Certificate in Commercial Contracts (iPad Pilot Project)

Note: Places are limited to 24 participants.

• To purchase this certificate online, click Book Now (to right of screen), AND
• Download an application form - all applicants must submit a completed aplication form.
• Download details on How to apply
• Download a draft timetable

Please note mandatory attendance dates:

• Saturday, 5th November, 2011, 11.00am to 5.00pm
• Thursday, 10th November, 2011, 5.30pm to 8.30pm
• Thursday, 24 November 2011, 5.30pm to 8.30pm
• Saturday, 10th December, 2011, 11.00am to 3.00pm
• Thursday, 19th January, 2012, 5.30pm to 8.30pm
• Saturday, 4th February, 2012, 11.00am to 3.00pm
• Thursday, 23 February 2012, 5.30pm to 8.30pm
• Saturday, 3 March 2012, 11.00am to 3.00pm.

Course Objectives
This course will provide an understanding of the many different skills required of the commercial practitioner including drafting, structuring and advising on a wide array of business arrangements across numerous industry sectors, so as to build a complete understanding of the fundamental competences required by the commercial lawyer. The certificate will include guidance on the structure and format of commercial contracts and will emphasise the importance of using clear and concise language when drafting such agreements. Experienced practitioners will provide drafting tips and techniques on how to ensure that your commercial contracts provide legal and commercial certainty, free from ambiguity, while meeting your clients’ commercial objectives.

One of the aims of the course is to demonstrate the effectiveness of using devices such as the iPad as an educational tool and a mobile learning device, meaning that you can access your course ‘anytime’ and ‘anywhere’. In addition, from a skills point of view, this is an important technological development for busy legal professionals in their work-life as a means to manage time more effectively. We will guide you on how to set up your iPad to operate as a ‘personal and professional information manager’. A feature of the course will be a number of iPad clinics where we will have specialised IT personnel to answer any queries you may have. These will take place before the evening onsite lecture sessions in the first term.

The course design facilitates participants with an opportunity to acquire the necessary skills and to get to grips with the various ‘apps’ whilst completing core course activities. In terms of learning methodology we will be utilising key features of ‘transactional learning’. Transactional learning simply means learning from professional transactions. In transactional learning, students get to grips with the actual documents and drafting, which promotes ‘deeper learning’ as opposed to a ‘surface learning’ approach. Along with dedicated and structured group work, the blended learning course will incorporate activities such as online chat rooms, discussion forums, and role-play. Assessment will be by way of a final assignment and continuous assessment, in the form of project work and mandatory tasks to be completed online. 

Course Structure
This is a blended learning course comprising a mixture of onsite and online sessions. The course will run over a five month period and will comprise nine modules.

The first term before Christmas will cover modules 1- 4:

Module 1 Course Introduction Using an IPad in law practice & introduction to commercial contract law
Module 2 Drafting of Commercial Agreements
Module 3 Supply Agreements
Module 4 Agency & Distribution Agreements

The second term will cover modules 5-9:

Module 5 Consumer Law
Module 6 E-Commerce & Data Protection
Module 7 Intellectual Property and Technology Contracts
Module 8 Public Procurement & Tendering
Module 9 The Role of the Commercial Contracts Practitioner in a Corporate Transaction.

See further information on Modules here.

Who Should Apply
The course will appeal to seasoned practitioners who wish to hone their commercial skills and will also appeal to those who may be embarking in practice and who wish to develop these competencies in an informed and supportive environment. This is a pilot project using the iPad to facilitate blended learning, which will appeal to those who have an open-minded approach to learning and are willing to try something new. We will use active learning and there may be role-play and group work involved therefore we welcome participants who are willing to interact and share knowledge with colleagues.

Delivery Method
Course materials and webcast lectures will be released to your iPad via the diploma website, known as Moodle. Frequent use of the iPad and engaging online is a central element of this blended learning course. If you are new to this way of learning and using iPads, there may and initial learning curve but nothing even those with limited IT skills can handle. In order to ensure that participants receive the full benefit of the learning experience, the course commences with a ‘hands-on’ IT workshop in the Education Centre at Blackhall Place. The purpose of the workshop is to introduce and guide students through the various mobile learning elements inherent with the use of an iPad and activities that will be used within the website, such as, discussion forums and quizzes. Participants are asked to attend all onsite sessions. There are three other additional onsite sessions before Christmas and five sessions after Christmas. The deadline for the final assignment is the end of March 2012. In order to maximise the learning experience, places are limited to 24.

Assessment
The assessment will comprise a final assignment of 2,500 words which will account for 50% of the final mark. In addition, participation in online interactivity via the iPad will be required. 50% of the overall result of the course is allocated to the completion of activities during the course. These exercises will be based on an overall case study and will relate to topics that are dealt with in the lectures and tutorials.

For further information, please contact Freda Grealy, Diploma Manager at f.grealy@lawsociety.ie

Note: Participants will need to contact their individual provider for further details in relation to their 3G contract. All participants will need an iTunes account and will have to pay to download certain apps. In line with the course approach, no printed material will be issued to students as all materials will be contained on the iPad within Moodle, the course website.