Faculty of Law, The University of West Indies at Mona

LA36A Introduction to Offshore Law
	1. General This course will be taught in the first and/or second semester of the third year of the LL.B. degree programme. This course is an optional course. 2. Course Objective The course aims to give an appreciation of the legal aspects of new, diverse and contemporary subject area of offshore investment. It straddles several other legal disciplines such as the law of banking, fiscal law, the law of trusts and the conflict of laws. Still, the study is a unique and holistic subject in itself as several legal concepts are innovative and distinct. The course will be offered in the second semester. Students taking this course should have a background in either revenue law, the law of trusts or the conflicts of laws. 3. Course Content The areas to be covered are as follows: i. The Anatomy of Offshore Financial Structures, their Development and Rationale ii. The Nature of the Offshore Trust iii. Problems facing the Offshore Trust iv. Confidentiality and Disclosure Initiatives in Offshore Financial Regimes v. Offshore Vehicles for Tax Avoidance vi. Conflicts of Laws and Offshore Investment vii. The Captive Insurance Model viii. Ethical and Constitutional Issues in Offshore Investment ix. Developmental Issues and Offshore Investment 4. Method of Teaching The course will be taught by a combination of seminar, workshops and lectures for three hours per week. 5. Assessment The course will be assessed in one of two ways, EITHER by a “take home” semester assignment in the form of a research paper or project to account for 25% of the final mark and a two hour final examination to account for 75% of the final mark in which students will be invited to answer two questions from a total of four OR by a two hour final examination to account for 100% of the final mark in which students will be invited to answer two questions out of four questions, one of which will be a compulsory question. At the start of the semester, the course director may choose on the stated options and must advise students of the selected method of assessment . Where the course advisor does not choose one of the stated options, the student may choose the option he or she prefers for assessment and advise the course director of his or her choice. Students choosing to do a “take home” assignment must consult with the course director as to the topic of the paper or project. The “take home” assignment must be submitted on or before the last working day of the last week in October.