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Master Degree in Law and Financial Markets

MDMF

Master Degree in Law and Financial Markets

Consistently ranked by Eduniversal among the top master's courses in Western Europe, the Master Degree Program in Law and Financial Markets is a product of an innovative partnership joining together NOVA Information Management School and NOVA School of Law and it is fully taught in English. This program offers law graduates wide-ranging expert training in international financial markets with a view to facilitating our graduates’ embracing of a legal profession in the banking, insurance or capital markets sectors, law practice at a top law firm in the corporate or financial departments, the provision of consultancy or auditing services, or a career in regulation and supervision of financial markets.

This program has a strong European and international focus, aimed at preparing students to face the global challenges of the next generation of lawyers and policy makers. It offers students the challenge of an innovative set of course units and finance, opportunities to meet and network with leading financial institutions, to gain a hands-on experience through an internship in a financial institution and to benefit from an international experience at a top university in Europe or beyond, through NOVA School of Law’s membership of the Themis Network.

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Partner Entity

  • Novaschooloflaw
    NOVA School of Law
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Curricular
Unit		 Program Annual Prize
Value
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  • Vagas

    Format

    After Working Hours

  • Media

    Length and ECTS

    4 semesters (120 ECTS)

  • Semestres

    Attendance

    2 to 3 times a week

  • Lingua

    Start Date

    September 2024

EDUNIVERSAL

This Master Degree Program is ranked among the best in Western Europe in International Business Law by Eduniversal, an international agency that publishes the annual ranking of the best MBA and Master programs in the world.

Learn more here
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Who is it for?

The Master's Degree Program in Law and Financial Markets is presented as a tool to deepen the knowledge of those who already hold a law degree. Therefore, holders of a bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in Law will be given preference in admission.

This program aims to provide Law graduates a comprehensive and specialized training that enables them to enter into legal research, to embrace a legal profession in banking, insurance or capital markets, or practicing Law at a renowned law firm.

Goals

The goals of this program are:

  • Settle and deepen the basic legal knowledge acquired in the bachelor’s degree, particularly in fields with a closer link to financial markets and investments;

  • Understand the organization and functioning of the general financial system and, particularly, the financial markets;

  • Provide analysis and evaluation skills of the main financial instruments traded on the capital markets;

  • Identify intervention strategies in capital markets (risk hedging, arbitrage, speculation) using financial instruments;

  • Stimulate a critical and interdisciplinary approach of knowledge, providing the lawyer with the necessary tools to solve complex problems or issue judgments on situations of incomplete information.

Study Plan

This program lasts 4 academic semesters: 2 correspond to the curricular component and 2 for the development of a thesis, an internship with a report or a work project, for a total of 120 ECTS.

The curricular component (the 1st and 2nd semesters) corresponds to 60 ECTS and consists of 10 mandatory course units (52 ECTS):

Mandatory course units

  • Banking and Insurance Operations
  • Banking Law
  • Financial Instruments Law
  • Financial Markets and Investments
  • Insurance Law
  • Introduction to Data Analysis
  • Introduction to Financial Derivatives and Risk Management
  • Principles of Corporate Finance
  • Regulation and Supervision of Financial Markets
  • Risk Management in Financial Contracts
Course Unit
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These are some of the course units offered that students can attend; they may vary every academic year. The optional course units are taught in Portuguese (marked with an asterisk) and English.

Elective Course Units

These are some of the course units offered that students can attend; they may vary every academic year. The optional course units are taught in Portuguese (marked with an asterisk) and English.

  • Methodology of Legal Research;
  • Cybercrime;
  • International Tax Law;
  • Direito Penal Económico*;
  • Competition Law;
  • Direitos das Contraordenações*;
  • Energy, Climate and Just Transitions;
  • Fintech;
  • Ethics and Regulation of Artificial Intelligence.

Course units

  • Fall Semester

    Banking Law (6 ECTS)

    The goals of this course unit aims to familiarize students with the main concepts and regulations applicable to the main banking contracts and operations, allowing for the application and development of knowledge acquired during their first law degree in civil and commercial law, introducing them to the legal instruments at their disposal and, generally, developing their skills in legal reasoning and practical problem solving. The solving of practical problems and direct contact with the market and the regulator will be favored.

