Warwick’s School of Law teaches ‘law in context’. The contextual approach was pioneered by Warwick over 40 years ago. We still aim to avoid treating law as if it can be separated from other aspects of society. Instead of concentrating only upon the study, analysis and memorising of legal rules, the School’s aim is to widen the scope of legal studies to include the social context in which law and lawyers operate. Students study law relating to major social issues, crime, labour relations, human rights, asylum, the family, health and the environment.
Example modules
Modern English Legal System
This foundational module aims to provide students with a sound practical understanding of English legal method within the institutional context of the
English Legal System. All key sources of UK and European law are explained and students are trained in their retrieval and analysis. Particular attention
is given to the techniques of interpreting statutes and legal cases. The distinctions between civil law and criminal law and public law and private law are examined. These various aspects of the module are combined to produce a critical overview of the machinery of justice at the heart of the English legal
system and to provide students with a fluency in fundamental legal techniques. These techniques will be developed through participatory exercises in seminars whereby students will have the opportunity to test and develop their fundamental legal skills as well as other core skills which they will utilise throughout their legal studies including essay writing and, solving problem questions.
Tort Law
The module examines and analyses the law of civilliability for wrongfully-inflicted damage or injury: the law of “wrongs” or tort. We consider the development, through cases, of doctrines intended to deal with the problems of losses, which are attributable to human fault. Stress is laid on the processes and techniques involved in judicial (as opposed to legislative or administrative) law-making; on the relevance and responsiveness (or otherwise) of the doctrines thus developed to society’s actual problems in the areas concerned; and on the policies and philosophies underlying the rules.
The School of Law has a number of undergraduate student exchange agreements but regrets that it can only accept Exchange students from universities with whom it does not have an agreement in exceptional circumstances.
