COURSE IN DEPTH
Year One
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all of the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits):
Legal Systems
20 credits
The module has been designed to align with aspects of the functioning legal knowledge of the Solicitors Qualifying Exam.
The module aims to provide you with basic knowledge of what the law is, what are its sources and the main characteristics of UK and foreign legal systems.
The module provides foundational knowledge to support your study in Contract Law & Tort Law at Level 4, Criminal Law and Constitutional & Administrative Law at Level 5, Law of the European Union and the optional Comparative Constitutional Models module at Level 6 by providing you with foundational concepts to be developed further in these modules.
Foundations in Professional Skills
20 credits
The module aims to provide you with foundational skills to equip you for your future study in law and also your future personal and career development. You will explore some of the foundational transferable skills that are needed in order to successfully study the law, as well as starting a reflective process preparing you for a future legal or other career.
The module provides foundational knowledge to support your study in Professional Skillsat Level 5 by starting your learning in a range of professional skills such as time management, independent learning and reflection. Since it is vitally important that you begin your career reflection and management early, you will also start to think about your own career development and this will be taken further in Professional Skills at level 5.
Critical Legal Thinking
20 credits
This module aims to furnish you with the key academic and scholarly skills to enable to flourish as a legal scholar and succeed in your studies. The module’s primary goal is to introduce you to the skillset necessary to be part of the community of knowledge and practice which is united by the use of legal thinking and knowledge.
The module provides core legal skills which will support your study of contract and tort law at Level 4, and in all compulsory and optional academic legal modules at Level 5 and Level 6. It will develop your ability to find, interpret, apply and understand the law and its role. It will provide you with the foundations for subsequent modules in which you solve legal problems and/or seek to explain or understand the law.
Law of Tort
20 credits
This is a compulsory module which has been designed to align with aspects of the functioning legal knowledge of the Solicitors Qualifying Exam. The module will introduce theoretical considerations within the Law of Tort and its function in dispute resolution and with a focus upon concepts and principles of the Tort of Negligence.
The module builds on what you have learned in Legal Systems, Foundations of Professional Skills and Critical Thinking during Semester 1 of Level 4. You will consolidate your legal knowledge and you will be introduced to principles of dispute resolution in the context of the Law of Tort. You will identify facts and analyse legal issues, in order to identify solutions to legal problems.
Contract Law
20 credits
This is a compulsory module which aims to provide you with an appreciation of the relevant contractual principles such as offer, acceptance and consideration that are involved when parties enter into legally binding agreements. The module provides foundational knowledge to support your study in Business Law at level 5 as it introduces the context for the formation of commercial transactions which is an important aspect of business law.
This module aligns with the LLB course’s ethos of fostering the development of your autonomy and professional attributes through a rigorous education in law. To achieve this the module content has been designed to improve your knowledge of the substantive law as well as to prioritise the development of key transferrable employability skills, particularly those related to communication, research, commercial awareness and problem-solving.
Introduction to US Legal Studies
20 credits
The module aims to provide you with knowledge of key aspects of the history of the U.S. Constitution and will provide you with the basic skills that will enable you to find U.S. legal material and conduct meaningful legal research.
The module provides foundational knowledge to support your study in ‘Federalism and the US Constitution’ at Level 5 and the ‘Individual and the US Constitution’, ‘American Legal Practice’, “American Criminal Procedure and Practice’, Human Rights in America’ and ‘Comparative Constitutional Models at Level 6. It will complement your study of the UK legal system at Level 4 and support your studies in the compulsory Constitutional and Administrative Law module at Level 5.
Year Two
In order to complete this course you must successfully complete all of the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits):
Land Law & Property Practice
20 credits
The module aims to provide you with an understanding of the legal principles and rules involved in land law and an introduction to property transactions (also known as conveyancing). You will consider how they operate in the wider social and economic context and the legal ethics of property transactions.
The module builds on the transferable skills that you developed in Professional Skills and Critical Thinking at Level 4 by developing the skills acquired .The module also provides foundational knowledge to support your study in the optional module Advanced Property.
Criminal Law
20 credits
The module aims to provide you with a comprehensive overview of the fundamental concepts and principles of criminal law together with some of the criminal offences against the person and against property and some general defences.
The module builds on what you have learned in Legal Systems and Criminal Justice Process at Level 4.It also provides foundational knowledge to support subsequent Level 5 and 6 Criminal Justice pathway options by the introduction of concepts, processes and ideology.
Professional Skills
20 credits
The module aims to providing you with an opportunity to develop certain transferable skills, principally oral skills, but also written skills and professional ethics. Workshops will take place in dedicated courtroom space to foster a professional approach.
The module builds on what you have already learned in Foundations in Professional Skills at Level 4 by developing your confidence further through the practice of oral and written skills, and by recognition of the need for resilience and emotional intelligence. The module also acts as a preparation for clinical placement modules studied later at Levels 5 and 6 by equipping you with oral, written and ethical awareness.
Constitutional & Administrative Law
20 credits
Building on the knowledge of British political and legal institutions that you acquired in Legal Systems at Level 4, this module will allow you to explore the UK constitutional framework in greater depth, and key constitutional principles that underpin British democracy.
You will develop a critical understanding of those UK constitutional institutions and you will also conduct research into the impact of Brexit on the sovereignty of the UK Parliament and Constitution. Judicial and non-court based mechanisms of control of governmental action, such as judicial review and Parliamentary Ombudsman, will be considered and you will critically assess the case-law that forms the basis of the unwritten British constitution.
Business Law
20 credits
The module will provide you with a comprehensive overview of key legal principles which determine and oversee business structures carrying out economic activities. In addition to addressing the available legal channels for conducting business, the module will also focus on the formation, management and decision-making procedures in private limited companies.
This module builds on knowledge acquired in the Contract Law module at level 4 and in particular, your prior knowledge of the formation of contracts will be relevant to further discussions on commercial arrangements where business organisations are contractual parties.
Federalism & the US Constitution
20 credits
The module aims to analyse how the US Constitution allocates powers between the federal government and the fifty states and explores the way in which the exercise of these powers is mediated by the Supreme Court. Studying this module will enable you to develop a critical understanding of the role of the Supreme Court as the final guardian of the Constitution.
Final Year
