American University of Central Asia - AUCA - Courses

Courses

 

Administrative Law [LAW-205.2, ID 4647]

The purpose of this course is to acquaint with the legal norms regulating administrative procedure in developed states and particularly in the Kyrgyz Republic, the activities of administrative agencies exerting external influence and concluding with the adoption of administrative acts, as well as the action or inaction of these agencies, which entails for individuals or legal entities legal and/or actual effects. In a democratic state of law, administrative law is of paramount legal importance in the management and administrative activities of state agencies, local self-government authorities, and their officials. The professional mission of the administrative authorities is to find a fair solution in each specific legal case when the interests of the state and the citizen collide.

 

Banking Law [LAW/ BA-237.2, ID 4791]

The course is designed to train students to implement the banking law and understand many types of risks in banking activity, such as political, country, market, and other kinds of risks, and learn basic principles of anti-money laundering policy. Nowadays, the banking system of the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the main spheres of the Republic’s economy. The legal basis of the banking activity is the most changeable and flexible sphere of the law system of the Kyrgyz Republic because it comes from different sources – mostly from the regulatory legal acts of The National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic, which are also based on international standards of the banking activity. The implementation of new banking products is related to adopting new standards and changing existing regulatory legal acts. 

 

Business and Human Rights [IBL-224, ID 5296]

The objective of this course is to provide students with an introduction to the increasingly relevant link between business practices and the observance of human rights by corporate actors at the national and international levels. The course will provide an overview of the legal, political, and social factors that affect the rise of regulation of human rights enjoyment in the corporate sector, using examples such as the concepts of globalization or corporate social responsibility (CSR). The historical development of human rights in the corporate sector will be reviewed to provide context to the current debate on how business impacts human rights. Students will be introduced to the United Nations and other international organizations’ initiatives aimed at ensuring respect for human rights by businesses, namely the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. This course will also present the legislative practices and case law related to business and human rights in the United States, European Union, and the Kyrgyz Republic.

 

Business Legislation and Policy [LAW-271, ID 3374]

The objective of the course is to provide students with an understanding of the law and its implications in the business context. This is much more than merely studying laws. This course is about learning how laws come to be and how they are applied in business. The course primarily consists of the study of the legal framework for the protection of rights of business entities, regulations governing different types of business organizations, business contracts, and laws affecting business activity in general. The course helps students develop a broader base of legal language and concepts that are encountered in the everyday business world.

 

Civil Law. Business Entities [LAW-206.2, ID 4155]

The course provides a comprehensive overview of the legal framework guiding the work of business entities in Kyrgyzstan. The course covers such issues as types of forms of business, creation and liquidation of entities, bankruptcy procedures, securities markets, and corporate governance.

 

Civil Law. Contracts [LAW-301.2, ID 4501]

The aim of the course is to equip students with theoretical knowledge about the categories and institutions of civil law regarding transactions, general provisions on contracts and obligations, the current legislation governing the conclusion, amendment and termination of the contracts, the procedure for the execution, and enforcement of obligations, recognition of contracts as invalid, responsibility for violation of the terms of the contract, including about different types of the contracts, as well as practical skills in their preparation and analysis. The course includes the study of the sections of the Civil Code of the Kyrgyz Republic, such as “Transactions,” “General Part of the Obligatory Law,” and “General Provisions of the Contract.”

 

Civil Law. Obligations [LAW-306.2, ID 4405]

The objective of this course is to provide students with theoretical knowledge on civil law obligations and their categories and institutions of civil law. Students completing this course will have an understanding of the principal areas of law applied to obligations, which regulate the order of concluding, amending, and breaching types of the contracts and obligations out of the contract. This course is focused on learning types of contract obligations, obligations for public competition, public promise awards, games and bets, obligations as a result of causing harm and unjust enrichment.

 

Civil Procedure [LAW - 303.1, ID 3357]

The course aims to equip students with the professional skills for effective work as a lawyer as well as the skills necessary for the day-to-day activities for dealing with the disputes which are subject to the civil procedure legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic.

 

Civil Law. Property [LAW-238.1, ID 3906]

An objective of the course is to provide students with the basic knowledge of the Civil Law concepts, principles, theoretical underpinnings, and legislation. The course also aims to teach skills that are necessary to apply Civil Law norms correctly and to find solutions for various legal problems and situations.

