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Study programmes > All studies > International Legal Communication > International Legal Communication

International Legal Communication (S2-PRK-ILC)

(in Polish: International Legal Communication)
second cycle program
full-time, 2-years of study
Language: English

1. Number of semesters: 4

2. Number of ECTS points necessary to complete studies at a given level: 120

3. The professional title awarded to graduates: master

4. Classes are held in a modern building at ul. Dobra 55, the seat of the Faculty of Applied Linguistics.

5. Area: humanities and social sciences

6. Disciplines

  1. in the field of humanities: linguistics (51%)
  2. in the field of social sciences: law (49%)

7. Language of the study: English

8. Unique features of the program:

The goals and concept of education in the 2nd degree course of studies "International Legal Communication" meet the requirements of the modern world, in particular the requirements accompanying the development of legal sciences and linguistics. One of the extremely current, global challenges is the need to provide recipients of the law with adequate legal information. International legal communication deals with these issues.

International Legal Communication focuses on international, supranational and transnational legal regimes in conjunction with linguistic elements of objective legal and legal reality, such as facts, events, phenomena, processes etc .; physical, mental or emotional actions and behavior; human creations, both physical and spiritual; human states, thoughts and feelings, images, mental constructs, etc., and linguistic statements expressing those thoughts, images, or mental constructs that relate to the formulation, expression and reconstruction of legal information carried by and communicated by legal regimes.

International legal communication takes place on three levels:

  • creation and shaping of law and related communication between entities that create and shape this law;
  • making the law public, i.e. informing recipients of the law about the content of the law and the rights and obligations arising therefrom;
  • advocacy, to the extent that lawyers process legally relevant information and communicate it to their clients (laymen) and other lawyers, including judges, respectively.

Consequently, teaching and research on international legal communication will be conducted in three specialties, in the following system:

  • 1st year students follow a joint program during the first two semesters of studies.
  • in the middle of the second semester, students submit a written declaration regarding the choice of specialty from the second year of studies:

1) "Design Thinking in Law" – a specialty focusing on the education of personnel dealing with research on the creation and shaping of law in the linguistic context, its conceptualization, terminology, textemics and logic;

2) "Transference of Legal Knowledge" - a specialty focusing on the training of staff involved in research on the social perception of legal information, in particular the simplification of this information and its anthropological and ethnographic aspects;

3) "Epistemology of Lawyering" – a specialty focusing on the education of personnel dealing with research on communication effectiveness in the field of advocacy.

An integral element of the studies are research workshops conducted with the participation of stakeholders and together with foreign research centers. Outstanding students will have the opportunity to study trips and participate in international scientific conferences. Graduates of this field of study will have unique, interdisciplinary knowledge and practical skills predisposing them to continue their education at doctoral schools, and in the future - to research.

Detailed study program: here

9. Profile of the graduate

The studies educate specialists in international legal communication who - apart from conducting interdisciplinary scientific research individually or in research teams - can work as:

  • after completing the "Design Thinking in Law" specialty: specialist in law harmonization and global governance in state institutions and international organizations; manager or contractor in translation and terminology projects in the field of law; lawyer-linguist;
  • after completing the "Transference of Legal Knowledge" specialty: specialist in corporations and state institutions dealing with the preparation of legal information for the specific communication needs of its addressees; specialist in corporate social responsibility in corporations and social organizations; translator, proofreader, reviser and post-editor of legal texts;
  • after completing the "Epistemology of Lawyering" specialty: office customer service specialist; translator in a law firm; an interpreter in an alternative dispute resolution environment.

ECTS Coordinators:

Qualification awarded:

Second cycle degree - magister – in International Legal Communication, Transference of Legal Knowledge
Second cycle degree - magister – in International Legal Communication, Design Thinking in Law
Second cycle degree - magister – in International Legal Communication, Epistemology of Lawyering

Access to further studies:

doctoral school, non-degree postgraduate education

Learning outcomes

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Knowledge: the graduate knows and understands
- lawyer's work environment and advocacy process
- key concepts related to advocacy and the main development trends in contemporary advocacy and the latest trends, problems and research methodologies related to them
- the principles of creating various forms of communication and the functioning of a lawyer in the framework of various forms of advocacy (courtroom, law firm, individual contact with a client, etc.) on the domestic and international market
Skills: the graduate is able to
- use the theoretical knowledge in the field of law and linguistics to solve complex problems in the field of international legal communication by making a creative interpretation of the cultural and linguistic context, and make an adequate assessment of the selection of advocacy strategies appropriate for the context and recipients of communication
- use the knowledge of research methodologies used in international legal communication to plan and conduct methodologically correct scientific research in the field of advocacy, analyze its results and determine its implications
- communicate on issues related to advocacy and adequately justify the methodological decisions made, as well as conduct a discussion on advocacy, understood both as a process and a product, considering various points of view and the latest research results in a way that is also understandable for non-specialists
Social competences: the graduate is ready to
- recognize the importance of the latest field knowledge for the critical assessment of advocacy research, in particular published in scientific journals and monographs and popular science sources, including caution and criticism in expressing the assessments in question
- maintaining openness to knowledge for the purposes of initiating and conducting research on advocacy, in particular to improve the quality, role and availability of advocacy in society
- maintaining the ethos of the ombudsman and sensitizing oneself and the environment to the issues, of observing and developing the principles of professional ethics of a lawyer.

Admission procedures:

Visit the following page for details on admission procedures: https://irk.uw.edu.pl/