Course Handbook

LLM in Legal Practice Full Time

School of Law and Criminology

LLM in Legal Practice

Course Handbook

AY2017 - 2018

Version No 3 © UWL 2017

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Course Name LLM in Legal Practice

Course Handbook

Contents

Page No. Section 1 Key Information 1.1 Welcome to the Course 4 1.2 Overview of the Course 5 1.3 Sources of Help and Support 5 1.4 Facts and Figures 6 1.5 Your Responsibilities 6

Section 2 Structure and Content 2.1 Introduction 9 2.2 Award Title, Exit Points and Progression 12 2.3 Course Philosophy, Aims and Outcomes 12 2.4 Course Outline 13 2.5 Module Summary 15

Section 3 Learning, Teaching and Assessment 3.1 Learning and Teaching Approaches 25 3.2 Assessment 28 3.3 UWL Graduate Attributes 4 3

Section 4 Quality Management and Enhancement 4.1 Course Management 44 4.2 Student Evaluation 44 4.3 Course Committee/Board 45 4.4 If You Have an Issue 4 5

Appendix A LPC regulations and fit to sit policy 46 Appendix B SRA Outcomes for the LPC 64 Appendix C Skills assessment criteria 80 Appendix D LPC timetables and term dates 86

Appendix E Support and Guidance 93 Appendix F Who’s Who? 106

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Section 1 Key Information

1.1 Welcome to Course

Thank you for choosing to study the LLM in Legal Practice at the University of West London. This course integrates the Legal Practice Course (“LPC”) which is the vocational stage of a solicitor’s training. It also offers an optional Masters module in Research Methodology and the opportunity to research and write a 15,000 word dissertation on an area related to legal practice. This is not a requirement for training as a solicitor but does top up the postgraduate diploma to an LLM in Legal Practice.

This handbook contains essential information about the course and is supplementary to the University’s general student handbook which contains information about the University’s amenities, welfare services, location and surroundings and the University-wide regulations, policies and procedures. The University student handbook is available at: http://www.uwl.ac.uk/students/current_students/Student_handbook.jsp

The course will build upon your knowledge and understanding of law gained in your undergraduate LLB or CPE/GDL studies and will teach you how to use and apply that knowledge to practical situations that you will encounter in the legal workplace.

You will acquire the skills, knowledge and experience needed to begin your period of recognised training, by dealing with a variety of different legal transactions and cases. An integral part of the course is learning how to use skills such as legal research, writing, drafting, advocacy, and interviewing and advising in a practical context, such as you are likely to be required to handle as a trainee in workplace training. You should consider this course as the beginning of your practical working life in the practice of law.

You will benefit from the considerable teaching and practice experience of an enthusiastic and dedicated course team. As we believe in frequent and interactive contact by working in small groups you will have the advantage of getting to know the teaching team, as well as your fellow students, very well.

You will be expected to prepare in advance of each session and to participate in and contribute to the work undertaken by your group.

The course that you are about to begin is demanding and the LPC Course Regulations require your attendance at all classes so that you can participate and learn effectively. Full attendance is essential. There is a clear correlation between attendance and results.

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We anticipate that you will find the course challenging, interesting and enjoyable and that upon successful completion of the course you will be proficient in the skills and procedures that you will need as a trainee in workplace training.

Please read this handbook carefully and keep it for reference. If after using this document as a first reference you have queries about the course do not hesitate to ask the Course Administrator, Sue Kirkham, or one of the teaching staff.

We wish you every success with your studies on the LLM in Legal Practice.

LPC Team

1.2 Overview of the Course

This handbook contains information based on a Course Specification formally approved by the University. The relevant sections of the specification, for example, the course’s aims, module content, learning outcomes, teaching and learning methods, assessment requirements, are incorporated into the handbook. The full Course Specification is available from the Course Leader.

For information regarding the University Regulations, Policies and Procedures, please see the current Student Handbook, Academic Regulations and the UWL website. The regulations applying to a student will be those in place for the academic year of their enrolment.

1.3 Sources of Help and Support

Course Leader: Jane Stevens Email: [email protected] Telephone: 0208 231 2018

Administrative contact: Sue Kirkham Email: [email protected] Telephone: 0208 231 2150

As well as the Course Leader, you may also contact your personal tutor for both academic and personal issues. You may also access Student Services if you require further help and an outline of the assistance they can provide is at: http://www.uwl.ac.uk/students/current-students/student-handbook

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1.4 Facts and Figures

Teaching and Learning Data Percentage of students’ study time: Level 7 Stage 1 Stage 2 Masters Scheduled teaching & learning time 14 hours 11 hours 3 hours per per per week week week for 9 weeks + 15 supervisi ons

Guided independent study time 28 hours 15 hours 173 per per hours week week plus 385 hours total

Assessment

Professional elements: All core practice subjects, elective subjects, Professional Conduct & Regulation and Solicitors Accounts are assessed by examination only with a pass mark of 50% Course skills are assessed on a competence basis – you are either competent or not yet competent.

Masters elements: 2000 word research proposal for the Research Methodology module plus a 12,000-15,000 word dissertation for the Dissertation module

NB: These numbers are derived from the most recent data available from Unistats, and should be regarded as estimates only. Figures are based on an anticipated pattern of module choices during students’ time on the course, and may be subject to changes which are outside the control of the course team.

1.5 Your Responsibilities

For a full description of your entitlements and responsibilities please consult the Student Handbook. You should particularly consider the Academic Regulations,

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which provide the framework for your degree and the Student Code of Conduct: http://www.uwl.ac.uk/about-us/policies-and-regulations

The course team and other University departments will always contact students via your student email address. So please ensure that you check your University email account regularly.

The LPC Course Regulations require attendance at all teaching and assessment sessions. Attendance is therefore compulsory and punctuality is essential. If you are absent from the course persistently, you may be ineligible to complete the course and in those circumstances will be asked to leave the course. In order to pass the course the regulations provide that you must have a satisfactory record of attendance.

In small group sessions in particular, you will be carrying out the tasks which a trainee in a period of recognised training would be carrying out in practice. By failing to attend sessions you will reduce your effectiveness as a trainee. Of more immediate importance is the fact that the examinations are based substantially on performing many of these tasks under examination conditions and so you will significantly reduce your chances of success in the assessments. You cannot learn how to do these tasks from a book.

You are undertaking a vocational course for entry into the legal profession and should therefore approach the course in a professional manner. Potential employers frequently ask us to provide references which include information concerning punctuality and attendance at classes. Good time-keeping, reliability and a professional attitude all rank as important criteria in the selection of potential trainees.

If you are sponsored on the course, the sponsoring firm may ask us to report on your attendance and could withdraw their sponsorship if they are not satisfied. If you have been awarded funding from another source, or if you are an overseas student with a student visa, we may be asked by the funding body or immigration authority to report on your attendance. If they are not satisfied with your attendance record your funding may be withdrawn or any visa revoked.

Because you work as part of a team in small group sessions, your absence will cause problems for the other members of your group. You may, for example, have been allocated a specific role and paired with another member of your group, or you may have been asked to prepare a specific topic for the group. Both you and your fellow students will suffer from your absence in the session.

If for any reason you are going to be unable to attend any session, you must: i) notify the Course Administrator and tutor in advance of the class; and ii) provide a written explanation for your absence, together where applicable with supporting evidence (medical or other relevant document), before or immediately after the event.

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If you need to telephone to explain a sudden absence, you must follow this up in writing as it is the written evidence that will be recorded on your file. Always keep a copy for your own records.

Late arrival (i.e. arrival after the tutor has commenced the session) will be recorded as an absence. The tutor may require you to wait outside until a convenient point in the session, to avoid disruption to other students’ learning. Unless your absence has been condoned by the Course Leader, you will not be entitled to receive copies of any hand-outs given by the tutor in the missed session. You will be expected to make your own arrangements to copy or download the materials missed.

Your record of attendance will form the basis of any reference that is given on your behalf to prospective employers. Most job applications contain a specific question relating to attendance and punctuality. We are obliged to provide an honest and accurate reference.

Your attendance record is also a matter for the LPC Assessment Board and you are referred to the LPC Course Regulations. Persistent absence may result in you being asked to leave the course, or can even result in you failing the course.

Any absence from any assessment or examination without good reason will be deemed a fail. If you are absent through illness or other good reason you should consult the section on Mitigating Circumstances in section 20 of the LPC Course Regulations and the Fit to Sit Policy at the end of Appendix A for details of what you should do.

Attributes needed to succeed on the course

The LLM in Legal Practice is demanding. It will challenge your intellectual abilities and you will need to complete a large number of tasks and assessments under demanding time pressure. You cannot assume that the pace is leisurely and gets harder. It is intense from day one through the entire course until your last assessment.

As soon as you start the course you need to have good organisational and time management skills. Try to organise your personal life so that you have the minimum of hindrances and distractions and try to keep yourself fit and healthy because it is easy to fall behind and hard to catch up if classes are missed.

You will need to have good interpersonal skills to work alongside your classmates in joint exercises. We expect you to behave professionally and courteously with all your peers and members of staff. We expect you to co- operate and participate in group exercises and pull your weight when needed.

You need to be able to work and study independently as well, because it is your individual performance in assessments which counts. You do not need to memorise large quantities of material as most of the exams are “open book” exams, but you do need to be able to understand what the substantive law is

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and apply it to an extensive range of practical exercises which you will undertake on the course.

If you attend all sessions, work consistently and diligently, apply yourself with intelligence and understanding to acquire the requisite skills, knowledge and experience and ask for help when needed, you will be well placed to succeed on the course.

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Section

2

Structure and Content

2.1 Introduction

2.1.1 The Legal Practice Course – the professional requirements

The LPC is an intensive, practical course designed to equip you with the legal skills and knowledge of law and procedure that you will need in order to commence or complete your period of recognised training and then practise as a solicitor. The LPC at UWL is designed to help you achieve the Outcomes required by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (“SRA”) which appear at Appendix B. The SRA has divided the LPC into 2 stages. Stage 1 consists of all the compulsory modules and stage 2 the optional modules, known as the vocational elective subjects.

A module diagram appears below showing the stage 1 and 2 modules.

Module Title Code Level Credits Core Optional STAGE 1 Business Law and Practice LW70044E 7 30  Property Law and Practice LW70043E 7 30  Civil and Criminal Litigation LW70045E 7 30  Advocacy LW70052E 7  Practical Legal Research LW70053E 7  Interviewing and Advising LW70056E 7  Writing LW70057E 7  Drafting LW70058E 7  Professional Conduct and LW70059E 7  Regulation Wills and Administration of LW70055E 7  Estates Taxation LW70054E 7  Solicitors Accounts LW70060E 7 

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Module Title Code Level Credits Core Optional STAGE 2 Immigration Law and Practice LW70051E 7 10  Advanced Litigation – LW70047E 7 10  Personal Injury Family Law and Practice LW70050E 7 10  Employment Law and Practice LW70048E 7 10  Housing and Residential LW70049E 7 10  Landlord and Tenant Law Commercial Leases LW70046E 7 10 

In order to achieve the Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice you will have to pass stages 1 and 2 of the course.

Stage 1 comprises the core practice areas of Litigation, Business Law and Practice and Property Law and Practice, which each carry 30 credits. In addition, you will be required to pass discrete assessments in Professional Conduct and Regulation, and in Solicitors Accounts, which are shorter, non- credit bearing modules. You will also be required to pass skills assessments in Practical Legal Research, Writing, Drafting, Interviewing and Advising and Advocacy. The skills are assessed on a competent / not yet competent basis and are non-credit bearing. You will also have to demonstrate achievement of the prescribed outcomes for Wills and Administration of Estates and Taxation, although the first will be assessed as part of the Interviewing and Advising assessment and the second in the context of the Core Practice Subjects and the Interviewing and Advising Assessment. Wills and Administration of Estates and Taxation are also non-credit bearing.

Stage 2 of the course comprises the vocational electives, listed in stage 2 of the table above. You will have to choose three vocational electives, which will each carry 10 credits.

2.1.2 The LLM in Legal Practice optional element

This involves two modules:

 Research Methodology (20 level 7 credits) (runs for 9 weeks March - May)  A 15,000 word Dissertation (40 level 7 credits) (June to August).

Students will take the Research Methodology module at the same time as their stage 2 electives and will research and complete a Dissertation by 31st August.

An outline of the structure of the course appears overleaf:

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OUTLINE OF THE COURSE

STAGE 1 Week 1 Foundation Course ▼ Weeks 2 – 15 Core Practice Subjects: Business Law & Practice Property Law & Practice Civil & Criminal Litigation

Professional Conduct and Regulation (PCR) Solicitors Accounts Practical Legal Research Wills and Administration of Estates

Course Skills

▼

CHRISTMAS VACATION

▼ Weeks 16 - 21 Core Practice Subjects and Skills cont’d Professional Conduct & Regulation cont’d Revision ▼ Weeks 22-23 Core Practice Subject and PCR Exams ▼ STAGE 2 and LLM Weeks 1-3 Vocational Elective Subjects Research Methodology ▼

SPRING BREAK ▼

Weeks 4-10 Vocational Elective Subjects cont’d Revision ▼ Weeks 11-12 Elective Subject Exams ▼ Week 12 END OF THE COURSE FOR LPC ONLY

Weeks 10-24 Dissertation if completing LLM Element

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2.2 Award title, Exit Points and Progression

If you successfully complete all the elements of stage 1 and stage 2 of the LPC, the Research Methodology module and the Dissertation module, the University of West London will award you the LLM in Legal Practice.

If you successfully complete all the elements of stage 1 and stage 2 of the LPC, the University of West London will award you a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice.

If you successfully complete all the elements of stage 1 of the LPC, the University of West London will award you a Postgraduate Certificate in Legal Practice. This is a nationally recognised qualification with transportable credits which proves your academic achievement. However, you will not have completed the vocational stage of your training to be a solicitor unless you have also passed Stage 2 comprising 3 vocational electives.

2.3 Course Philosophy, Aims and Outcomes

The LPC is the first stage of solicitors’ vocational training and satisfactory completion of the course is an essential requirement to qualifying as a solicitor in England and Wales. The LPC is designed to build on your academic knowledge of the law and prepares you for the further training requirement of a period of recognised training and your early years in practice.

The precise course outcomes and course design requirements are as specified by the SRA in their “Information for Providers of Legal Practice Courses” and the “Legal Practice Course Outcomes 2011”.

The LPC provides practice-focused education and training to prepare students for further training and work-based learning. Links with the profession are strong and students are provided with opportunities to engage in pro-bono legal work and legal work experience. The LPC has links with solicitors through the Middlesex Law Society and many qualified alumni.

Following the LPC, you must undertake the further training requirement of a period of recognised training in order to complete the vocational stage of your training to be a solicitor.

Employment opportunities lie not only in private practice, but also in the Crown Prosecution Service, the Government Legal Service, the Courts Service, local authorities, charities, and in private and public companies.

By completing the LLM element you will have demonstrated masters level academic research skills and the ability to complete a complex, evaluative dissertation on a specialist area of law.

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2.4 Course Outline

Foundation Course

The course starts with a one week foundation course. You will be expected to attend classes from 10.00 am – 5pm from Monday to Friday in this week.

This week will familiarise you with our teaching and learning approach and provide a basis of knowledge which is developed further in the core practice and other subject areas. During this initial period, you will be introduced in small group sessions to the skills of interviewing and advising, legal writing, and drafting, as well as to general principles of taxation and professional conduct.

It will also provide an opportunity for you to get to know your fellow students as well as your personal tutor and academic staff on the LPC. You will be given an introduction to the Library and the IT facilities.

Stage 1 of the LPC

Stage 1 runs from September to February. You will cover:

 the core practice subjects of Business Law and Practice, Civil and Criminal Litigation, Property Law and Practice  Professional Conduct and Regulation (including the regulation of the solicitors’ profession, solicitors’ accounts, financial services and money laundering)  Wills and Administration of Estates  Practical Legal Research  Taxation.

Stage 1 also requires you to develop and show competence in a number of essential legal skills, such as interviewing and advising clients, legal writing, drafting legal documents, advocacy and practical legal research.

In this stage of the course you will be expected to attend on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays you will normally have classes from 10.00 am – 5pm and on Wednesdays you will normally have classes from 3pm to 5pm. On some Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays you will be expected to attend for assessments and you will also have the opportunity to attend further sessions providing you with feedback on your work, careers workshops, personal tutor sessions and your appraisals. Dates of assessments are listed in the assessment schedule and you will have plenty of notice of these additional sessions.

In the core practice subjects (Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice, Litigation) and in Wills and Administration of Estates you will continue

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to refine and develop your use of legal skills and your knowledge of taxation and professional conduct and regulation issues. You will meet and deal with these in the context of routine legal work just as you would in legal practice.

Teaching sessions are in blocks of 2 hours and are largely interactive. You will be set specific tasks to prepare for the sessions so that you can participate fully in small teams during the sessions and learn how to carry out transactional tasks. In the core practice subjects you will learn how to take a legal case through from the beginning to the end. You will build up a file of legal precedents which will be an invaluable support to you as you subsequently enter employment in legal practice.

Stage 2 of the LPC

Stage 2 of the course runs from March until June. In order to complete the LPC overall you must study three separate vocational elective subjects in stage 2. You will choose from a range usually including:

Advanced Litigation (Personal Injury); Commercial Leases; Employment Law and Practice; Family Law and Practice; Housing and Residential Landlord and Tenant Law; Immigration Law and Practice.

These electives have been chosen to provide a good range of legal work useful in both high street and larger commercial firms. Some electives are hybrid which means they have both a commercial and private client element. For example employment law provides you with the law and procedures to advise both a corporate client as well as the individual employee seeking redress.

The electives also reflect the current expertise of staff teaching on the LPC. It is therefore possible that the electives offered might change with the loss or addition of staff members. Prior to making your choice you will be given information about the available choices and the syllabus for each subject.

At the end of Stage 1 you can continue directly on to Stage 2 as a full-time student and you will then be expected to attend for 1½ days per week. The days you attend will depend on the vocational elective subjects you choose to study, so you might be in classes for one full day and another half day, or three mornings, or three afternoons or a combination of mornings and afternoons. You will be asked to make your elective choices in November and electives will not commence until the following March, so you will have plenty of notice as to when the elective sessions will be held.

It is possible for you to have a break between stage 1 and stage 2 by enrolling first for the Post-graduate Certificate in Legal Practice (Stage 1) and then enrolling in a subsequent year for Stage 2 to complete your Post-graduate Diploma (awarded after successful completion of stages 1 and 2 within 5

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years). However, if you do this, the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority rules provide that you must pass all Stage 1 and Stage 2 assessments within 5 years of the date you attempted your first assessment in Stage 1.

The LLM in Legal Practice element

This involves two modules, Research Methodology (20 level 7 credits) and a 15,000 word Dissertation (40 level 7 credits). Students will take the Research Methodology module at the same time as their stage 2 electives (9 weeks from March-May) and will research and complete a dissertation by 31st August.

2.5 Module Summary

Stage 1:

Business Law & Practice

The aim is to enable you to perform, with the understanding and expertise appropriate to a trainee solicitor, the skills and tasks required to provide advice to a client as to the appropriate business medium and structure to meet the client’s commercial requirements, including the legal and taxation implications, and to progress common transactions arising during the life and development of a business and its conclusion.

