Law - A Level

A Level Law aims to help you to develop legal skills by studying the nature of law, legal issues and the English legal system, and private and public areas of substantive law.

You will learn how to analyse legal scenarios and develop legal arguments using case law. You will study different areas of private and public areas of law where you will analyse, apply, and evaluate the legal rules and principles of that area of law. You will apply legal rules to scenarios and formulate reasoned arguments which will be concise and logical legal arguments which are substantiated by legal authority, using appropriate legal terminology.

The A Level covers; Criminal, Tort, and Human Rights law. 

The course will be taught through in class lectures, debates, seminars, group-discussions, and workshops over three one and a half sessions per week. Modules include:

3.1 The nature of the law and the English legal system

• Nature of law
• The rule of law
• Law making: parliamentary law making, delegated legislation, statutory interpretation, judicial precedent, law reform, the European Union
• The legal system: The civil courts and other forms of dispute resolution, the criminal course and lay people, legal personnel and the judiciary, access to justice and funding.

3.2 Criminal Law

• Rules and theory of criminal law
• General elements of liability
• Fatal offences against the person
• Non-fatal offences against the person
• Property offences
• Preliminary offence
• Defences, capacity, and necessity

3.3 Tort

• Rules and theory of tort law
• Liability, physical injury, damage to property, economic loss and psychiatric injury
• Occupiers’ liability
• Nuisance and the escape of dangerous things
• Vicarious liability
• Defences
• Remedies

3.5 Human Rights (Elective, subject to change)

• Rules and theory in Human Rights law
• Human Rights in international law
• Human Rights in the UK prior to the Human Rights Act 1998
• Human Rights in the UK after the enactment of the Human Rights Act 1998
• The European Convention on Human Rights 1953, Article, 2,5,8,10, 11
• Restrictions
• Enforcement
• Human Rights and English law

You will need:

• Grade 5 or above in GCSE Maths
• Grade 5 or above, and at least one grade 6 or above, in GCSE English Language plus one other written subject, such as History, Geography, Humanities, English Literature, Business, Media Studies, Religious Studies, Drama and Film Studies
• Two further GCSEs at grade 4 or above

This course is assessed by three, two-hour exams, a combination of multiple choice, short answer and extended written questions.

School Leavers

If you will be aged 16, 17 or 18 on 31 August in the year you begin your course, and have been resident in the UK/EU/EEA for the past 3 years, it will be free. Some courses will have other costs associated, such as for materials and trips. Many of our students are eligible for financial support when studying at college – please click here for more information.

Law A level will provide a route into university for many different degree courses.