Simon Fraser University
Engaging the World

Course Outlines

Fall 2025 - PHIL 329 B100

Law and Justice (3)

Class Number: 6957

Delivery Method: Blended

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Sep 3 – Dec 2, 2025: Mon, 10:30 a.m.–12:20 p.m.
    Burnaby

  • Prerequisites:

    One of PHIL 120, 120W, 121, 220, 221, 270, SDA 270, ENV 320W, or REM 320W.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

Explores in detail the relationship between the law and theories of justice. Topics range over: the philosophy of punishment, theories of moral responsibility, charter equality rights, and theories of distributive justice. Students with credit for PHIL 333 in Spring 2016 cannot take this course for further credit.

COURSE DETAILS:

NOTE: This course is offered as blended, with 2 hours of lecture per week, and 1 hour of asynchronous online work. 

Puzzles for Criminal Culpability: It is widely held that culpable wrongdoing is the fundamental desert-basis for criminal punishment, even if criminal justice as a whole should have other aims such as rehabilitation and reparation. But how should we understand the nature and scope of culpability? The aim of this course is to investigate the nature of moral and legal culpability through an examination of various problems and puzzles regarding the nature, degree, and scope of culpability. The course is committed to the methodological idea that philosophical and jurisprudential perspectives on responsibility and excuse stand to benefit from mutual engagement. Moral philosophers would do well to attend to settled criminal law principles which have been developed and tested over decades of jurisprudence, while the criminal law and legal theory would do well to attend to work in moral philosophy regarding the nature, presuppositions, and implications of the core moral concepts that figure in criminal law. The course begins with a detailed theoretical analysis of the concept of cupability and cognate concepts. We then transition to an investigation of certain puzzles and problems, drawing on actual cases to illustrate the puzzles. The specific puzzles will includes cases involving: negligence, insanity, intoxication, self-defence, necessity and duress.

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

PHIL 329 is required for students doing a Philosophy Major or Minor with a Concentration in Law and Philosophy, or the Business, Philosophy and the Law Joint Major.   It may also be applied towards the Certificate in Ethics: Theory and Application. 

 

Grading

  • In-class quizzes 10%
  • Low-stakes writing assignments 10%
  • Peer reviews 5%
  • Final paper 30%
  • Two in-class midterms (at 20% each) 40%
  • Ethics bowl (group project) 5%

NOTES:

Blended delivery: roughly 35% online (via Canvas) and 65% in-person.  The online component will consist of lecture videos, low-stakes writing, and peer-reviews. 

REQUIREMENTS:

Written work for this course will be submitted via Turnitin, a third party service licensed for use by SFU. Turnitin is used for originality checking to help detect plagiarism. Students will be required to create an account with Turnitin, and to submit their work via that account, on the terms stipulated in the agreement between the student and Turnitin. This agreement includes the retention of your submitted work as part of the Turnitin database. Any student with a concern about using the Turnitin service may opt to use an anonymous identity in their interactions with Turnitin. Students who do not intend to use Turnitin in the standard manner must notify the instructor at least two weeks in advance of any submission deadline. In particular, it is the responsibility of any student using the anonymous option (i.e. false name and temporary e-mail address created for the purpose) to inform the instructor such that the instructor can match up the anonymous identity with the student.

Materials

MATERIALS + SUPPLIES:

I will be using the online platform Kritik for low-stakes and peer reviews.

REQUIRED READING:

All readings will be made available on Canvas.


REQUIRED READING NOTES:

Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.

Department Undergraduate Notes:

Thinking of a Philosophy Major or Minor? The Concentration in Law and Philosophy? The Certificate in Ethics? The Philosophy and Methodology of Science Certificate?
Contact the PHIL Advisor at philcomm@sfu.ca   More details on our website: SFU Philosophy

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

At SFU, you are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all your academic work. Cheating, plagiarism, or any other form of academic dishonesty harms your own learning, undermines the efforts of your classmates who pursue their studies honestly, and goes against the core values of the university.

To learn more about the academic disciplinary process and relevant academic supports, visit: 


RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.