 

Civil Society Organizations Law (CSO Law) [LAW/BA-262.2, ID 4898]

The course is to explore legal issues affecting civil society organizations (CSOs) and seeks to provide students with legal fundamentals in two ways. First, the course aims to provide the theoretical and substantive knowledge base regarding civil society legal issues. To this end, the course will expose students to a wide range of topics, including international law and freedom of association; national legislation affecting the CSO lifecycle; public benefit status and tax environment of CSOs; economic activities and public policy activities of CSOs; etc. Second, the course aims to develop students’ legal skills by challenging them to confront actual legal problems through practical exercises.  To this end, students will be assigned regular reading materials and tasked with practical exercises that may require both written and oral submissions.

 

Combating Violence Against Women

The course on Combating Violence Against Women focuses on the key concepts, the international and European legal framework, case law governing the prevention and protection of women and girls from violence. Course content includes domestic violence issues and criminal laws dealing with family violence, the access to justice for victims of violence, criminal justice and the judicial response in violence against women cases and support that will enable students to recognize domestic violence and be able to examine not only effective intervention measures, but also preventative methods. Furthermore, the course provides students with available practical tools for dealing with cases of violence against women and domestic violence with respect to a human rights and victim centered approach.

 

Comparative Law in a Changing World [LAW-361.1, ID 4158]

This course aims to provide students with a significant opportunity to explore, amongst other things, the nature of the comparative method, its functions, its significance, the division of the world’s legal systems into families, the idea of law harmonization, the comparison of civil, constitutional, criminal, administrative, and tax laws from different jurisdictions. Leading schools of legal thought will also be extensively explored. As such, the range of issues embraced in the subject includes comprehensive methodological analysis in several substantive as well as theoretical areas of law.

 

Constitutional Law of the Kyrgyz Republic [LAW-243, ID 2973]

The current course aims at equipping students with essential knowledge of constitutional order, the system of state authority, adjudication, and the protection of constitutional rights in the Kyrgyz Republic. It will introduce students to such fundamental concepts as the rule of law, democracy, system, type, a form of governance, protection of rights, and SOP. Furthermore, it will provide students with insights on how the limitation of constitutional rights is regulated and intersect with each other. Finally, the course will encourage students to challenge existing provisions of the current constitution and to comparatively analyze them with the provisions of the world-leading constitutions, per se of the US, Germany, and France.

 

Corona Law: Law in Times of Crisis [IBL-220, ID 5160]

This course is an attempt to quickly respond to the current situation and discuss the most pressing issues that the law is forced to answer today, as well as to reflect on the challenges that each of us will face very shortly. On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization announced that the spread of coronavirus infection had reached a pandemic stage, which had an impact on all areas of public life. The law could not remain uninvolved: issues of human rights, the performance of contracts, labor relations, and many others fell into its field of vision. The measures taken by the state are more recessionary and therefore cause great resonance not only among professionals but also among ordinary citizens. 

 

Corruption, Development and Good Governance [LAW-372, ID 4327]

Corruption has been long seen and the major obstacle to development and political stability; it is a political, social, economic, and legal problem that exists in all countries and communities. This course covers only a limited number of topics related to the study of corruption and anti-corruption efforts; nonetheless, it tries to highlight the most important aspects of the anti-corruption legal strategies that can improve development and lead to good governance.

 

Criminal Law I & II [LAW-241.1, ID 4188 & LAW-244.1, ID 3957]

These courses are intended to introduce students to the basic concepts and fundamentals of substantive criminal law and criminal liability and to begin the development of the critical analytic skills necessary for practice in the sphere of criminal law, whether as a prosecutor or defense advocate. The courses will familiarize students with concepts such as the nature and purpose of criminal law, moral and constitutional limitations, theories of punishment, criminal responsibility, the basic elements of criminal conduct, criminal liability of minors, and the like. The courses will also familiarize students with “black letter” criminal law, principally the Criminal Code of the Kyrgyz Republic, which will serve as the primary text for the course, supplemented with teachings from the common law intended to give meaning, depth, and understanding to the plain language of the statutory laws. The courses will also introduce and explore ethical and philosophical issues regarding the punishment of human beings for wrong-doing.

