Universität Mannheim - Fakultät Rechtswissenschaft

The initial Master of Comparative Law (M.C.L.) program has been successfully taught since 1998, originally with a focus on Public International Law and Human Rights. In recent years, the program has been extended to include a range of business law-related courses. Since 2014 the program is offered in a restructured form named "Master of Comparative Business Law (M.C.B.L.)". The M.C.B.L. focuses on European and International Business Law with a comparative perspective.

The “Master of Comparative Business Law ” is a one-year program at master's level. Two tracks are offered:

The ”Mannheim/Adelaide Track” (joint degree with the University of Adelaide): The first semester (from September to December) takes place in Mannheim and the second semester (from February to June) in Adelaide. Graduates of this option will be awarded with the academic title of "Master of Comparative Business Law- M.C.B.L. (Mannheim/Adelaide)".
The ”Mannheim Track” : Students who have obtained their undergraduate degree outside of Germany are also eligible to study the entire program in Mannheim. Graduates of this option will be awarded with the academic title of "Master of Comparative Business Law- M.C.B.L. (Mannheim)".

The program is unique in that it gives its students the opportunity of studying law from a comparative perspective at a German and at an Australian university. By this, students gain first-hand experience of the different approaches to problem-solving and legal thinking adopted by a classic European legislation on the one hand and by a Common-Law country on the other.

The program starts every fall semester (September) in Mannheim and lasts until the end of June of the next year.

In Mannheim the following courses will be offered:

SEMESTER 1 (September to December)
European Business Law

Compulsory Module: Introduction to Comparative European Law (every student is obliged to take these courses):

• Comparative Law I (European Legal Traditions)
• Introduction to European Business Law
• European Union Law (Institutional Aspects)
• European Legal Thinking: Meet Savigny & his Peers

Intensive Module: The Internal Market
(students have to choose 2 courses out of these courses):

• European Market Freedoms
• European Competition Law
• European Private Law
• Cross Border Litigation & Arbitration

Elective Module: European Business Law
(students have to choose 2 courses out of these courses):

• E-Commerce & Internet
• European Tax Law
• EU Fundamental Rights
• Introduction to German Private Law
• European Infrastructure Law
• Adelaide Guest Lecture

SEMESTER 2 (February to June)
International Business Law

Compulsory Module: Introduction to Comparative and International Business Law
(every student is obliged to choose these courses):

• Comparative Law II (The Common/Civil Law Divide)
• Introduction to International Business Law
• International Organizations: legal sources, actors and means of influence
• Law & Economics

Intensive Module: The Global Market
(students have to choose 2 courses out of these courses):

• International Trade Law
• Corporate Governance II
• International Sale of Goods
• Private International Law

Elective Module: International Business Law
(students have to choose 2 courses out of these courses):

• International Business Transactions
• Intellectual Property Law
• International Labor Law
• Law & Economics of Regulation in Evolving Markets
• Comparative Competition Law

At the University of Adelaide also a wide range of business law courses will be offered. For further information check: Course Catalogue Adelaide

University of Mannheim

The Master of Comparative Business Law program is offered jointly by two prestigious universities:

The University of Mannheim
By German standards, Mannheim is a relatively small university of approximately 13,000 students. Tracing its origins back to 1763, the university is located in a baroque palace in Mannheim’s city center. Originally built in the 18th century, and reconstructed after the Second World War, the palace is considered today one of the most beautiful university buildings in Europe. With its city front extending over 450 meters in length and its more than 1400 windows, it is even larger than the similarly styled Versailles castle in France.

The University of Adelaide
Established in 1874, the University of Adelaide is the third-oldest university in Australia and a member of the Group of Eight – Australia’s leading research-intensive universities. With approximately 21,000 students, campus life is vibrant and diverse. The university is located in the heart of the city, between the River Torrens and the parklands. Central to the city’s shopping and business district, the university is adjacent to the Art Gallery of South Australia, the State Library, South Australian Museum, the Festival Centre, Zoological Gardens, and the Botanical Gardens.

Adelaide Campus

Mannheim's law school
Mannheim's law school consistently ranks among the leading group of law schools in Germany. Due to its small size, our law school boasts an excellent student-teacher ratio.
Mannheim’s Law school is the first law school in Germany to introduce a modern Bachelor of Law study program, the so-called “Bachelor Unternehmensjurist”, while maintaining the high standards of the legal State Examination system. With this innovative program, the law school has set a new standard for Bologna-compliant undergraduate law degree programs in Germany.

