Master of Laws in Technology, Data and Artificial Intelligence Law
Practising lawyers and regulators across the region are now advising on questions their legal education never anticipated. This intensive postgraduate specialisation gives them the doctrinal depth and the technical literacy to do it properl...
Employment thesis
What this programme is designed to produce
Forward publishes the destination of every programme before you enrol. If the thesis stops holding, the programme is reviewed and, where necessary, retired. Next review: 2031.
Roles
- Technology and data protection counsel
- regulatory lawyer
- policy and legislative drafter
- in-house counsel in technology, banking or telecommunications
- judicial officer with a technology docket
- academic.
Employer types
- Law firms and corporate legal departments
- regulatory authorities
- the Attorney General's chambers and the judiciary
- international organisations
- technology companies
- and universities.
Target outcomes we hold ourselves to
- Specialised professional advancement with scarce competition and rising corporate demand.
Compulsory · The Forward Core
How the Core works →Every Forward programme, including this one, carries the same five cross-cutting requirements. They are graded, not optional.
- AI Fluency
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Ethics and African Context
- Human-Advantage Skills
- Enterprise
Includes 12 months paid work-integrated learning
Am I eligible?
Check yourself against the published requirements
7 questions written specifically for Master of Laws in Technology, Data and Artificial Intelligence Law. Every answer is checked against a requirement Forward has published, and the result tells you which page that requirement comes from. Indicative only, the admissions office decides on your full file.
What is the highest qualification you hold?
Curriculum structure
The same degree, in both pathways
Every Forward programme is published in both pathways: Path One, the term plan of two six-month terms, and Path Two, the block sequence of twelve four-week blocks. Same competencies, same assessments, same award. Toggle to see this programme in each.
Path One term plan shown
Path One · The Term Model
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 501 | Applied Intelligence for Professionals Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| FDC 502 | Research Evidence and Method Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| GLA 510 | Advanced Data Protection and Privacy Law Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| GLA 511 | Artificial Intelligence, Liability and Legal Personality Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| GLA 512 | Technical Foundations of Intelligent Systems for Lawyers Performance | 5 | 2-2-4 |
| GLA 513 | Intellectual Property in the Digital Economy Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| FDC 503 | Governance, Ethics and Leadership of Intelligent Systems Both | 4 | 2-2-0 |
| GLA 520 | Cybercrime, Digital Evidence and Investigations Both | 6 | 4-2-2 |
| GLA 521 | Platform Regulation, Competition and Content Governance Both | 5 | 3-2-2 |
| GLA 522 | Legislative and Regulatory Drafting Workshop Performance | 5 | 1-0-8 |
| GLA 523 | Comparative and International Technology Law Both | 4 | 2-2-2 |
| Code | Course | CU | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| GLA 530 | Dissertation: Legal Research or Regulatory Instrument Performance | 15 | 0-2-28 |
| GLA 531 | Advanced Elective Objective | 3 | 2-2-0 |
Total credit units: 72
Curriculum source
Forward University Curriculum Compendium
Assessment
Coursework + project + integrated exam
Work-integrated learning
12 months paid co-operative education
Your week at Forward
A typical week on Master of Laws in Technology, Data and Artificial Intelligence Law
Path One, the Term Model: your own pace across a six-month term, one live session a week, short flexible lessons, and assessment on demand.
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Curriculum explorer
Drill into the degree, step by step
Choose a study path, then a year, then a term or block, then a course. Credit totals add up as you go, and every course shows what comes before it and what it unlocks.
Step 1, choose a year
Step 2, choose a term
TERM 1 (SIX MONTHS) | FORMERLY SEMESTER 1
Year 1 · this step is worth 30 CU
Cumulative
30
Programme total
60
30 CU of 60 CU completed by the end of this step (50%)
Step 3, choose a course
Pick a course to see the detail
Credits, assessment, prerequisites and what each course unlocks later.
The twelve Forward capabilities
What this programme develops in you
Every Forward degree develops the same twelve cross-cutting capabilities. The profile below is the level this programme is designed to develop and verify by graduation, on the four-level scale in Part B2 of the Curriculum Compendium. Every claim above Level 2 is verified by someone other than the teaching lecturer.
- C1Intelligent Systems Fluency CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C2Quantitative and Evidential ReasoningLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C3Ethical and Contextual Judgement CriticalLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C4Communication and Persuasion CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C5Disciplinary Mastery CriticalLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C6Technical Production and CraftLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C7Problem Framing and Systems ThinkingLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C8Collaboration and Multidisciplinary TeamingLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C9Enterprise, Value and Commercial LiteracyLevel 3 of 4, Independent
- C10Professional Conduct and Workplace PerformanceLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C11Learning to Learn and Adaptive CapacityLevel 4 of 4, Leading
- C12Stewardship and Public ContributionLevel 3 of 4, Independent
Critical capabilities for this programme: Intelligent Systems Fluency · Ethical and Contextual Judgement · Communication and Persuasion · Disciplinary Mastery. A graduate cannot pass out of this programme below the stated level on any capability marked critical.
Programme Learning Outcomes
What you will be able to do
Each outcome is assessed, and each is tagged with the Forward capabilities it is verified against.
- PLO 1Advise authoritatively on data protection, cyber intellectual property and platform law.
- PLO 2Analyse liability and evidentiary questions arising from automated systems.
- PLO 3Draft legislation, regulation and complex technology agreements.
- PLO 4Interrogate a technical system sufficiently to test legal claims made about it.
- PLO 5Conduct legal research producing publishable or policy grade output.
Why this programme exists
Practising lawyers and regulators across the region are now advising on questions their legal education never anticipated. This intensive postgraduate specialisation gives them the doctrinal depth and the technical literacy to do it properl...
Admission requirements
A Bachelor of Laws of at least Second Class Lower Division. Applicants holding a non-law degree with substantial regulatory experience may be admitted to a designated non-practising stream. Alternative pathways: Foundation Year, diploma entry with advanced standing, mature age entry and recognition of prior learning, all governed by Part A5 and Part G. Online applicants additionally complete the compulsory Digital Readiness orientation under Part D6.
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