 

Criminal Procedural Law [LAW-304.2, ID 4648]

“Criminal Procedure” introduces students to the fundamentals of the criminal procedural law of the Kyrgyz Republic and develops practical skills necessary to be engaged as participants of the criminal proceeding. Students will be familiarized with the criminal procedural legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic, where they will learn the aims and objectives of the criminal proceeding, main participants and their legal status, procedural tactics, investigative acts, and legal actions of the judges, as well as procedural judiciary system. Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to operate with the fundamentals of criminal proceedings and have some practical skills necessary to handle criminal law cases as a lawyer, prosecutor, investigator, or judge.

 

Data Protection and Information Security Law [IBL-208, ID 4984]

Data Protection laws seek to protect people's data by providing individuals with rights over their data, imposing rules on how companies and governments use data, and establishing regulators to enforce the laws. This course will examine legal regulation of data protection and information security in Kyrgyzstan and in foreign states, including CIS countries, European Union, and the USA, different cases on these issues, some of the most pressing threats to data and systems, the major legal and practical responses, and the policy issues they raise, with a particular focus on individuals, organizations/ companies and government agencies. 

 

E-commerce: legal aspects [IBL-223, ID 5293]

The objective of the course is to provide students with knowledge of e-commerce legal regulation and skills of analyzing information in such a fast-growing and challenging sector. The course primarily consists of the study of the legal framework on e-commerce of Kyrgyzstan and foreign countries, cases in this sector, and legal regulation of activities of companies engaged in e-commerce business. The course will help students develop a broader base of legal and business language encountered in e-commerce.

 

Environment and Human Rights

As a sustainable and healthy environment is essential to the full enjoyment of human rights, there is a growing need to understand the legal framework of environmental protection and explore its nexus with human rights. This course will look at environmental challenges through the prism of human rights by covering relevant core concepts, issues, actors, and institutions. In particular, it will focus on the human rights-based approach to environmental protection, “green” human rights, UN human rights mechanisms related to the promotion of environmental issues, environmental human rights defenders, environmental oversight mechanisms for human rights claims, climate change mitigation, and many other issues. The development of concepts of the right to a healthy environment and its operational effect through human rights jurisprudence and implementation of the Aarhus Convention will also be discussed in the course.
The course will be a mixture of lectures and interactive in-class activities. All of the in-class activities and assignments are aimed at helping students not only to put substantive knowledge gained into practice, but also at further improving their proficiency in verbal and written communication as well as their analytical and problem-solving skills.

 

European Union Law [LAW-251.1, ID 5294]

From a bipolar structure during the cold war – with the United States of America (and its allies) on the one side and the Soviet Union (and its satellites) on the other – the world has evolved into a multipolar system. While Russia has vastly diminished influence, at least on the political and economic playing fields, China seems torn between economic progress and political regression, and the United States is flirting with its latent isolationist tendencies, the European Union has emerged as the leader when it comes to the development of international law and policy. First, no legal systems have had and continue to have as much impact on the domestic laws of other countries, and the international legal framework, as the legal systems of European countries like the United Kingdom, France, Germany, etc. At the same time, the European Union itself has created a unique legal system, unlike any national or international system, which makes it difficult for the uninitiated to predict where it is going and how it is going to react to challenges, like Brexit, or a trade war with the U.S. Therefore, any legal professional anywhere in the world with interest in international trade, international relations, international business transactions, or even the further development of substantive areas, such as contract law, human rights, consumer protection, privacy law, (international) environmental law, etc. are well-advised to learn about the European Union, its legal system, and how it is a logical evolution of the Member State legal systems. In this course, we will analyze in detail the legal system of the EU and its interaction with Member State law and policy. Emphasis will be on decision-making, supremacy, direct effect, the free movement of goods, services, and people in the internal market, breaches of EU law, as well as legal remedies provided under EU law.

 

Freedom of Speech [HR/ICP/JOUR-295, ID 4428]

The objective of this course is to provide students with an introduction to the fundamental principles of freedom of speech and issues related to the idea from a comparative perspective. The course provides an overview of the historical development of the idea of freedom of speech, discusses its role and importance in modern democracies and the region. Throughout the course, students will examine domestic issues related to freedom of speech and see the way the decisions of the US Supreme Court and other national and international judicial practices could inform our analysis of the matter.

