First-year course descriptions

Contents

A career in law

THE STUDY OF LAWLead-in

The study of law differs from country to country, but most law degree programmes' include core (compulsory) subjects which all students must take. Which core courses are typical in your country? How long does it take to complete a law degree?

Reading i: A career in law

1 Read the text below and answer these questions.

i. Which courses do law students in the UK have to take? 2 Which optional courses might a student who wants to work in a big law firm take?

The study of law is intellectually stimulating and challenging, and can lead to a variety of interesting careers.

In the UK and the USA, law degree programmes usually take three years to complete. In the UK, these programmes typically include core subjects such as criminal law,contract law, tort law, land law, equity and trusts, administrative lawand constitutional law.In addition, students are often required to take courses covering skills such as legal writing and legal research.

There is also a variety of optional (elective) courses available. Since many law students go on to become lawyers, students often take courses that will be useful to them during their future careers. Someone wishing to run a small partnershipor to work alone as a sole practitionerin a small town may decide to take subjects such as family law, employment lawand housing law.Those wishing to work in a large law practicewill consider subjects such as company law, commercial lawand litigation and arbitration.

Many universities also offer courses on legal practice. Courses like this give students the opportunity to experience the work of a lawyer before deciding on a career in the law. Another way of finding out more about law in practice is to get involved with a voluntary advice centre or law clinic.These clinics offer free legal assistanceto the local community and provide a useful introduction to some of the day-to-day work of a lawyer.

For students wishing to work in a commercial practice, knowledge of foreign languages is essential. When law firmshire new recruits, they generally look at four things: education, personality, work experience and language ability. Since English is the language of the international legal community, law firms increasingly expect graduates to have a good command of English.

2 Read the text again and decide whether these statements are true (T) or false
(F). If the statement is false, correct it.

1 A course in family law is usually included among the core subjects at law schools in the UK.

2 Some law degree programmes offer courses in some of the important skills that lawyers need in order to do their work, such as legal writing or legal English.

3 Law clinics give law students the opportunity to learn about the legal problems of the medical profession.

4 Today, commercial law firms expect recruits to be completely fluent in English.

3 When you record vocabulary, you should try to write down as many collocations
as you can, and not only single words.

How many collocations with the words legal (e.g. legal writing) and law (e.g. law firm) can you find in the text?

Speaking i: Law firms and courses

4 Discuss these questions with a partner. Look at the sample responses.

1 What type of law firm do you (think you would like to) work in?

I'd like to work as a sole- practitioner, as I'd prefer to be my

own boss.

I think a big Law -firm would be exciting.

2 Which optional courses are you taking / did you take during your studies?
This semester, I'm taking an elective course in environmental law.

I took a course oy\ Human rights Law when I was in Law school.

Reading 2: Course descriptions

5 Reading texts in a foreign language often means encountering unfamiliar
words. Discuss these questions with a partner.

1 What is the best way to deal with unfamiliar words in a text?

2 Read the following list of strategies and discuss how useful they are. What factors might affect the strategy you use?

0 Try to understand the new word with the help of surrounding words.

C Look up every unknown word in a dictionary.

O Ignore the unknown word and read on.

0 Look up some new words, ignore others.

C Analyse the unknown word: ask what part of speech it is (a noun or an adjective, for example); if it has a root or a prefix (Latin or French, for example) that may help you understand it; if it has a positive or negative meaning, etc.

Keep these strategies in mind when reading the text on page 10.

Unit a A career in law

6 Quickly read the law course descriptions taken from a university website. Ignore the gaps for now. Do you think this university is in the UK? Why (not)?

eee____________ _ o

J

First-year course descriptions

Introduction to Law:This course aims to familiarize the student with the study of law; to begin the development of certain basic skills, such as reading, analysis and synthesis of legal decisions, and interpretation of statutes; to discuss fundamental aspects of the legal process, e.g. how courts "make law" and the function of the courts with respect to statutory law.

1)................................ : This course covers the fundamental principles governing the formation,

interpretation, performance, and enforcement of contracts. In addition, special attention is given to the requirements of offer and acceptance, consideration, formal requirements, public policy, and the problems of choosing a remedy in case of a breach. Some attention will also be given to the Uniform Commercial Code.

2)................................ : Topics covered include liability for intentional and negligently caused

injuries to person and property; strict liability; vicarious liability; ultra-hazardous activities; products liability; nuisance; invasion of privacy; defamation; the impact of insurance and risk distribution upon liability; accident compensation plans; damages; losses.

3)................................ : This course presents the basic concepts of criminal law. Crimes against

persons, property, and public administration are covered, with special emphasis placed upon the law of homicide.

Date: 2015-12-24; view: 1854