Aims

At the end of this course, students should have:
- acquired a method for putting legal texts and case law into perspective in the context of changing social security principles;
- developed the capacity to cooperate in group work.

Main themes

Depending on developments in the field, the content of the course may vary - partially or totally - from one year to another. Attention is paid to avoiding themes already covered in course DESO2206. Lectures are given either on particular topics (such as the concept of remuneration as a basis for the calculation of social contributions) or more comprehensive studies focus on particular social security sectors (such as the benefit system for involuntary unemployment). Lectures are largely based on an analysis of jurisprudence

Content and teaching methods

The aim of this course is to make a more detailed examination of a particular issue of social security law, in the context of the complex relationship between national and European social law, with an insight into international social law. The approach is both theoretical and pragmatic. The first part of the course allows students to get used to new concepts in the social security system. Subsequently, and in this context, the second part of the course examines recent social security reforms in Belgium. The last part of the course is dedicated to organising a conference, with the help of external partners (yet to be determined), from within the civil and political spheres. Active participation by students is required.

Do the recent reforms of social security in Belgium amount to a change of paradigm that is altering the very foundation of the Belgian social system? In other words, is the traditional welfare state progressively being replaced by a so-called 'active welfare state' system? These are questions the course will try to address, through the appraisal of both recent social policy by the European Union and the latest reforms in Belgian social security. The third part of the course will consist of a discussion of a specific reform taken as an illustration of such a paradigmatic change.

Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

Teaching is by lectures and there is no course book . However, a set of documents are e provided for students. These files comprise the most important case law on the topics studied during the course, especially unemployment benefits. Examinations are either oral or written. In both cases, students are allowed to make use of legal codes as well as the files mentioned above.