 

Human Rights and Health

Right to health, defined as the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health, is a fundamental human right. It applies to all people regardless of their origin, nationality, ethnicity,
race, and other statuses. As such health-related rights like all human rights are universal, inalienable and indivisible. COVID-19 has once again demonstrated the underlying significance of health and well-being and has reinforced the importance of strengthening individual and public health. This course will explore public health issues from a rights-based perspective. The course will introduce students to international human rights standards through the examination of principles and instruments and their implications for the implementation of the right to health. Students will delve into the core components of the right to health through analyzing key legal documents and exploring the role of international actors, governments, public health authorities, organizations and individuals with a focus on the disadvantaged and marginalized populations.

 

Human Rights in a Changing World

This course invites students to recent thought-provoking, engaging, and professionally crafted discourses on human rights in a changing world from an international and regional perspective. Particular attention is paid in the course to the value, as well as the limits of human rights in the context of the following important issues:
⮚ What are human rights in a changing world?
⮚ Critical perspectives on Human Rights
⮚ HR and Democracy in Central Asia
⮚ Challenges in the Implementation of the recommendations of human rights committees in Central Asia
⮚ HR and Culture
⮚ HR and Politics
⮚ The Value of Human Rights in the Contemporary World
⮚ HR and Free speech
The course aims at equipping the students with essential knowledge of various types of human rights and leading cases and discourses in those areas.

 

Human Rights in Armed Conflicts

The overall aim of the course is to give the student an in-depth understanding of how human rights are affected, or altered in their application in armed conflicts and how international criminal law can serve as a mechanism for protecting victims of armed conflicts in its effort to fight against impunity.
The course consists of two parts:

  1. Human rights in armed conflicts: This part of the course focuses on the applicability of human rights law in armed conflicts. The course covers issues such as human rights law and international humanitarian law as complementary or competing regulations in armed conflicts, and how today's conflicts and situations that are in the no man's land between peace and war affect regulations and states’ views on the applicability of human rights law and international humanitarian law.
  2. Protection of human rights by means of international criminal law: This part of the course focuses on the international criminal law as a mechanism of protection of victims of armed conflicts. Widespread violations of human rights had become a common practice in the contemporary world. Thus, the growing concern of the international community resulted in a demand for international criminal persecution of those who committed grave and heinous breaches of international human rights and humanitarian laws. The course will explore the dynamic development of this procedure where impunity was replaced by international criminal accountability of individuals in various historical trials and permanent international criminal court.

 

International Criminal Law [LAW - 231.1, ID 3243]

Widespread violations of human rights had become a common practice in the contemporary world. Thus the growing concern of the international community resulted in a demand for international criminal persecution of those who committed grave and heinous breaches of international human rights and humanitarian laws. The course will explore the dynamic development of this procedure where impunity was replaced by international criminal accountability of individuals in various historical trials. Following a brief description of the historical background of the creation of the International Criminal Court and the analysis of the operation of the Nuremberg Military Tribunal, the ad-hoc international tribunals, and hybrid and internationalized courts, the procedure to be followed by the ICC will be discussed in details in the light of grave violations of human rights. Furthermore, students will also be able to employ multi-faceted views on International Criminal Law, namely from the perspectives of victims of crimes and also fair-trials rights of the defendants.

 

International Human Rights Law [LAW - 323.1, ID 3360]

This course will introduce students to recent thought-provoking, engaging, and professionally crafted doctrinal sources in the field of human rights from various parts of the world. The course examines the international law of human rights, its origin, sources, content, enforcement, and justifications. It also surveys the legal recognition and protection of human rights within various jurisdictions. The course aims at equipping the students with essential knowledge of various types of human rights and leading cases in those areas. 

 

International Investment Dispute Settlement [LAW-369, ID 4157]

This course is focused on the study of legal aspects of international investment dispute settlement. Classes are aimed at providing students with the knowledge and critical understanding of key issues surrounding international investment dispute settlement. The course is focused primarily on international investment arbitration and covers topics ranging from the drafting of an arbitral agreement to the holding of arbitral proceedings and enforcement of awards. Special attention is paid to the analysis of leading arbitration cases under the rules of the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) and the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). At the same time, attention is also dedicated to alternatives to investment arbitration, including but not limited to international investment mediation.

 

International Public Law I & II [LAW-247, ID 3088 & LAW-253, ID 3228]

These courses are intended to introduce students to the basic concepts and problems of public international law. International law is commonly defined as the rules, principles, and norms, which govern the interaction among states. The courses will cover the traditional major topics in this field such as the sources and subjects of international law, human rights law, the concept of state responsibility, and the relationship between international law and the municipal law of states through studying the cases, treaties, and other international legal instruments. 

