DDRO 27A41 - Personal Autonomy: Philosophical Issues and Examples from North American Law

Personal autonomy – the idea that persons should be in control over their own lives – underlies virtually every aspect of law, from private law institutions like property and contract to the basic rules of constitutional law. To help us navigate this complex relationship we will discuss questions such as: What cognitive capacities are needed for personal autonomy? What does it mean to exercise autonomous control over a given decision, action, or event and what role does causation play in such control? What do we mean by a person's “own life” when we say that a person should be in control of her own life? In addition, we will discuss how these questions figure in Canadian and American criminal law, tort law, and law on socio-economic rights.

Hugo LAFRENIERE

Séminaire

English

There are no prerequisites for this course. However, students should be aware that a large part of the readings are philosophical in nature. Although no previous knowledge of philosophy is expected, students should therefore possess a general interest in discussing abstract philosophical issues.

Spring 2022-2023

Evaluation will be divided in three: 25%, in-class participation and oral presentation (students will be asked to present the readings for a given meeting); 25%, comment paper (1,000 words on the readings for a given meeting); 50%, final essay (5,000 words on a subject discussed during the course).