(1) PRESENTATION OF

THE COURSE 2013

Prof. Bruno Tassone
Docente di Principles of Civil Law
LUISS Guido Carli

TODAYS ISSUES
1. Presentation of the teacher;
2. The class program;
3. Materials to be used;
4. Exam & assessment method;
5. Few other issues (comparison &
translation problems).
THE CLASS PROGRAM (I)
(Part I) some issues of Public (Constitutional)
Law and (Part II) main areas of Private Law.
What is Public Law and what is Private Law?
Under Part I (Approximately 1/3 of the Course)
Legal system, legal rule and source of law (notion).
Italian sources of law.
EU and international sources of law.
Issues of private international law.
Main features of the Constitution of Italy and of the
Constitutions of other European countries.
Main features of Italian Constitutional Bodies and
the Lawmaking Process.
THE CLASS PROGRAM (II)
Under Part II (Approximately 2/3 of the Course)
Legal capacity.
Natural persons and entities.
Ownership, possession and (other) property
interests.
Security and creditors rights protection.
Obligations and contractual liability.
Contracts (Notion, Formation, Interpretation,
Representation, Validity, Termination).
Tort law and compensation for damages.
Features of successions upon death (on the book).
Features of family law (on the book).
MATERIALS (I)
1) Slides (uploaded on the course web page:
http://docenti.luiss.it/law-tassone/principles-of-
civil-law/)
2) Iudica e Zatti, Language and Rules of Italian
Private Law: An Introduction, Cedam, Padova
(selected parts see file or next slide)
3) Lena and Mattei (eds.), Introduction to Italian
Law, Kluwer, 2002 (excerpts available through
the Luiss Library see file or next slide)
4) Notes on Constitutional Law (available on the
course web page)
5) Italian Constitution in English (available on the
course web page)
MATERIALS (II)
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: Chapter 3 of Introduction to Italian Law: ALL,
apart from Paragraph III (A), (B), (C), Paragraph IV (B),
Paragraphs VII-VIII.
EC SOURCES OF LAW: Chapter 4 of Introduction to Italian Law: ALL,
apart from Paragraph IV (A), (B) and (D), Paragraph VII-VIII.
JURIDICAL CAPACITY, CAPACITY TO ACT, NATURAL CAPACITY AND LEGAL
ENTITIES: Chapter 4 of Language and Rules of Italian Private Law: ALL.
PROPERTY, OWNERSHIP AND POSSESSION: Chapters 5, 9 and 10 of
Language and Rules of Italian Private Law: ALL.
OBLIGATIONS AND SECURITY: Chapters 11 and 17 of Language and Rules
of Italian Private Law: ALL.
CONTRACTS: Chapters 13, 14, 15 and 16 of Language and Rules of
Italian Private Law: ALL.
TORTS: Chapter 19 of Language and Rules of Italian Private Law: ALL.
FAMILY AND INHERITANCE LAW: Chapter 24 of Language and Rules of
Italian Private Law: ONLY Paragraphs 5 and 6. - Chapter 25 of
Language and Rules of Italian Private Law: ALL. - Chapter 16 of
Introduction to Italian Law: ALL, apart from Paragraph VIII.
MATERIALS (III)
4) An Italian Civil Code (in Italian);
5) An Italian Civil Code (in English
optional);
6) Further readings on the course web
page (optional);
7) Guests Presentation on the course web
page (optional);
EXAM & ASSESSMENT
Oral Exam;

Active participation during the class;

Group work executed during the
course (if possible).

COMPARISON
Background: Italian Private Law and
Private Comparative Law.
Why is comparison important (and should
have some place in this course)?
To achieve a better knowledge of the Law?
To spot the best solution to a legal problem?
To have an international and wider perspective?
Any other?
THE LANGUAGE
Teaching Italian Law in English is a
challenge and an opportunity as well.
But there are problems to be faced in
every area of the law.
How do you translate (without going
outside contract law):
1) contract (?);
2) rescission (?);
3) unconscionability (?).