You will learn about the various forms of business organisations, including sole traders, partnerships and companies. Through case studies you will deal with the formation, financing, management and taxation of a partnership and company. Within this module, you will also learn the basic principles of business accounting and the need to interpret business accounts to ensure that your clients are properly advised.

The course will give you an appreciation of the varying interests and duties of the directors, shareholders and creditors of a business and how to deal with the potential conflicts arising in both a practical, commercial sense and with regard to the impact which legal rules have on such conflict for the parties and the advising solicitor. It will provide you with an understanding of the concepts of capital and profit and business accounting principles, together with the ability to analyse and interpret a profit and loss account and balance sheet.

You will take clients from initial instructions in setting up a business through to incorporation and eventual conclusion of the business, covering all common business transactions throughout. Additionally, other clients are introduced to ensure coverage of this varied and complex area of legal practice. Professional conduct issues are considered as they arise in the course.

The course will also fully integrate the skills expected of solicitors practising in this area of law and you will have practical experience in writing, drafting, practical legal research, interviewing and advising. The use of information

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technology is widespread throughout the course and you will have the opportunity to learn how to draft and research information, documents and precedents electronically.

Civil and Criminal Litigation

The aim is to enable you to perform, with understanding and expertise appropriate to a trainee solicitor, the skills and tasks required to undertake litigation in the context of the specialised areas of criminal and civil litigation, to a standard which effectively achieves the clients’ and solicitors’ objectives and which is consistent with your professional responsibilities.

The course will give you an appreciation of the nature of civil and criminal litigation, enable you to understand the process of litigation, and the practice and principles of advocacy and drafting. It will provide you with an overview of the relevant areas of the rules of criminal evidence and civil evidence, to enable you to prepare evidence for both civil and criminal litigation and to recognise and deal with evidential issues as they arise during the conduct of litigation.

In Criminal Litigation you will learn how a solicitor prepares and presents a case in the Magistrates’ Court and the Crown Court. You will also learn how to advise a suspect at a police station, how to brief counsel, when and how to apply for public funding and bail applications, how to make a plea in mitigation and sentencing procedures.

In Civil Litigation you will learn how to conduct civil actions in court, when to use the multi-track and fast track procedures, and the funding of litigation, including conditional fee and no win no fee agreements. You will also learn how to determine whether the institution of legal proceedings is in the client’s best interests or whether alternative methods of dispute resolution may be more appropriate.

You will take a number of case studies through from initial instructions to trial and beyond in order to fully understand the litigation process. Professional conduct issues are considered as they arise in the course.

The course will also fully integrate the skills expected of solicitors practising in this area of law and you will have practical experience in writing, drafting, practical legal research, interviewing and advising and advocacy. The use of information technology is widespread in the course and you will have the opportunity to learn how to draft and research documents and precedents electronically.

Property Law & Practice

The aim is to enable you to perform, with understanding and expertise appropriate to a trainee solicitor, the conveyancing process in the context of a sale and purchase of residential property. You follow a number of complete transactions in order to fully understand the conveyancing process. You also

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make the necessary accounting entries as the main transactions proceed and prepare the completion statement and account for the client. Taxation, financial services, and professional conduct and regulation issues are considered as they arise in the course.

You will learn the practice and procedure involved in the sale and purchase of both registered and unregistered freehold property transactions. Once the basic conveyancing procedure has been learned, you will consolidate and develop the knowledge and skills you have acquired by examining the more complex processes involved in the transfer of a leasehold property, the purchase of a new property from a developer and a sale of part of land.

You will learn how to investigate title and the searches and enquiries that are necessary to ensure your client’s interests are safeguarded. You will be expected to apply your knowledge of land law, trusts and contract law. It is most important to your success in Property Law and Practice to have a firm understanding of these principles.

The course will also fully integrate the skills expected of solicitors practising this area of law and you will have practical experience in writing, drafting, practical legal research, interviewing and advising. The use of information technology is widespread in the course, and you will have the opportunity to learn how to draft and research documents and precedents electronically.

Course Skills

You must demonstrate competence in all the required skills in order to successfully complete Stage 1 of the LPC.

The skills comprise:

 Practical Legal Research (“PLR”)  Writing  Drafting  Interviewing and Advising  Advocacy

Following an introduction to the course skills in the Foundation course, most skills will be taught and assessed within the context of the core practice areas (Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice and Litigation) and in Wills and Administration of Estates. PLR will be taught and assessed separately but will be reinforced in the core practice subjects. There will be plenty of opportunities for you to practise the skills in the small group sessions before any assessment takes place.

The skills are assessed within the following subjects:

 Writing within Property Law and Practice  Drafting within Civil Litigation  Advocacy within Criminal Litigation

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 Interviewing and Advising within Wills and Administration of Estates  Practical Legal Research within the context of any of the compulsory subjects or any area of law.

The Assessment Schedule sets out the timetable for assessments including skills assessments.

Prior to each formal assessment there will be an opportunity for you to undertake a practice assessment.

Advocacy, and Interviewing and Advising, the two oral skills, are assessed by way of a live performance which is recorded on camera. Students are often daunted by the prospect of a filmed assessment and to help you prepare for this we give you an opportunity of a practice recorded assessment and individual feedback on your performance.

In each of the skills you need to be competent in order to pass the course. This means that, in each of these areas, you have achieved an appropriate level to commence your work based training.

Professional Conduct and Regulation

You will cover ethics and the rules of professional conduct; the organisation and regulation of the solicitor’s profession; money laundering legislation and reporting procedures; financial services regulation and its impact on the work of solicitors; and the SRA Accounts Rules and accounting procedures.

Professional Conduct and Regulation ("PCR") is regarded as very important in practice. Any breach of the mandatory principles and outcomes of professional conduct and ethics can lead to an intervention by the SRA. A solicitor in serious breach can be stopped from practising. Similarly a solicitor who provides certain financial services must be appropriately qualified/ authorised to do so. If not, criminal sanctions can be imposed which will also lead to disqualification from practice.

For this reason PCR is separately assessed within the course as follows:

1. Questions on PCR will be set within the core practice assessments. A minimum of 5% of the total 100 marks for that assessment will be on PCR issues and the mark attained out of 5% will form part of your mark out of 100 for that core practice assessment. It is not added to the mark below.

2. In addition, there will be a separate, written two hour PCR assessment at the end of stage 1. To pass PCR, you must obtain at least 50% of the available marks in the written assessment. You will not be able to add any mark from the core practice assessments. The two types of assessment are completely separate.

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Solicitors Accounts

The SRA Accounts Rules (“SAR”) are the rules governing the keeping of clients’ money. Solicitors’ Accounts is taught in small group sessions in which there will be plenty of opportunities for you to apply the rules and prepare accounts. You will also build upon your understanding of these rules and apply them within the context of Property Law and Practice.

You will be assessed on your understanding of these rules and their application once the accounts teaching programme is completed.

The SAR will be assessed separately under supervised conditions. The assessment will last for a minimum of 2 hours. You are permitted to take into the exam one lever arch file containing the course manual, course materials, the SRA Code of Conduct and the SRA Accounts Rules.

Wills and Administration of Estates

This subject is a reserved area of legal practice and is assessed within the Interviewing and Advising skills assessment. You have to achieve competence in this assessment before you can successfully complete Stage 1.

The subject is taught in small group sessions. The course introduces you to the law and procedures concerned with the entitlement to and administration of a deceased person’s estate including the payment of liabilities and distribution of assets.

You will develop a general knowledge of the content, format and validity of wills, intestacy and how an estate is administered, including obtaining grants of representation and the impact of inheritance tax.

Taxation

Following an introduction to the main taxes in the Foundation course, taxation will be taught in the context of the substantive areas of law and practice to which the different aspects of tax law relate. The course will give you an understanding of the impact of taxation in various legal contexts as follows:

 Income Tax - Business law and Practice  Capital Gains Tax - Business Law and Practice; Property Law and Practice  Inheritance Tax - Wills and Administration of Estates  Corporation Tax - Business Law and Practice  VAT – Solicitors’ Accounts, Business Law and Practice; Commercial Leases Elective  Stamp Duty Land Tax - Property Law and Practice.

Taxation is required to be assessed and you should therefore expect taxation questions to arise in Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice and in the Interviewing and Advising assessment.

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Stage 2:

Advanced Litigation

The aim is to enable you to perform, with understanding and expertise appropriate to a trainee solicitor, the skills and tasks required to undertake personal injury litigation to a standard which effectively achieves the client’s and solicitor’s objectives and which is consistent with your professional responsibilities. This elective builds on the knowledge of the law of tort, and the knowledge gained in Civil Litigation in stage 1 of the LPC.

You will take a number of case studies through from initial instructions to trial or settlement in order to fully understand the litigation process.

In particular this elective will cover road traffic accidents, employer’s liability claims, fatal accidents, claims to the Criminal Injury Compensation Authority and to the Motor Insurance Bureau. It will provide you with an overview of civil evidence matters to enable you to prepare evidence for personal injury claims and to recognise and deal with evidential issues as they arise during the conduct of litigation.

Professional conduct issues are considered as they arise in the course.

The course will also fully integrate the skills expected of solicitors practising in this area of law and you will have practical experience in writing, drafting, practical legal research and interviewing and advising.

You will have the opportunity to learn how to draft and research documents and precedents electronically.

Commercial Leases

The aim is to provide you with the legal knowledge to advise clients in connection with commercial property transactions. This elective includes a detailed examination of landlord and tenant law as it applies to commercial property transactions and the meaning and effect of clauses in business leases in particular. The course will fully integrate the skills and professional conduct knowledge expected of solicitors practising in this area of law.

You will be able to ascertain correctly the client’s instructions (whether the client is a landlord or tenant) and draft or advise on a lease in accordance with those instructions, clearly and unambiguously, using appropriate precedents modified as necessary. Problems and contingencies not foreseen by the client will be identified, and you will advise the client on alternative means of achieving the client’s aims. You will advise the client on the remedies available for a breach of covenant. In addition you will also learn the procedures in connection with security of tenure under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 Part II, the ability to exclude these provisions and the statutory procedure in relation to termination of a business lease.

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Part of the module will be spent understanding and following transactions involving the acquisition, sale and/or development of commercial sites and buildings. You will become aware of and be able to advise in outline on the planning and taxation issues relevant to commercial property transactions as well as any professional conduct and regulation and client care applications.

In small group sessions you will have the opportunity to continue to develop a range of legal skills including interviewing and advising, writing, drafting and practical legal research in the context of commercial property transactions, in particular dealing with business leases.

Employment Law

You will examine key aspects of the function and principles of individual employment law and how they are applied in practice. You will build on the knowledge of contract and European Union law gained in your degree or graduate diploma, and learn how this knowledge should be applied in complex, practical situations.

You will be able to advise and assist employers, employees and workers on employment law and practice. This elective will also enable you to advise and assist clients in the areas of the creation of employment contracts, claims arising out of termination of such contracts or alleged wrongful treatment, and transfers of undertakings.

The course will fully integrate the skills and pervasive knowledge expected of solicitors practising this area of law.

In particular the course will cover:  Formation and terms of the contract  Unlawful deductions  Working Time Directive and National Minimum Wage  Wrongful and Constructive Dismissal  Unfair Dismissal  Discrimination on the grounds of sex, race, religion or belief, age, disability  Transfers of Undertakings  The procedure for compromising potential and actual claims in the form of compromise agreements  Tribunal procedure and practice, including the drafting of an ET1 and ET3.

In small group sessions you will have the opportunity of continuing to develop a range of legal skills including interviewing and advising a client, writing and drafting and practical legal research. You will also be expected to know and apply principles of professional conduct and client care.

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Family Law

You will be able to advise clients on the legal and procedural aspects of family law including divorce, ancillary relief (financial settlements on the breakdown of a marriage), issues relating to the children of the family and domestic violence. You will cover the law, practice and procedure with regard to the jurisdiction of the English courts, the ground and facts for divorce, dissolution of civil partnerships, nullity and judicial separation.

In particular the course will cover:

 divorce procedure, the procedure on dissolution of a civil partnership, ancillary relief, and costs  the powers of the court in determining financial provision during marriage and upon divorce or dissolution including the sale or otherwise of the matrimonial home and consent orders  pensions on divorce or dissolution  the arrangements for children in the context of divorce; child support legislation  welfare provision; the unmarried family, availability of financial provision  enforcement of maintenance orders and property adjustment orders  availability of appeals, setting aside and variation of orders  taxation.

The module also considers the law, practice, procedure and powers of the court in cases of domestic violence

The course will fully integrate the skills and professional conduct knowledge expected of solicitors practising this area of law.

Housing and Residential Landlord and Tenant Law

You will be able to advise and assist landlords and tenants on landlord and tenant law as it applies to private residential property. You will learn how to apply the law of landlord and tenant as it affects short-term and long-term tenants of residential property, including protection of tenants from eviction or harassment and the landlord’s ability to gain possession of tenanted properties.

The course also covers the role of the local authority in ensuring adequate housing conditions; homelessness; and allocation of public sector housing.

The course will fully integrate the skills and professional conduct knowledge expected of solicitors practising this area of law.

In particular the course will cover:

 the law of landlord and tenant as it affects the short term tenant of residential property, including the statutory protection of such tenants in

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terms of their right to remain in possession, rent control and rent restrictions, and housing benefit  the role of the local authority in ensuring adequate housing conditions homelessness and allocation of public sector housing  the law of landlord and tenant as it affects the long term tenant of residential property, including the statutory protection of such tenants in terms of their right to acquire the freehold or a lease extension and public sector tenants’ right to buy.

In small group sessions you will have the opportunity of continuing to develop a range of legal skills including interviewing and advising a client, writing, drafting and practical legal research. You will also be expected to know and apply principles of professional conduct and client care.

Immigration Law

You will be able to advise and assist clients including private and public sector employers, private individuals and a wide cross section of different ethnic communities across a broad range of practical issues, including working in the UK, fulfilling clients’ personal and family immigration aspirations and dealing with the Home Office and Border Agency, within the systems established by the government for the control and administration of immigration to the UK.

The relevance of this elective in a locality so close to Heathrow airport cannot be underestimated and it remains an important and fast-moving area of legal practice.

In particular the course will cover:

 The legal background and controls on leaving the country of origin, arrival, entry and staying in the UK  Spouses and Fiance(e)s, Children, Visitors, Students, other relatives  Refugees and Asylum seekers  The European Economic Area European institutions  Workers and Business People  Immigration Benefits and other state provision  Deportation illegal entry detention and removal  The immigration and asylum appeals systems  British Nationality and how to acquire British Citizenship.

In small group sessions you will have the opportunity of continuing to develop a range of legal skills including interviewing and advising a client, writing, drafting and practical legal research. You will also be expected to know and apply principles of professional conduct.

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The LLM in Legal Practice element:

Research Methodology This module provides a thorough basis for Masters level research methods. The module is free-standing, but links easily with the subsequent or concurrent preparation of your dissertation. The module addresses core content areas appropriate to research in a legal context, and supports students to achieve appropriate levels of competence in these areas. It will be equally relevant to all students who wish to broaden their armoury of research tools, and deepen their understanding of issues relating to legal, financial and economic research – whether that is for work-related purposes or in support of further academic work. Dissertation The dissertation provides the student with the opportunity to demonstrate the mastery of a particular subject area by the completion of an extended piece of self-managed research. The aim of the dissertation is to develop and test the student’s ability to conceptualise, appraise and critically evaluate a significant legal topic through a process of research. It will involve conducting both primary and secondary research in the chosen topic / discipline area and presenting the research and its findings in the form of a 12,000-15,000 word dissertation.

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Section

3

Learning, Teaching and Assessment

3.1 Learning and Teaching Approaches

Teaching and learning methods differ considerably from those you will have encountered on traditional undergraduate courses in that the learning method is student focused and involves a lot of learning by performing legal tasks. This means that throughout the course you will be expected to read and prepare material before each class. In class you will then be expected to work independently, or often together with other students in your group, to complete tasks jointly. The aim is therefore to encourage you to learn and work both independently and as part of a team.

Details of the preparation you must undertake are contained in resource materials prepared by your tutors and handed to you at the beginning of the course and in advance of the sessions. You must therefore always read ahead and find out what you must prepare before your next class. If you do not do so, you will find the session difficult to follow and will be unable to contribute. You will also fall behind and will have to do twice as much work for the next session. The key is sharing your experience from your prepared work with other students - failure to prepare lets down the whole group.

After each session you will need to review the session and satisfy yourself that you have understood the areas covered and tasks undertaken. You will also have post session tasks to do which will consolidate your learning and prepare you for the work ahead.

We recognise that some of our students undertake part-time work to fund the course or have childcare or other commitments. It is therefore essential that you carefully plan ahead and identify quality time in which you can undertake this preparatory work. By quality time we mean time when you are not tired or preoccupied with other unconnected matters and are able to devote yourself entirely to your studies. Some of this time should coincide with periods when you can use library resources either at UWL or elsewhere. Don’t forget too that you are required to attend all classes and that a record of your attendance will be kept. This forms part of the LPC Course Regulations.

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Small Group Sessions

The majority of teaching and learning will take place in group sessions of approximately 20-30 students, although in elective subjects group numbers will usually be much smaller.

You are expected to pre-read, research specific topics and prepare materials prior to each session.

These sessions will involve you in transaction based tasks usually working as part of a small team. Your tutor will act as the facilitator and help and guide you, but you will be expected to work through exercises using the information you have found in your advance preparation. This will often involve working on the computers and accessing information online or through BlackBoard.

You are expected to participate and by doing so will learn how to use law and procedure in a practical and applied context, including the legal techniques and skills employed in practice. Your tutor will give you feedback during each session.

Your materials will provide you with authentic scenarios and realistic documentation, in order to simulate the legal environment and prepare you for practice. You will meet and interview “clients”, take and confirm instructions, comply with your professional conduct responsibilities, critically evaluate the client’s case and needs, and plan and take steps to advance the case. These steps will involve you engaging in legal research, writing to clients or other solicitors and professionals involved in the case, advising the client, advocating on behalf of the client, and drafting legal documents, Document handling and case management will be a feature of the teaching and learning. Timely, precise and targeted feedback, including both verbal and written feedback, will be used to help you take the necessary steps to achieve the course outcomes.

The underlying teaching methodology aims to facilitate your development by setting a series of steps by which you can acquire legal skills and knowledge of procedure. These steps will involve an introduction to the different legal areas, pre-session tasks and reading, session activities, feedback, post- session review tasks, and practice assessments with feedback, to prepare you for summative assessments.

Practice Assessments a) Practice Skills Assessments

All your formal skills assessments are preceded by a practice assessment. The practice assessment timetable allows you individual feedback on your practice interviewing and advising and advocacy skill performances. You will also be given access to a recording of your practice performances for you to review.

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You will be offered group feedback on the written skills practices with the opportunity for an appointment for individual feedback on your performance if required. b) Practice Open Book Examinations

You will be given the opportunity to undertake practice (mock) examinations in the compulsory and elective subjects to help your preparation for open book examinations. Our experience has shown that students do not always know how to use effectively the books and other information they are allowed to take into the examination and without practice their performance in the examination may be hindered. The practice exam will also be an opportunity to experience the different examination techniques required to complete successfully examinations such as these, which lead to a professional qualification, in contrast to academic undergraduate examinations. There will be a formal group feedback session for each mock examination as well as individual feedback.

