LLM GENERAL ESSAY TITLES 2016/17 Oil and Gas Law and Policy (LA7021) To be submitted on Friday 13 January 2017 by 3.00pm The following are titles on which you may write your assessed research essay. Chose only one question! Alternatively you can formulate own topic you wish to write on in consultation with the module leader before you commence writing. You must submit your chosen topic on the essay proposal form. You must submit the essay electronically via Turnitin with the appropriate submission slip. The submission deadline is Friday 13 January 2017 by 3.00pm. The research essay must have an abstract of no more than 200 words. The main purpose of the abstract is to present the reader with the juridical question with which the essay is concerned. The research essay shall not exceed 7000 words (which includes the footnote references and the abstract but not the bibliography). The work must be in Microsoft Word format with 1.5 spacing and in Times New Roman font size 12. The pages must be numbered appropriately. You must fully reference the essay consistent in style throughout the text with footnotes. You must use the OSCOLA referencing style. A copy is in the course assessment folder on Moodle, or you could access it from https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/published/OSCOLA_Quick_Reference_Guide_001.pdf. The essay must include a well-ordered consolidated bibliography at the end of the paper. The bibliography should be adequately ordered according to primary and secondary sources and in alphabetical coherence. Please note that the above conditions are applicable to all essays - i.e. student own formulated essay topics that have been approved through consultation or the suggested topics below. Criteria for marking We will assess you on the following: Knowledge of the topic chosen;• Knowledge of the key literature in the area;• Engagement with and critical analysis of the literature;• The ability to construct a legal argument;• The ability to accurately cite sources;• The ability to offer original insights on the topic;• The structure, grammar, and presentation.• Royal DocksSchool of Business & Law 2 Answer only one of the following questions 1. "The objectives of States and IOC in relation to oil and gas transactions are irreconcilable, accounting for the tensions and suspicions between them and the need for a variety of legal techniques to adequately secure their respective interests". Critically discuss this statement. 2. "Bidding is the predominant method that most resource rich states use to grant a permission to explore for, develop and produce oil and gas; but it is not the most suitable or effective means for securing maximum output for the states." Critically discuss this statement. 3. Critically examine the petroleum law and policy of a country of your choice and determine the extent to which the licence system or the contract regime could be suitable to your client for the conduct of petroleum operations in the country. 4. Local content and participation rules are commonly been applied for addressing domestic development needs in petroleum and mineral rich countries. Critically evaluate a local content regime of your preferred country and assess its suitability as a development tool. 5. Account for the categories of risks that are prevalent in the oil and gas business and critically analyse the legal tools that could ameliorate or cushion each given risk that you examine. 6. "The emergence of innovative contractual arrangements in the development of oil and gas resources seeks to accommodate and promote political and economic imperatives. They facilitate State participation and control over petroleum operations through production sharing arrangements or joint ventures that set up state petroleum enterprises and contractual devices that tend to limit the private company's control and management powers". Drawing from examples of specific developing countries' oil regimes, critically discuss the extent to which this observation reflects the current practice of joint venture arrangements in petroleum development in the given state. 7. Critically discuss the proposition that the use of 'stabilization clauses' in energy contracts are the most effective device to secure an investment against confiscatory taking and other state's regulatory powers.