 

International Law in the Municipal Law the Kyrgyz Republic [IBL-225, ID 5297]

This is a research ordinated course that examines the implementation of public international law by domestic courts and tribunals of the Kyrgyz Republic. Students will research cases that can be relevant to the identification or interpretation of rules of international law. They will study and examine the way domestic courts and tribunals apply or discuss treaties, decisions of international organizations, and judgments of international courts and tribunals like the ICJ or ITLOS. The purpose is to scrutinize the decisions against international standards and provide students with an opportunity to apply their knowledge in practice. 

 

International Private Law [LAW-402.2, ID 3730]

The course introduces students to various aspects of the International Private Law (also known as Conflict of Laws in Anglo-Saxon jurisdictions) and provides a legal and practical perspective on the nature and functions of the conflict of laws (or legal collisions in post-soviet area terminology), resolution of transnational disputes, the problem of allocating jurisdiction, and enforcement of foreign judicial decisions and arbitral awards in national courts. The problems covered by the course include such issues as the purpose and objectives of Private International Law, its history, sources and system, the problem of choice of law in various legal areas as contracts, torts, property, labor relations, and family law aspects. 

 

International space law

The course is designed to provide the students with a basic understanding of the legal regime applicable in outer space. Space law is considered the law of the future and with Elon Musk’s
ongoing project to colonize Mars and Blue Origin’s plan to start outer space tourism, it has been gaining a lot of traction globally. Space is one such domain where law should precede man.
Therefore, it is imperative for even non-space-faring nations to be aware of their rights in outer space and to acquire knowledge of the law. To this end, the course is designed to not require rote memorization but rather to inculcate the skill of asking the right questions and spot the issues, in fact, and in law. The goal is to extract the relevant questions, rather than find the unlikely answers. In doing so, we shall discuss the historical development of space law and the current challenges that the outer space regime faces today. We will also discuss the issues such as claims of property rights on celestial bodies, environment protection in space, colonization of Mars, human spaceflight, asteroid mining, remote sensing, etc.

 

Internet Law [LAW-357.1, ID 4787]

This course is designed for the students who would like to get an understanding of the various topics within the Internet and its regulation. Students will be exposed to the regulations and challenges of regulation of selected topics such as the claims for jurisdiction and competence as well as related issues as human rights, privacy, protection of intellectual property in the online sphere. The course will cover the approaches of various countries in the regulation of online activities. 

 

Intro to Law [LAW-110, ID 2934]

Introduction to Law is a survey course intended to enable students to understand basic legal principles, various legal systems, and knowledge of the law in general. Students acquire essential knowledge of substantive areas of law as the establishment of the state and law, sources of law, the hierarchy of legal norms, different legal systems, and the like. The course will also introduce students to specific areas of the law such as constitutional, international, civil, criminal law, and so on from both common law and civil law traditions.

 

Investment Law and Sustainable Development [LAW-365.1, ID 3363]

This course is focused on the legal aspects of foreign direct investment (FDI) and sustainable development. Classes are aimed at providing students with the knowledge and critical understanding of main investment law as well as sustainable development concepts and issues primarily in accordance with the legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic. In addition, special attention is paid to the study of key multilateral and bilateral investment agreements, investment contracts, and major court arbitration cases.

 

Labor Law [LAW-302.2, ID 4154]

An objective of the course is to provide students with the basic knowledge of the Labor Law concepts, principles, theoretical underpinnings, and legislation. The course also aims to teach skills that are necessary to apply Labor Law norms correctly and to find solutions for various legal problems and situations.

 

Legal Clinic I, II [LAW-413.1, ID 3653 & LAW-423.1, ID 3732]

Деятельность в рамках данного курса предполагает работу студента с реальными клиентами над настоящими жизненными ситуациями, что дает возможность студентам овладеть практическими навыками будущей профессии: интервьюирование, консультирование, мониторинг, документирование, ведение переговоров, правовая оценка дела и правовой анализ, выработка позиции, аргументация и критическое мышление, юридическое письмо, судебное представительство и т.п.