Feedback

Feedback on your performance and progress on the course is regarded as fundamental and it is therefore given a high priority within the design of this course. Feedback is provided through the following channels:

 At each small group session your tutor will give you individual and/or group feedback on the work you have prepared, and will deal with any questions you may have. In order that you may obtain full benefit from this feedback, it is most important that you have carried out the required preparation.

 All your formal skills assessments are preceded by practice assessments with feedback. The practice assessment timetable allows you individual feedback on your oral skill performance. You will also be given access to a recording of your practice performance to review.

 Practice examinations are timetabled to help you prepare for the compulsory subject examinations in February. There is a formal feedback session for each practice examination.

There are other opportunities for feedback on an individual basis, either on your own initiative or on the initiative of the subject tutor. Please contact your tutor if you need to book an appointment following receipt of a marked assessment. Tutors will also arrange appointments directly with you at other times.

Tutor support

Whilst you can arrange to see your subject tutors by mutual appointment at any time, you are also allocated a personal tutor from within the teaching team in the first week of the course. Your personal tutor is kept informed of your

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progress throughout.

Appointments between you and your personal tutor can be made at mutually convenient times during the year, to discuss matters generally relating to the course, or matters affecting your attendance, or progress on the course. You will also have an appraisal with your personal tutor towards the end of the first term to discuss and evaluate your progress on the course.

It is important that you keep us informed of problems which may affect your studies or assessments. You should tell your personal tutor and the Course Leader as soon as possible and also provide supporting documentary evidence.

This course places great emphasis on close contact between staff and students in order to provide individualised student support. We have an open door policy which means that whenever you have a problem or need help with any aspect of your course you can go along to see any subject tutor. Sometimes it will be necessary to make a mutually convenient appointment for this purpose.

3.2 Assessment

The Assessment Programme

The assessments on the LPC are rigorous, practical, realistic and cover all aspects of the course. They are designed to allow you to demonstrate achievement of the LPC outcomes and to demonstrate fitness to practice as a trainee in your period of recognised training.

The assessments test your understanding of legal concepts and processes, your ability to analyse situations and to apply your legal knowledge. The assessments contain a substantial amount of realistic and transaction based tasks and achieve breadth and depth of subject coverage.

The Assessment schedule

Set out at the end of this section is an assessment schedule setting the dates for all your subject examinations and skills, Professional Conduct & Regulation (“PCR”) and Solicitors Accounts assessments for Stage 1 and Stage 2.

The dates for submission of written skill assessments are very strictly enforced. Failure to submit work on the due date by the due time will nearly always result in automatic failure of the assessment.

Oral skills assessments will be timetabled and published on the student notice board and on BlackBoard at least two weeks prior to the assessment by the skills co-ordinator. It is your responsibility to ensure you know the time of your

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oral assessment by checking the notice board and/or asking the relevant member of staff. You must be punctual for your allotted skills assessment, as there is a very strict timetable. Failure to attend punctually will normally result in automatic failure of that skill assessment.

What can you expect in the assessments?

All formal assessments (i.e. with the exception of practice assessments) are part of the assessment process and contribute to the award of the Postgraduate Certificate (success at Stage 1) or Diploma in Legal Practice (success at Stage 1 and Stage 2).

There are a range of assessments throughout the course. Assessments include supervised and unsupervised assessments, oral assessments and open book examinations.

The five skills assessments are competency based which means that you are assessed against published criteria but are not awarded a grade or mark. You are either competent or not yet competent.

In the core practice subject examinations, vocational elective examinations, PCR and Solicitors Accounts assessments you are required to achieve a minimum of 50% of the total marks available in order to obtain a pass.

In the core practice subject examinations 20% of the marks are allocated to multiple choice questions, designed to achieve coverage of the syllabus and allow you to show a breadth of knowledge. The remaining 80% of the marks are allocated to practical and transaction based questions and tasks, designed to replicate scenarios which would be encountered in practice. These will require you to extract facts from a variety of sources and documents, apply the law and procedure to the facts, take appropriate legal steps to advance the transaction and demonstrate initiative and practical and legal skills in so doing.

In the vocational elective examinations there are no multiple choice questions. 100% of the marks are allocated to practical and transaction based questions and tasks.

Taxation is assessed within the context of Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice and the Interviewing and Advising skill. Wills and Administration of Estates is assessed in the context of the Interviewing and Advising assessment. Professional Conduct and Regulation and Solicitors’ Accounts are assessed by separate examinations. Professional Conduct and Regulation will also be assessed within the context of the core practice area subject assessments with a minimum weighting of 5% of the subject mark.

All assessments (save for oral skills where the student is performing live) are marked and double marked anonymously. The external examiner is sent as a minimum all fail and borderline scripts and a sample of the pass scripts.

An assessment schedule is published for each academic year and is designed

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to ensure that, as far as possible in an assessment-intensive course, the practice and formal assessments are distributed reasonably evenly, to try to avoid overburdening you at any one time.

What help and support can you expect in preparing for assessments?

There is an established process for your support and training for assessment:

 Introduction to the relevant skills, the different legal subjects and associated procedures including by way of preparation requirements.  In-class application and reinforcement of these, with feedback on group and individual activities, so you understand what you should have achieved.  Practice assessment.  Specific and extensive feedback from the practice, designed to help you improve your performance. In addition to comments on scripts, this will take the form of a group feedback session, highlighting common errors and misunderstandings and giving pointers to correct technique, as well as specific model answers showing how you should have tackled the tasks.  Formal assessment.

Assessment Feedback

Feedback is embedded into the course as a fundamental learning tool. You will receive oral and written feedback on class based activities and exercises and will be able to measure your own achievements against the subject tutor's specific feedback.

All skills assessments and subject examinations are preceded by a compulsory practice assessment/examination. Extensive and targeted group and individual feedback, both oral and written, is given to you on the practice assessments and examinations, as an integral part of your preparation for the summative assessment/examination.

Following the results of summative assessments/examinations feedback is then offered to re-sitting students.

Timing of Feedback

Feedback on practice assessments will be prompt and released to you to ensure you have sufficient time to use the feedback to prepare effectively for summative assessments. Paying close attention to feedback is vital to successful assessment preparation.

The Formal Assessments

 There are five skill assessments: one each in practical legal research (“PLR”), in writing, in drafting, in interviewing and advising and in advocacy.

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 The writing skill is assessed within the context of Property Law and Practice and the drafting skill within the context of Civil Litigation. Practical legal research will be set within any legal context. These comprise the written skills.

 The oral skills comprise interviewing and advising, and advocacy. These are assessed live by a member of the teaching team and are recorded for second marking. Interviewing and advising is assessed within the context of Wills and Administration of Estates and advocacy within the context of Criminal Litigation.

 Professional Conduct and Regulation will be assessed by a 2 hour open book written examination taken at the end of Stage 1 with the core practice subject exams. This will count for 100% of the total marks and the pass mark is 50%. PCR issues will also arise in the core practice area exams but will count as part of the mark for that subject (minimum 5%) and not as part of the PCR mark.

 There is one supervised open book assessment lasting 2 hours in Solicitors’ Accounts.

 There are open book examinations in the three core practice subjects of Business Law & Practice, Property Law & Practice and Litigation which will take place at the end of Stage 1. The Business Law and Litigation examinations will each consist of two papers. In Litigation this will be one in civil and the other in criminal litigation. In Business Law and Practice this will be one in partnership and business accounts and the other in company and related law. The pass mark is 50%.

 There are open book examinations in each of your chosen three vocational elective subjects which will take place at the end of the year. The pass mark is 50%.

Open Book Examinations

These examinations differ from the normal closed book examinations you will have taken in your undergraduate or CPE/GDL course. In an open book examination you may take into the examination room permitted materials. The precise nature of the material you may take in to each examination will be explained to you by your subject tutor.

Normally you may only take in to each examination one lever arch file in which you may put your course materials, class handouts and resource materials, and your chosen manual. You are also permitted to take in a copy of the SRA Code of Conduct.

To help you prepare for the examinations we will give you an opportunity to take a practice examination in each subject. You will discover that open book does not allow you the luxury of researching your answers in the examination

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room. You will not have time to do this.

You will need to revise thoroughly and know the relevant legal principles and procedures, but you can check specific details and use and adapt precedents from your file. Your file is therefore an “aide-memoire” to help you refresh your memory if necessary.

You should therefore use the permitted materials to:  check details of rules and procedures e.g. time limits, number of copies for filing at court, court fees  check tables and checklists  reassure yourself of the legal framework  check for omissions.

The examinations will include a number of practical, transactional tasks of the sort you will have practised in small group sessions. This is why attendance is so important. You will be assessed on your ability to apply law and procedure in given legal contexts. Please note that your course manual will therefore be of limited use in these circumstances.

Do ensure that the materials you bring into the examination are of use and not a hindrance. Be selective. It is a good idea to prepare your file during the course and whilst you are revising. This can also help you with your revision. Your materials should be appropriately indexed for easy reference and cross- referenced. This can be done with divider cards and tabs to flag key sections. Use a highlighter pen to highlight key points. Above all you should be familiar with the contents of your file. It is no use bringing the file into the examination room if you cannot access the relevant materials quickly.

In every examination you should not copy information directly from the materials brought into the examination and pass this off as your own work. This is a cheating and assessment offence. If you do copy a paragraph, you should acknowledge this in your answer. Remember too that if you do this, you are probably not taking the correct approach as you will not gain marks unless you specifically apply the material you use to the facts of the question asked.

Assessment of Professional Conduct and Regulation (PCR)

PCR is assessed by a separate two hour written examination at the end of stage 1. However, as the subject pervades all areas of practice questions can arise in core practice areas, vocational elective or skills assessments but these marks do not count towards the PCR assessment. It is therefore important that you are always on your guard for professional conduct and regulation issues and that you can deal with these issues whenever they arise - as you would be expected to do in practice.

Skills Assessments

Prior to every skills assessment we will give you a practice. This includes a practice recorded assessment and instant feedback on your performance in

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the oral skills of interviewing & advising and advocacy. There is also a practice assessment for each written skill with group and individual feedback. You will have plenty of opportunities to practise your skills in the small group sessions. Although most skills are assessed within the context of one of the compulsory subjects, skills are generic and will also be practised within the context of the other subjects. The assessment criteria for the skills assessments are set out in Appendix C.

Conduct of Assessments

The “fit to sit” policy

On each occasion when you present yourself for an oral assessment (Interviewing and Advising and Advocacy) or submit written assessments (Writing, Drafting, PLR) or present yourself for a written examination (Accounts, PCR, the three core practice subjects and three vocational elective examinations) you will have to declare in writing on a pro forma declaration that you are fit to sit the assessment / examination. This means that you are not aware of anything which has hindered or will hinder your performance and you accept that your result will stand. The “Fit to Sit” Policy appears at the end of Appendix A.

Provision is made for unforeseen circumstances which are exceptional. Please read the LPC Course Regulations and the “Fit to Sit” policy carefully. a) Your student number

All examinations and assessments - with the exception of live oral assessments - must be identified by your student number only. This ensures that all assessments (save for the oral skills) are marked anonymously. You must never write your name or sign your name in any part of the assessment. This applies to assessments which require you to write a letter or memorandum. Always use a pseudonym or sign off as “Trainee Solicitor”. Results will be printed giving your number not your name. b) External examiners

All assessments are marked internally by the teaching team and double marked. This includes all “not yet competent” (fails) and all borderline “competent” (passes) in the written and oral assessments. All fails and borderline passes, together with a selection of scripts from across the range, are then sent to the external examiners for monitoring and moderating, if necessary.

The external examiners each have specific responsibility for particular subjects and skills. c) Final results

After the meeting of the LPC Assessment Board in the July following the end

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of the delivery of Stage 1 and Stage 2 in each year, the final confirmed results are published.

No results will be released to you over the telephone in the interests of security and student confidentiality. However, you will be able to access your results on line via MyRegistry. Log on to www.uwl.ac.uk/myRegistry then click on “my assessments”. A username and password are required but you will be given the information you need to access the system at induction.

You will be sent a copy of your results. It is your responsibility to keep the administrator informed of your current address.

For those doing the masters’ elements, you will not know your final LLM result until after the submission and marking of your dissertation, normally towards the end of September.

Reassessments and Resit Examinations for LPC Stage 1 and 2

You have a maximum of 3 attempts at each assessment. a) Skills and Solicitors Accounts Reassessments

During the course there will be one opportunity for you to take an in-course reassessment (2nd attempt) in any failed Skill or Accounts assessment.

Failure of any in-course reassessment of a Skill or Accounts assessment will result in you being referred in that subject by the LPC Assessment Board. This will entitle you to a final reassessment (3rd and last attempt) following the end of the LPC part of the course, after the LPC Assessment Board meeting in July.

If you fail the final reassessment of any Skill or Solicitors Accounts assessment, you will be deemed to have failed stage 1 of the course. This will apply even if you have passed all the written examinations. b) Core Practice Subjects, PCR and Vocational Elective Resits

Failure in any or all of the core practice subjects, vocational electives and/or PCR examinations will require you to sit a resit exam in that subject (known as a "first referral" i.e. your 2nd attempt) at an appropriate time during the year following the end of the LPC part of the course, after the LPC Assessment Board meeting in July.

If you fail a first referral of one or more core practice subjects and/or vocational elective subject or PCR examinations, you will be entitled to one final reassessment of the failed examination/s (known as a "final referral" i.e. your 3rd and final attempt) at an appropriate time during the year following the taking of your first referral in the subject.

You will only be referred in the subjects you fail.

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If you fail the final reassessment of any stage 1 assessment you will fail that stage overall and then stage 1 of the course and all stage 1 assessments must be re-taken. For full details, you are referred to the LPC Course Regulations in appendix A of this handbook.

Official UWL transcripts will record the number of the attempt on which you were successful and the date on which the successful assessment was undertaken.

For successful completion of the LPC (Stages 1 and 2) you must pass all your assessments within a five year period, commencing on the date you attempt the first assessment.

Assessment procedures for written skills assessments

The Assessment Schedule sets out the dates for all assessments including the distribution of skill assessments and submission dates.

All unsupervised skill assessments will be distributed in class by tutors and / or made available on BlackBoard. If you are unavoidably absent from the University on the day of issue, you must contact the Course Administrator and arrange to collect the assessment as soon as possible. You will NOT be given extra time in which to complete the assessment. Absentees can collect their assessments from HT.GF.004, the Course Administrator’s office, during the published opening hours which in term time are normally 9.00-19.00 between Monday and Thursday and 9.00-17.00 on Friday. Outside term time the opening hours are Monday to Friday 9.00-17.00.

You cannot collect a copy of the assessment for any other student. Each student must collect their copy in person.

In exceptional cases the Course Leader may authorise the assessment to be posted to a student’s term address. In this exceptional case, the assessment will be sent by first class post. No responsibility will lie with the Course Administrator or other staff at the University if the assessment is delayed or lost in the post. The risk lies with the student. No extra time will be given in which to complete the assessment.

There is a duty on you to notify any change of address to the Course Administrator, both during the course and afterwards if assessments or examinations remain outstanding.

Completion of written assessments and assessment criteria

All written skill assessments must be word processed. If you do not do this, you will automatically fail the assessment.

The assessment will set out on the front page/s the specific instructions that must be followed to complete the assessment successfully. Read the instructions carefully before you commence the assessment. The instructions

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will include any specific assessment criteria as well as the word limit or style of presentation that should be followed and a date and time for final submission. The submission deadline is strictly adhered to and late submissions will result in failure.

In drafting any document you should also observe any formal requirements, practice directions or conventions that dictate the format or presentation.

Submission of unsupervised written assessments

Two copies of your written assessment must be submitted. You must also keep a copy of your assessment at home. You should clearly label the assessment with its title and the name of the subject tutor.

You will also be required to sign a declaration that you are not aware of anything which might have adversely affected your performance in the assessment. See the “fit to sit” policy at the end of Appendix A.

It is your responsibility to ensure that your assessment is handed in by the published deadline to the Course Administrator. Remember that late submission will result in failure of the assessment, subject to an extension of the deadline in exceptional and rare circumstances, granted by the Course Leader (see below).

Presentation of written skill assessments

All written skill assessments should be word processed, neat and appropriately presented.

If you are given any special instructions in relation to a particular piece of work please observe them. If, for example, you are asked to write a letter or memorandum, you should use formal conventions in setting these out. The memorandum should be correctly headed and the letter correctly addressed. The letter should also be drafted in an appropriate style for the recipient (e.g. a letter to a client).

In drafting any document you should observe any formal requirements, practice directions or conventions that dictate the format or presentation.

Unless the required form of the document dictates otherwise, work should be submitted as follows:

1) In duplicate. 2) Text on one side only of the paper. 3) Allow a margin on either side of the text for marking and in particular make sure you allow sufficient margin for the binding. 4) Your student number must be clearly printed on the top right hand corner of EVERY page. 5) Your work should be securely bound. Make sure that each page can be read without the need to release the binding. Do not use a binding that

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is at all likely to come undone or to fall off. Staples or treasury tags are acceptable. 6) Complete, sign and attach the coloured front sheet provided in HT.GF.004 for the submission of an assessment. 7) Complete, sign and attach your Fit to Sit declaration. You will not have submitted for assessment if this has not been done.

We ask you to submit two copies of your written assessments (other than those written under supervised conditions). This allows us to return one marked copy to you for feedback purposes. You must always keep a copy of your written assessment for yourself

Presentation of your written work

We expect all your written work to be of a good standard. The criteria for assessment of all written work includes grammar, punctuation, spelling and presentation. Clarity of expression is very important. Remember both the examiner and recipient need to understand what you have written. You will lose marks if you do not maintain a good standard of presentation. a) Word limits

Word limits may be imposed in some skill assessments. The purpose is to encourage you to be succinct and precise rather than verbose. Where there is a word limit you must include a word count at the end of your work.

Word counts may be checked and if you have misled the assessor by incorrectly stating the number of words, this may raise questions of non-ethical conduct and cheating.

Students who exceed the word limit are likely to be penalised and the excess words may not be marked. This could result in failure of the assessment.

The following rules are used for counting words where a word limit is imposed:

 All words count including ‘a’ or ‘the’  Headings or sub-headings count  Headings in a letter including address, Dear, Yours sincerely, date, do not count  Paragraph numbers do not count  Numbers used in a calculation do not count  Numbers used instead of words within a sentence do count e.g. 2 copies of x document, 12 weeks  Abbreviated words (e.g. “don’t”) count as two words, but recognised abbreviations e.g. CGT, PET count as one word  Acts of Parliament or Statutory Instruments count as one word  Footnotes should not be used.

Do not attempt to circumvent a word limit by using footnotes or by writing in note form. You will be penalised for not writing in an appropriate style.

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b) Covers

Do NOT use any kind of plastic pocket that prevents your tutors from writing on the pages, nor should you use any hard covers, oversized covers or any other sort of pocket or pouch that makes it difficult to access your work.

The written assessment must include a coloured front sheet which you should complete and attach to your assessment when it is submitted. Included in this front sheet is a declaration which you must sign confirming that the work you have submitted is your own unaided work. You are referred to the LPC Course Regulations and advice set out below for the provisions on cheating and plagiarism.

You must also complete, sign and attach your Fit to Sit declaration. You will not have submitted for assessment if this has not been done.

Deadlines

A deadline will be set for the submission of each piece of written work. You are reminded that the LPC Course Regulations provide that a failure to submit by the applicable deadline is a failure to submit work, which will nearly always result in failure of that assessment. In short, the deadline should be observed to the letter.

