Through reflection on the foundation of the constituent elements of legal science and the examination of the main methods of reasoning and argumentation of the jurist, the course aims to provide students with the conceptual apparatus, critical awareness and basic vocabulary for the study of positive law and legal practice. The teaching aims, in fact, to promote the ability to apply theoretical knowledge to concrete situations, relevant both in reference to the traditional legal professions and corporate lawyers and for the professionalism of the public administration.

1.Knowledge and understanding: The student - by participating in the lectures and practical activities of the course - will have acquired full knowledge of the general categories of legal science and the theory of legal argumentation (rules and principles, weighting, subsumption), also in the light of the analysis and assessment of case law. 2. Applying knowledge and understanding: The student - acquiring the correct tools and method - will be able to interpret and apply the principles and techniques of interpretation and legal reasoning. The occurence of online content in the digital platform of the course and the holding of practical workshops will permite to verify in real time the skills acquired by students. 3. Making judgements: The student, through the use of the legal categories acquired during the course, will be able to collect data and materials through the acquisition of a legal method that will be the basis for dealing with the entire course of study. This will allow it to acquire the ability to independently assess the sources of law and the jurisprudential guidelines formulating its critical judgment on the application of them to specific cases, identifying the appropriate solutions to the practical cases submitted to your attention. 4. Communication skills: At the end of the course the student will be able to master, with appropriate terminological precision, the technical-legal lexicon of the methodology of legal science. By participating in the different activities of the course - lessons with classroom discussions, oral exams, simulated process, written tests, laboratories - the student will learn to put into practice such communicative skills in different contexts, thus acquiring additional rhetorical and argumentative skills, indispensable for their professional path. 5. Learning skills The technical-legal categories learned during the course will allow the student to acquire a solid knowledge of the tools of legal reasoning. The acquisition and the mastery in the use of the interpretative and argumentative techniques will allow him to continue to deepen also in autonomy the topics addressed and to undertake the different paths of professional training post lauream

Juridical methodology and principal conceptions of juridical science. Logic structure and methodological tools of legal reasoning Juridical hermeneutics and theory of argumentation.

M. Atienza, Diritto come argomentazione. Concezioni dell'argomentazione, Editoriale Scientifica, Napoli, 2012 (pp. 1-107) A. Abignente, L’argomentazione giuridica nell’età dell’incertezza, Editoriale Scientifica, Napoli, 2017 F. Ciaramelli, L’ordine simbolico della legge e il problema del metodo, Giappichelli, Torino 2021.

Frontal lessons; Analysis and evaluation of case law with practical exercises of the students; reading and comparison with a text chosen by a classic of the right-philosophical thought; group discussions, simulated process.

Oral examination. During the oral exam the student will be required to show that he/she knows and understands the legal philosophy and legal argumentation theories. The student is expected to be able to independently analyse sources and relevant theories of philosophy and legal law and to use the appropriate technical and legal vocabulary, thus proving that he/she has acquired the study method and the learning ability for carrying on, also independently, further study of the matter. The following evaluation criteria will be taken into account to assign the final grade, expressed in thirtieths: - knowledge and understanding of the notions and principles of the matter and ability to apply them to concrete cases; appropriate use of the technical and legal vocabulary, ability to analyse and evaluate relevant sources and acquisition of the study method. Learning gaps concerning one or more notions or principles will lead to an insufficient evaluation, even in presence of a basic knowledge of the matter.

You must have taken the Methodology of Legal Science exam with a vote not less than 24/30 and the ability to read correctly texts in one of the following languages: English, French, Spanish, German.