LLM/MPhil and LLD/PHD Degrees

The Faculty of Law offers LLM/MPhil and LLD/PhD degrees in several areas of specialisation.

The Faculty hosts four departments:

• Criminal Justice and Procedure;
• Mercantile and Labour Law;
• Private Law; and
• Public Law and Jurisprudence.

It is also home to the Dullah Omar Institute for Constitutional Law, Governance and Human Rights (DOI); the Centre for Legal Integration in Africa (CLIA); the Centre for Transformative Regulation of Work (Centrow), which includes the Social Law Project (SLP); the African Centre for Transnational Criminal Justice; and the Global Environmental Law Centre; as well as a Law Clinic.
 

Postgraduate Academic Programmes

Doctoral Degrees (LLD/PhD)

The Faculty offers doctoral degrees in all fields of law, including a number of specialisation areas, including the following:
 

• Comparative Labour Law;
• Comparative Constitutional Law;
• Criminal Justice;
• Environmental Law;
• Human Rights Protection;
• Law, State and Multi-Level Government; 
• Mercantile Law; and
• Transnational Criminal Justice

Admission requirements

Admission to the doctoral programme is based on academic merit and submission of an (approximately 2 pages) abstract with research questions and the required supporting documents.
 

Master’s Degrees (LLM /MPhil)

The Faculty of Law offers LLM/MPhil degrees in all fields of law (by thesis) as well as in a number of specialised areas (by coursework) namely:
 

• International Human Rights Law
• Labour Law
• Law, State and Multilevel Government
• Mercantile Law
• Criminal Justice
• International Family Law
• International Trade

Below are details of specialisations for which there may be a limited number of academic bursary opportunities in 2023
 

• Comparative Constitutional Law
• Competition Law and Policy
• Corporate Law
• Environmental Law
• Human Rights Protection
• Legal Pluralism
• Tax Law
• Transnational Criminal Justice

 

Comparative  Constitutional Law

The programme has a strong comparative focus that transcends South African Constitutional Law and seeks to expose students to the methodology of comparative constitutional law and different options of constitutional design and operation.
   
 

Competition Law and Policy

Starting in 2023, the Department of Mercantile and Labour Law will introduce Competition Law and Policy as an area of specialisation in our Masters programme. This area of specialisation will offer a module that focuses on the substantive principles of South African competition law, the enforcement thereof, and the policy underpinnings. The second module on the programme will address the connection between South African competition law and labour law. Both modules will encompass comparative aspects by considering international law and principles. A third module on Mergers and Acquisition is shared with the Corporate Law area of specialisation and will explore the intricacies of business mergers from a competition law perspective.
   
 

Corporate Law

The Faculty of Law will, as from 2023, offer an exciting, rich and brand new LLM specialisation in Corporate Law! This LLM/MPhil specialisation will initially consist of three modules which represent our contribution to the knowledge economy and our response to contemporary topical aspects of the law and industry needs. The modules on offer will cover a wide range of issues from corporate governance, corporate financial regulation, corporate insolvency and the regulation of mergers and acquisitions. The modules will be taught by field experts from the Faculty and some guest lecturers who are industry specialists.
   
 

Environmental Law

The LLM by coursework, offered by the Global Environmental Law Centre (GELC) equips students with an advanced understanding of the scope and evolution of environmental law, as well as an in-depth knowledge of the major concepts, cases, principles and key debates that shape effective environmental law and governance frameworks and approaches.
   
 

Human Rights Protection

The Faculty of Law offers a high quality Master’s programme in Human Rights Protection. For the first time in 2023, the programme will offer two new modules, Constitutional Property Law and Land Reform and Housing Law. These new modules reflect on multiple areas of law, including property law, human rights law, constitutional law, and administrative law.
   
 

Legal Pluralism

Are you interested in the future of law in Africa? The programme presents the interaction of legal orders in Africa as a cultural struggle with enormous significance for legal identity in the continent. it is presented by global experts in the field, with the core module of Legal and Cultural Pluralism and a basket of electives in Children’s Rights, International Family Law, International Protection of Humans Rights Law, and Islam Law and Jurisprudence.
   
 

Tax Law

This area of specialisation covers domestic and international taxation, as well as tax administration principles. Students will be taught by eminent scholars in the field of taxation, including Judge Dennis Davis.
   
 

Transnational Criminal Justice

This area of specialisation, hosted by the African Centre for Transnational Criminal Justice, examines how the criminal law aspects of international law and the international law aspect of criminal law combine to provide a legal mechanism for national and international response to human rights violations both at the level of the international criminal justice system and in the context of transitional justice in post conflict societies.
   

Admission requirements

Admission to the master’s programme requires a minimum of 60% weighted average marks.


Other postgraduate programmes offered by the Faculty
 

• Postgraduate Diploma in Public Law
• Postgraduate Diploma in Labour Law
• Advanced Diploma in Labour Law

Closing date for applications:

 

Apply online