Work should be handed in at the administration office, HT.GF.004, on or before the submission date and time, during one of the periods when it is open to students (see above).

It is your responsibility to ensure that it is received by the Course Administrator by the submission date.

The “fit to sit” policy will apply in all circumstances. If you hand in your work your result stands and a retrospective claim that your work was adversely affected by a particular event will not be accepted.

Exceptional Circumstances - extension of the deadline

Deadlines for submission are part of the assessment process and part of your training to be a solicitor and consequently are strictly enforced.

It is only in very exceptional circumstances that the deadline will be extended. Exceptional circumstances will normally require additional and independent corroboration including a medical certificate or letter from your doctor in case of illness.

You should never leave completion of your assessment to the last minute. You must be prepared for contingencies. If you have a problem with your memory stick or computer do seek help from our own IT support team - but not at the last minute. You should treat your preparation of your assessment as you would treat the preparation of an application to court. You would not consider

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telling the judge that you were unable to present your case on time.

If you are genuinely ill you must inform the Course Leader via the Course Administrator immediately. You should do this by telephone - telephone number 020 8231 2150 - or arrange for someone to do this on your behalf. This telephone call should be followed as soon as possible by an application for an extension of time, available from HT.GF.004 or from the intranet, together with a covering letter and with independent corroborative evidence.

If there is any other reason why you are unable to complete the assessment by the set deadline you should discuss this with the Course Leader before the deadline. If the reason is accepted the Course Leader will extend the deadline by agreement with you. Failure to meet this date will result in failure. In any event, if you are allowed an extension on one assignment, you will still have to complete your next assignment on time, so you will need to work hard to catch up.

All information given to the Course Leader will be treated in the strictest confidence and will not be disclosed to a third party without the agreement of the student. It will not be disclosed to the LPC Assessment Board without the prior approval of the student.

Cheating - Examination and Assessment Offences

It is your responsibility to be aware of what constitutes a cheating or assessment offence and the penalties for these, which are severe. You are referred to the LPC Course Regulations in appendix A of this handbook.

The assessed work that you submit must be your own work. You will be required to sign a statement certifying that your assessment is your own unaided work. Cheating is a serious offence and will be viewed most seriously. The sanction is very severe.

In the first instance, you will be subject to the University’s disciplinary procedures and you are referred to the University Student Handbook for more particulars. If after investigation cheating is proven, you will be reported to the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority, where it is considered that the offence may have a bearing upon your character and suitability to become a solicitor. You should be aware that the SRA takes a very serious view of such matters and could deny you entry to the profession.

During the course you will work together with other students in your preparation for classes and within classes you will also share information. However, it is important that you ensure that collaboration with your fellow students stops when it comes to preparing your assessments. You must not discuss any assessments with anyone until after the work is returned to you.

This applies to all examinations and assessments including the oral skill assessments and you must not discuss your preparation for an oral assessment or your assessed recorded performance with any other student.

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If you are using a PC in the University, you must ensure that you remove your memory device containing your work. You must also ensure that you collect all copies of your written assessment from the printer and that you do not discard draft answers where they can be found by other students. Sometimes, albeit innocently, another student may come across another student’s work and this may lead to an investigation which causes stress and disruption for all parties. We have set out below some of the common “offences” as examples of behaviour that amounts to cheating. This is not an exhaustive list, but is provided to highlight the kind of conduct that is unacceptable.

 copying someone else’s answer either whole or in part  allowing someone else to read, use or copy your answer  allowing someone else to prepare and/or write your answer  collaborating in the researching, preparation and/or writing of an assessment except to the extent that this is explicitly permitted in the assessment instructions  collaborating with another student in the completion of work which is submitted as that other student’s unaided work  discussing your research and preparation with another student  copying or summarising from a published work including work published on the internet e.g. textbook, article, etc. without proper attribution  submitting the work of another as your own and implying thereby that it is your own, or making a false declaration that the assessment submission is your own work  exceeding any explicit word limit and in such cases making a false declaration as to the word total  taking unauthorised materials, including any electronically stored information, into an examination  communicating with or copying from any other candidate during an examination, written skills assessment or time constrained assessment  impersonation and/or any other deliberate attempt to deceive  communicating with another candidate prior to or after any oral assessment concerning the content and other details of that assessment, your performance, or your preparation for that assessment  deliberately hiding text books or other resource materials in the library from other students.

You will see from this list that it is just as much an offence if you enable another student to cheat, perhaps by allowing your work to be read or checked. All assessed tasks must be carried out independently.

Assessment submissions will be subject to checks. When making a written assessment submission, you will be required to certify that it is your own unaided work.

Please note that students may be selected, on a random basis, to produce their notes in relation to their assessment submission and, if required, to talk about their submission in front of one or more members of staff.

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LPC 2017-18 FULL TIME ASSESSMENT SCHEDULE Vs 11-7-17

Formal assessments in bold. NB practice assessments are COMPULSORY. W/c Monday: Description of event

4 September Foundation week Week 1 Pre-reading and diagnostic tests 11 September Week 1 of core subjects Week 2 18 September Week 3 25 September Week 4 2 October Week 5 9 October Practice Writing hand out Week 6 16 October Practice Writing hand in Week 7 Practice PLR hand out 23 October Practice PLR hand in Week 8 Practice Solicitors’ Accounts hand out 30 October Practice Solicitors’ Accounts hand in Week 9 Practice Drafting hand out 6 November Practice Drafting hand in Week 10 Formal PLR hand out

13 November Formal PLR hand in Week 11 Formal Writing hand out

20 November Formal Writing hand in Week 12

27 November Formal Solicitors’ Accounts Exam Week 13 Practice Advocacy hand out Student appraisals 4 December Practice Advocacy assessments – note students may have to attend Week 14 for their practice interview on a Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. Practice Interviewing & Advising hand out Student appraisals 11 December Practice Interviewing & Advising assessments - students may have Week 15 to attend for their practice interview on a Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. Practice PCR hand out 18 and 25 Christmas Vacation 3 weeks December 1 January

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8 January Classes resume, Practice PCR hand in Week 16 Mock examinations – Civil & Criminal Litigation, PLP, BLP 1 & 2 15 January Formal Drafting hand out Week 17 22 January Formal Drafting hand in Week 18 Formal Interviewing and Advising hand out 29 January Formal Interviewing & Advising Assessments- students may have Week 19 to attend for their interview on a Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. Formal Advocacy hand out 5 February Taught revision sessions and mock examination feedback for Week 20 Core subjects / PCR Formal Advocacy assessments students may have to attend for their advocacy on a Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. 12 February No classes – revision Week 21 19 February Core subject / PCR exams begin Week 22 26 February Core subject / PCR exams continue Week 23 5 March Reading week – Preparation for vocational electives Week 24 Reassessment Solicitors’ Accounts 12 March Electives week 1 Week 25 PLR reassessment hand out Electives week 2 19 March PLR reassessment hand in Week 26 Drafting Reassessment hand out 26 March Electives week 3 Week 27 Drafting Reassessment hand in 2 April Spring Break Week 29 9 April Electives week 4 Week 30 Writing Reassessment hand out 16 April Electives week 5 Writing Reassessment hand in Interviewing & Advising, Advocacy reassessments hand out 23 April Electives week 6 Interviewing & Advising, Advocacy reassessments 30 April Electives week 7 Week 31 Mock elective exams 7 May Electives week 8 Week 32 Mock elective exams 14 May Electives week 9 Week 33 21 May Revision week 10 Week 34 29 May / 8 June Elective Exams Weeks 35-36 31st August Submission deadline for dissertation (if undertaking LLM in Legal Practice)

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3.3 The University of West London Graduate Attributes

In 2011, the University defined the UWL Graduate Attributes as representing a set of abilities acquired by students during their period of study at UWL that go beyond simple acquaintance with a subject. They reflect the University’s approach to education which includes developing graduates who are well prepared for employment, adopting a definition of ‘employability’ that includes creative and enterprising attributes, lifelong learning attitudes, and an awareness of the global context since educational and working experience are necessarily anchored in the context of the wider world.

Graduate Attributes are embedded in the subject and involve a preparedness and the confidence to analyse; question; categorise; interpret; see relations; explain; theorise; and reflect with reference to the broader context.

Graduating at the University of West London means that you will be developing the following Graduate Attributes and become:

 A creative and enterprising professional  A reflective and critical lifelong learner  A globally aware individual

Follow the link below for an interactive representation of these attributes: http://hermes.uwl.ac.uk/grad_attributes/

How will you acquire and record these attributes? A number of courses record the Graduate Attributes in an e-portfolio. You may wish to discuss this with your tutors, and your Personal Tutor.

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Section 4

Quality Management and Enhancement

4.1 Course Management

Course Leader

The role of the Course Leader is to monitor and assure a satisfying, coherent learning experience. The Course Leader will be available to see students as well as to answer their queries by email/telephone. The Course Leader will monitor students’ progress, liaise with external examiners and the SRA and take a leading role in the LPC Assessment Boards. Each year the Course Leader will produce a course monitoring report for the University and the SRA.

Module Leader

The Module Leader is responsible for the overall delivery and co-ordination of the module learning experience. He/she will provide specific advice and guidance with regard to learning, teaching and assessment on the module.

Personal Tutor

The overall role of the Personal Tutor is to act as a first point of contact within the School from whom you can obtain academic and pastoral support. The development of learning skills is an important aspect of your course and is designed to provide you with the personal learning skills to ensure that you take full advantage of the opportunities offered. You will be allocated a Personal Tutor who will support you in identifying any particular learning needs.

4.2 Student Evaluation

Towards the end of each module, you will be asked to compete an evaluation. This is a very important activity as it helps your module and course leaders develop and enhance your course. Time should be given in a taught session for you to complete this quickly and easily. Please make sure you complete all the evaluations as requested and take advantage of the opportunity to feedback constructively on your experience of the modules. Specific issues that you would like to address during the module should be addressed directly to your module or course leader as explained in section 4.4 below.

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4.3 Course Committee/Board

Course Committee/Board meetings will be held on:

Semester 1 - 7 November 2017 Semester 2 - 28 March 2018

4.4 If you have an issue

If you have an issue with your Course or a particular module, you should raise this with the module or course leader in the first instance. You could also raise it with your course representative.

If you are unable to resolve any issues informally with the course or module leader you may wish to raise an informal complaint with the Head of School/College. For information on the procedure you should go to: http://www.uwl.ac.uk/students/current-students/student-handbook

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Appendix A

LPC Regulations and Fit to Sit Policy

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University of West London

Legal Practice Course

Course Regulations Applicable From September 2011

Definitions

“Condonation” means a discretion, whether by rules or practice, to depart from the Assessment Regulations and pass an assessment, or modify the mark or grade, without it having achieved a pass mark, or having achieved that mark or grade on its merits.

“Deferred” or “deferral” means an assessment which is being taken by a student who for medical reasons or other mitigating circumstances is taking an assessment at a later date than other students, but as a “first take”.

“Fit to sit policy” means a policy which requires written confirmation from students that there are no mitigating circumstances known to them at the time they submit for an assessment. The fit to sit policy also confirms that any reasonable adjustments needed by a student have been provided.

“In-course reassessment” means the opportunity given to students, as a result of a previous fail in that assessment, to repeat Accounts and Skills assessments during the course and before the LPC Assessment Board.

“LPC Requirements” means the requirements created by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority for all LPC courses.

“Mitigating Circumstances” is the term used to describe non-academic factors that adversely affect a student’s ability to take assessments or their performance in assessments, for example illness. Such circumstances must be unexpected, unavoidable and serious.

“Referred” or “referral” means an assessment whether in a subject, a course skill, Professional Conduct and Regulation or Solicitors’ Accounts which is being taken again by a student after the LPC Assessment Board as a result of a previous fail in that assessment.

“Stage 1” means the three core practice areas of Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice, and Litigation, together with the course skills (Advocacy, Interviewing and Advising, Practical Legal Research, Writing, Drafting) Professional Conduct and Regulation

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(including Solicitors’ Accounts), Taxation and Wills & Administration of Estates.

“Stage 2” means the three Vocational Electives.

“Stage 1 Transcript” means a record of:

 percentage marks for the three core practice areas including specific marks for Criminal and Civil Litigation and the relative weightings of each part of the overall Litigation assessment  the percentage mark for Professional Conduct and Regulation  the percentage mark for Solicitors Accounts  competent/not yet competent decisions for each of the five skills areas  for each assessment the number of the attempt on which the student was successful and the date on which the successful assessment was undertaken  the marks for any discrete assessments in Taxation and/or Wills and Administration of Estates undertaken by the student or information about the context in which the outcomes for these subjects were assessed.

“Stage 2 Transcript” means a record of:

 percentage marks for each of the Vocational Electives undertaken  the number of the attempt at which the student was successful and the date on which the successful assessment was undertaken.

“Subject Assessment” means any of the assessments set in Business Law and Practice, Litigation, Property Law and Practice, Professional Conduct and Regulation, Solicitors’ Accounts and the Vocational Elective Subjects. A subject assessment will take the form of an examination or some other form of supervised assessment.

“Vocational Electives” are Advanced Litigation – Personal Injury, Commercial Leases, Employment Law, Housing and Residential Landlord and Tenant, Family Law, Immigration Law, and such other subjects as may be validated by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority.

Part 1 The requirement for an award

Full-time and part-time students who have undertaken Stage 1 and Stage 2 at University of West London

1 The Award

1.1 Upon successful completion of Stage 1 and Stage 2 a student will be awarded a University of West London Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice.

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1.2 A student successfully completes Stage 1 and Stage 2 who satisfies the LPC Assessment Board that:

1.2.1 he or she has achieved a pass in each of the three core practice areas: Litigation, Property Law and Practice and Business Law and Practice, and in three vocational elective subject areas; and 1.2.2 he or she has achieved competence in each of the five skills: Interviewing and Advising, Writing, Drafting, Advocacy and Practical Legal Research; and 1.2.3 he or she has achieved a pass in the area of Professional Conduct and Regulation (including Solicitors’ Accounts); and 1.2.4 he or she has demonstrated achievement of the relevant outcomes in relation to Taxation and Wills and Administration of Estates; and 1.2.5 he or she has a satisfactory record of attendance.

2 The Award of the Diploma with Distinction or Commendation

2.1 A Diploma with distinction shall be awarded to a student who achieves:

2.1.1 a pass at the first attempt with at least 70% in 4 core practice and vocational elective subject areas, with an average of 70% or more, across all 6 core practice and vocational elective subject areas; and 2.1.2 a "competent" at the first attempt in each of the five skills assessments; and 2.1.3 a pass at the first attempt in Professional Conduct and Regulation and Solicitors’ Accounts subject assessments. 2.2 A Diploma with commendation shall be awarded to a student who achieves: 2.2.1 a pass at the first attempt with at least 60% in 4 core practice and vocational elective subject areas, with an average of 60% or more across all 6 core practice and vocational elective subject areas, and 2.2.2 a "competent" at the first attempt in each of the five skill assessments, and 2.2.3 a pass at the first attempt in Professional Conduct and Regulation and Solicitors’ Accounts subject assessments.

2.3. A Diploma with commendation shall also be awarded to a student who fulfils the criteria set out in 2.2. above (Diploma with Commendation) but for a single failure to pass a skill assessment, or Solicitors’ Accounts assessment at the first attempt, such failure to have been made good by reassessment or referral. A single failure in a skill assessment or a Solicitors’ Accounts assessment can be made good by an in-course reassessment. Referral in any core subject, PCR or vocational elective

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subject assessment, will disqualify the student from a Commendation.

Full-time and part-time students who complete Stage 1 only at University of West London

2.4 Upon successful completion of Stage 1 a student will be awarded a University of West London Postgraduate Certificate in Legal Practice.

2.5 A student successfully completes Stage 1 who satisfies the LPC Assessment Board that:

2.5.1 he or she has achieved a pass in each of the three core practice areas, Property Law and Practice, Litigation, Business Law and Practice; and 2.5.2 he or she has achieved competence in all the five skills: Interviewing and Advising, Writing, Drafting, Advocacy and Practical Legal Research; and 2.5.3 he or she has achieved a pass in the area of Professional Conduct and Regulation (including Solicitors’ Accounts); and 2.5.4 he or she has demonstrated achievement of the relevant outcomes in relation to Taxation and Wills and Administration of Estates; and 2.5.5 he or she has a satisfactory record of attendance.

2.6 An individual student is required to complete all Stage 1 assessments with one authorised provider.

Full-time and part-time students who complete Stage 2 only at University of West London

2.7 The University shall accredit the Stage 1 qualification under its accreditation of prior learning procedures if satisfied that a student’s Stage 1 Transcript obtained from another institution demonstrates that the student has met all the requirements for a pass at Stage 1.

2.8 Upon successful accreditation of the Stage 1 transcript by the university and successful completion of Stage 2 of the course a student will be awarded a University of West London Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice.

2.9 A student successfully completes Stage 2 only who satisfies the Assessment Board that: 2.9.1 he or she has achieved a pass in each of the three vocational elective subject areas; and 2.9.2 he or she has a satisfactory record of attendance.

2.10 Award of the Diploma with Distinction or Commendation

The provisions of paragraph 2.1 to 2.3 shall apply in connection with the

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award of a diploma with distinction or commendation as appropriate to the student.

3 The Pass Mark

3.1 In all subject assessments the pass mark is 50%. 3.2 The Skills areas will be assessed in accordance with paragraph 4 below.

3.3 Professional Conduct and Regulation will be assessed in accordance with paragraph 5 below.

3.4 Wills and Administration of Estates and Taxation will be assessed in accordance with paragraph 6 below.

4 The Skills Areas - The requirements for a pass

4.1 There are five assessed skills: Practical Legal Research, Writing, Drafting, Interviewing and Advising, and Advocacy. In each skill assessment a student’s performance will be rated as ‘competent’ or ‘not yet competent’.

4.2 Each student will be assessed once in Practical Legal Research. The assessment may be undertaken in the context of any area or areas of law. It may be combined with one or more of the skills assessments, or undertaken as a discrete exercise.

4.3 Each student will be assessed once in Writing. The assessment may be set within the context of the core practice areas or any other area or areas of law and may be undertaken as part of the core practice subject assessments or may be combined with one or more of the skills assessments, or undertaken as a discrete exercise.

4.4 Each student will be assessed once in Drafting. The assessment may be set within the context of the core practice areas or any other area or areas of law and may be undertaken as part of the core practice subject assessments or may be combined with one or more of the skills assessments, or undertaken as a discrete exercise.

4.5 Each student will be assessed once in Advocacy in the context of either Civil or Criminal Litigation. It will normally be assessed on the basis of the student’s oral performance. The assessment may be combined with one or more of the skills assessments, or undertaken as a discrete exercise.

4.6 Each student will be assessed once in Interviewing and Advising. Interviewing and Advising may be assessed in separate parts. An overall competent/not yet competent decision will be made. The assessment may be set within the context of either the core practice subject assessments or within the reserved area of Wills and Administration of Estates and may be combined with one or more of the skills

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assessments, or undertaken as a discrete exercise. It will normally be assessed on the basis of the student’s oral performance with, in addition, a written element recording the follow-up up steps.

