LAW AND DEVELOPMENT

The course introduces students to the legal and institutional frameworks governing public policies for development and sustainability at the national, European, and supranational level. Adopting a functional approach, it equips students with the critical tools to analyse how regulatory techniques, institutional arrangements, and governance models affect development outcomes for individuals, businesses, and the economic and financial system. The course is based on a combined system of learning types: acquisition, enquiry, discussion, collaboration, practice, and production. It fosters critical awareness of regulatory choices across interconnected domains: constitutional and international principles underpinning development; economic regulation theories and strategies; independent regulatory authorities and competition law; economic and spatial planning; public finance, structural funds, and financial regulation; corporate governance and sustainable finance; property regimes and intellectual property; public procurement and public-private partnerships; energy transition and network industries; and the emerging frontiers of digital and open data, space and underwater economy, health, and research and innovation. Sustainability and digital innovation serve as cross-cutting dimensions throughout the course. Through applied case studies and regulatory impact assessments, students develop the capacity to critically evaluate the rationale, design, and effects of public intervention in the economy. Upon completion, students will be able to identify the foundational principles of development regulation, assess the interplay between legal frameworks, institutional actors, and regulatory strategies, and appraise the effectiveness of normative responses to contemporary challenges across multiple sectors and levels of governance.

The necessary notions will be given during the course, in relation to the knowledge expressed by the students.

Knowledge and understanding: The course will foster the development of interdisciplinary knowledge suited to practical application, with particular attention to the forms of public authority intervention in the economy, the theories and strategies of economic regulation, as well as issues related to sustainability, energy transition, and digital innovation. Students will acquire skills, competencies, tools, and methods enabling them to formulate appropriate questions and address emerging issues in the context of development regulation, including the role of independent regulatory authorities, the relationship between competition law and development policies, and the dynamics between market liberalisation and protection. Students will be able to critically analyse existing research on the subject, with particular attention to the integration of law, economics, and other scientific knowledge. They will be able to collect and analyse data and present results in a clear and structured manner, addressing topics relevant to sustainable development governance, economic and spatial planning, financial regulation, and the management of common goods. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding: Through the methodology acquired, students will be able to develop their own analytical framework for assessing regulatory choices across the various areas covered by the course — from the siting of public infrastructure to project finance, from public procurement and partnerships to energy market regulation. They will also be able to read and analyse national, European, and international regulatory frameworks, identify relevant issues for further inquiry, and assess the impact of different regulatory strategies on market operators' behaviour and on development policy outcomes. Autonomy of judgement: Students will develop sufficient critical awareness to formulate autonomous judgements on regulatory choices in interdisciplinary terms, combining economic efficiency, protection of public interests, and sustainability objectives. They will also develop the ability to understand the balancing of potentially conflicting interests in development policies, the implications of siting and permitting decisions, the challenges of energy transition and network industry liberalisation, as well as the role of public and private finance in promoting sustainable development. Communication skills: Students will acquire the ability to communicate what they have learned in both written and oral form, appropriately employing the technical legal and economic terminology pertaining to development regulation and sustainability. Learning skills: Students will be able to put into practice the knowledge developed during lectures and through the analysis of case studies and regulatory impact assessments carried out in group work during the course.

The course is structured around several interconnected thematic areas. The first part is devoted to the principles and legal-institutional architecture underpinning development policies in constitutional, supranational, and international law, with attention to the balancing of potentially conflicting interests and the role of different actors at the national, European, and supranational level. The second part addresses economic regulation, focusing on regulatory theories, variables, and strategies, regulatory quality and legal certainty, the role of independent regulatory authorities, and the relationship between competition law and development regulation. The course then examines economic, spatial, and territorial planning and the siting of public works and infrastructure, before turning to investment for development: from public finance to structural funds, from financial regulation to sustainable finance and corporate governance rules. A further thematic area is dedicated to the relationship between property and development, with a law-and-economics analysis of property regimes and intellectual property. The course also addresses public contracts law — procurement, partnerships, project finance, green public procurement, and strategic procurement — as well as the regulation of the energy sector, with attention to energy transition, the siting and permitting of renewable energy facilities, and renewable energy communities. The programme is complemented by seminars dedicated to emerging frontiers: digital and open data, space and underwater economy, health, research and innovation. Throughout the course, applied case studies will be discussed, with particular attention to regulatory impact assessments. The programme will be enriched by contributions from external experts.

The texts and materials will be indicated at the beginning of the course; the slides provided during the course are part of the exam program.

The teaching methodology is based on a "full Inquiry-based" approach. The topics covered in the lectures are introduced through the presentation of one or more cases and the identification of issues of interest. Through the analysis of academic articles and other documents, a debate guided by the instructor will be promoted, aimed at identifying and studying possible solutions. Students will have the opportunity during office hours for individual discussion on specific topics. Attendance and Tracking. Compliant Status: Students who actively participate in at least 70% of classes (tracked via the BEACON system). Non-Compliant Status: Students who do not meet the minimum threshold of 70% classroom attendance are considered non-compliant. Exempt from mandatory attendance: Students with documented health issues, documented work commitments/internships, or competitive sports activities recognized by the University. Exempted students will be notified to instructors via MyLuiss (requests for exemption from students are approved by the School). Students participating in an international mobility program (e.g., Double Degree, Erasmus) are also exempt from mandatory attendance.

The final exam consists of a written examination in which the student must demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the main topics covered in the teaching program modules. Students must be able to independently and critically analyze the discipline and the institutions covered in the course, correctly using the legal terminology specific to the subject, demonstrating that they have acquired the study method and learning capacity necessary to continue deepening their knowledge of the subject independently. Students must demonstrate their ability to reason by applying the institutions studied to practical cases presented by the instructor through concrete examples. For the purpose of assigning grades on a scale of thirty, the following evaluation criteria will be taken into account: Midterm assessment conducted according to methods chosen by the instructor and communicated in due time. The midterm assessment will cover topics addressed up to one week before the test. The grade will account for 30% of the final grade. To take the midterm assessment, students must have attended at least 70% of the lectures held up to that point. Final examination: The final examination will be written and will be evaluated as follows: knowledge and understanding of the institutions and principles of the subject and ability to apply them to concrete cases (70%); mastery of technical-legal vocabulary, ability to consult and evaluate relevant sources and acquisition of study method (30%). For students who do not take the midterm exam, their grade for that exam will be 0, and this will be included in the overall continuous assessment grade. Students who take the exam in a semester following the one in which the course is offered will be graded solely on the final written exam. Even for students who are exempt from the attendance requirement or who do not meet the attendance threshold, the grade is based on a final exam, which accounts for 100% of the overall grade. The presence of knowledge gaps regarding one or more institutions or principles will result in an insufficient grade even in the presence of basic knowledge of the subject.

Motivational interview.