Adelaide's law school
The Adelaide Law School was founded as a separate Faculty in 1883, and is therefore the second oldest Law School in Australia. The School presently has a student body of about 1400, and about 30 full time academic staff. Many students and staff have moved through Adelaide Law School, and many of our law graduates have enjoyed fine, and in some cases highly distinguished careers in Australia and overseas. Entry standards are very high, and students at Adelaide are also taught and assessed in accordance with the highest standards.

The law school enjoys a pivotal role in the research of business law in national, European and international contexts. The 19 chairholders, leading practicing lawyers and distinguished visiting academics from abroad would love to share their experience with you in the classroom.

The M.C.B.L. program is a so-called “non-consecutive Master’s program”, which translates as a program that requires at least 240 ECTS worth of previous studies or equivalent in law, business, economics, or political sciences. Non-ECTS study programs will be judged equivalent if the regular duration of the program was at least 4 years. Graduates of three-year bachelor’s degree programs are not eligible.

Since English is the sole language of instruction, you must have a very good command of written and spoken English. Unless your native tongue is English or your first degree was taken in English, a minimum score of 90 (TOEFL-ibt) or 6.5 (IELTS) is required for the "Mannheim Track".

For the "Mannheim/Adelaide Track" a TOEFL iBT with a total score of 94 (27 in Writing, 23 in Speaking, 20 in Reading and Listening) or IELTS with an overall band score of at least 7.0 (7.0 in Writing and Speaking, 6.5 in Reading and Listening) is required.

In order to ensure academic excellence and direct, personal contact between students and the faculty, admission is limited to a maximum of 20 students each year.

We accept only online-applications. The online application link will be activated by March 15! Application deadline: May 31.
For instructions regarding the application procedure, please visit the M.C.B.L. website:
Admission and tuition fees

You have to submit (upload):

1) Letter of Motivation (max. 2 pages)
2) Curriculum vitae (max. 3 pages)
3) Academic Degrees (degree certificates and transcripts must be submitted in English or German or as certified translations into one of these languages)
4) Proof of English Proficiency (see Entry Requirements)
Certificates of English proficiency can be submitted until August 15!

To improve your chances of being admitted to the M.C.B.L. program, we recommend that you include:
1) Class rank information
2) Recommendation letters from your former employers or university professors, if available

Mensa Mannheim

The tuition fee for the entire program amounts to 8.500 EUR (including the Adelaide part).

Additional student union and administration fees of about EUR 150 per semester will be applied.

The Student Body Representative Committee (asta) will charge a contribution of appr. 10 EUR per semester.

Mannheim lecture hall

Upon written request, which is to be submitted together with the application for the M.C.B.L. program, particularly qualified applicants and applicants who cannot pay the tuition fees due to financial hardship can be partially exempted from the tuition fees. The admissions committee decides case by case whether tuition fee waivers are granted. For more information, please contact the M.C.B.L.- Coordinator via email: mcbl@uni-mannheim.de.

For general information on scholarships, please have a look at:
Scholarships

Adelaide Barr Smith Library

Mannheim, Germany
With a population of about 310,000, Mannheim is the second largest city in Baden-Württemberg and the economic and cultural center of the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region (pop. 2.4 million). Mannheim offers all the amenities of a bigger city, but without the anonymity. It is also an extremely well situated city. Mannheim's inhabitants enjoy, in a 20 km radius of its city borders, the Odenwald natural parc to the Northeast, the tourist hotspot Heidelberg to the East, and the Pfälzer Weinstrasse, Germany's foremost wine region, to the West. From Mannheim, there are direct high-speed trains to all major German cities and, among others, to Paris, Amsterdam and Brussels.

Adelaide, Australia
Adelaide is a cosmopolitan city in Southern Australia 20 minutes away from stretches of clean, sandy beaches. With a 1.2 million population from over 150 ethnic communities, Adelaide offers a rich cultural background with a broad range of restaurants, cafes, bars and markets. Student life is an integral part of the city’s charm. Being the ‘Festival State’, South Australia offers a variety of festivals throughout the year, such as food, wine, arts and music festivals. Among others, Adelaide is host to the southern hemisphere’s biggest world music festival, WOMADelaide.

Adelaide Cleland Park

For accomodation in Mannheim, please refer to the information provided by our international office at this site.

For accomodation in Adelaide, please see the Master student's handbook at this site.

Facebook M.C.B.L.