4.7 In order to pass a skill a student must achieve ‘competent’.

4.8 Failure to achieve competence in a skill will mean that Stage 1 has not been passed.

5 Professional Conduct and Regulation - The requirements for a pass

5.1 Professional Conduct and Regulation (“PCR”) comprises Professional Conduct and Regulation and Solicitors’ Accounts. PCR and Solicitors’ Accounts shall be assessed in accordance with the provisions set out in 5.3 and 5.4 below.

5.2 PCR comprises all aspects of professional conduct and the rules governing the profession, and includes a knowledge of those regulations pertaining to money laundering and the provision of financial services as set out in the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority’s Outcomes for the Legal Practice Course. It also includes knowledge and understanding of the Solicitors’ Accounts Rules.

5.3 PCR shall be assessed in two ways:

5.3.1 A discrete assessment of a minimum of two hours duration taken during the final assessment period of Stage 1 of the course; and 5.3.2 The allocation of specific marks within the three core practice assessments in which at least 5% of the marks will be allocated to Professional Conduct and Regulation. The marks from these two forms of assessment are not aggregated. In order to pass PCR a student must achieve a minimum of 50% of the total available marks in the discrete assessment.

5.4 The Solicitors’ Accounts assessment shall consist of:

5.4.1 One supervised in course assessment of the Solicitors’ Accounts Rules, lasting a minimum of two hours duration including any reading time; 5.4.2 In order to pass Solicitors’ Accounts a student must achieve a minimum of 50% of the total available marks.

6 Wills and Administration of Estates – The requirements for a pass

6.1 The assessment of Wills and Administration of Estates shall consist of:

6.1.1 One supervised assessment in the context of the skill of Interviewing and Advising; 6.1.2 A separate competent/not yet competent decision will be recorded on the student’s transcript. It will be assessed on the

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basis of the student’s oral performance with, in addition, a written element recording the follow-up steps; 6.1.3 The prescribed pass mark of at least 50% is required in order to obtain an award of competent and a student will not be able to pass Stage 1 of the Legal Practice Course until this has been achieved.

6.2 The assessment of Taxation shall consist of:

6.2.1 The allocation of specific marks within Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice and the Interviewing and Advising skill assessment; 6.2.2 In order to pass Taxation a student must achieve a minimum of 50% of the total available marks in Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice and in the Interviewing and Advising skill assessment. 6.2.3 The student’s transcript will record the context in which the Taxation outcomes were assessed.

7 The Core Subjects – The requirement for a pass

7.1 The core practice subject areas are each assessed by means of one core subject assessment, lasting a minimum of 3 hours, taking the form of an examination.

7.2 In Litigation there will be two examination papers, one in Civil Litigation and one in Criminal Litigation. In order to pass a student must achieve a minimum of 50% of the total available marks. This will be derived by aggregating the marks from the 2 papers, the weighting reflecting the balance of the course. For the purposes of these regulations the two papers constitute one subject assessment and must be taken within the same period of assessment. One paper cannot be carried over to a later assessment period.

7.3 In Property Law and Practice there will be one examination paper and in order to pass a student must achieve a minimum of 50% of the total available marks.

7.4 In Business Law and Practice there will be two examination papers. In order to pass a student must achieve a minimum of 50% of the total available marks. This will be derived by aggregating the marks from the 2 papers, the weighting reflecting the balance of the course. For the purpose of these regulations the two papers constitute one subject assessment and must be taken within the same period of assessment. One paper cannot be carried over to a later assessment period.

8 Vocational Elective Areas – The requirement for a pass

8.1 Each Vocational Elective shall be assessed by means of one subject assessment taking the form of an examination. The requirement for a

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pass in each elective is a final percentage mark of 50% or more in the subject assessment.

8.2 The subject assessment for each Vocational Elective will be a minimum of three hours in duration.

8.3 The Vocational Elective assessments may be split into two parts, and in that event:

8.3.1 each part may take place on different days; 8.3.2 the two parts should be within the same period of assessment; 8.3.3 one assessment mark should be derived by aggregating the marks from the two parts; and 8.3.4 for all purposes for these Regulations, the two parts constitute one Vocational Elective assessment and a student must attempt both parts of the assessment – a mark for one part cannot be carried over to another assessment period.

9 Attendance and Absence

9.1 Students’ attendance is expected at all classes. In addition to the timetabled classes students are required to attend all assessments punctually and, from time to time, students may be required to attend extra talks or classes. 9.2 A student who is absent from any class must explain his or her absence in writing to the Course Leader as soon as is reasonably possible. 9.3 Where the Course Leader is of the opinion that a student’s attendance over the course has been unsatisfactory, the Course Leader may submit a report on that student’s attendance to the Assessment Board. The Assessment Board will consider whether the student’s attendance is satisfactory for the purposes of paragraph 1.2.5 of these Regulations. 9.4 A student who proves unable to attend classes on a regular basis may be excluded from undertaking assessments or asked to leave the course, if, in the opinion of the Course Leader, that student has missed, or is likely to miss, so much of the course that he or she can no longer be considered to be a participant in the course. In exercising his or her discretion under this regulation the Course Leader will take into account all the circumstances of the case including: a) the reasons for the absenteeism; b) whether the absenteeism is likely to continue and, if so, for how long; and c) the steps taken by the student to make good the work missed. 9.5 Repeated failure to prepare for classes may be treated as absenteeism. 9.6 A student may appeal to the Head of the Law School or his/her nominee against the decision of the Course Leader under paragraph 9.4 above.

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Part II The conduct of subject assessments or other form of unseen assessments

10 Timing of Subject Assessments

10.1 Subject assessments in the core practice areas of Property Law and Practice, Business Law and Practice, Litigation, and the subject assessment in PCR, will be held at the same time after the completion of the teaching of Stage 1.

10.2 For both full-time and part-time students this will take place in February.

10.3 Subject assessments in the Vocational Electives will be held at the end of the teaching of Stage 2 subjects in June.

10.4 The University’s regulations relating to the conduct of examinations shall apply.

11 Submission of all in-course assessments and reassessments

11.1 All unsupervised in-course written skill assessments shall be word processed.

11.2 The procedure for handing in all assessments is set out in the LPC Student Handbook. A deadline will be set for the submission of each assessment. Notification of this deadline will normally be by notice on the LPC Assessment Schedule and on the cover sheet for each assessment. In the case of final reassessments notification will be by letter sent to the student’s last known address. All assessments must be submitted in accordance with the procedures governing the handing in of assessments in the LPC Student Handbook and before the applicable deadline.

11.3 A failure to submit an assessment by the applicable deadline is a failure to submit work. Where a student fails to submit a piece of work, he or she fails the assessment and a mark of 0% will be awarded.

11.4 A student who becomes aware that he or she will not be able to meet the time limit set for an assessment may apply to the Course Leader under the provisions of paragraph 12 below for a later deadline. 11.5 A student who has failed to submit work may apply to the Course Leader for a retrospective extension under the provisions of paragraph 12 below. 11.6 The applicable deadline means the general deadline set for the assessment in question unless the individual student has applied for and obtained an extension.

11.7 Students may be selected on a random basis, to produce their notes in relation to their assessment submission and, if required, to talk about their submission in front of one or more members of staff.

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12 Extension of time for submission of an in-course assessment

12.1 The Course Leader may grant an extension to the deadline for handing in any in-course assessment or reassessment. Such extensions may be granted with prospective or retrospective effect. 12.2 The grant of an extension is wholly within the discretion of the Course Leader. In considering the grant of an extension the Course Leader will take into account all the circumstances of the case but in particular may take into account the following matters: 12.2.1 whether the circumstances were such that it was either not reasonable or not practicable for the student to meet the deadline; 12.2.2 whether the circumstances could, or ought to have been, foreseen by, or avoided by the student; 12.2.3 whether the student acted promptly in applying for an extension; and 12.2.4 whether it is fair in all the circumstances of the case to grant an extension.

12.3 For the avoidance of doubt paragraph 12.2 will not apply to any student who has had the benefit of class or group feedback on the written assessment.

13 Assessment of the oral skills - Advocacy and Interviewing and Advising

13.1 A time will be set for each student to attend for each oral assessment. A student who fails to attend for assessment at the time allocated to him or her will be treated as having made an attempt at that assessment and as having failed to achieve competence.

13.2 The Course Leader may exercise his or her discretion to suspend the operation of paragraph 13.1 above and allow the assessment to be taken at a rescheduled time. In considering whether or not to suspend the operation of paragraph 13.1 the Course Leader will take into account all the circumstances of the case but in particular may take into account the following matters:

13.2.1 whether the circumstances were such that it was either not reasonable or not practicable for the student to attend at the allotted time; 13.2.2 whether the circumstances which prevented the student from attending could, or ought to have been, foreseen by, or avoided by the student; 13.2.3 whether the student acted promptly in applying for the suspension of 13.1; and 13.2.4 whether it is fair in all the circumstances of the case to permit the assessment to be taken at a re-scheduled time.

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13.3 For the avoidance of doubt paragraph 13.2 will not apply to any student who has had the benefit of group feedback on the oral assessment.

Part III Failure of skills, Solicitors’ Accounts and PCR

14 Failure of skills and Solicitors’ Accounts assessments

14.1 A student who fails to achieve competence in any of the five skills assessments at the first attempt shall be allowed an opportunity of one in-course re-assessment of every failed skill assessment, before the LPC Assessment Board meets at the end of the course.

14.2 A student who fails to achieve competence in the Solicitors’ Accounts assessment at the first attempt shall be allowed an opportunity of one in- course re-assessment, before the LPC Assessment Board meets at the end of the course.

14.3 A student who fails to achieve competence in the in-course reassessment of any skill or accounts paper will be referred by the LPC Assessment Board and will be entitled to one final attempt.

14.4 There is a maximum of one referral following any in-course reassessment.

14.5 Failure to pass the referred assessment/s will mean the student has failed Stage 1.

15 Failure of PCR

15.1 A student who has not achieved competence in PCR at a first attempt shall be referred by the LPC Assessment Board. There is no in-course reassessment of PCR.

15.2 A student who fails to achieve competence in PCR after a first referral will be permitted a final second referral by the LPC Assessment Board.

Part IV Failure of Subject Assessments

16 First failure in subject assessments

16.1 A student who fails any referred subject assessment or assessments shall have the opportunity of a first referral. A student who fails any subject assessment or assessments at the first attempt shall be referred only in the subject assessment or assessments which he or she failed.

17 Second failure in subject assessments

17.1 A student who fails any referred subject assessment or assessments shall have the opportunity of a second, final referral. If he or she is unsuccessful on the third attempt of any Stage 1 assessment, he or she fails that stage

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overall and Stage 1 of the course and all assessments must be re-taken.

17.2 A student who fails a Stage 2 assessment for the third time can either re- enrol on the course for that particular Vocational Elective or start a new Vocational Elective.

17.3 A student must pass all Stage 1 and Stage 2 assessments within five years of sitting their first Stage 1 assessment failing which they must complete both Stage 1 and Stage 2 again, including all assessments.

17.4 If a student embarks on Stage 2 before passing all Stage 1 assessments, all the assessments for both Stages 1 and 2 must be passed within five years of their first attempt at the first assessment.

18 Reassessments – current law

Any assessments (including reassessments) taken by a student shall be based on the law in force at the time of the assessment, regardless of the law taught to the student during the course.

19 Timing of referrals and deferrals

19.1 There is no objection to students splitting their resit obligations in a way which meets with the Course assessment schedules subject to the following provisions and to the time limit for completion of the course as set out in paragraph 21 below.

19.2 Any student with one or more subject assessment referrals may choose to take some or all first referrals in August/September immediately following the completion of the course or during the subsequent academic year in line with the University’s own LPC assessment schedule. There is no obligation on the University to set separate referral assessments for any individual student.

19.3 Any student with one or more final subject assessment referrals may choose to take some or all final referrals in August/September following their first referral, or during the academic year following their first referral in line with the University’s own LPC assessment schedule.

19.4 A student who has one or more deferred subject assessments may take those deferred assessments in August/September following the completion of the course or in the subsequent academic year in line with the University’s own LPC assessment schedule. There is no obligation on the University to set separate deferral assessments for any individual student.

19.5 It is the student’s responsibility to notify the Course Administrator and Course Leader in writing, no later than 30 days immediately following the Assessment Board at which the student was considered, of their intention to take all deferred, first or final referrals under the provisions set out in

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paragraphs 19.2, 19.3 and 19.4 above. A student who fails to notify the Course Administrator and Course Leader in accordance with this provision, will be deemed to have chosen to take all deferred and first referrals in the September following the completion of the course and all final referrals 12 months after taking the first referral in the same subject assessment.

19.6 In planning their deferred and/or referral subject assessments students should have regard to the provisions of paragraphs 18 and 21 of these Regulations.

20 Mitigating circumstances

20.1 A ‘fit to sit’ policy shall apply to all LPC assessments. All students must complete a ‘fit to sit’ declaration when taking any assessment on the LPC and must comply with the Assessment Regulations. The ‘fit to sit’ policy requires that a student confirms at the point of assessment that there are no mitigating circumstances known to him or her which have adversely affected or will adversely affect his or her performance for the assessment. In addition, the signing of the declaration is a confirmation that any reasonable adjustments needed by him or her have been provided and that they were fit to sit the assessment.

20.2 If a student completes any assessment having made a ‘fit to sit’ declaration, a retrospective claim that performance in a completed assessment was affected by Mitigating Circumstances shall not be accepted and the marks awarded shall stand, subject only to the provisions of paragraphs 20.3 and 20.4 below.

20.3 Students may only submit claims for Mitigating Circumstances for:

20.3.1 Non-submission of a written assessment; 20.3.2 Failure to attend an examination or other scheduled assessment; 20.3.3 Unforeseen circumstances or illness arising during the course of an examination or other scheduled assessment.

20.4 Exceptionally, if despite signature of a ‘fit to sit’ declaration a student becomes aware of any circumstances which may adversely affect his or her performance in any assessment, for example illness during an examination or other unforeseen circumstances arise, he or she should make a written statement setting out the particular circumstances and explaining the way in which his or her performance was affected. Where supporting evidence is available it should be included with the statement. The statement should be made as soon as is reasonably practicable and the student should ensure that the Course Leader and the Chair of the Assessment Board each receive a copy.

20.5 It is the student’s responsibility to bring Mitigating Circumstances to the attention of the Assessment Board before it reaches its decision as soon

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as is practicable and normally no later than 10 working days from the date of the examination or assessment.

20.6 Where the Assessment Board agrees that a student has Mitigating Circumstances which have prevented attendance for or submission of an assessment or which have adversely affected his or her performance despite the signature of a ‘fit to sit’ declaration, the attempt may be disregarded for the purposes of:

20.6.1 the 3 attempts allowed for each assessment within the overall 5 year time limit under the LPC Requirements; and 20.6.2 any information recorded on his or her transcript

20.7 Condonation is not permitted either in response to Mitigating Circumstances or otherwise.

21 Time limit for completing the course

21.1 There is an overall maximum time limit for completion of the course, namely 5 years in the case of both full-time and part-time students. Any student who does not complete the LPC successfully within 5 years of the date of taking their first Stage 1 assessment will fail the course. This applies not withstanding the Mitigating Circumstances provisions set out in Paragraph 20 above.

21.2 A student wishing to attempt a subject assessment in a Vocational Elective subject which is no longer offered may be required to attempt an alternative Vocational Elective subject of their choice which is currently offered on the LPC.

22 Cheating and Plagiarism

The University's regulations on cheating and plagiarism will apply. This is without prejudice to the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority’s power to treat cheating or plagiarism as a disciplinary offence. Proven offences have a bearing upon the character and suitability of the student to become a solicitor and will be reported to the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority. This may result in further penalties being imposed. 24 Appeals

The University's Appeal Regulations apply in relation to all appeals against a decision of the LPC Assessment Board.

25 LPC Assessment Board

25.1 The Assessment Board shall comprise: The Course Leader Module Leaders and academic staff responsible for teaching on the course

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The Head of the School of Law, or his/her nominee The External Examiners for the Legal Practice Course 25.2 The Manager, Quality and Standards of the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority, or his/her nominee has the right to attend the Assessment Board.

25.3 The appointment of external examiners will be made by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority in accordance with criteria established by the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority.

25.4 The decision of the Assessment Board as to whether a student has achieved a pass standard shall be final.

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Legal Practice Course Fit to Sit Policy

Declaration that the student is “fit to sit”.

A pre-printed form will be handed out for students to submit with written skills assessments and will be given to the students to complete in supervised assessments and examinations.

Name / Student Number: Assessment: Date:

I confirm that I have been provided with a copy of the LPC Assessment Regulations and I am aware that I am subject to the “fit to sit” policy. I confirm that there are no mitigating circumstances known to me which have adversely affected or will adversely affect my performance for the above assessment. I confirm that any reasonable adjustments needed by me have been provided and that I am fit to sit this assessment.

Signed

Fit to sit policy and Mitigating Circumstances

1. “Mitigating Circumstances” is the term we use to describe non- academic factors that adversely affect your ability to take assessments or your performance in assessments, for example illness. In order to be regarded as a legitimate cause for mitigation, such circumstances must be unexpected, unavoidable, and serious. Minor difficulties you are expected to work through; predictable problems you are expected to work around. 2. A key element of the LPC fit to sit policy is that the responsibility is upon you, the student, to organise and plan your approach to assessment. Accordingly, if you attend an examination, or submit an assessment, it is presumed that you have overcome any difficulties (or have none) and that mitigating circumstances do not apply. 3. The SRA requires all LPC providers to operate a ‘fit to sit’ policy. This means that a retrospective claim by the student that performance in a completed assessment was affected by a mitigating circumstance will not be accepted. If a student submits any type of assessment or sits an examination, this will be deemed an attempt at an assessment and the marks awarded will stand.

4. Students may only submit claims for mitigating circumstances for: a) Non-submission of a written assessment; b) Failure to attend an examination or other scheduled assessment. c) The circumstances in paragraph 7 below

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5. If you are experiencing difficulties completing assessments, you should speak to your Personal Tutor, Module Leader or Course Leader about whether you should submit the work. If you submit work for assessment, the mark will stand.

6. Exceptionally, the Examination Board can agree that a student has mitigating circumstances that have adversely affected their performance despite their confirmation that it was appropriate for them to attempt the assessment. In such circumstances that attempt may be disregarded for the purposes of (a) the 3 attempts allowed for each assessment within the overall 5 year time limit under the assessment regulations and (b) any information recorded on the students transcript.

7. If you are taken ill during an examination or other unforeseen circumstances arise which adversely affect your performance in any assessment, you must inform the invigilator immediately. You should submit your mitigating circumstances, in accordance with the LPC assessment regulations, no later than 10 working days from the date of the exam or assessment

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Appendix B

The Solicitors’ Regulation Authority’s Outcomes for the LPC

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Legal Practice Course Outcomes 2011

Introduction

This document sets out the outcomes for the Legal Practice Course (the ‘course’). On successful completion of the course students will have reached a significant stage in the framework of their training towards becoming a solicitor. They will have begun to develop many of the areas of knowledge, skills and understanding expected of a newly-qualified solicitor.

The Legal Practice Course comprises two stages. Students will need to pass both stages of the course to satisfy the requirements of the Training Regulations.

Aims of the course

The aims of the course are to:

1. prepare students for work-based learning 2. provide a general foundation for practice.

