law essay writing

law essay writing

The Importance of Law Essay Writing

1. Introduction

Despite being the youngest of academic disciplines, legal studies have sprouted a formidable presence at many educational institutions. Indeed, it is not surprising to find individual classes dedicated to the study of law in a variety of different academic areas: Political Science, Sociology, and even ancient History to name a few. This is a testament to the interdisciplinary nature of the law and the value it holds in any educated person’s life. However, this increasing prevalence of law in the education system poses a particular problem for those more inclined towards the practical aspects of law. This is due to many non-law students feeling that they are unfairly compelled to undertake a disproportionately large amount of written assessments on legal topics. It is not uncommon to find students of a political science or criminology class being assigned essay questions in the midst of exams or coming to terms with a compulsory requirement to submit a written dissertation on some area of law. This is where an important question may be raised – how are we to define the importance of written law assessments to students who are not necessarily bound for a legal career?

2. Understanding the Purpose of Law Essay Writing

As mentioned earlier, the skills used to write essays are the same skills that will be used to write a document or opinion on a piece of legislation, and will serve to aid the explanation and advice of a client or colleague. So learning to write essays is not only crucial to attaining good grades at law school, but also very important to the possibility of becoming a successful lawyer.

With this in mind, one can understand that the reason why essay writing is so important is because it serves as the best tool to assess a student’s ability to research, understand, and then explain a topic or area of law. It allows for critical analysis of a point of law and the ability to argue different sides of an issue. Through his writing, the student is also testing his own understanding of the given subject. The written word can also be archived and utilized for future reference or teaching purposes. This is especially true of legislation and legal opinion. An improvement in a student’s ability to write is a result of continual learning through reading, research, critical analysis and writing itself. These are the fundamental skills of a good lawyer.

Arguably, essay writing is the most important skill that you should develop while at law school. Despite the fact that oral assessment and exams are hugely important, the written word remains the most effective form of communication throughout the world. This is because the majority of legal work is conducted through the use of written recommendations, memoranda, legal opinions, and legislation. It is a lawyer’s ability to write which will determine the extent of success throughout their legal career.

3. Key Elements of a Well-Written Law Essay

Legal research is an exploration into a specific legal issue. The issue is often narrow and targeted. Your job will be to identify the issue and then learn everything you can about that issue. The hunt for the black-letter law can be frustrating. You may need to read through many cases and statutes before you fully understand the issue. When looking for legal authority, it is difficult to know when you have read everything. You must use your judgment to determine how deep your research will go. Although it is difficult to determine where law students should stop researching and start writing, it is important to fully understand the issue you are writing about. But your goal is not just to learn about the issue. Your goal is to learn enough that you can effectively explain the issue to someone else. Try to put your issue into a one or two-sentence question. For example, your Torts fact pattern may raise the issue of whether the defendant owed a duty to the plaintiff. You can then frame your research around learning what duty means in Tort law and what it takes to establish that a duty was owed.

4. Developing Effective Writing Strategies

All that’s required after this is to round everything off and hand it in, a remarkably painless process given the right strategies.

The next strategy is to start the essay at the most convenient point, whether this is the introduction, the conclusion, or the point at which the most information is readily available. Getting words on the page provides a platform on which to build and greatly reduces the dreaded writer’s block to a mere stumbling step. Error checking should be left until the very end, and an ideal essay would see breaks between drafts to freshen the mind. This will allow an objective stance on the overall direction and quality of the work.

Once the planning stage is complete, all that remains is the actual writing. Most students fall at this hurdle, so it is essential that the next steps are tackled strategically. The first thing to do is to cultivate the habit of writing up the essay on the computer while referencing the notes on paper. Loading the information straight into the essay will save time spent shuffling through notes trying to decipher what was written several weeks previously. It also saves pen and wrist from the torture of countless hours of essay writing.

One of the golden rules of essay writing is to plan, plan, and plan some more. Most students begin their research by looking through a mass of information and making rough notes on what they’ve read. This is an excellent starting point, which can save both time and effort in the long run. Using a mind map or flow chart can help to clarify the direction in which the essay will need to proceed based on the information gathered. This will ease the transition from research to writing and help to avoid getting stuck halfway through.

Developing effective writing strategies requires a high level of planning and attention to detail. There are various methods of achieving this, but a simple plan can make the lengthy process of writing a law essay much more manageable. Let’s consider a practical example.

5. Conclusion

The essay has explored the importance of law essay writing, which is an essential part of legal systems, whether in the United Kingdom or a nation-state. It has demonstrated that law essay writing is not so much a test of knowledge as it is a test of understanding specific concepts and terms, and exploring those in an articulate manner. For this reason, those who seek to achieve in law should improve their ability to write essays on legal matters. A continual practice of reading articles with complex language and terms will slowly translate into more understanding as the reader internalizes the information. This will then make that person more confident in understanding law, and they will also be well-prepared for legal essays. This is a very crucial point, as law is a science that is constantly evolving in parallel with society. Old laws are abolished and new ones are created in response to social change. This means that the law student will be constantly challenged to interpret the law as it is, and this is a skill best refined by articulate essay writing.