Why study Economics in Law
Economics nowadays is an integral part of the study of any subject and law is no exception. There used to be times when Law dictated Economics but in the contemporary era, Economics dictates Law. Human behaviour, to a large extent is driven by economic goals and objectives and this is what usually drives him towards immoral or illegal means of accomplishing those objectives. That is where Law is required to govern behaviour; it offers norms and regulations and guides the conduct of activities in an economically more efficient manner.
Economics at RGNUL
Teaching at RGNUL is carried out with a multidisciplinary approach and this further enables the students of law to understand the interface between Law and Economics. The department of Economics was established at RGNUL in the year 2011. Prior to this, Economics was taught as a compulsory paper in the law course in B.A.LL. B. (Hons.). The introduction of Economics in the form of Majors and Minors since 2011 led to the establishment of the subject as a separate department. Economics at RGNUL is taught to the students of the undergraduate program in the form of Majors and Minors option, the journey of which begins from the very first year itself. The paper is taught as Majors for the first six semesters. The papers taught in the Majors option are:
Microeconomics; Macroeconomics; Development Economics; International Economics; Indian Economy and Policy and Statistical Economics
The students choosing Economics as a Minor, study Economics for three semesters and are taught the majority part of the Majors syllabus, with an encapsulated approach. The objective with which the syllabi for the Minors course is drafted is, to ensure that a student choosing Economics Minor must not be rendered deprived of the knowledge of the basic concepts that might be of use to him at a subsequent stage while making his choice of specialization during the fourth and the fifth year.
The department of Economics has two members – Dr. Brindpreet Kaur and Ms. Jasmine Kaur. The department is also diligently associated with the research centre on Agricultural Law and Economics, which provides a platform for research with an interface between Law and Economics, so as to inculcate amongst the students, the ability to apply their knowledge of law and economics to real life situations and also contribute effectively to address the issues of the people of a rural economy, like that of the state of Punjab.
· Syllabus was revised and updated as per the current scheme of the B.A. LL.B. (FYIC). A new module pertaining to Welfare Economics has been added to the course of Economics-I owing to the relevance of welfare economics in the contemporary times.
· A series of Faculty Development Programme on ‘Law and Economics’ has been initiated. Two FDPs have been conducted so far on the same theme. The second FDP on ‘Law and Economics’ was organised virtually from March 10th to March 16th 2023.
· 2nd International Faculty Development Programme on ‘Law and Social Sciences’ was organised from 18th to 23rd September 2023 in virtual mode. This FDP was designed in align with the multidisciplinary approach to education as per the National Education Policy 2020. The FDP aimed at familiarizing the participants with the contemporary developments in the field of law and social sciences from interdisciplinary perspective. Experts from the field of Law and Economics were invited along with the experts from the other domains for the FDP. The programme witnessed deliberations on various aspects relating to law and economics. Prof (Dr.) Ranita Nagar, Professor of Economics, Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar deliberated on the application of ordinal utility analysis to the contract law. She discussed the ordinal utility aspects from a multidisciplinary approach. Dr. Srinivas Yanamandra, Compliance Professional, Group Head-Regulatory Affairs & Policy, One 97 Communications Limited deliberated on the role and challenges of Fintech in achieving the objective of financial inclusion. He discussed the role of fintech in serving the unmet financial needs of those segments of the population which are not the core target segments of traditional financial services models.