Legal Practice Course Outcomes

At the end of the course, successful students should be able, under appropriate supervision, to:

1. research and apply knowledge of the law and legal practice accurately and effectively 2. identify the client's objectives and different means of achieving those objectives and be aware of  the financial, commercial and personal priorities and constraints to be taken into account  the costs, benefits and risks involved in transactions or courses of action 3. perform the tasks required to advance transactions or matters 4. understand where the rules of professional conduct may impact and be able to apply them in context 5. demonstrate their knowledge, understanding and skills in the areas of:  Professional Conduct and Regulation  the core practice areas of Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice, Litigation and the areas of wills and administration of estates and taxation  the course skills of Practical Legal Research, Writing, Drafting, Interviewing and Advising, and Advocacy. Students should also be able to transfer skills learnt in one context to another 6. demonstrate their knowledge, understanding and skills in the three areas covered by their choice of electives, and 7. reflect on their learning and identify their learning needs.

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Stage 1

Stage 1 comprises of the following:  Professional Conduct and Regulation  Wills and Administration of Estates  Taxation  the Core Practice Areas – Business Law and Practice, Property Law and Practice, Litigation  Course Skills

Professional Conduct and Regulation

On completion of Stage 1 students should be able to identify and act in accordance with the core duties of professional conduct and professional ethics which are relevant to the course.

1. The Principles

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should be familiar in general with the concept of outcomes focussed regulation as applied to the solicitors' profession, and in particular with the mandatory SRA Principles, including the requirements imposed on solicitors to:

1. uphold the rule of law and the proper administration of justice; 2. act with integrity; 3. not allow their independence to be compromised; 4. act in the best interests of each client; 5. provide a proper standard of service to their clients; 6. behave in a way that maintains the trust the public places in them and in the provision of legal services; 7. comply with their legal and regulatory obligations and deal with their regulators and ombudsmen in an open, timely and co-operative manner; 8 run their business or carry out their role in the business effectively and in accordance with proper governance and sound financial and risk management principles; 9. run their business or carry out their role in the business in a way that encourages equality of opportunity and respect for diversity; 10. protect client money and assets.

2. The Code of Conduct

(a) Duties and responsibilities owed to clients

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should be able to demonstrate an understanding of and ability to apply the Principles and the Code of Conduct to issues and situations relating to work likely to be encountered by trainee solicitors including:  Client care  Equality and diversity  Conflicts of interest  Confidentiality and disclosure  The client and the court  The client and introductions to third parties

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(b) Running of the business

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should understand the organisation, regulation and ethics of the profession and in particular should be familiar with the requirements of the Principles and the Code relating to: The management of the solicitor's business Publicity Fee sharing and referrals

(c) Interacting with the Regulator

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should have knowledge of the requirements imposed by the Principles and the Code regarding the solicitor's relationship with the Regulator.

(d) Duties to others

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should understand the responsibilities imposed by the Principles and the Code with regard to dealing with others, and in particular: The solicitor's relations with third parties The provision of services by a solicitor through separate businesses

3. Money Laundering

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should:

1. be familiar with the legislation, including the international context; 2. be able to recognise circumstances encountered in the course of practice where suspicion of money laundering should be reported in accordance with the legislation, with particular reference to those types of legal work covered by Stage 1.

4. Financial Services

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should:

1. understand the purpose and scope of financial services regulation 2. understand the financial services regulatory framework in general (including authorisation), and how it applies to solicitors’ firms 3. recognise when relevant financial services issues arise 4. be able to apply financial services provisions to the types of work covered by the course 5. be able to identify and find appropriate sources of information on financial services.

5. Solicitors’ Accounts

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should understand the way in which the SRA Principles apply to the handling of client money, with particular regard to the requirements for solicitors to: protect client money and assets; act with integrity; behave in a way that maintains the trust the public places in the solicitor and in the

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provision of legal services; comply with their legal and regulatory obligations and deal with their regulators and ombudsmen in an open, timely and co-operative manner; and run their business or carry out their role in the business effectively and in accordance with proper governance and sound financial and risk management principles

By the end of Stage 1, a successful student should have a basic understanding of the Solicitors Accounts Rules 2011, including the requirements to: (a) keep other people's money separate from money belonging to the solicitor or the solicitor's firm; (b) keep other people's money safely in a bank or building society account identifiable as a client account; (c) use each client's money for that client's matters only; (d) use money held as trustee of a trust for the purposes of that trust only; (e) establish and maintain proper accounting systems and proper internal controls over those systems to ensure compliance with the rules; (f) keep proper accounting records to show accurately the position with regard to the money held for each client and trust; (g) account for interest on other people's money in accordance with the rules; (h) co-operate with the SRA in checking compliance with the rules; and (i) deliver annual accountant's reports as required by the rules.

And should be able to: 1. Recognise, record and interpret receipts into and payments from office and client accounts as well as transfers between office and client accounts and between two client accounts; 2. Prepare a simple statement for clients on completion of a matter.

Wills and Administration of Estates

On completion of Stage 1, students should have a general overview of the content, format and validity of wills, obtaining grants of representation and administration of an estate and should be familiar with the purpose and general structure of the relevant documents and should be able to: 1. use the legal knowledge, skills, procedures and behaviours appropriate to the client 2. identify the client's goals and alternative means of achieving those goals, and deal appropriately with client care 3. recognise and act within the rules of professional conduct 4. identify the client’s reasonable expectations as to quality and timeliness of service.

Element 1: Pre-grant practice

Students should understand: 1. validity, revocation and alteration of wills and codicils 2. total and partial intestacy 3. identification of property passing by will, intestacy or outside of the estate 4. valuation of assets and liabilities and the taxable estate.

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Element 2: Application for a grant of representation

Students should understand: 1. the necessity for and main types of a grant 2. the powers and duties of personal representatives and their protection 3. the main types of oath for executors or administrators. Element 3: Post-grant practice

Students should understand: 1. collection and realisation of assets, and claims on the estate 2. raising funds and the payment of inheritance tax and debts 3. pecuniary legacies, vesting of gifted property in the beneficiaries entitled and distribution of the residuary estate.

Taxation

On completion of Stage 1, students should have a sufficient grasp of tax law to enable them to understand the impact of taxation on the areas covered by the course and should be able to: 1. use the legal knowledge, skills, procedures and behaviours appropriate to the client 2. recognise and act within the rules of professional conduct 3. identify the client’s reasonable expectations as to quality and timeliness of Service

Element 1: Income Tax

On completion of Stage 1, students should: 1. understand the main features of the income tax system including: total income; personal allowances; calculation of income tax liability 2. understand the distinctions between taxation at source and direct assessment and the taxation of income from investments and interest 3. appreciate the existence of anti-avoidance legislation such as the rules relating to gifts and settlements.

Element 2: Capital Gains Tax

On completion of Stage 1, students should understand: 1. the main principles of capital gains tax, including the charge on the disposal or deemed disposal of assets and the calculation of chargeable gains 2. the main exemptions and reliefs from capital gains tax.

Element 3: Inheritance Tax

On completion of Stage 1, students should: 1. understand the principles relating to the charge to tax: on death; on immediately chargeable lifetime transfers; in relation to potentially exempt transfers; on gifts with the reservation of benefit 2. be familiar with: payment of tax due; exemptions and reliefs; the principle of cumulation; valuation; accountability and burden; anti-avoidance provisions.

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Element 4: Corporation Tax

On completion of Stage 1, students should understand the principles relating to the charge to tax and charges on income.

Element 5: VAT

On completion of Stage 1, students should understand the basic principles of VAT including: registration of taxable persons; taxable supplies; input and output tax; standard and zero rating; exemptions.

Core practice areas

On completion of Stage 1 of the Legal Practice Course, a successful student, under appropriate supervision, should be able to progress basic transactions or matters in the context of:  the core practice areas of Business Law and Practice, Litigation and Property Law and Practice including elements added by the provider to a core practice area which are in addition to the minimum requirements specified for the core practice area  elements included by the provider in Stage 1 which are in addition to the minimum requirements specified in these outcomes for Wills & Administration of Estates or Taxation.

Students should be able, in relation to transactions and matters which they undertake, to: 1. use the legal knowledge, skills, procedures and behaviours appropriate to each client and each transaction matter 2. identify the client's goals and alternative means of achieving those goals, and deal appropriately with client care 3. investigate and identify the relevant facts, research and identify the relevant legal issues, and advise the client on the legal consequences 4. identify the overall nature of the transaction or matter, then plan and progress that transaction or matter through a series of steps and decisions including, where appropriate, drafting documentation 5. recognise and act within the rules of professional conduct 6. identify the client’s reasonable expectations as to quality and timeliness of service.

Business Law and Practice

On completion of this core practice area, students should: 1. understand the nature and structure of the different business media and be able to select an appropriate medium and structure to meet the client's commercial requirements and to advise on the legal and taxation implications 2. be able to progress basic business transactions arising during the life and development of a business 3. understand the interests of different parties involved in the business including directors, shareholders and creditors of a business.

Students should also be able to: 4. interpret and apply primary source materials, constitutional documents and other relevant agreements

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5. identify conduct and regulation issues, such as conflicts of interest and FSMA, as they arise in the context of relevant transactions 6. draft the relevant documentation and prepare the appropriate forms and filings.

Element 1: Business media

Students should: 1. be able to advise the client as to the advantages and disadvantages of different business media including sole traders, partnership and companies 2. be able to advise on form and legal structure and on the cost, procedures, formalities and taxation implications of setting up and running the business 3. be familiar with the procedures required to incorporate a company and/or form a partnership and understand the approvals, filings and procedures to enable the business to commence operating 4. be familiar with the roles, rights, responsibilities and liabilities of the participants 5. understand the procedures to alter the constitution of a company and to appoint and remove the officers of a company 6. understand how to allot, issue and transfer shares.

Element 2: On-going operations and common transactions

Students should be able to: 1. progress common business transactions and advise and take steps relating to the business’s on-going operations 2. advise on entering into contracts on behalf of the business (including issues arising from contracts in which directors have an interest) 3. advise on steps to protect the assets of the business 4. advise on issues arising from basic finance and lending 5. draft notices, agendas and minutes of meetings and complete and file routine statutory forms and maintain and up-date statutory books 6. advise on taxation of profits (income and capital) generated and distributed by the business 7. demonstrate an appreciation of the continuing duties, obligations and liabilities of the business and of its partners, directors and shareholders 8. advise on the options for and claims arising on insolvency, e.g. bankruptcy, winding up and administration 9. draft and review documentation to give effect to transactions.

Element 3: Stakeholders

Students should: 1. understand the different interests of parties involved in the business including the company, directors, shareholders and creditors of the business 2. be aware of potential conflicts between the different parties 3. understand the importance of knowing the client.

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Element 4: Business accounts

Students should understand the basic principles of business accounting and should be aware of the need to interpret business accounts to ensure clients are appropriately advised. In particular, students should: 1. understand the terms used and basic accounting concepts 2. be familiar with how accounting data is used to prepare a profit and loss account and a balance sheet 3. understand the construction of and be able to analyse and interpret a simple balance sheet and profit and loss account of a sole trader, partnership and limited company 4. understand the nature of shareholders’ funds.

Property Law and Practice

On completion of this core practice area, students should, in the context of domestic or commercial transactions or both, and in relation to freehold and leasehold property: 1. appreciate the nature of a property transaction 2. be able to identify and perform the critical steps in a transaction 3. be aware of conflicts of interest that may arise when acting for more than one party in a property transaction 4. understand the requirements of lenders and the need to consider money laundering issues 5. have a sufficient grasp of the tax aspects of a property transaction, including Stamp Duty Land Tax.

Element 1: Pre-contract stage

Students should be able to: 1. take preliminary instructions and advise on client care 2. identify the steps needed to raise and the issues arising from pre-contract enquiries and pre-contract searches 3. deduce and investigate title as appropriate to the transaction 4. report on the transaction to the client 5. decide, with the client where appropriate, what action needs to be taken and identify what action (if any) the client has to take 6. analyse and draft a contract (and constituent clauses).

Element 2: Binding contract

Students should understand when the contract becomes binding and should appreciate the need to: 1. advise the client on the terms of any offer of finance and ensure that adequate finance is available before committing the buyer to the contract 2. select a method of making the contract binding appropriate to the transaction.

Element 3: After the contract becomes binding

Students should be able to: 1. deal appropriately with the deposit, obtaining undertakings and insurances 2. prepare appropriate, clear and precise undertakings

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3. draft document(s) (whether paper-based or electronic) necessary to transfer the legal estate 4. report on the title to the lender 5. prepare the mortgage documentation 6. prepare for completion and select a method appropriate to the transaction 7. carry out the completion and the relevant post-completion steps 8. complete the mortgage and protect the lender’s security 9. discharge any existing mortgage over the property.

Litigation

On completion of this core practice area, students should: 1. understand the nature of civil and criminal litigation 2. be able to identify the critical steps in the process of litigation.

Element 1: Case analysis

Students should be able to analyse factual material, identify the legal context in which factual issues arise, relate the central legal and factual issues to each other and be able to: 1. identify the elements of selected causes of action and criminal charges 2. identify, analyse and, if necessary, research the propositions of fact going to the elements and be able to identify, analyse, secure and preserve evidence to support propositions of fact 3. identify, analyse and advise on the admissibility and relevance of evidence and assess the strengths and weaknesses of each side’s case including, where appropriate, the opponent’s evidence.

Element 2: Courses of action and funding

Students should be able to: 1. identify possible courses of action, demonstrate an awareness of the legal and non-legal consequences of selecting a course of action and advise the client on the attendant costs, benefits and risks 2. advise the client on the different ways of funding litigation, including the availability of public funding.

Element 3: Procedure

Students should be able to identify the steps and strategies that need to be taken in the preparation and conduct of litigation.

Element 4: Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution

Students should be able to: 1. identify the appropriate forum for the resolution of the dispute, including appropriate methods of alternative dispute resolution 2. identify possible cost consequences of different outcomes, the effect of the different costs rules and the impact of the likely costs orders on the conduct of litigation 3. demonstrate an understanding of the Civil Procedure Rules, the overriding objective, and their application 4. demonstrate an understanding of the court’s role in the litigation process, in particular the court’s case management powers and duties

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5. identify steps to be taken prior to commencement and be able to issue, serve and respond to claim forms 6. advise on interim applications, prepare and conduct applications to the master or district judge 7. understand the steps needed to prepare the case for trial and the procedure and evidential issues arising from expert witnesses, witnesses of fact and disclosure, and demonstrate an awareness of the basic elements of trial procedure 8. demonstrate an awareness of the mechanisms which are available to enforce and appeal a judgment 9. prepare the appropriate documentation and draft claim forms, particulars of claim, defences, application notices, orders and witness statements.

Element 5: Criminal Law and Practice

Students should be able to: 1. demonstrate an understanding of the Criminal Procedure Rules, their overriding objective, and their application 2. demonstrate an understanding of the court’s role in the litigation process, in particular the court’s case management powers and duties 3. demonstrate an awareness of police station representative accreditation schemes, and the court duty solicitor scheme 4. explain the custody, review and detention limits under PACE and the role of the custody officer 5. identify the steps involved in making an application for a representation order 6. identify the steps involved in making or contesting a bail application 7. identify the practical and tactical considerations involved in determining the mode of trial, including an awareness of the range of sentences available, and advise the client accordingly 8. assist in the preparation and conduct of a summary trial, committal proceedings and a trial on indictment.

Course skills

On completion of Stage 1, a successful student should have a basic competence in the course skills and be able to use them effectively under supervision and should: 1. demonstrate an understanding of the principles and criteria that underpin good performance in these skills 2. be familiar with methods of communication and able to choose and tailor the communication form and style to suit the purpose of the communication and needs of different recipients 3 be able to communicate orally and in writing and draft and amend documents in a form, style and tone appropriate for the recipients and the context 4. demonstrate attention to detail 5. be aware of the practical, commercial and personal considerations which should be taken into account 6. deal appropriately with relevant professional conduct issues 7. demonstrate sensitivity to issues of culture, diversity and disability in communication with clients, colleagues and others 8. be able to use the skills in combination where appropriate.

Practical Legal Research

On completion of this area, students should:

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1. understand the need for thorough investigation of all relevant factual and legal issues involved in a transaction or matter 2. be able to undertake systematic and comprehensive legal research 3. be able to present the results of their research.

Element 1: Legal and factual issues

Students should be able to investigate legal and factual issues and: 1. determine the scope and identify the objectives of the research 2. determine whether additional information is required and identify appropriate sources for factual investigation 3. identify the legal context(s) and analyse the legal issues 4. address all relevant legal and factual issues.

Element 2: Research

Students should be able to undertake systematic and comprehensive research and: 1. identify and apply current case law, statute law, statutory instruments, regulations and rules to the research problem 2. identify, prioritise and use relevant primary and secondary sources 3. locate and update cases and statutes, and use indices and citators 4. use periodicals, digests and standard practitioner texts 5. select and use appropriate paper and electronic research tools.

Element 3: Presentation of results

Students should be able to: 1. keep a methodical, accurate and complete record of the research undertaken 2. draw clear conclusions and identify courses of action 3. present the results of their investigation and research in a way which meets the Course Skills outcomes.

Writing

On completion of this area, students should be able to communicate effectively in writing and should: 1. understand and be able to choose the appropriate method of communication 2. understand and be able to apply the principles of good writing.

Element 1: Appropriate use of media

Students should: 1. understand the appropriate uses of emails, letters, memoranda and other forms of written communication 2. be able to choose the appropriate medium, form and style 3. be able to tailor the written communication to suit the purpose of the communication and the needs of different clients or recipients.

Element 2: Writing style

Students should be able to produce written work which is appropriate for the chosen medium and the recipient and which: 1. uses accurate, straightforward and modern language 2. uses correct spelling, grammar, syntax and punctuation 3. has a clear, logical, consistent and appropriate structure and format

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4. has been checked and edited.

Element 3: Content

Students should be able to produce written work which: 1. forms a coherent whole and, where appropriate, advances the matter; 2. addresses accurately and correctly all the relevant legal and factual issues and, where appropriate, identifies practical options including the costs, benefits and risks of those options 3. identifies clearly clients’ objectives and priorities, addresses their concerns and carries out their instructions 4. accurately and systematically records a meeting or presentation and its outcomes.

Drafting

On completion of this area, students should: 1. understand the content and requirements of formal legal documents in the core practice areas 2. understand the principles of good drafting and editing 3. be able to explain their own and others’ drafting.

Element 1: Drafting and amending documents

Students should be able to draft and amend basic documents or provisions that: 1. demonstrate an understanding of the relevant legal, factual and procedural issues 2. meet all formal legal or other requirements 3. demonstrate a considered choice, use and adaptation of templates or precedents 4. are in prescribed or generally accepted form.

Element 2: Style of drafting and amending

Students should be able to draft and amend documents that: 1. use accurate, straightforward and modern language 2. use correct spelling, grammar, syntax and punctuation 3. are easy to follow, internally consistent and free of ambiguity 4. use recitals, definitions and boilerplate correctly and appropriately 5. have a clear, logical, consistent and appropriate structure, layout and use of numbering and schedules.

Element 3: Explaining and editing

Students should be able to: 1. explain in clear and simple terms the meaning and effect of basic documents and the possible implications for the client 2. review and edit their own and others’ drafting to identify and correct omissions, errors and unnecessary provisions.

Interviewing and Advising On completion of this area, students should demonstrate an understanding of the principles and techniques of the skills of interviewing and advising.

