Coordination

Teresa Pizarro Beleza, Odete Severino Soares and Maria Miguel Oliveira da Silva. 

Context

The Postgraduation in Children’s Rights is part of the Chair of the Policy Centre for the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and will focus on the rights and interests of children from a legal perspective, with a transversal and multidisciplinary approach to the main issues raised in the field of Children’s Law, 35 years after the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
This postgraduate programme lasts four months and is structured into five thematic modules, which focus on the various issues related to the Family and Children. In addition to a complete and in-depth legal analysis, a holistic and multidisciplinary approach is also favoured in the context of the sessions in order to concretise not only the international, regional and national normative guidelines, but also an approach to the most relevant issues that concern all children and, in particular, children in situations of particular vulnerability. 
The postgraduate course includes three study visits to institutions of particular importance in this field: a Commission for the Protection of Children and Young People, a Family and Juvenile Court and the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (with the participants receiving the Permanent Mission of Portugal to the United Nations and other International Organisations).
The launch of this initiative aims to fill an existing gap in this area of law and is therefore aimed at lawyers (recent law graduates, lawyers, magistrates) and other graduates and professionals in the areas of family and children’s rights, as well as senior managers and technicians from the various government areas of the state and civil society, providing participants with extensive information and a space for reflection and debate on relevant issues concerning children’s rights.

Objectives

This Postgraduation aims to identify the challenges posed by Children’s Law, promote interdisciplinary approaches to the practice of Children’s Law, clarify the legal problems raised by Children’s Law in theory and practice and provide participants with new tools to improve their practice.

Target audience

The course is aimed at jurists, recent law graduates, lawyers, magistrates, senior managers and technicians from the various areas of government and civil society and other graduates and professionals in the areas of Family and Children’s Law.

Language

Portuguese

Duration

70 hours

Dates

16 January 2025 to 10 April 2025

Timetable

After work (via Zoom): Monday, Tuesday, Thursday – 6pm to 8pm

ECTS

12 ECTS

Methodology

Study Visits (subject to enrolment at the time of application): three study visits are planned during the Postgraduate programme:

• To a Child and Youth Protection Commission.
• To a Family and Juvenile Court.
• A trip to Geneva to attend a session of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child and to receive participants at the Permanent Mission of Portugal to the United Nations and other International Organisations (this trip is not included in the Postgraduate course fee).

Evaluation

Participants can obtain a certificate of completion of the PG or just a certificate of attendance at the PG.

Participants wishing to obtain the PG certificate of completion will be assessed in two stages:

• At the end of each module, they are given a multiple-choice test on the subject matter covered that day;
• At the end of the PG, they must hand in a reflection paper on one of the topics covered throughout the course.

Participants who only wish to obtain the PG attendance certificate must attend at least 75% of the sessions.

Fee

• 1700€
• Early Bird price (until 2nd December): 1445€
• NOVA School of Law Alumni: 1530€
• 20% discount* for institutions registering 3 or 4 participants;
• 30% discount* for institutions enrolling 5 or more participants.

 

*Not combinable with Early Bird Price

Teaching staff

The teaching staff is multidisciplinary, with lecturers and researchers in the area of Family and Children’s Law, but also lawyers, magistrates and other professionals with experience in this area and of recognised national and international reputation and professional experience.