Студенты также изучают курс «Адвокатская деятельность», который призван сформировать у студентов практические навыки разрешения сложных ситуаций в различных отраслях права. Целью этого курса является приобретение студентами практических навыков для успешного разрешения дел, в частности: навыков анализа,  выработки и реализации позиции по делу, развитие навыков работы с нормативной базой, формирование навыков составления процессуальных документов.

 

Legal Research Methods [LAW-427.1, ID3655]

Being able to conduct advanced-level research and produce quality written legal works is a crucial skill that students should master to be successful in the legal profession. Therefore, the “Legal Research Methods” course is aimed at teaching students to develop high-level legal research, analysis, and writing skills. Students will study the fundamental principles of effective legal writing and learn to apply them in the process of writing a senior project. The drafting process will help you improve your critical thinking skills as well as understand how to perform legal analysis in practice. The major goal of the course is to prepare for writing the senior.

 

Legal Skills [LAW-338.1, ID 3654]

The “Legal Skills” course, utilizing interactive methods, will concentrate on familiarizing students with the essential skills that they will need in the legal profession, with a focus on practical exercises, tasks, and demonstrations designed to replicate what lawyers do from day-to-day. A lawyer is a professional, and the legal profession has been time-honored throughout the history of civilization. Along with the prestige and rewards bestowed upon and earned by lawyers come great and serious responsibilities to clients, colleagues, and the country as well as to past and future generations of lawyers worldwide. In this regard, the first responsibility of any lawyer is to learn the basic elements of good lawyering and continuously improve one’s mastery of those skills. 

 

Legal Writing [LAW-105.1, ID 3640]

The course is designed to give you the basic skills to understand, analyze, and write about the law. This is one of the most important classes you will take in all of your legal studies, as it will teach you the analytical and writing skills that are fundamental to your future academic and professional success. The skills you learn in this introductory course will prepare you for your future legal careers, but mastery of legal and academic writing is a never-ending process.

 

Mediation: Alternative Dispute Resolution Technology [LAW-378, ID 4502]

The objective of the course is to inform students about an alternative dispute resolution method called mediation. Mediation skills are life skills and can be utilized every day in all situations involving others, as well as an opportunity to transform yourself. During the course, students will be taught on various issues, including the mediation theory and practice, its processes and techniques; the use of mediation in negotiations, concluding agreements, resolving disputes and conflicts; the peaceful settlement of judicial and pre-trial disputes; independent and alternative assessment of complex situations; the focus on finding a mutually beneficial solution and trying to maintain partnerships; confidentiality of the process.

 

Moot Court I & II [LAW-250.1, ID 3644 & LAW-250.2, ID 5295]

This course is designed for those students willing to participate in international competitions. AUCA Law Division students participate in two major moot competitions in Public International law (Jessup) and Private International Law (Willem Vis). The course is designed for all students willing to participate in the competition. 

 

Natural Resources Law [LAW-425.1, ID 3397]

The aim of the course Natural Resources Law is to review legal aspects of natural resources ownership and use in the Kyrgyz Republic. The course will cover the regulation of the following natural resources: subsoil, land, forest, water, flora, and fauna. The course addresses such issues as the title to different natural resources, principles of use of resources, state regulators in the natural resources sector, framework laws concerning different natural resources. Taking into account the social and economic importance for the Kyrgyz Republic of land, mining, and environmental protection issues, special attention will be given to the practical aspects of the regulation of land, mining industries, and environmental protection legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic.

 

Protection of Chidren's Rights

Around the world, children and adolescents make up over a quarter of the world population and are often the most vulnerable group at risk of violence, abuse, exploitation, and various forms of neglect. Children and adolescents are increasingly impacted by armed conflict, fragility, poverty, natural disasters and climate change, facing intersecting vulnerabilities. Children affected by violence at homes, in schools, and online, children in conflict and contact with the law, children deprived of parental care, children survivors of sexual exploitation and trafficking experience multiple violations of their rights guaranteed by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC).

This course will explore the origins of child rights and the history of the development of the main treaty that accords children their rights, the UN CRC. The course will encourage students to
understand factors that impact child well-being and fulfillment of their rights from a human rights perspective. While diving into theoretical aspects, the course will increasingly focus on the
practical application of knowledge gained through this course. Students will dive into the fascinating multi-disciplinary angle of child protection, understanding the various actors (state
and non-state stakeholders) that play a role in enhancing child and adolescent wellbeing and the realization of their rights. The course will enable students to analyze challenges that impact child rights implementation and ways to protect children and adolescents from harm so they can develop to their full potential.

