Course overview

Law with Professional Legal Practice is dedicated to a wealth of practical experience that will allow you to develop the required attributes for a career in law. You will delve deep into the core study of law and explore a range of areas of legal practice including criminal and civil litigation.

You will participate in a range of activities that allow you to develop and refine the practical legal skills which are critical to a career within the profession such as communication, client management, drafting, interviewing, and researching. You will gain insight into the diverse areas of the legal profession enabling you to explore the different areas of Law in a supportive environment. Your legal skillset will enable you to demonstrate your competence to future employers and will help to progress your career within the legal profession.

You will be equipped to critically analyse and consider the appropriate techniques and concepts for approaching a range of legal issues which will involve evaluating legal content to determine and specify proposals, as well as creating strong arguments for court cases.

Your first year will provide you with a strong grounding in the structure of the English legal system and in core subjects such as public law, the law of contracts, tort law and property law. It will also equip you with essential skills required for studying law, including researching legislation and case-law, reading judgments and legal writing.

In your second year, you will study remedies, the law of real property, criminal law and EU law, alongside two elective modules each semester.

In addition, you will start your journey into Professional Legal Practice with Civil Litigation which takes you through the practical application of the law by interviewing and advising a client and taking the role of a trainee solicitor acting for Claimant or Defendant. You will also study Residential Conveyancing where you will learn the practice and procedure of a conveyancing transaction.

In your final year, you will study the law of trust and contemporary case law critique, alongside three electives each semester tailored to your interests or career aspirations.

Your PLP modules in this year include Business Law and Practice, Criminal Litigation, Wills Probate and Drafting. All will immerse you in the world of legal practice and help enhance your practical legal skills and knowledge of procedure.

Preparation for your career

During your studies, you will learn how to research, read and analyse case and statute law. Answering the legal problem questions, used in many of our law modules, will help develop your problem solving skills and give you experience applying the law to factual situations.

We offer a variety of additional opportunities for you to prepare for your career including Legal Advice Clinics, our CLOCK initiative and legal skills competitions. These are valuable, practical experiences that will allow you to demonstrate your knowledge and apply your learning to real-life scenarios.

Legal Advice Clinics

At Keele, we have dedicated Legal Advice Clinics where, upon successful application, you will be trained and supervised by experienced Solicitors to deliver legal services, from the start of the client enquiry through to the resolution of their query. You will learn how to interview and advise clients, research the law using practitioner databases, and give practical legal advice. You may be involved in drafting legal documents and court forms as well as advising clients in writing and in meetings.

This valuable legal work experience will be advantageous to your professional development. You can record your experience on HEAR (Higher Education Achievement Report) to showcase your volunteer work at university and use as your portfolio when you graduate.

• Divorce Clinic - You will meet clients and advise on eligibility to divorce, and continue to help them navigate the various court forms required. You will research the law, draft divorce proceedings, court documents, and gain real life experience of helping clients at a difficult time in their lives. You will be responsible for keeping the client updated throughout the proceedings, learning in a safe supervised environment.
  
  We offer our services online and in person so have a variety of clients across the country.
• Commercial Clinic – Based online and at the Smart Innovation Hub (SIH) at Keele University, you will work with small businesses, entrepreneurs and employers to provide advice on a variety of areas of commercial law. You will advise on how to trade, for example as a partnership or company.
  
  You will advise on the duties of directors in a company as well as drafting and amending terms and conditions of business for a variety of businesses. This commercial legal work experience provides an introduction to the work commonly done by general commercial lawyers at many law firms and provides a valuable legal service to start ups and SMEs. You will have the opportunity to have direct links with businesses in a working environment.

Community Legal Outreach Collaboration Keele (CLOCK)

Community Legal Outreach Collaboration Keele (CLOCK), co-created a multi-agency collaboration with the Stoke Family Court, law firms, mediators the Citizens Advice Bureau, Domestic and Sexual Abuse survivor support services, to design the unique and innovative role of the Community Legal Companion to assist litigants in person through the court process.

This opportunity is available between your 2nd and 3rd year of study where, upon successful application, you will be trained by court staff, solicitors, barristers, mediators and domestic abuse and sexual abuse support services to understand the complex needs of litigants in person, in a variety of civil legal issues, including:

• Child arrangements
• Suspending evictions
• Non-molestation order
• Small claims

You will be trained by the partnership as a Community Legal Companion to signpost for legal aid and where not available, assist within the remit of the McKenzie Friend principles to assist:

• Filling in court forms
• Arrange court paperwork
• Accompany in court proceedings
• Note taking

Mooting (A mock appeal hearing on a point of law)

Challenge your peers through mooting competitions and showcase your knowledge through practice. You will apply your research, writing and presentation skills in the staged legal environment we have here at Keele as a traditional court room setup. This experience will help you to build confidence when working independently as well as a team. You will learn how to work effectively under pressure and how to meet deadlines but you will also develop and refine your public speaking skills and ability to convey robust arguments which is critical within the legal profession.

You may have the opportunity to get involved with national and international skills competitions including Client Interviewing and Negotiation which you can document and use to support future job applications. Such events sometimes attract members of the bar and legal academics, providing a great networking opportunity.

Stand out from the crowd

Placement Year

Get hands-on experience with a placement year between 2nd and 3rd year. This valuable opportunity is a great way to make connections and build a network of professionals within the field. You will be able to demonstrate industry experience and showcase your ability to support the workplace with your expertise in the legal field. This can be a great way of deciding which career path or legal profession you wish to pursue after your degree programme and network with lawyers and solicitors.

We also have work placements with partner organisations including the Citizens Advice Bureau, the Crown Prosecution Service and law firms in Birmingham, Manchester and London. These are short term work placements and therefore remain as part of your 3 year degree programme.

International Year

Enhance your career prospects with an International Year at one of our partner institutions. Utilising this opportunity between 2nd and 3rd year can help in your employment search to stand out from the crowd and broaden your horizons, potentially working across the globe.

You will evidence your experience with a project submission and on successful completion of all modules across the year, you will graduate with an enhanced degree title, 'with International Year.' Given the international demand and necessity for legal professionals, this opportunity can be highly beneficial in demonstrating your awareness of the international legal context but also your ability to immerse yourself into a different culture. You can find more information here.

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