Ateneo - UPO

The course will examine the main topics of general legal theory, legal epistemology, legal hermeneutics, legal rhetoric and economic epistemology of law. Connected to the course is an international free mover project to be held in Nice at the UCA during July 2027. Information about the project will be provided during the first lectures of the course Students with physical disabilities, Learning Disabilities or Special Education Needs can request specific services and tools via the Staff Sviluppo e Coordinamento Carriere e Servizi alle Studentesse e agli Studenti, consulting the University webpage: https://www.uniupo.it/en/services/servicesstudents-physical-or-learning-disabilities Students with disabilities, learning disabilities or special education needs, once they have contacted the University Staff, can refer to the tutor in charge of the course to define the examination modalities, concerning academic aspects.

The course distinguishes between attending and non-attending student Written exam: 1) B. Montanari, a cura di, Luoghi della filosofia del diritto, Giappichelli, ult.ed., Torino 2012,( limited to the articles by B. Montanari, Capire l’oggi; G. Siniscalchi, Forma e materia del diritto; A. Incampo, Politica e processo; A. Costanzo, Interpretazione e logica giudiziaria; M. Tallacchini, Diritto e Scienza; A. Andronico, Governance; P. Heritier, Liturgie giuridiche. Il fondamento estetico, sacrale comunicativo del diritto positivo) and the chapter by P. Silvestri, Economia. Il codice giuridico del mondo, in Dimensioni del diritto, a cura di A. Andronico, T. Greco, F. Macioce, Giappchelli, Torino 2019, pp. 399-426; 2) L. Fuller, Il caso degli speleologi di Lon Fuller e alcuni nuovi punti di vista, a cura di A. Porciello, Rubbettino, Soveria Mannelli, 2012;. 3) Class notes; Oral exam: 4) F.A. von Hayek, Studi di filosofia, politica, economia, Rubbettino, Soveria Mannelli 1998 (limited to the parts specified during lectures) 5) P. Heritier, Homo Homini Homo. vol. 1 Lo schermo delle norme, Mimesis, Milano 2022; P. Heritier, Estetica giuridica, vol. 1. Dalla globalizzazione alla secolarizzazione; vol. 2, A partire da Legendre. Il fondamento finzionale del diritto positivo, Giappichelli, Torino 2012. Not attending students: Written exam: 1) B. Montanari, a cura di, Luoghi della filosofia del diritto, Giappichelli, ult.ed., Torino 2012, (limited to the chapters by B. Montanari, Capire l’oggi; G. Siniscalchi, Forma e materia del diritto; A. Incampo, Politica e processo; A. Costanzo, Interpretazione e logica giudiziaria; M. Tallacchini, Diritto e Scienza; A. Andronico, Governance; P. Heritier, Liturgie giuridiche. Il fondamento estetico, sacrale comunicativo del diritto positivo) and the chapter by P. Silvestri, Economia. Il codice giuridico del mondo, in Dimensioni del diritto, a cura di A. Andronico, T. Greco, F. Macioce, Giappchelli, Torino 2019, pp. 399-426; 2) L. Fuller, Il caso degli speleologi di Lon Fuller e alcuni nuovi punti di vista, a cura di A. Porciello, Rubbettino, Soveria Mannelli, 2012; Oral exam: 3) P. Heritier, Estetica giuridica, vol. 1. Dalla globalizzazione alla secolarizzazione; 4) vol. 2, A partire da Legendre. Il fondamento finzionale del diritto positivo, Giappichelli, Torino 2012, 5) 5) P. Heritier. Lo schermo delle norme, vol. 1 Lettera/spirito, prospettiva, occhio della macchina, Mimesis, Milano 2025..