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Element 1: Interviewing Students should: 1. be able to choose an appropriate way to obtain relevant information 2. be able to plan, prepare for and identify the objectives of an interview 3. understand how to conduct an effective interview that elicits the relevant information, allows the client to explain any concerns, anticipates the client’s questions and has clear outcomes 4. be able to listen actively and use appropriate questioning techniques 5. be able to establish a professional relationship.

Element 2: Advice and follow up

Students should be able to: 1. advise the client taking into account the client’s objectives, priorities and constraints and addressing all relevant factual, practical and legal issues 2. identify possible courses of action, the legal and non-legal consequences of a course of action (including the costs, benefits and risks) and assist the client in reaching a decision 3. identify any further decisions to be made or steps to be taken and manage the client’s expectations including likely outcomes and timescales 4. accurately record an interview, advice given orally, decisions made by the client and follow-up steps and, where appropriate, confirm instructions in each case in accordance with the outcomes for Writing 5. identify the circumstances in which to take instructions or seek advice from a supervising solicitor.

Advocacy

On completion of this area, students should: 1. understand the importance of preparation and the best way to undertake it 2. understand the basic skills in the presentation of cases before courts and tribunals 3. be able to formulate and present a coherent submission based upon facts, general principles and legal authority in a structured, concise and persuasive manner.

Element 1: Case analysis and preparation

Students should be able to: 1. identify and analyse the relevant facts, the legal context in which the factual issues arise, and how they relate to each other 2. summarise the strengths and weakness of the case from each party’s perspective 3. prepare the legal framework of the case, and a simple narrative outline of the facts 4. prepare the submission as a series of propositions based on the evidence 5. identify, analyse and assess the purpose and tactics of examination, cross- examination and re-examination to adduce, rebut and clarify evidence.

Element 2: Oral presentations

Students should be able to: 1. identify, analyse and assess the specific communication skills and techniques employed by a presenting advocate

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2. demonstrate an understanding of the ethics, etiquette and conventions of advocacy.

Stage 2

Stage 2 comprises 3 vocational electives.

Vocational electives

Introduction

This part sets out the outcomes for Stage 2 of the Legal Practice Course: the Vocational Electives (the vocational electives). On successful completion of Stage 1 and Stage 2, students will have completed the Legal Practice Course which is part of the vocational stage of training towards becoming a solicitor.

In order to complete Stage 2, a student must successfully complete three distinct vocational electives. The vocational electives can be undertaken at the same provider as Stage 1, or at one or more different providers.

On completion of Stage 2, students will have begun to develop the knowledge and understanding expected of a newly-qualified solicitor in three distinct areas of practice.

Legal Practice Course Elective Outcomes

At the end of an elective, successful students, under appropriate supervision, should be able in the context of the area(s) of law and practice studied on the elective to: 1. demonstrate their knowledge and understanding and employ the applicable skills in the elective’s area(s) of law and practice 2. use the legal knowledge, skills, procedures and behaviours appropriate to each client and each transaction or matter 3. identify the overall nature of the transaction, then plan and progress that transaction or matter through a series of steps and decisions including, where appropriate, drafting documentation 4. identify the client's goals and alternative means of achieving those goals, and deal appropriately with client care 5. investigate and identify the relevant facts, research and identify the relevant legal issues, and advise the client on the legal consequences 6. recognise and act within the rules of professional conduct 7. identify the client’s reasonable expectations as to quality and timeliness of service.

Statement of Outcomes

The provider will produce, for approval by the SRA, a statement of outcomes for each vocational elective using the model of the Core Practice Areas for Stage 1. The statement of outcomes must: 1. explain how the Legal Practice Course Outcomes (page 1) and the vocational elective outcomes will be met in the elective 2. identify the learning objectives of the elective 3. specify the elements of law and practice which will be covered on the elective

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4. identify the ethical and professional conduct issues that will be addressed on the elective 5. describe how the Course Skills, where appropriate, will be employed by students on the elective 6. where appropriate, explain how the elective will develop the knowledge and understanding developed through Stage 1.

Preliminary knowledge

Before starting a Legal Practice Course students will be expected to have a basic knowledge of the seven Foundations of Legal Knowledge as identified in the Joint Announcement1.

In particular, students will be expected to have a basic knowledge and understanding of the following:

1. the principal EC institutions, sources and interpretation of Community law, the relationship between Community law and National law, and relevant human rights conventions and legislation

2. formation of contracts, formalities of written contracts, general principles concerning implied terms, misrepresentation, discharge and remedies for breach of contract

3. the nature of legal estates and interests, equitable interests, easements, covenants, mortgages, joint ownership, registered and unregistered land (including the registration of charges)

4. the nature of fiduciary relationships and the duties of fiduciaries; the powers and duties of trustees

5. the basic structure of the civil and criminal courts

6. the elements of common offences and causes of action (contractual and tortious), issues affecting who should be the appropriate parties to litigation (e.g. vicarious liability) and common defences to proceedings.

Students will need to have developed oral and written communication skills, interpersonal skills, and the skills of legal analysis and research to a level that will enable them successfully to embark upon the course.

1 The Joint Statement sets out the conditions for undergraduate law degrees recognised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and the Bar Standards Board as satisfying the academic stage of training

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Appendix C

Skills Assessment Criteria

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LPC FULL/PART TIME 20../20.. ASSESSOR:

Practical Legal Research Student number: CRITERIA Rating out Comments of 10 Mark each of the 4 categories (emboldened) on a scale of 0-10, and please tick each sub-category as appropriate

Analysis of Instructions

Identified the objectives of the research? Analysed the instructions and documents given and identified the legal, factual and other issues presented? Determined what additional information was required, if any, and appropriate sources for further information?

Content and Application

Addressed all relevant legal and factual issues? Applied the relevant legal provisions to facts? Answered all questions?

Research Plan

Showed evidence of a methodical, accurate, up to date and complete record of research? Identified fully, primary and secondary sources? Showed appropriate use of cases, statutes, periodicals, digests and practitioner texts? Showed appropriate use of paper and electronic tools?

Presentation of Results:

Clear and concise format? Clear conclusions? Appropriate length and well-expressed? Tailored appropriately to the recipient?

The criteria of assessment in each COMPETENT / NOT YET category are as follows: COMPETENT 0 - 1 = Very poor (A score of 20/40 or above is 2 - 3 = Clearly non competent competent) 4 = Just non-competent 5 - 6 = Just competent 7 - 8 = Clearly competent 9 - 10 = Very good

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LPC FULL/PART TIME 20../20.. ASSESSOR:

Writing Assessment Student number: CRITERIA Rating out Comments of 10 Mark each of the 4 categories (emboldened) on a scale of 0-10, and please tick each sub-category as appropriate

Meeting the clients' goals

Carried out instructions? Identified objectives and priorities? Identified practical options appropriately? (eg. costs, benefits, risks)

Organisation and Structure

Appropriate medium, form and style chosen? Formed a coherent whole? Logical, consistent, appropriate structure and format?

Content

Addressed all relevant facts appropriately? Addressed all legal issues appropriately (including accurate advice)? Advanced the matter (where appropriate)? Communication tailored to suit its purpose and need of client/recipient?

Quality of writing

Demonstrated use of accurate, straightforward and modern language? Followed the rules of grammar? Used correct spelling, syntax and punctuation? Work checked and edited?

The criteria of assessment in COMPETENT / NOT YET each category are as follows: COMPETENT 0 - 1 = Very poor (A score of 20/40 or above is 2 - 3 = Clearly non competent competent) 4 = Just non-competent 5 - 6 = Just competent 7 - 8 = Clearly competent 9 - 10 = Very good

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LPC FULL/PART TIME 20../20.. ASSESSOR:

Drafting Assessment Student number: CRITERIA Rating Comments out of Mark each of the 4 categories 10 (emboldened) on a scale of 0-10, and please tick each sub-category as appropriate Meeting the clients' goals

Met all legal and other requirements and carried out client’s instructions? Accurately stated client’s case? Accurately stated the remedies sought (including correct figures and calculations)? Structure

Clear, logical, consistent and appropriate structure? Contained appropriate headings and paragraphing and numbering? Demonstrated a considered choice, use and adaptation of precedents? Is in the prescribed or generally accepted form? Content

Demonstrated an understanding of the relevant legal, factual and procedural issues? In particular pleaded only relevant material facts and where appropriate:  pleaded all relevant express and implied terms?  pleaded all relevant particulars? Complied with formalities and had relevant standard paragraphs? Quality and style of drafting

Good layout and presentation? Easy to follow, internally consistent and free from ambiguity? Used accurate straight forward and modern language? succinct and precise? Used correct spelling grammar, syntax and punctuation? Demonstrated attention to detail and careful editing? The criteria of assessment in COMPETENT / NOT YET COMPETENT each category are as follows:

(A score of 20/40 or above is competent) 0 - 1 = Very poor 2 - 3 = Clearly non competent 4 = Just non-competent 5 - 6 = Just competent 7 - 8 = Clearly competent 9 - 10 = Very good

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LPC FULL/PART TIME 20../20.. ASSESSOR:

Interviewing and Advising Assessment Student name: CRITERIA Rating Comments Mark each of the 4 categories out of 10 (emboldened) on a scale of 0-10, and please tick each sub-category as appropriate Interpersonal skills – Appropriate/sensitive manner Greeted the client, effected introductions and explained principal’s absence? Dealt with client care/professional conduct issues appropriately? Allowed client to explain concerns? Listened actively? Communicated effectively and acted sensitively? Information gathering Method reflected clearly identified aims and objectives? Identified the client’s goal? Obtained/requested relevant documents? Appropriate, purposeful questions, reflecting awareness of relevant law and/or procedure? Notes taken? Advice Answered/anticipated questions with accurate advice on law and procedure? Took into account client’s objectives, priorities and constraints? Addressed relevant factual, practical and legal issues? Identified possible courses of action, their consequences and assisted client’s decision making? Identified any further necessary steps/decisions and managed client’s expectations including likely outcomes/timescales? Follow-up/ Overall Attendance note confirming instructions, with accurate record of facts, advice, client’s decisions and follow-up steps? Attendance note identified any circumstances in which instructions/advice needed from supervising solicitor? Acted professionally? Clear outcomes? The criteria of assessment in COMPETENT / NOT YET COMPETENT each category are as follows:

(A score of 20/40 or above is competent) 0 - 1 = Very poor 2 - 3 = Clearly non competent 4 = Just non-competent 5 - 6 = Just competent 7 - 8 = Clearly competent 9 - 10 = Very good

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LPC FULL/PART TIME 20../20.. ASSESSOR:

Advocacy Assessment Student name: CRITERIA Rating Comments out of 10 Mark each of the 4 categories (emboldened) on a scale of 0-10, and please tick each sub-category as appropriate

General Presentation

Well modulated voice? Posture and eye contact? Professional language and manner? Notes but not prepared script?

Structure of Presentation

Structured Content? Appropriate introduction and conclusion? Appropriate emphasis? Maintained momentum with timely pauses?

Case Analysis and Preparation

Demonstrated understanding of objective, legal context and relevant facts? Addressed relevant law? Appropriate professional conduct? Accurate reference to and familiarity with relevant facts? Included only relevant material?

Persuasiveness

Concise and coherent? Fact and evidence based persuasive submissions? The criteria of assessment in COMPETENT / NOT YET COMPETENT each category are as follows:

(A score of 20/40 or above is competent) 0 - 1 = Very poor 2 - 3 = Clearly non competent 4 = Just non-competent 5 - 6 = Just competent 7 - 8 = Clearly competent 9 - 10 = Very good

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Appendix D

Timetables and Term Dates

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LPC FULL / PART -TIME 2017 - 2018 FOUNDATION TIMETABLE

Mon 4-9-17 Tues 5-9-17 Wed 6-9-17 Thurs 7-9-17 Fri 8-9-17

9.00

10.00 Introduction Income Tax Capital Gains Professional LPC Study to the LPC LGS 1 Tax LGS 1 Conduct & Skills Regulation Room Room Room LGS 1 Diagnostic / BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027 pre-reading tests (JS) (KB) (KB)

Room Room BY.02.027 BY.02.027 11.00 Introduction to Income Tax Capital Gains Assessments LGS 2 Tax LGS 2 (SB) (KS)

Room Room Room BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(JS) (KB) (KB)

Hand out pre- reading test

12.00 Break Break Break Break Break

12.45 Drafting SGS Inheritance Human Professional Writing SGS Tax SGS Rights Conduct & LGS Regulation LGS 2

Room Room Room Room Room BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(KB) (KB) (KB) (SB) (JS)

2.45 Break Break Break Break Break

3.00 Inheritance Interviewing & Introduction VAT LGS Library and IT Tax LGS 1 and Advising SGS to Civil induction 2 Litigation Room LGS 1 BY.02.027

Room Room Room (SB) Room BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027 / Library (KB) (JH) (JH) Personal Tutor Session (JS/SM/IT)

Room BY.02.027 (JS) 5.00

Vs 9-6-17

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LPC Full / Part-Time Years 1 & 2 2017-18 Timetable Stage 1 - Weeks 2-20

Time Tuesday Wednesday Thursday (FT and PT year 1) (FT and PT2) (FT and PT2)

10.00- See separate Tuesday Assessments when FT / PT year 2 students 12.00 timetable for details of required (FT and PT) BLP 1 (KS) Civil, Criminal, PCR, BY.02.027 PLR and WAE teaching sessions (LW70044E) BY.02.027

(See separate Tuesday timetable for module codes) 12-12.30 Break Break Break

12.30- See separate Tuesday Assessments when FT / PT year 2 students 2.30 timetable for details of required (FT and PT) BLP 2 (KS) Civil, Criminal, PCR, BY.02.027 PLR and WAE teaching Feedback / careers sessions sessions / speakers / (LW70044E) BY.02.027 personal tutor sessions when required (See separate Tuesday timetable for module BY.02.027 codes) 2.30-3.00 Break Break Break

3.00-5.00 See separate Tuesday FT students FT /PT year 2 students timetable for details of PLP 1 (JS/SB) Sol A/cs (wks 2-8) (KS) Civil, Criminal, PCR, BY.02.027 BY.02.027 PLR and WAE teaching (LW70060E) sessions (LW70043E) BY.02.027 PLP 2 (wks 9-20) (JS/SB) BY.02.027 (See separate Tuesday (LW70043E) timetable for module codes)

5.00 – Break Break Break 6.00 PT year 2 students 6.00 – Private study PLP 1 (JS/SB) Private study 8.00 BY.02.027

(LW70043E)

PCR - Professional Conduct and Regulation PLR - Practical Legal Research WAE- Wills and Administration of Estates Sol A/cs - Solicitors Accounts BLP - Business Law and Practice PLP - Property Law and Practice

Teaching sessions are compulsory under LPC regulations and registers are taken. FT and PT students MUST attend additionally for assessments / feedback sessions when scheduled. See LPC Assessment Schedule for the relevant weeks. Vs 9-6-17

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LPC Full-Time / Part-Time 2017-18

TUESDAY Timetable Stage 1 - Weeks 2-20

Weeks 2-9

Time Tuesday 12 Sep Tuesday 19 Sept Tuesday 26 Sep - 31 Oct (Week 2) (Week 3) (Weeks 4-9)

10.00- Professional Conduct & Professional Conduct & Criminal Litigation (KB) 12.00 Regulation (KB) Regulation (KB)

BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(LW70059E) (LW70059E) (LW70045E)

12-12.30

12.30-2.30 Civil Litigation LGS Civil Litigation (JH) Practical Legal (JH) Research (KS)

BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027 / Library

(LW70045E) (LW70045E) (LW70053E)

2.30-3.00

3.00-5.00 Criminal Litigation (KB) Criminal Litigation (KB) Civil Litigation (JH)

BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(LW70045E) (LW70045E) (LW70045E)

Vs 9-6-17

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LPC Full-Time / Part-Time 2017-18

TUESDAY Timetable Stage 1 - Weeks 2-20

Weeks 10-18

Time Tuesday 7 Nov- 9 Jan Tuesday 16 Jan Tuesday 23 Jan Dec (Weeks 10-16) (Week 17) (Week 18)

10.00- Criminal Litigation (KB) Criminal Litigation (KB) Criminal Litigation (KB) 12.00 BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(LW70045E) (LW70045E) (LW70045E)

12-12.30

12.30-2.30 Wills and Professional Conduct & Professional Conduct & Administration of Regulation (SB) Regulation (SB) Estates (JS)

BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(LW70055E) (LW70059E) (LW70059E)

2.30-3.00

3.00-5.00 Civil Litigation (JH) Civil Litigation (JH) Civil Litigation (JH)

BY.02.027 BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(LW70045E) (LW70045E) (LW70045E)

Vs 9-6-17

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LPC Full-Time / Part-Time 2017-18

TUESDAY Timetable Stage 1 - Weeks 2-20

Weeks 19-20

Time Tuesday 30 Jan Tuesday 6 Feb (Week 19) (Week 20)

10.00- Professional Conduct & Feedback/Revision as 12.00 Regulation (KB) required

BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(LW70059E) (LW70045E)

12-12.30 Break

12.30- Criminal Litigation (KB) Criminal Litigation (KB) 2.30 BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(LW70045E) (LW70045E)

2.30-3.00

3.00-5.00 Civil Litigation (JH) Civil Litigation (JH)

BY.02.027 BY.02.027

(LW70045E) (LW70045E)

Vs 9-6-17

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LLM in Legal Practice Full-time/Part-time

Term Dates 2017/18 Enrolment – Thursday 31st August 2016 3pm - 6pm Room BY.02.027

Classes commence – Monday 4th September 2017

Autumn Term September 4th 2017 (Monday) - Course commences December 15th 2017 (Friday) - Last day of term

Christmas Vacation 16th December 2017 - 7th January 2018 inclusive

Spring Term January 8th 2018 (Monday) - Teaching and mock exams commence March 12th 2018 (Monday) - Elective teaching commences March 29th 2018 (Thursday) - Last day of term

Spring Break 30th March 2018 – 8th April 2018 inclusive

Summer Term April 9th 2018 (Monday) - Term commences June 8th 2018 (Friday) - Course finishes

Dates for Examinations (Provisional)

Solicitors Accounts Wednesday 29th November 2017(FT/PT year 2 students)

Mock Exams - Compulsory Subjects Civil and Criminal Litigation Monday 8th January 2018 - am and pm Property Law & Practice Wednesday 10th January 2018 - am BLP 1 (Company) Friday 12th January 2018 - am BLP 2 (Partnership/Accounts) Friday 12th January 2018 - pm

* Mock exams are compulsory and a vital part of your training for assessments but part- time students who are working on these dates and disabled students with special exam provisions may, with the consent of the subject tutor, opt to do these exams under timed conditions at home.

Formal Exams - Compulsory Subjects BLP Thursday/Friday 22nd / 23rd February 2018 (am) Litigation Monday/Tuesday 26th / 27th February 2018 (am) Property Law & Practice Thursday 1st March 2018 (am) PCR Friday 2nd March 2018 (pm)

Elective Exams Tuesday 29th May 2018 - Friday 8th June 2018 inclusive Please note examinations may be held morning and / or afternoon.

Submission of LLM dissertation – 31st August 2018

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Appendix E

Support and Guidance

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Introduction

The University of West London has a well-developed range of services and facilities to help support you through your course. You will find fuller details within the Student Handbook. Below we cover some of these arrangements but more information will be available during induction. Throughout the course, each student will have access to a variety of sources of support depending on individual circumstances and needs. Each student will be supported via a Personal Tutor and, in some instances, a Mentor.

