LW254-5-SP-CO:
Legal Research Skills
2024/25
Essex Law School
Colchester Campus
Spring
Undergraduate: Level 5
Current
Monday 13 January 2025
Friday 21 March 2025
15
08 May 2024
Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
LLB M100 Law,
LLB M100CD Law,
LLB M100CS Law,
LLB M100DE Law,
LLB M100LD Law,
LLB M100MD Law,
LLB M100MS Law,
LLB M100TD Law,
LLB M100TS Law,
LLB M101 Law (Including Foundation Year),
LLB M107 Law (Including Placement Year),
LLB M107DE Law (Including Placement Year),
LLB M120 Law (Including Year Abroad),
MLAWM199 Law,
MLAWMA98 Law (Including Placement Year),
MLAWMA99 Law (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MM20 Law with Human Rights,
LLB MM21 Law with Human Rights (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MM22 Law with Human Rights (Including Placement Year),
LLB MM30 Law with Human Rights (Including Foundation Year),
LLB MV06 Law with Philosophy (Including Foundation Year),
LLB MV16 Law with Philosophy,
LLB MV18 Law with Philosophy (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MV19 Law with Philosophy (Including Placement Year),
LLB ML14 Law with Politics (Including Year Abroad),
LLB ML15 Law with Politics (Including Placement Year),
LLB ML16 Law with Politics,
LLB ML26 Law with Politics (Including Foundation Year),
LLB MN00 Law with Business,
LLB MN01 Law with Business (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MN02 Law with Business (Including Placement Year),
LLB MN03 Law with Business (Including Foundation Year),
LLB MN10 Law with Finance,
LLB MN11 Law with Finance (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MN12 Law with Finance (Including Placement Year),
LLB MN13 Law with Finance (Including Foundation Year),
LLB MM00 Law with Criminology,
LLB MM01 Law with Criminology (Including Year Abroad),
LLB MM02 Law with Criminology (Including Placement Year),
LLB MM03 Law with Criminology (Including Foundation Year),
LLB M1Q3 Law with Literature,
LLB M1Q4 Law with Literature (Including Foundation Year),
LLB M1Q5 Law with Literature (Including Placement Year),
LLB M1Q6 Law with Literature (Including Year Abroad),
LLB M1V1 Law with History,
LLB M1V2 Law with History (Including Foundation Year),
LLB M1V3 Law with History (Including Placement Year),
LLB M1V4 Law with History (Including Year Abroad)
This compulsory second year module is designed to further develop legal and research skills.
Students will develop and enhance a range of skills relating to legal research and project planning, which will both support their learning in the final year of their degree, and constitute valuable transferable skills in their own right.
In particular, LW254 Legal Research Skills will act as a foundation for the final year research project, eg LW304.
The aims of this module are:
- To develop students’ legal research skills, building upon the techniques introduced in the first year.
- To introduce students to a range of different methodological approaches to legal research.
- To develop students’ skills in oral presentation of their ideas.
- To introduce students to a range of considerations in relation to planning legal research.
- To prepare students to undertake their final year independent research project.
By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:
- Independently locate a range of legal sources within familiar databases and evaluate the suitability of these for a particular research purpose.
- Locate non-legal sources within a limited range of familiar databases and other resources and evaluate the suitability of these for a particular research purpose.
- Understand a range of different methodological approaches to understanding a legal issue, and evaluate their relevance for a research project/task.
- Consider the implications of proposed research, including ethical, confidentiality and data security angles; and evaluating one’s own suitability as a researcher.
- Understand how to plan a research project.
- Make a formal oral presentation of research findings.
- Develop a range of writing styles.
The module will provide students with the tools and skills needed to plan and successfully complete a research project. It will teach students key skills of legal methodology and legal writing, using a range of writing styles.
The module will enhance students' employability through developing research and other valuable communication and transferable skills.
This module will be delivered via:
- A combination of lectures and fortnightly two hour tutorials.
This module does not appear to have a published bibliography for this year.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
| Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
| Coursework |
Individual Presentation (LW254 Legal Research Skills) |
|
20% |
| Coursework |
Multiple Choice Questions - Continuous Assessment (LW254 Legal Research Skills) |
|
20% |
| Coursework |
Research Proposal (LW254 Legal Research Skills) |
|
60% |
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Mr Stephen Turner, email: sjturner@essex.ac.uk.
Stephen Turner, Ting Xu, Ms. Ai Gooch, Dr. Erin Pobjie, Dr. Sahar Maranlou, Dr. Ewa Kruszewska,
Law UG Education Administrators - schooloflawug@essex.ac.uk
No
No
Yes
No external examiner information available for this module.
Available via Moodle
Of 1215 hours, 70 (5.8%) hours available to students:
1125 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
20 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s).
Essex Law School
* Please note: due to differing publication schedules, items marked with an asterisk (*) base their information upon the previous academic year.
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