    Insurance Law (4 ECTS)

    The goals of this course unit aims to familiarize students with the main concepts and regulations applicable to the insurance contract, allowing for the application and development of knowledge acquired during their first law degree in civil and commercial law, introducing them to the legal instruments at their disposal and, generally, developing their skills in legal reasoning and practical problem solving. The solving of practical problems and direct contact with the market and the regulator will be favored. 

    Financial Instruments Law (4 ECTS)

    The main goals of this course unit gives students an overall conception of the system and of negotiable instruments and of the transactions effected with these instruments; and introduces the national and community legal frameworks with regard to negotiable instruments and their relationship with ordinary private law. Particularly, this course unit aims at giving students a clear concept of negotiable instruments and the principal transactions involving them, on the basis of the bill of exchange, the promissory note and the cheque, and introduce them to the world of securities and derivatives, with particular emphasis of its creation, the transfer and encumbering thereof and the various types of public offer but also to introduce the main rules governing the operation of securities markets.   

    Regulation and Supervision of Financial Markets (4 ECTS)

    This course unit provides knowledge about the reality of regulation in the financial sector, its legal regime and the main regulatory problems in this domain. This course unit addresses the main aspects of financial regulation, provide knowledge about the general legal regime and the specific questions of the regulation in each sector.

    Financial Markets and Investments (6 ECTS)

    At the end of the semester, students should be able to:

    • Understand the organization and operation of the financial system and its economic relevance;
    • Know the mechanisms for admission to the market, trading systems used and the main market participants;
    • Distinguish the main segments in which financial markets are decomposed and the major financial instruments traded in them;
    • Analyze and evaluate financial securities traded on spot markets and derivative;
    • Identify and calculate the sources of risk and return of financial assets;
    • Discuss the problem of choosing asset portfolios, the relationship between return and risk, the importance of diversification;
    • Understand how equilibrium prices are established and the selection of optimal portfolios under uncertainty;
    • Discuss the problem of efficiency in financial markets.

    Principles of Corporate Finance (6 ECTS)

    This course has as its main goals the introduction to the major themes of 'corporate finance', mergers, acquisitions, corporate restructuring and financial investments. This course unit will also serve as preparation for other more specific topics taught at the course unit Introduction to Financial Derivatives and Risk Management.

  • Spring Semester

    Risk Management in Financial Contracts (4 ECTS)

    This course unit aims at offering a general approach to the most commonly used models for enterprise financing, with a view to deepen capabilities acquired in general civil and commercial law courses and having as background the wider context of banking and capital markets practice and regulation. The approach to Portuguese law of financing will have both an international focus, so as to shed light on the legal and operation integration of the European finance markets; and a practical focus, through a look into actual transactions of the banking sector and the capital markets, the analysis of common contractual structures and the resolution of real-life examples.

    Introduction to Data Analysis (6 ECTS)

    The course unit Introduction to Data Analysis aims to promote the numeracy of students of the Master, who, by their background, may present significant gaps in data analysis skills. Thus this course unit provides the foundation for students to understand the fundaments of data analysis, extremely useful for any kind of activity related to financial markets. The course unit provides an understanding of the key concepts of descriptive data analysis, through theoretical presentations followed by practical hands-on exercises. It is intended that students develop skills in understanding and analyzing data that enables them to understand and develop autonomous descriptive analyzes relating to financial markets data.

    Banking and Insurance Operations (6 ECTS)

    At the end of the semester students should be able to:

    • Understand the importance and functioning of financial systems;
    • Identify and distinguish the main banking and insurance operations and the risks involved in financial intermediation;
    • Analyze the profitability and financial equilibrium of banks and insurance companies;
    • Identify, quantify and manage credit risk in banking;
    • Characterize and estimate interest rate risks;
    • Implement interest rate risk hedging and immunization strategies using bond portfolios obrigações, FRA's and IRS's;
    • Analyze exchange rate risk and the role of derivative securities;
    • Know the main life insurance contracts, identify premium and reserving principles and mathematical reserves and analyze the profitability of contracts;
    • Recognize the main life and non-life insurance contracts, identify premium and reserving principles.