If you have a disability, information and support is provided by the University through: the Wellbeing Team located in Student Services; the Disability Handbook: the Student Handbook and through the University website.

Your own base room for exclusive use

You benefit from a dedicated base room, By.02.027, in which only LPC classes are timetabled. The room has restricted access and contains 14 computers networked to the library and a printer. PCs allow access to Oyez forms, BlackBoard, legal databases, the internet and other resources for use in and outside classes. PowerPoint, Smart Board and data projection facilities are also in place.

There are tables and seating for up to 40. The room is set up for group work to facilitate the interactive nature of the teaching sessions.

Course Manuals and Learning Materials

You will be provided with a course manual for the core practice subjects, and the vocational electives. You will also be provided with a Foundations manual to cover Professional Conduct and Regulation, Taxation, and Wills and the Administration of Estates. You will have a Skills manual to help you lay the foundations of successful development of legal skills.

These professionally produced manuals will be supplemented with learning materials produced by the team using legal documents, forms and precedents and a variety of other realistic material, creating fact patterns for the conduct of legal cases. These and other supplementary learning materials will be available in electronic form via BlackBoard as well as in hard copy.

In your preparation for teaching sessions and assessments, you will be expected to consult widely the texts, looseleafs, precedents, journals and legal databases used by practitioners. Hard copies and paper based versions of these resources are available for reference in the Legal Practice resource section on the 3rd floor of the Paul Hamlyn library. Electronic sources are available chiefly via LexisLibrary, Lexis PSL and WestLaw UK, to which you will have access remotely from your PC at home as well as from UWL. PCs in the base room BY.02.027 and in the library will enable you to access legal databases and to draft documents electronically.

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Student Support

Personal Tutor

The development of learning skills is an important aspect of your course and is designed to provide you with the personal learning skills to ensure that you take full advantage of the opportunities offered. You will be allocated a Personal Tutor who will support you in identifying any particular learning needs. This could include any or all of:

 An initial diagnostic activity to help identify strengths, preferences and areas where additional support would be helpful

 The offer and provision of specific and ongoing support in areas identified

 A ‘mixed’ approach in which specific learning skills will be addressed within modules such as report or essay writing, group working or delivering presentations

 The development of Learning Skills and Graduate Attributes through using a range of media, in particular the University’s chosen e-portfolio system, PebblePad.

Academic and Pastoral Care on the LPC

With small teaching groups and a dedicated teaching team you will very soon get to know your teaching staff and each other. This ensures that there is an informal network of support for you from within your cohort and from teaching staff. The friendliness and approachability of staff is a feature of this course.

In addition to informal approaches to staff, the course has formal procedures for identifying student problems and providing student support. Where staff are not qualified to provide appropriate support you will be referred to the university’s student support services.

Staff availability and roles

LPC staff roles and contact details are as set out in Appendix F.

Staff are available to see you outside their teaching periods. Staff may be contacted by email or by telephoning their extension number. In addition all Law School staff have surgery hours published on BlackBoard and in the Law School, when students can just turn up and meet their personal tutor.

Your Subject Tutor

If you have a problem with a particular subject, you should see one of the

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tutors for that subject, either informally at the end of a class, or by making a formal appointment. Such meetings can also be initiated by the subject tutor.

Personal Tutor and Student Appraisal System

You will be allocated a personal tutor. Your personal tutor is your first point of contact if you have problems on the course and normally it is up to you to initiate the contact should a problem arise.

During the foundation course you will have a formal session in which the Course Leader will explain the LPC personal tutoring and appraisal scheme and advise further on the university support services available to you and on the confidential procedure for declaring a disability and obtaining disability support. You will be advised of the demands of the course, the preparation and review requirements and the importance of attendance and punctuality. You will be advised of what constitutes plagiarism and the academic and professional consequences of plagiarism.

You will be advised of the appraisal system. You will be appraised during the first term on attendance and punctuality, preparation for the teaching sessions, contribution in the teaching sessions and your performance in assessments. Subject tutors record an evaluation of you with regard to the above and this will be discussed with you in timetabled appraisal sessions. The aim of the appraisals is positive: to evaluate the progress you are making and to identify at a relatively early stage any difficulties you may have with the course and to work towards rectifying them and supporting you as far as possible. The appraisals will take place towards the end of the first term and are shown on the assessment schedule.

Your Appraisal

Each aspect of appraisal during the LPC is intended to be supportive of you because it is important that we pick up any signs that you may be in need of further help, guidance or support.

There is no assessment dimension to the appraisals we carry out and so you cannot pass or fail your appraisal. You should see the appraisal system as an opportunity to deal with any issue which may hinder your chances of success.

We will appraise your performance on the course in the following areas:

 Attendance and Punctuality  Preparation  Contribution  Performance in all assessments and examinations

Your attendance and punctuality will be recorded by subject tutors in class registers and by the Student Attendance Monitoring System.

Your preparation and contribution will be recorded by subject tutors in an

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evaluation form. The criteria for appraisal are:

Preparation

A Exceptionally well prepared for every session All relevant materials brought to the session

B Well prepared for most sessions Relevant materials brought to the session

C Adequately prepared for most sessions Some relevant materials brought to the session

D Insufficient preparation

E Preparation superficial or not attempted

Contribution

A Outstanding contribution in class discussion All exercises completed to a very high standard Articulate and demonstrates clear understanding of topics Works very well as part of a team

B Good contribution in class discussion Most exercises completed to a high standard Demonstrates clear understanding of topics Works well as part of a team

C Contributes to class discussion only after request from tutor Completes most exercises Understanding may not be complete Usually works as part of a team

D Reluctant to contribute to class discussion Exercises attempted but not completed Understanding may not be complete A reluctant team member

E Rarely contributes to class discussion Failure to complete most exercises Demonstrates little or no understanding Unwilling to work as part of a team

Your personal tutor will arrange a formal meeting with you to discuss your appraisal and progress. You may also arrange to see your personal tutor at any time to discuss your progress on the course.

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Personal Development Planning

Personal development planning and self-evaluation are considered an important part of your learning process. The very precise feedback provided on the course is intended to give you the opportunity to measure your academic, professional and personal achievements and to consider how to develop these further.

After a few weeks on the course you will be given a self-evaluation questionnaire to complete, in order that you can reflect on your approach to the course and your progress. You are encouraged to share these reflections with your personal tutor in the appraisal scheme.

The acquisition of key legal skills is carefully developed throughout the course. You are provided with a range of teaching and learning materials and activities to support you in your acquisition of legal skills and techniques, including course manuals, and learning resources provided by the tutors. Supplementary resources by means of on-line practice activities are available through BlackBoard.

As graduates you should have an appropriate level of written communication skills but if you are found to be struggling there is learning skills support within the university that you will be able to access. Contact: [email protected] .

You will also find online self-help and self-tests on academic writing, plagiarism, grammar and punctuation, and time management. Look for the link to Study Support Online when you log on to Blackboard http://online.uwl.ac.uk

You will also be encouraged to plan for your future and given the opportunity to apply to apply for legal work experience and to become involved with the local Middlesex Law Society and qualified LPC graduates, with whom the LPC has close links.

Blackboard

All the key information you require to complete the modules will be made available through the University’s Virtual Learning Environment, Blackboard.

This site will give you access to learning and teaching resources uploaded by your lecturers, along with communication forums such as discussion boards and blogs to support your learning. On some modules you may also be required to submit work for assessment via Blackboard. B Logging on

Log on to Blackboard at http://online.uwl.ac.uk using your normal UWL username and password.

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If you do not see all of your modules in your Blackboard course list, please contact your School administrative office in the first instance, to check that you have been correctly enrolled.

PebblePad

PebblePad is a Personal Learning System which is used at the University of West London to help you:

 Reflect on the way you learn  Keep a record of, and comment on, your skills and achievements, your experiences and what you’ve learned – both on the course and in your wider life  Prepare for future employment.

With PebblePad, you will be able to:

 Build your own electronic portfolio (e-portfolio) of achievements, skills and experiences, which you can then package into one or more “webfolio”.  Share documents, images, videos, and sound files, with your tutors, with other students, or anyone else you choose to share with (e.g. workplace mentors, or potential employers)

These e-portfolios will be used as a form of assessment in some modules.

You will be able to use PebblePad throughout the duration of your studies at the University of West London, and to take it with you (for a small sum of money) when you leave the University. You will be able to present it to potential employers via a weblink.

Logging on

You can access PebblePad at www.pebblepad.co.uk/uwl using the same username and password as for your University of West London email account.

Blackboard and PebblePad help and support

There are Help Pages at http://uwl.ac.uk/blackboard - these provide guidance for all students in making use of the University's online learning platforms.

All technical issues with Blackboard, Turnitin and PebblePad should be reported to the IT Service Desk. You can do so by:

Talking to staff in any IT Suite or Library or in The Street

Calling 0300 111 4895 (internal phone extension 2222) 24 hours a day 365 days a year

Emailing [email protected]

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Learning Support

Learning Support is free and available to all UWL students. Your first point of contact for any enquiry about support available for writing, maths, structuring essays, revision techniques, or any other support you require with academic skills is [email protected] .

You will also find online self-help and self-tests on academic writing, plagiarism, grammar and punctuation, and time management. These are available at Study Support Online. Look for the link to Study Support Online when you log on to Blackboard http://online.uwl.ac.uk .

The University offers an English and Academic Skills programme for international and overseas students. This programme runs before the course start date with additional support sessions during the period of study. Please contact [email protected] for further information.

The University also offers you the opportunity to test and improve your own academic skills at leisure, in your own time. This test is free and available for the duration of the course. It can be found on the Study Support Online ‘community’ inside West London Online (Blackboard). Look for the link to Study Support Online when you log on to West London Online (Blackboard) http://online.uwl.ac.uk

Mentoring Service: Students Supporting Students

The University of West London has a Student Support and Mentoring Service which aims to ensure that students receive the support they need to have a successful, rewarding and positive student experience and to meet their individual course challenges by assigning students a peer mentor who has already progressed further on their course. Contact Co-ordinators Alison Griffin or Jonathan Nassar by e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]; or call 07825 118 364.

Mentoring Team: Drop-In Support Service

The Mentoring team Co-ordinators, Alison and Jonathan, also provide a daily drop-in support service which aims to provide information, guidance, reassurance and support for all student experience related concerns. Support is readily available through the daily drop-in sessions - no appointment is necessary, so you can just walk-in and talk to somebody, whenever you need to.

Drop-in session times can be obtained from the One Stop Shop. Also feel free to contact either Alison or Jonathan by e-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]; or call 07825 118 364 to find out more.

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One-Stop-Shop

Students can benefit from a variety of support services during their studies. The One-Stop-Shop offers professional services which are free, impartial and confidential. They offer information, advice and guidance to students in a variety of ways e.g. face-to-face, telephone, email, Skype. They cover matters such as:

• Accommodation and Housing Rights • Benefits • Counselling and Faith • Disability Support • Funding and Bursaries • Hardship funds • Immigration (Visa) • Money Management

They aim to answer all your questions, or direct you to someone to whom you can talk. They are located on the ground floor in the Teaching Centre at St. Mary’s Road, Ealing with a satellite service at Paragon and Reading, including drop-in sessions (these are advertised on each site).

Opening hours: Monday to Thursday 9.00 to 5.00pm Friday 10.00 to 5.00pm

For further information on each area go to: http://www.uwl.ac.uk/students/Support_for_students.jsp

Email: [email protected] Telephone: 020 8231 2573 / 2991 / 2739

Students with Disabilities

Disability information and support is provided by the University through the Wellbeing Team located in Student Services. Information about the support for disabled students can be found in the University student handbook and through the UWL website. If you have a disability or other special need you should seek an appointment with the Wellbeing Team.

To ensure that the needs of any LPC student can be met all LPC applicants are invited to disclose on their application form to the University or the Central Applications Board whether they have a disability. If you did not do so, but now wish to disclose a disability you should contact the Wellbeing Team as soon as possible and explain your circumstances.

We consider it most important to identify any problem that you may have which may affect your ability to study on the course or to complete examinations and will do our best to enable you to overcome those problems. You will need to produce supporting medical evidence or other evidence, such as an educational psychologist’s report as soon as possible. Alternatively you may be advised that your needs should be evaluated by one of the specialist

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University staff.

When you disclose a disability, referral needs to be made as soon as possible to the Wellbeing Team. You can self-refer prior to registration or at any point during your studies. The Law School can also refer you to the Wellbeing Team with your permission.

You do not need to have a diagnosis of a disability for a referral to be made. If a member of staff thinks that you may have a disability that hasn’t been diagnosed e.g. dyslexia, they can refer you to the Wellbeing Team who will assist you to gain a diagnosis.

Referrals need to be made to: The Wellbeing Team 020 8231 2739 email [email protected]

Disability support includes the following areas:

 A diagnosis of the disability  A Needs Assessment  The establishment of funding for the disabled student  The provision of non-medical helpers for example, communicators and note-takers  IT support  Alternative examination provision  The setting up of an Individual Support Plan  The establishment of a supportive teaching and learning environment  Ongoing Liaison with the student and Law School if appropriate  Support with mitigation.

The Wellbeing Team will advise and work in partnership with the Law School to facilitate appropriate support within the remit of the Equality Act 2010 and best practice.

The Wellbeing Team will analyse your needs and produce an Individual Support Plan (“ISP”). This ISP will specify the recommended level of support from the University and the LPC course team, together with recommended assessment provisions based on the medical or other expert evidence. You must ensure that a copy of your ISP is passed to the Course Leader, otherwise we may not be aware of it or able to act on its recommendations.

The information you disclose remains strictly confidential.

Individual Support Plans when received are discussed with you and, with your consent, disseminated within the team so that all tutors are aware of and can act in providing the recommended support.

The University Library

The University Library offers resources, high quality services and professional

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expertise to enable the effective discovery and use of information and to support teaching, learning and research across the institution. We provide a wide range of e-resources and books, and a discovery tool known as Summon to help find resources easily.

In the Library there are areas to cater for different learning styles, including group study, individual quiet study and silent study. A large proportion of study spaces are equipped with PC workstations. In addition internet access via laptop, tablet or Smartphone use is encouraged and Wi-Fi is available.

All students are automatically members of the Library – the ID card is also the library card. Self-service machines are available, allowing for independent borrowing when service desks are not staffed.

Academic Support Librarians provide help and support throughout the learner journey, running training sessions on a regular basis on topics such as database search strategies or referencing software, and offering specialist one-to-one advice on finding resources for assignments.

Further information including opening hours and contact details is available at: http://www.uwl.ac.uk/library

Legal Practice Course Resources

These can be found on the 3rd floor of the Paul Hamlyn Library.

All materials are for reference use only. Aside from the electronic resources accessible via the PCs (such as LexisLibrary, LexisPSL and Westlaw UK), there are many paper based resources such as practitioner texts and looseleafs covering the core practice and elective subjects, Halsbury’s Laws and Statutes, the Encyclopaedia of Forms and Precedents. There are subscriptions to the Law Society Gazette for your use. A wide range of books and resources which are needed for legal practice are available as well as specialised texts.

You must return the books to the shelves when you have finished with them. You should not hide text books, practitioner texts, statutes or other learning resources from other students. It is taking an unfair advantage and constitutes cheating.

Centre for Employability and Employer Engagement

The Centre for Employability and Employer Engagement brings together the careers service, the employment service, work placements and volunteering to provide information and support for the employability and employment of all students.

We offer a welcoming and supportive environment in which you can discuss your career options, identify your skills and abilities and make informed decisions about your future.

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You can register with the Centre and get access to: part time work both on and off campus; careers advice; placements; volunteering activities; graduate opportunities and much more, all of which will help you to enhance and develop your employability skills. To register: www.uwl.ac.uk/work

Our Careers Service offers you advice and guidance on a wide range of careers issues, including CVs, job hunting, assessment and selection procedures; careers workshops on topics like preparing your CV, interviews and job searches; a careers resource area with careers information, employer literature, a range of useful software packages, and intranet and internet search facilities

Our Employment Service offers youdirect notification of the latest part-time and graduate vacancies, tailored to your interests and subject areas; employment advice; employer presentations on campus

020 8231 2700 [email protected]

@UWLCareers University of West London Careers &

Employment Service

Workplace/Practice Support

We have developed contacts with some firms of solicitors (mainly in the west London area) and qualified alumni to help you obtain legal work experience and mentoring.

We are always looking to expand the scheme and we do our best to help you obtain access to short placements / legal work experience. Recommendation for legal work experience is subject to an appropriate level of attainment and professional conduct on the course. Priority will be given to those of you with good attendance records and a good standard of performance on the LPC course.

Under the scheme legal work experience and placement opportunities will be posted on BlackBoard for you to make applications, and/or requests may be made to other firms to allow you to visit their office usually for a week (normally between March and June, at mutually convenient times) to observe solicitors, who will act as your mentor and allow you to sit in their office and read client files, or (with clients’ consent) sit in on interviews or court appointments. Occasionally you may be asked to assist with administrative work, such as helping with photocopying or other preparation of legal documents, which all

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solicitors need to undertake at some stage.

Increasingly our contacts within the profession are keen to select for themselves those they will take for work experience so please be aware that obtaining a placement might be competitive and that the final decision lies with the firm involved.

You should note that there is no obligation on any firm to provide formal extended work placements or training contracts.

Those of you who obtain a placement should make sure that you arrive promptly, dress and behave appropriately, maintain confidentiality and remind yourself that you are an ambassador for the University and its Law School.

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Appendix F

Who’s Who on the LPC?

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Staff Member Location Ext:

Sue Boyall (Part-time Tutor) PE01.007 SMR 2951 [email protected]

Khalid Butt (Tutor) PE01.012 SMR 2370 [email protected]

Philip Ells (Tutor/Head of School) PE01.011 SMR 2552 [email protected]

Philipp Elliot-Wright (LLM tutor/Deputy Head of PE01.007 SMR 2949 School) [email protected]

Julie Hine (Tutor) PE01.007 SMR 2946 [email protected]

Sue Kirkham (Course Administrator) HT.GF.004 2150 [email protected]

Susan McGlamery (Law Librarian) LIBRARY 2377 [email protected]

Karen Shury (Tutor) PE01.007 SMR 2946 [email protected]

Jane Stevens (Course Leader/ Employability PE01.012 SMR 2018 Manager/Tutor) [email protected]

Staff may be contacted by e-mail or by telephoning their extension number.

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Core Practice Subject Teaching

Business Law & Practice Karen Shury

Civil/Criminal Litigation Julie Hine Khalid Butt

Property Law and Practice Jane Stevens Sue Boyall Elective Subject Teaching

Advanced Litigation Julie Hine

Commercial Leases Sue Boyall

Employment Law & Practice Philip Ells

Family Law & Practice Karen Shury

Housing and Residential Landlord and Tenant Law Jane Stevens

Immigration Law & Practice Khalid Butt

Additional Responsibilities

Course Leader Jane Stevens

Professional Liaison/Employability Manager Jane Stevens

IT and Blackboard Co-ordinator Khalid Butt

Middlesex Law Society/Careers Jane Stevens

Skills Co-ordinator Jane Stevens

Professional Conduct and Regulation Co-ordinator Khalid Butt

Solicitors’ Accounts Karen Shury

Wills and Administration of Estates Jane Stevens

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