Course Listing

Law and State Power
Last Updated Date:   25 June 2026


4 Units,  Semester 1

Course Description:
he course provides an opportunity to take a deep dive into the modern state. We investigate how the state organises and exercises power, and how such power is legitimated and controlled. At all times we remain alert to the pathologies of state power - corruption, mismanagement, capture by elites - and what might be done to prevent them. Classic themes surrounding law and state power - such as tensions between technocracy and democracy, bureaucratic rationality and charismatic authority, agency autonomy and political accountability - are given contemporary resonance by studying topical themes of importance, such as populism and illiberal democracy, citizenship deprivation and the politics of pandemic management.

Course Convenor: Kwa Geok Choo Distinguished Visitor Prof Thomas Poole

Co-teacher(s): NA

Course Codes: LL4560 / LL5560 / LLJ5560 / LL6560

Contact Hours: 9 sessions over 3 weeks: Three 3-hour weekly seminars

Workload: Intensive: Weeks 1 – 3; Dates: 10 – 29 Aug 2026 [Mon: 6.30pm – 9.30pm, Wed: 6.30pm – 9.30pm & Fri: 3pm – 6pm] [*2 Make-up lessons for 10 & 17 Aug on Sat, 15 & 22 Aug (9am – 12pm)]

Mode of Assessment: Class Participation - 20% & Essay [Due: Fri, 2 October 2026 (9pm)]

Preclusions: Nil

Prerequisites: NUS Compulsory Core Law Curriculum or common law equivalent.

Examination Date: Different Mode of Examination

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