14. Dissertations

This chapter focuses on the range of different skills involved in the production of a dissertation. It begins by outlining the reasons for writing a dissertation. It then discusses the choice of dissertation topic and formulating a research question; writing a dissertation proposal; planning and organization; researching for a dissertation; and the writing process.

5. Finding cases

This chapter presents the skills needed to find cases. It first explains the meanings of case citations before moving on to discuss how to locate domestic cases. It then describes how to find decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union, the General Court, and the European Court of Human Rights.

4. Case law

Case law can be broken down into common law, equity, and custom. This chapter begins with a discussion of common law and equity, including a brief history on how these sources came into being. It then turns to custom as a further source of law. It also provides an overview of the court system to illustrate how the various courts in the system link together in a hierarchy. It concludes with a discussion of the European Court of Human Rights and the impact of the Human Rights Act 1998 on case law.

11. Legal reasoning and ethics

This chapter provides an introduction to legal reasoning. It first outlines the skills to analyze how judges decide cases. There are various points of view that judges can (and do) take in deciding the outcomes of cases, so the chapter introduces some of the theory behind judicial reasoning before moving on to show how judges reason in practice, how one case can give rise to multiple judgments, and the importance of legal ethics.

8. Finding books, journals, and official publications

There are a range of important sources of law beyond legislation and case law. These are materials that provide information on the content, meaning, and operation of the law and help students in their quest to understand the law. This chapter explains how to how to find these important supplementary resources. It covers books, journals, official publications, Halsbury's Laws of England, Bills, and Hansard (Official Reports of Parliamentary Debates).

3. Using legislation

This chapter discusses how to use legislation. It first looks at the ‘anatomy’ of an Act of Parliament and describes each of its composite parts. It then considers the various means by which the courts can interpret the wording of statutory provisions, including a discussion of the impact of the European Communities Act 1972 and the Human Rights Act 1998.

2. Finding legislation

This chapter explains how to find domestic legislation, i.e., statutes, statutory instruments, and EU legislation both online and in a law library. The chapter also explains how to determine whether there is any statute law on a particular topic and how to work out whether a piece of legislation is in force. The chapter closes by explaining how to find the official current text of the European Convention on Human Rights.

1. Legislation

This chapter first considers the process by which Acts of Parliament come into being. It then turns to delegated legislation — that is, law that is made by other bodies under Parliament's authority. Next, it looks at EU legislation, which had an increasingly significant effect from the time that the UK joined the European Economic Community in 1973. It explains the various institutions of the EU and their role in the law-making process; the different types of EU legislation; and the circumstances in which individuals may use them in domestic courts, pre-Brexit. Finally, the chapter discusses the impact of the European Convention on Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998.

19. Negotiation skills

This chapter provides an introduction to the skills needed to prepare for and conduct an effective negotiation, including the research process and different negotiation styles. It also considers the problems that can arise during negotiation and outlines a range of strategies that can be used to overcome them. In essence, it is a step-by-step introduction for those with no previous negotiation experience as well as a source of advice for the more experienced negotiator. A range of examples is used to demonstrate the skills involved in negotiation.

15. Answering problem questions

This chapter focuses on the skills needed to use the law to answer a problem question. It guides students through the process of analyzing a scenario in order to identify the relevant issues to ensure that their answers are comprehensive and do not miss any important points. It outlines strategies to ensure that the law is applied effectively and that good use is made of supporting authorities.