Vår 2026

JUR-3910 Master's thesis in Law of the Sea - 30 stp

The course is administrated by

Det juridiske fakultet

Type of course

The course is part of the Master of Laws (LL.M) in Law of the Sea programme, cf. Programme description for Master of Laws (LL.M) in Law of the Sea.

Only students admitted to the Master of Laws (LL.M) in Law of the Sea programme may register for this course.

For students on the Master of Laws (LL.M) in Law of the Sea programme, semester 1 and 2 (JUR-3050, JUR-3054, JUR-3052 and JUR-3053) must successfully be completed before admission to this course (semester 3), cf. Regulations for the Law of the Sea programme, section 8.

Course contents

The course builds on and is intended to further develop the knowledge and skills acquired by the students during the previous courses of the programme, including through the written assignments, oral skills developed through compulsory oral presentations and an oral exam, and methodological knowledge and skills. The purpose of the master's thesis is to provide the students with experience in processing and presenting larger legal or partly legal research questions, based on an independent analysis of the theme and relevant sources. The Master's thesis followed by an oral exam requires an in-depth study of a particular topic by students. As part of the academic supervision that students receive, they will also learn about time management and working with deadlines. They also gain experience in having academic discussions on the topic of the thesis with the supervisor, which gives good practice for the oral exam.

Objective of the course

Knowledge:

A student who successfully completes this course shall have acquired:

Advanced knowledge on presenting and discussing larger legal issues and questions related to the law of the sea.

Advanced knowledge of legal methodology and methods in order to conduct independent analysis of a legal theme and relevant sources

Advanced knowledge of the use of references in legal texts.

Advanced knowledge of a particular theme of the law of the sea.

Knowledge of ethical dilemmas in legal research and writing.

Skills:

A student who successfully completes this course shall be able to:

Effectively identify, formulate and discuss legal research issues and questions related to the law of the sea,

Identify, analyse and apply legal sources in a critical and independent way.

Argue in a transparent, complete and balanced manner with precise and verifiable use of references.

Produce a lager research output on minimum 37 pages and maximum 55 pages.

Critically discuss the applicable law and reflect on the need for revision or updating of the laws.

Identify and discuss the societal relevance of particular legal issues and questions.

Summarise and present major legal research orally.

General competence:

A student who successfully completes this course shall be able to:

Apply knowledge and skills acquired in the process of researching and writing the master’s thesis, individually and in collaboration with others.

Clearly communicate legal arguments and conclusions both in writing and orally

Apply knowledge and skills acquired in the process of researching and writing the Master’s thesis to a work setting.

Identify and reflect on issues of academic ethics both in writing and orally.

Apply their knowledge and skills to carry out large research project within a deadline.

Language of instruction

English

Teaching methods

This course uses interactive and dynamic teaching methods. As part of the teaching methods a mandatory course is held providing students with an introduction to writing a major paper and to scientific thinking. All students are required to attend this introductory course.

Students are required to submit a Master’s thesis topic proposal to the Faculty of Law for approval within a fixed deadline.

The students are entitled to 19 hours of individual supervision in the writing of the Master's thesis, cf. the Regulations for the Master of Laws in Law of the Sea program, section 17. The academic supervisors are usually drawn from the Faculty of Law, UiT The Arctic University of Norway. However, in special circumstances or due to their expertise, the Faculty may appoint external supervisors.