 

Tax Law [LAW-411.2, ID 3959]

The objective of the course is to introduce students to the tax legal system of the Kyrgyz Republic and provide the general picture of the tax system. This is a very interesting and complex subject, and this course will be the first step into this area of law. The tax legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic is in constant development, and there are still several issues that do not have an explicit answer; therefore, careful search and analysis are necessary. During the course, we will address the basic principles and rules of the Tax Law, focusing on the sources of tax law, participants, as well as various procedures for the tax obligations as tax audits, to name a few. The Tax law and system of the Kyrgyz Republic will be studied and, where possible, compared with the regulations provided in the Russian Federation. 

 

Technology, Justice and Human Rights

The field of Technology, Justice, and Human Rights is a new and rapidly developing hybrid area of political, legal, and social topics of academic interest. This field is inspired by several different disciplines and concepts, such as law, human rights, economics, and globalization studies. The ever-growing importance of an interdisciplinary field addressing issues related to technology, justice, and human rights cannot be understated; in a 2021 report, Freedom House has stated that while some democratic governments have made good faith attempts to regulate the technology industry, state intervention in the digital sphere worldwide has clashed with technology companies’ approaches to safeguarding users’ data protection rights, contributed to the rise of authoritarianism in such countries as Belarus, Myanmar, Uganda, and created an unprecedented strain on free expression online through selective censorship of certain topics such as the COVID-19 pandemic while also failing to regulate the growing proliferation of false, misleading, and manipulated information on social media networks, all of which has placed human rights at risk around the world.

Various additional issues that are having an impact on human rights in cyberspace are for example cybercrimes or intellectual property rights and their protection. While classical crime should be punished as prescribed in the legislation, the same cannot be easily said and applied in case of cybercrimes. It is even more challenging if we consider some of the activities within cyberspace and their extent to be considered as criminal ones if dealing with hacktivism and what impact it will have on the administration of justice. Moreover, cybercrimes can be also committed in relation to intellectual property right holders, but with the latter, the broader question appears as to how intellectual property rights contribute to the enhancement of human rights promotion. In general, one of the issues to consider is the impact of technology on economic rights and freedoms as labor relations or trade.

This course is designed for students who would like to get an understanding of the various issues related to the internet and its regulation from a comparative perspective. At the theoretical level, students will be familiarized with interdisciplinary thinking on law, human rights, and technology studies. At the practical level, students will be exposed to examples of challenges of internet regulation such as anti-hacking laws, digital freedoms, data protection and privacy, online intellectual property rights, consumer protection laws and dispute resolution in e-commerce, etc., with a view towards analyzing the approaches of various countries in their regulation of the aforementioned fields.

 

Theory of Law [LAW-114, ID 2971]

The course provides insight into the law as a system of social relations regulation and as a measure of human freedom. Students will learn about sources of law, forms and typology of law, how the law operates through a set of legal means, what schools of legal thought have existed, and how law influences private and public life in a society. The course is basic for further studies of law; it gives students knowledge of the fundamentals of law, legal terminology, and notions.

 

Thesis Research Seminar I & II [LAW-426.1, ID 3398 & LAW-426.2, ID 3399]

These courses are designed to teach you the skills necessary for high-level legal research, analysis, and writing. These are the areas of expertise that every lawyer will need to succeed in the profession. The major goal of the course is to help you to write the senior project – the most significant piece of writing that you will undertake during your senior year. A senior project is an original, individual, intellectual, and creative activity that will round out and cap your program of study. The drafting process will help you improve your critical thinking and writing skills as well as understand how to perform advanced legal analysis and research. At the culmination of the courses, you are to finish your senior project for its evaluation by the experts in the field and be prepared for the final defense.

