2023/2854),

• Regulation of resources, as data is considered an important economic resource,  

• General regulation of data, such as data governance (Data Governance Act, EU/2022/0340) and the impact of data on society as a whole.  

The course is taught as a writing seminar, inviting the student to choose a topic within the course contents for further study and as subject of an academic text. The purpose of the course is to give the student an opportunity for an in-depth study of a subject of their choosing, and to train academic writing skills, also a useful preparation for the master¡¯s thesis. 

Admission

You may register for this course if you have admission to a Master¡¯s programme at UiO or the faculty's exchange programme. You can also register for this course if you do not have admission to any programme at UiO, but meet the formal prerequistites.

All students are required meet the formal prerequistites.

Have you met the formal prerequisites at another institution than the University of Oslo, and the results are not formally registered at UiO, you must apply for admission to courses at Master¡¯s level . Students with admission to Master¡¯s degree programmes at other faculties than The Faculty of Law must also apply for admission.

When your admission is in order you must register for courses in StudentWeb

Prerequisites

Formal prerequisite knowledge

Students must fill one of these requirements:

• Passed 1st - 3rd year of the 5-years degree Master of Laws (Master i rettsvitenskap at UiO) (or exams that qualify for exemption for these) or
• Hold a 5-years Master¡¯s degree in Laws (Master i rettsvitenskap at UiO) or equivalent.

Exemptions from the formal prerequisites will be given to students with admission to the faculty's own exchange or master¡¯s degree programmes. This rule does not apply to students with admission to other master¡¯s degree programmes at the University of Oslo, unless otherwise agreed.

Recommended previous knowledge

Three years of law studies.

Overlapping courses

10 credits overlap with JUS5645N ¨C Datarett

Teaching

The course teaches in depth study and legal academic writing. The students work throughout the semester on a term paper within the course scope. The course is a useful preparation for the master thesis. 

The course starts with lectures on legal academic writing, methodology, research problem design and an introduction to the field of data law. Students prepare a draft paper for the mid-term seminar. In the seminar students orally present their paper and receive comments from a fellow student and the professor. Lectures reflect on use of sources and ethical norms for legal academic writing. 

Compulsory activity: All students must participate for at least one session in the mid-term seminar with a presentation of their paper and a prepared comment on a fellow student paper. Before the mid-term seminar all students must submit a draft of their paper, prepare their oral presentation and a comment.    

Examination

Individual term paper (max 4000) or group term paper (max 8000 words) in English on a self-chosen subject within the course scope. 

Footnotes should be included in the word count of the main text. Not included in this count: front page (title etc.), summary, table of contents and references (bibliography). (If relevant for the paper).

Assignments/papers with text exceeding the word limit will not be accepted.

The language for this course is English, Norwegian students can submit the term paper in Norwegian. Students who wish to do so must register for the Norwegian course code JUS5645N Datarett. Please note that the Norwegian Course code does not meet the obligations for one English subject as part of the degree Masterprogrammet i rettsvitenskap.

Examination support material

This is an open book exam. Candidates may therefore make use of all available sources during the examination period.

Your exam paper must be an independent work. General rules on exam support materials

Use of sources and rules for citing

Familiarize yourself with the use of sources and citations in legal writing. In an exam situation, using other people¡¯s material without declaring it in a clear manner may be considered cheating or an attempt at cheating. You must cite any sources you draw on.

If you break the rules, you may be suspected of cheating or attempted cheating.

Language of examination

The examination text is given in English, and you submit your response in English.

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.

Marking criteria 

This  guide is used by examiners for grading this course.

Explanations and appeals

• Explanation of grades and appeals

Resit an examination

• Illness at exams / postponed exams
• Resitting an examination.
• There are special rules for resitting a passed examination in the master's programme in Law.

Withdrawal from an examination

It is possible to take this exam up to 3 times. If you withdraw from the exam after the deadline or during the exam, this will be counted as an examination attempt.

There are special rules for resitting a passed examination in the master's programme in Law.

Special examination arrangements

Application form, deadline and requirements for special examination arrangements.

Evaluation

The course is subject to continuous evaluation. At regular intervals we also ask students to participate in a more comprehensive evaluation.

Other 

The course is an elective course in the ICT LLM. The language for this course is English. Students enrolled in the Masterprogrammet i rettsvitenskap must pass one English subject as part of their degree, this course will meet these obligations.

The course is taught in English, students can choose to enroll in the Norwegian course code JUS5645N - Datarett if they wish to write their term paper in Norwegian.

Sessions in the mid-term seminar can be in Norwegian if there are sufficient students in each language group to make that practical. For the course to meet the obligation of students enrolled in MIR to pass one English subject as part of their degree, the student must be enrolled in the English course code and write the paper and do the seminar in English.