Subject Focus
October Focus: Legal Systems & Skills
OUP offers the broadest selection of legal systems and skills books, and we recognise that the way this subject is taught can be very varied..
The collection of chapters this month shows off the breadth of our resources. Chapters are available for non-Law Trove subscribers to access until 31 October 2023.
The Legal Systems & Skills Collection available for students and institutions to buy for £49.99, or £37.49 with discount code EARLY23.
Stay up to date with new titles publishing in these subject areas by visiting our English Legal System and Legal Skills webpages.
Chapter collection
Ch 1. The English Legal System
from The English Legal System (9th edn) by Alisdair Gillespie and Siobhan Weare
"The first word to examine is that of ‘England’. The question of identity is something that appears to be raised perpetually in the media, and countries are given numerous different wordings. In this country, it is common to refer to living in ‘Britain’, ‘the UK’, or the ‘United Kingdom’. The country does have a formal legal title, that of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland."
Ch 3. Gender, race, and diversity in the legal profession
from Legal Ethics (3rd edn) by Jonathan Herring
"One of the biggest issues facing the legal profession is diversity. Critics say that the legal profession—especially in its upper echelons—is male, white, heterosexual, able-bodied, and middle class. They are right."
Ch 7. Using Cases
from Legal Skills (9th edn) by Emily Finch and Stefan Fafinski
“This chapter explains how to use cases. It first looks at the ‘anatomy’ of a law report, before considering how the key legal principles can be extracted from the case. Once the legal principles are known it considers the extent to which those principles are binding on other courts via the doctrine of judicial precedent. Finally, it examines the impact of both the Human Rights Act 1998 and EU law on the operation of precedent."
Ch 12. Expanding Legal Skills - Mooting, Negotiation, and More
from The Successful Law Student: An Insider's Guide to Studying Law (2nd edn) by Imogen Moore and Craig Newbery-Jones
“Your law degree can also provide you with opportunities to put your knowledge of law and your legal skills into practice, and further develop skills that are key to legal practice. This is important if you want to pursue a career as a lawyer of course, but is of much wider value in developing specific skills to enhance employability more generally."
Ch 1. Understanding the Law
from Learning Legal Rules: A Students' Guide to Studying Law (2e) by James Holland and Julian Webb
“Law is everywhere. It governs our work, the products we buy and sell, our relationships, and even helps shape the physical environment we live in. This first chapter sets out to introduce some fundamentals that will underpin your understanding of law and ‘legal method’—that is, those core principles and techniques that underpin the process of legal reasoning."
Ch 14. Writing and drafting
from Legal Systems & Skills (5th edn) by Scott Slorach, Judith Embley, Catherine Shephard, and Peter Goodchild
“This chapter will help you to develop your writing and drafting skills as you develop your understanding of the law. While new methods of assessment, such as presentations and posters, are becoming increasingly common, traditionally law programmes have used essays to assess your legal knowledge and intellectual skills, and many continue to do so."