    Introduction to Financial Derivatives and Risk Management (6 ECTS)

    This course unit has two main goals. The first goal aims to sensitize students to the issues of risk in an organization by focusing on market risk (prices of stocks and commodities, interest rates and exchange rates), liquidity and operational. The second goal aims at teaching derivative financial instruments ('forwards' futures, 'swaps' and options) and their use in order to restructure or rearrange 'cash flows' to help an organization achieve desired financial goals, in particular the covering unwanted risks.

Academic calendar

The school calendar for the 2024-25 academic year is available on the NOVA School of Law website.

Length

Length

This program lasts four semesters (120 ECTS). The classes of 1st and 2nd semesters of the program) start in September 2024, ending in June 2025, and run after working hours (after 6 p.m.) at NOVA School of Law or NOVA IMS, in Campus de Campolide, in Lisbon.

Admissions and fees

Tuition fees

The tuition fee of this master degree program, for international students (from European Union),is €6.200, of which €4.200 corresponds to the curricular component of the program (1st year) and €2.000 to the development of a thesis, work project or internship with a report (2nd year). For international students (non-european) the tuition fee is €10.000, of which €7.000 corresponds to the curricular component of the program (1st year) and €3.000 to the development of a thesis, work project or internship with a report (2nd year). 

Merit scholarships

Merit Awards are awarded to:

  • Candidates whose final average admission is equal to or higher than 17 points (on a scale of 0/20) and who enroll and attend the same course, benefit from an award in cash corresponding to 50% of the tuition fee for the taught component of the Master’s degree;
  • Candidates whose final average admission is equal to or higher than 16 points (on a scale of 0/20) and who enroll and attend the same course, benefit from an award in cash corresponding to 30% of the tuition fee for the taught component of the Master’s degree.

In the non-taught phase, three prizes for academic merit are awarded. These awards assume the completion of the taught component within the stipulated time.

  • The best student of the taught component who continues and attends the non-taught phase benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 100% of the tuition fee for the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree;
  • The second-best student benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 60% of the tuition fee, corresponding to the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree;
  • The third-best student benefits from an award in cash corresponding to 60% of the tuition fee, corresponding to the non-taught phase of the Master’s degree.

NOVA IMS Social Mobility Scholarship

This program is eligible for the NOVA IMS scholarship program. Learn more here.

DGES Scholarships

DGES Scholarships - SASNOVA is responsible for awarding scholarships and emergency aid (direct social support) from the Directorate-General for Higher Education (DGES) to 1st and 2nd cycle students at NOVA, with the aim of making it possible for economically disadvantaged students to complete and continue their studies. More information here.

Scholarships for access to NOVA University Lisbon study cycles

The Scholarships for Access to Study Cycles are available to students of all three study cycles, whether they are NOVA University Lisbon students, nationals or stateless persons, foreigners with tax residence in Portugal or with refugee status, who are in a situation of financial need and who do not benefit from the scholarships awarded by the Directorate-General for Higher Education or whose amount proves insufficient.

All the information about the scholarships can be found here.

Regulations and accreditations

Regulations

Accreditations

Anna Zemskaia
Jurist | Morais Leitão, Galvão Teles, Soares da Silva e Associados
José Miguel Saraiva
Trainee Lawyer | Fidelidade
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The Program has proven to be a great combination of law, economics and finance, which tested myself intellectually in an outstanding network of international professionals and provided an opportunity to enhance competence and expand technical skills. It should be of interest to anyone seeking to invest in education with a profound theoretical base accompanied by a thorough guidance on current market techniques and demands. Thereby, the Program sets a solid career foundation for recent graduates, while those with experience reshape their knowledge and get a new perspective on career path.
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The Master Degree Program in Law and Financial Markets has been designed to provide a solid foundation in financial law, but also in areas such as Finance or Data Analysis, making it a versatile, demanding and attractive master's degree for recent graduates and active professionals. Optional subject exchanges with the remaining NOVA Law Masters enable each student to choose his or her path and disciplines related to technological innovation make it perfect for students to be prepared for the future of law in this area. It is an innovative master's degree, with the best future prospects, immediate insertion into the professional world and substantive preparation of students in the most innovative subjects.