At first glance, writing up your argument into a law essay might seem like a daunting prospect. Although the task is not as impossible as it initially appears. Getting it right takes time, but it will be worth the effort because a good law essay needs a sound reason, a depth of understanding of legal principles, and a structure to succeed. This guide will take you through the key stages of getting a law essay right. If you’re finding it challenging, a law essay writing service UK like Ukwritings can be a valuable resource. Ukwritings offers professional assistance to help students craft well-structured and thoroughly researched essays, making the writing process smoother and more effective.
1. Understand the Question
The most important thing, to start with, is to seek to understand exactly what the essay question is asking you to do. Having a misconception about the question, and so responding to the wrong one, is a major route to producing an unfocused essay. Here’s how to do it right.
- Look for signs: Some common signs are listed below.
- You might be asked to identify key terms: sometimes you’ll be provided with some substantive parts of the law, or a term or concept drawn from it, and be required to identify it.
- Here is where one would place the issue at hand: What is the problem before the law or posed to the law?
- So after working out what the question is asking for, then you just need to fill in the blanks: figure out what you need, and put together your essay.
2. Research Thoroughly
The most important thing you need to do for any law essay is to research your topic well. This will ensure you have something to say and show that you are drawing on well-known sources, such as case law, statute law, academic articles, and legal textbooks. For those needing extra support, exploring UK essay writing services can provide helpful insights and tools to enhance your research and writing process.
Use Credible Sources
Find recent cases or legislation that are relevant to your topic in legal databases such as Westlaw, LexisNexis, or JSTOR (which contain a vast collection of case law, legal journals, and scholarly articles) and find the newest cases and statutes. Laws move fast.
Keep your notes well organized. You might decide to group them, say, according to topic or issue. That way, as you are writing your essay, you can refer back to some of the key points. Some students like to keep track, in a table or chart, of how the various sources are used to support which arguments.
3. Develop a Clear Thesis Statement
OK, what is your thesis? What is your point, what are you trying to say? If you aren’t trying to say anything, you don’t have an essay. But that point has to be very small, it has to be very tight, it has to be very specific. It has to be related to the question. All of your essay has to come back to that.
Indeed, one recent study by the Writing Center at Georgetown University found that non-thesis essays received 40 percent fewer points than thesis-led essays.
For instance, if you were writing an essay asking whether some piece of legislation was effective, your essay may have the thesis ‘This essay will argue that the data protection law that is currently in place is not effective, as the law is outdated and not enforced.’
4. Create a Structured Outline
The main advantage of an outline is that it will put your ideas in logical order and prevent your essay from sounding like random thoughts:
- Introduction (attach a thesis statement here)
- Body Paragraph 1
- Body Paragraph 2
- Conclusion
This is the basic essay structure you are expected to use.
1. Introduction
Briefly introduce the topic.
Provide background information if necessary.
State your thesis.
2. Body Paragraphs
Explanation: Explain the legal principles or rules that apply.
Evidence: Provide supporting evidence, such as case law or statutory references.
Analysis: Analyse how the evidence supports your thesis.
3.Conclusion
Summarise the main points.
Restate your thesis in light of the evidence presented.
Offer any final thoughts or implications of your argument.
5. Analyse, Don’t Just Describe
But the most disastrous thing you can do in an essay that is supposed to be about critical analysis of the law is to do nothing more than plain descriptive work. The good part comes only after you have begun to rise above that.
Compare and Contrast: Take a law or version of a case that you have discussed, if it seems appropriate, and show how it might look different through different lenses. Explain what the difference is and which, if either, is more persuasive to you, and why. This shows that you can be sensitive to the different ways in which law works.
Question Assumptions: Setting aside too-easy questions that assume your conclusion, ask honest questions – for example, areas of doubt, ambiguities in the law or even contradictions. This type of criticism is not only tolerated but positively encouraged in legal essays.
6. Reference Properly
Whenever you write a law essay, you must use referencing. If you have done your research on the topic of your essay, then the use of references is proof of that, and it will also make your argument look solid, and supported by your authorities. If you fail to include the necessary references, your work will be seen as a case of plagiarism, and you will most certainly fail in law, for which it is impossible to recover.
Use a Standard Citation Style: Almost all law schools offline and online use OSCOLA (Oxford Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities). However, check which rules apply to you as there are other variations. Take care to understand the rules for citing cases, statutes (the legislation that forms law), and other secondary sources.
Include a Bibliography: Finally, your essay will end with a catalog or list of sources or works known as a bibliography. The bibliography will come after the text and will be in alphabetical order by either author surname or – if no author – by title, with space above and below.
7. Proofread and Revise
Proofreading is the last stage in which you should check an essay you have written. Never submit your essay to your teacher without a proofread. Editing your essay could save you from utter failure.
Check for Clarity: Make sure that your sentence is readily understandable and moving in the direction of your point. You shouldn’t throw up a cloak of obscurity because you’ve been shown fancy words and bits of jargon
Correct Grammar and Spelling: Add a homely grammatical or spelling error and the effect of your argument will only be diluted: your essay will be all the harder to read. Allow yourself the time to correct it.
Seek Feedback: If you have a friend or a paid tutor, have them read it over for you. Always have an extra, independent pair of eyes looking at your work, as you can overlook mistakes incredibly easily.
Conclusion
Writing an essay that provides an answer to a legal question is not easy but, if you attempt to work through these steps, you should be able to assist yourself: break the question down; research the issue; structure the essay; make a point about the law; reference your work; proofread. If you overcome these hurdles, you should have a better legal essay at the end. Perhaps the most important point is this: you are not being asked simply to describe the law. You are being asked to talk about the law, critique the law, and make a point about the law that is based on reasoned argument and evidence.