Knowledge and understanding skills. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to understand the interrelationships among law, politics and economics contemporary complex societies. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding At the end of the course, students will be enabled to master the main techniques of legal interpretation in their interaction with political and economic systems. Autonomy of judgment Students will be led to develop critical competence concerning the ongoing process of globalization and the crisis of democracies in a global context (concerning political communication, marketing, social networks). Communication skills Students will be expected to demonstrate mastery of: (a) the ability to argue in oral form the content learned (b) the ability to construct critical connections between topics. Learning skills Students will also be made capable of knowing how to carry out a simple written text on legal content using a rhetorical method.
The course comprises 67.30 hours of face-to-face teaching, which also includes seminar-style sessions. The number of hours each student dedicates to study, whilst adhering to the prescribed standards, varies according to each student’s learning ability.

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Alongside traditional classes, the course preview seminar and workshop. The participation in the Summer School in Law and Humanities to be held in Nice-Cannes in July 2026 will be possible. Further information will be provided by the lecturer upon request.

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The exam is both written and oral. The written examination is designed primarily to assess the acquisition of the basic concepts of the general theory of law and an appropriate level of written expression. The oral examination is aimed at ascertaining the acquisition of critical (not merely mnemonic) reading skills of the philosophical-legal contents of the course. Best students can present a critical oral analysis related to courses's topics. There will be scheduled checkpoints to ascertain understanding of the course content during the class period. Instructions for registering for exams: students who attend classes are exempt from written exams during the class period. All students must register for this exam, followed by the legal informatics exam in the second semester and the “verbalizing” exam, which combines the results of the two previous exams. Without registering for the verbalizing exam, the exam cannot be validated. To achieve a pass, students must be able to present the topics and course content analysed correctly; to achieve excellence, they must develop a critical approach to these same topics and the ability to expand on the content learnt. Between the level of attainment corresponding to mere knowledge or mere competence and that of the corresponding mark within a score band, the numerical assessment expressed by the teacher in the evaluation indicates the student’s actual attainment of critical thinking.

1) Part I (general theory of law and legal and economic epistemology)

Beginning with the general theoretical content articles in the textbook, the course will include an introduction to the basic concepts of general legal theory and philosophy of law, such as the notions of norm, validity, legitimacy, efficacy, system, interpretation, and the main legal theoretical currents, such as positivism, realism, institutionalism, natural law, decisionism, neo-constitutionalism, and economic analysis of law.
2) Part II (Critical thinking)
This part will briefly provide basic theoretical tools that appear relevant to the critical understanding of the evolution of the legal phenomenon in contemporary complex society, particularly in relation to economic knowledge. Outlines will be provided in relation to the following problem areas: legal epistemology and the relationship between law, science and economics; hermeneutics and legal aesthetics in relation to contemporary theory of democracy and the political and normative use of the image in the media; theories of justice and the foundation of law.

Also for the purpose of study organization and in preparation for the written and oral examinations, students will be provided with basic notions of forensic rhetoric and drafting of legal texts and acts.

The course will also focus on basic concepts of forensic rhetoric and legal writing. This will also help students to better organize their study methods and prepare the oral and written exam.
With regard to issues of gender, disability, inclusion, critical thinking and decolonial thought, my afterword to W. Franke’s book *Social Identities and Social Justice* will be analysed and made available. Redefining Ethics and Politics in the Wake of ‘Wokeism’, Mimesis, Milan 2027, and the focus on the ongoing experimentation with disability reform in the ‘Recent Articles’ section of the journal *Theory and Critique of Social Regulation* https://mimesisjournals.com/ojs/index.php/tcrs/issue/view/54
The risks to the preservation of democracy and freedom of thought arising from the authoritarian imposition of content – even where the substance of that content is entirely acceptable – will also be discussed, particularly in relation to the introduction of specific ethical and political objectives, and specifically the backlash that this imposition – as opposed to progressive cultural acquisition – may have on common sense.

The main objectives of the course are: - distinguish a legal norm from a moral, economic or factual one; - understand in a non-superficial and dogmatic way the legislative and jurisprudential production process of rules; - distinguish normative and factual dimensions of judicial reasoning; - learning the basic concepts of the general theory of law; - developing a critical approach towards philosophical-legal problems; - developing a written and oral expression skills appropriate to university education.