 

Transnational Human Rights Advocacy [IBL/HR-300, ID 5100]

This course examines the actors and organizations behind the remarkable development of human rights advocacy as well as the vast challenges faced by advocates today. Topics of study will cover the ethical and strategic dilemma as faced by modern-day human rights advocates; techniques and strategies central to human rights practice, including fact-finding, interviewing, monitoring, litigation, report writing, and media work; and the role of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in transnational legal and policy processes. This course will also examine debates about the ways in which modern human rights advocates are attempting to stretch the discourse to apply it in new contexts, including attempts to link human rights to the environment, corruption, natural resource extraction, and development. The course will contain a substantial critical and academic component but will also seek to engage students in “real-world” skill-building exercises like press release writing, media interviews, and qualitative interviews with victims of and witnesses to human rights violations. The course also involves hands-on work with the human rights organization Scholars at Risk (SAR) to support detained and disappeared Uyghur scholars in China.

This seminar is an Open Society University Network (OSUN) course that connects seminars in Bard Annandale (taught by Prof. Thomas Keenan), Al-Quds Bard (taught by Prof. Jana Lozanoska). A number of activities, including the creation of an information archive and the coordination of advocacy campaigns, will take place across these campuses. Working collegially and responsibly with network peers is an important part of the course.

 

Заемно-кредитные отношения (теория и практика) [IBL-214, ID 5097]

В рамках данной дисциплины студенты смогут углубить свои знания по гражданскому праву, особенной части, в сфере заемно-кредитных обязательств, изучить некоторые практические аспекты, а также получить знания в сфере функционирования микрофинансового рынка в Кыргызской Республике. В частности, будут рассмотрены такие вопросы, как деятельность микрофинансовых организаций (включая отдельные виды), теория и практика ограничения ростовщической деятельности, некоторые аспекты противодействия легализации (отмыванию) преступных доходов и финансированию террористической или экстремистской деятельности, а также будет рассмотрена судебная практика в сфере заемно-кредитных отношений, что позволит студентам применить свои знания при решении реальных кейсов.

 

Материальная ответственность сторон трудового договора [IBL-215, ID 5098]

Материальная ответственность - это самостоятельный вид юридической ответственности. Ее отличительная черта в том, что, возникая в рамках трудовых отношений, она не прекращается при расторжении трудового договора. В любом случае, окончив ВУЗ каждый из выпускников становится либо работником, либо работодателем. И поэтому, необходимо знать как материальная ответственность соотносится с другими формами юридической ответственности (уголовной, административной и дисциплинарной)? Каковы условия наступления материальной ответственности? Как влияет форма вины на размер взыскания? Курс дает ответы на эти и другие вопросы, связанные с материальной ответственностью сторон трудового договора. Цель данного курса - научить студентов определять субъектов материальной ответственности в трудовых правоотношениях; знать в каких случаях она наступает и определять размер ущерба и порядок его взыскания.

 

Нотариальная деятельность в КР

Цель-приобретение знаний и практических навыков для результативной работы в качестве юриста и в повседневной жизни при разрешении конфликтных ситуаций, связанных с совершением нотариальных действий, оспариванием нотариально удостоверенных документов в порядке гражданского судопроизводства.

 

Семейное право [LAW-377, ID 4507]

Дисциплина «Семейное право» нацелена на изучение и усвоение теоретических положений курса, смысла правовых норм, регламентирующих семейные правоотношения, выявление особенностей предмета и метода семейного права, особенностей заключения и расторжения брака, признания брака недействительным, выявление сущности правоотношений супругов, родителей и детей, анализ форм принятия детей на воспитание в семью. Целью изучения дисциплины является сформировать у обучающихся базовые представлению о системе правовых норм, в области правового регулирования брачно-семейных отношений, овладение выработанными наукой семейного права понятиями и концепциями, ознакомление с правилами толкования и практикой применения норм семейного права.

 

Практические аспекты коммерческого права [LAW-245.1, ID 3728]

Настоящий курс включает изучение коммерческого (предпринимательского) права и освоение практических навыков применения полученных знаний. Основная задача курса - научить студентов понимать смысл закона в сфере предпринимательской деятельности и применять нормы права на практике к различным ситуациям. Курс включает интерактивные лекции и семинары, где рассматриваются основные теоретические положения и практические аспекты коммерческого права. Курс ориентирует студентов на получение знаний и навыков в области законодательства, применяемого в коммерческой (предпринимательской) деятельности, в том числе, в области подготовки и подачи различных документов, взаимодействия с государственными органами, разрешения спорных и проблемных ситуаций.

 

American University of Central Asia
7/6 Aaly Tokombaev Street
Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic 720060

Tel.: +996 (312) 915000 + Еxt.
Fax: +996 (312) 915 028
AUCA Contacts