Law at York
Underlying principles
The key distinctive quality to the programme is its integration of academic, applied, practical and interdisciplinary perspectives on the law into a single, coherent whole. The law programme at York is based primarily on the principle that the study of law is much more than merely acquiring a broad knowledge of a large number of legal rules. The proper study of law involves understanding the law in all its contexts – theoretical, social and practical. The study of law at York Law School therefore focuses not just on actual legal rules, but also on the complex network of relationships and transactions they regulate. In the course of studying law at York, you will learn to bring skills of analysis, reasoning and judgment to bear on topical questions with ethical, political and social dimensions, as well as on the legal aspects of ordinary, everyday interaction. This makes our programme demanding and intellectually challenging, but at the same time, a lot of fun.
A rounded lawyer, however, needs not only to understand law in its various contexts, but also to develop skills and techniques which provide a solid foundation for the world of work. Oral and written communication skills, team-working, project management, crisis management, advocacy, negotiation and being able to understand people’s needs are all part of the skill-set needed by a graduate in the modern world – regardless of whether or not you plan to practice. In addition, a basic understanding of business skills including strategy, finance and accounting all play an important role in the world of work. All of these principles form the heart of the curriculum at York Law School.
Programme delivery
The curriculum at York Law School has been designed from first principles to integrate specialist, general and business skills with a sound academic grounding in substantive law, and a nuanced understanding of the social and practical contexts in which the law operates.
Problem-based learning
The first tool which the programme employs to deliver this integration is through its use of problem-based learning and the student law firm (see Box 1). During much of the course, you will be based in student law firms where the primary learning will take place. You will decide what the firm will be called, how it will operate and how work will be divided within the firm.
Your firm will deal mainly with simulated real-life problems brought to you by virtual clients, which will be the primary device through which you will learn the law. These will be supplemented by large-group plenary sessions, which will provide overviews of specific topics or discuss selected issues in greater depth.
Each firm will be guided through its learning by‘facilitators’ who will be there to help you through the process, to illuminate particular points and to give you regular feedback on your progress. In many situations you will have to interact with other firms, sometimes working alongside them, sometimes working in opposition. You will form strong relationships with your firm, adapt to working with people with different strengths and weaknesses and thereby learn to work in a team, tackling problems in a realistic way. At the same time you will still have plenty of opportunity to develop independent learning skills such as research and problem solving which you will use throughout your career.
The problems your firm deals with will be drafted so as to place an emphasis on the context in which legal rules exist and operate. Thus, for example, in learning about express and implied contractual terms, you may also learn about negotiation plans, drafting basic contractual clauses and working in teams. Following a negotiation exercise, you may be asked to reflect upon the commercial consequences of the agreed settlement for your client. The problems will also direct you towards considering and reflecting on deeper social and theoretical issues, such as questions of justice, fairness and human rights that arise in everyday life. The emphasis of the programme is thus not solely on practical skills. Law does not provide an isolated solution to problems and issues in society. In trying to understand how law works in the ‘real world’ a student must grapple with inter-related ideas from other disciplines. Thus York Law School integrates teaching and research in other closely related disciplines at the University of York. This develops a deeper, critical understanding of certain law related subjects.
The Three Streams
The second device through which York Law School delivers this distinctive quality of integration is the provision of three key streams within the curriculum, namely, the Foundation Stream, Law and Society Stream, Law and Practice Stream.
These streams reflect.
• The core subjects which are needed to pass a Qualifying Law Degree
• The inter-disciplinary programme of law related subjects
• Advanced clinical subjects which incorporate higher level skills in a practical and applied context