Syllabus
You will compete the following core modules on your course:
Legal System, Method and Skills
Sources, personnel and structure of the English legal system; civil and criminal process; access to justice; the impact of the Human Rights Act 1998 on the English legal system.
Contract Law
The rules relating to the formation, operation and termination of contracts, including the remedies available to the parties and the doctrine of privity of contract; an outline of the law of restitution.
Public Law
Constitutional legal principles; the basic features and characteristics of the UK's constitution; civil liberties; administrative law, including judicial review.
Criminal Law
The general foundations of criminal liability and defences; the major criminal offences (eg homicide, non-fatal offences against the person, theft) and their constituent elements.
Land Law
The foundation concepts of land law; the relationship between the common law and equitable rights; the scope, nature and effect of estates and interests in land; registered and unregistered conveyancing; co-ownership; the essentials of landlord and tenant.
European Union Law
The constitutional framework of the EU; the implementation and enforcement of EU law (including the free movement of workers, competition law, consumer protection law); the relationship between EU law and national law.
Law of Torts
The foundations of tortious liability, including vicarious and joint liability and remedies in respect of torts; the principal torts (eg negligence, trespass, nuisance, defamation) and their constituent elements.
Equity and Trusts
The relationship between equity and the common law; types of trust, the role of trustees and consequences of a breach of trust; nature and scope of equitable rights and equitable remedies.
Dissertation or Street Law Project
The dissertation involves researching and writing a 15,000-word dissertation on an area of law that you are particularly interested in. Recent dissertation topics have included:
- ancillary relief
- assisted suicide
- breach of duty in medical negligence
- commercial surrogacy
- domestic violence
- European copyright in relation to online copyright protection
- legal issues in biomedicine - human embryo research and gene therapy
- repossession orders and
- the duty of care owed to mentally ill prisoners.
The Street Law Project is an opportunity to participate in the legal education programme, Street Law by undertaking real-life legal work and helping to provide legal education and information to community groups and interested parties with the aim of contributing to social justice values. Students research, design and deliver interactive presentations and materials on the law to groups in the community that might not have access to legal information or education, under supervision.
Practical legal experience
Essentially learning by doing, our clinical legal education programme will provide you with many opportunities to apply the law in practical situations through projects and working within our pro bono °®¶¹´«Ã½ Legal Clinic.
Many of our initiatives also fulfil SQE qualifying work experience requirements.
Negotiating
Negotiation is a key lawyer skill – many legal disputes do not end up in the courts, but instead are resolved by some form of negotiated agreement. Our negotiation programme is an opportunity to prepare for a negotiation, and to apply and practise your negotiation skills.
The programme is sponsored by solicitors’ firms who judge the final competition and the top teams go on to represent the °®¶¹´«Ã½ at the national negotiation competition sponsored by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution.
Client interviewing
Our client interviewing skills programme enables students to develop the essential skill of interviewing clients, a key component of legal work. The programme culminates in an internal competition, sponsored by a local law firm, and the winning students proceed to represent the university in the national Law Society competition.
In 2016, two of our Law with Business students, Fionnuala Richardson and Chloe Chatton, won the national competition and went on to represent England and Wales in the international competition in Canada, finishing third in the world.
°®¶¹´«Ã½ Legal Clinic
Participate in the client-facing commercial and employment law pro bono law clinic offering free legal advice to small businesses and employees and assisting charities and not-for-profit organisations with their legal matters.
Learning support
Our supportive learning environment includes an induction programme and specialist diagnostic tools to assess your learning strengths and needs. You will also be assigned an academic supervisor to support you in your project work. We also provide free language and support services throughout for international students.
Online learning tools and libraries also ensure academic journals, e-books, business articles and other resources are available to you 24/7, both for use at the university and at home.
You will also have access to our Careers Service, including CV checking, mock interviews and advice on setting up your own business. Read more on our careers service website.
Facilities
You will have access to online legal research services, such as Westlaw, Lawtel, LexisNexis Butterworths and HeinOnline. These online resources can be accessed on and off campus.
We also have an outstanding library which houses the tools of the lawyers' trade: primary sources of law such as statutes and cases, and secondary sources such as books, periodicals and journals.
Other student support services include the university's careers centre, welfare service, a counselling service and chaplaincy.
Student Law Society
The Student Law Society is a thriving community of over 150 law students. With support from the Students’ Union, it organises an exciting schedule of social and educational events.
Members have recently enjoyed visits to Lewes Crown Court, Brighton Magistrates Court and the Houses of Parliament. Social events have included paintballing, go-karting, surfing, a Christmas Ball at the Brighton Hilton Metropole, and a trip with law students from other universities to Amsterdam.
Through initiatives such as these, the society provides excellent opportunities for personal development and for networking with other students interested in a career in law.
Course leader
Dr Adaeze Okoye
Adaeze holds a PhD in Law from the University of Hull, and is a qualified barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. She is an honorary member of the honourable society of the Inner Temple, one of the four inns of court in London. She has been an academic fellow (2015–2018) and associate academic fellow (2018–2023) at the same inn. A fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA), Adaeze promotes student centred learning and research informed teaching approaches to higher education.
Adaeze is a member of the Society of Legal Scholars (SLS) and has been appointed to join the SLS equality, diversity, and inclusion committee from 1 October 2023 until 30 September 2026. She has authored the influential monograph, Legal approaches, and corporate social responsibility; and has also written many journal articles and book chapters.
She is on the editorial advisory board of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS) open access book series, Reimagining Law and Justice. She also leads the university research excellence group: Law, Society and Justice (LawSoJust).
