Law and History Courses

TAU's Faculty of Law offers a variety of courses for students interested in the conjunction of law and history. Students who are seeking to progress in an orderly and comprehensive fashion are advised to take courses in different areas, preferably in the order presented below:

Meta-Legal Courses

“Law and History” is an introductory course to Israeli legal history and the discipline of legal history - presenting central historiographical and methodological debates. “Legal Systems” is an introduction to the history of the major western legal families – both Continental and Anglo-American.

Elective Courses

These courses focus on narrower aspects of legal history and explore them at greater depth. The courses generally devote more time to historiographical debates, methodological and theoretical issues, and analysis of primary historical sources. A variety of such courses is offered each year by members of the Faculty.

The more advanced of these are designated courses of the Zvi Meitar Center for Advanced Legal Studies. In addition, one or two intensive courses are taught each year, usually in English, by leading legal historians from abroad.

The Yigal Arnon Legal History Workshop

At this workshop, offered annually, leading legal historians from Israel and abroad present their work. Most of the articles discussed are works-in-progress. Participants are asked to prepare a short critique of the article to be discussed. At the weekly meeting, a critical discussion is held with the participation of the author and the workshop organizers, as well as other faculty members and students.

The purpose of the workshop is to develop students’ ability to read legal history articles critically, and to present the various contemporary research topics and approaches in the field. The workshop is suitable for advanced undergraduates and for graduate students.

Research Seminars

Each year, the Faculty offers a small and changing selection of seminars (typically year-long), the purpose of which is to experience historical research from up close. This is a good opportunity for undergraduate students both to gain experience and to determine to what extent the field is of interest to them for further studies.

For graduate students, the seminar is an opportunity to examine the research potential of a topic, as well as a framework for working on part of their thesis.

Courses Offered by Other TAU Faculties

Relevant courses are offered by the departments of General History, Jewish History, Middle Eastern and African History and Hebrew Culture - all in the Faculty of Humanities. Permission to take these courses is granted in accordance with student regulations and through the student office.