Law (Jurisprudence)

There are two Law courses at Oxford: Course I is a three-year course and Course II is a four-year course which follows the same syllabus, with the extra year being spent abroad following a prescribed course at a university within the European Union.

The Oxford Law degrees aim to develop in their students a high level of skill in comprehension, analysis and presentation. Students are expected to read a good deal, mostly from primary sources (such as cases and statutes), rather than to take other people’s word for things. They are expected to think hard about what they have read, so as to develop views not simply about what the law is, but also about why it is so, whether it should be so, how it might be different, and so on, drawing on moral, philosophical, social, historical, economic and other ideas. Students are asked to process what they read, together with their own thoughts, and to prepare essays and presentations for discussion in tutorials and classes.

The Oxford syllabus comprises topics chosen primarily for their intellectual interest, rather than for the frequency with which they arise in practice. But at the same time, the skills of researching, thinking and presentation developed by the Oxford courses are eminently suited to practical application, and employers recognise this. Moreover, the skills can be as well applied outside the law as within it. Oxford is probably the only leading law school in the world where the main means by which teaching is done consists of group discussion (tutorials) in groups as small as one, two or three students and a tutor.

The modern, purpose-built Bodleian Law Library holds more than 400,000 law-related items, more than almost any other comparable library in the UK. The library is conveniently located in the same building as the Law Faculty, the St Cross Building. Colleges also have collections of law books for student use.

Course II students spend their third year of study at a university in France, Germany, Italy or Spain (studying French, German, Italian or Spanish law) or the Netherlands (studying European and International law). See the faculty website for further details about Course II and the admissions arrangements.

There is no assumption that our Law graduates ought to pursue a legal career: in practice, around 75% of Oxford Law graduates go on to the legal profession; others continue onto further academic study of law. Although Oxford Law graduates gain a BA in Jurisprudence rather than an LLB, each of the Oxford Law courses counts as a qualifying law degree so Oxford Law graduates can immediately go on to the Legal Practice Course (for solicitors) or the Bar Professional Training Course (for barristers).

For more information on those courses, and information on the legal profession generally, visit www.sra.org.uk and www.barcouncil.org.uk.Many Oxford Law graduates go on to successful careers practising law outside England and Wales. The Oxford Law courses naturally focus on English law, but the fundamental principles of English common law play a key role in other jurisdictions such as those of, for example, the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Graduates of the four-year course also gain important international knowledge during their year abroad. If you are considering going on to practise outside England and Wales, and want to know the status of an English law degree within that jurisdiction, please contact the relevant local regulatory body. For example, if you are interested in practising in the United States, you should contact the relevant state regulatory body: useful information can also be found at www.abanet.org.

Katherine, who graduated in 2005, is now a barrister at 13 Old Square Chambers. She says: ‘My degree helped me with not only the substantive law, but also the research and analytical skills required at the Bar. It enabled me to write effectively targeted documents and explain my ideas and arguments orally, which is very important for Court work.’

Many other law graduates utilise their highly valued transferable skills in a wide variety of careers. Amy, who graduated in 2004, now works at Davis Langdon. She says: ‘Since graduating, I initially worked for a Christian charity in the field of racial justice, for which I utilised my research skills, especially in the area of legal rights. I now work in construction cost management, procuring and costing construction projects. My degree gave me a general understanding of contract and tort law, which I now use on a daily basis.’