LLM in Legal Practice

Semester one

Core units

• ​​Business Law & Practice: Acquire a good understanding of substantive business law and the institutional and transactional features
of business law which pervade all areas of practice and are essential for practitioners. Knowledge of business accounts underpins a Solicitor’s ability to advise business clients in practice.  
• Property Law & Practice: This unit provides a general foundation for knowledge and skills required in a conveyancing transaction.
• Litigation (Civil & Criminal): Gain an understanding of the civil and criminal litigation processes, and the ability to manage these in a professional practice context. Advocacy is embedded in the learning and assessment of this unit, through which you will gain necessary skills when representing a client before the court.
• Accounts & Regulation: Develop a solid grounding in matters of professional conduct, ethics and nancial services. You’ll also gain an understanding of the Solicitors’ Accounts Rules in the context of systems and procedures to which you will be exposed in practice. 
• Wills & Administration of Estates: Acquire knowledge of probate, estate management and related work which is essential to your legal profession. Knowing about revenue law is seen as underpinning much of a Solicitor’s working practice in this area of law.
• Legal Skills: Learn to produce a coherent piece of writing based on facts, general principles and legal authority; understand the need for thorough investigation of a client’s factual and legal issues; appreciate interview techniques; and learn to accurately draft a range of documents assessing legal and factual issues.

Option units (choose three)

• Commercial Property: Gain an insight into the type of work conducted by commercial property departments.
• Commercial Law & Intellectual Property: Learn to appraise the various legal and regulatory regimes applicable to commercial transactions and intellectual property matters.
• Advanced Litigation: Develop your tactical and analytical skills and knowledge in a professional litigation context.
• Employment Law: Appreciate and understand the rights of, and remedies available to employees and other workers and di erent methods of dispute resolution in professional and commercial contexts.
• Family Law: Gain an understanding of the main areas of concern to a family Solicitor and of the tactics and procedures involved in dealing with family matters.
• Private Client: Gain knowledge and skills for matters you will encounter within a private client department.
• Client in the Community: Develop a working knowledge of law and practice in areas including welfare bene ts, homelessness & housing law, children’s proceedings and juvenile crime.

*Please note that these option units require minimum numbers in order to run and may only be available on a semester by semester basis. They may also change from year to year.

Semester two

Core unit

• Skills & Research Portfolio: Undertake a core skills, networking, research and re ection in preparatory unit to advance your employability preparation for your choice of the nal project.

Option units (choose one)

• Future Lawyer Portfolio & Skills: This re ective project is practice focused and helps enhance your skills and futureproof your learning as a legal practitioner.
• Legal Practice Research Project: With guidance, you will undertake a signi cant piece of self- managed practice-led research in an area of particular interest to you.

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry. If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

This course is delivered through an innovative and legal practice-focussed approach. A blended delivery is taken with 25% of teaching delivered face-to-face, focussing on building and refining your key legal practice and advocacy skills. The remaining 75% of teaching will be delivered through a combination of online asynchronous (recorded) and synchronous (materials). This blended approach stresses the importance of the in-person and digital legal skills you will use in practice. The online delivery enables you greater flexibility in managing your studies around your other commitments, such as part-time legal practice experience, caring commitments, etc. 

You will receive dynamic and comprehensive legal skills and legal knowledge teaching from a number of legal experts, many of whom have been legal practitioners for many years. On campus delivery will build the cohort community through regular face-to-face sessions and wider Law team research seminars and events.

The entry requirements for this course are:

• A Bachelors Honours degree with 2:2 from a Qualifying Law Degree or a pass in the Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL)/ Common Professional Examination (CPE).

The LLM in Legal Practice is intended for those wanting to qualify as a solicitor through the LPC route and where you started your Qualifying Law Degree or GDL prior to 1 September 2021 or 23 September 2021 respectively. 

You can find details of the international qualifications we accept, and what level of study they apply to, on our entry requirements for non-UK students' page.

Please see below some examples of the qualifications for entry:

• India: Bachelor’s degree (4 years) from a recognised HE institution with a minimum overall result of 55%
• Nigeria:  Bachelor's degree from a recognised institution with a minimum classification of 2:2
• Thailand:  Thai Bachelor's (Honours) degree from a recognised higher education institution with a minimum GPA of 2.5/4.0
• Turkey: Bachelor’s degree (Lisans Diplomasi - four years) with a minimum overall GPA of 2.3/4.0
• Vietnam:  Bachelor's degree/Bang tot nghiep dai hoc with an average score of 6.5/10, or a Master’s degree/Thac si.

All applications will be subject to a minimum grade and your degree may need to be in a relevant subject area.

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, you will need to provide evidence that you understand English to a satisfactory level. English language requirements for this course are normally:

• IELTS (Academic) 6.5 with minimum 6.0 in writing and 5.5 in all other components, or equivalent.

View further information about our English language requirements.

Bournemouth University International College offers a number of pre-sessional English and preparatory programmes to prepare international students for postgraduate study at BU. Admission to the degree is guaranteed on successful completion of your course to the required level.

We encourage applications from individuals with excellent research, analytical skills and enthusiasm for debates. We are looking for self-managed learners who are happy to work hard to meet the demands of this rewarding course.

Furthermore, we seek individuals with a keen interest in developing new skills and who will draw upon their existing experiences, to enhance their legal expertise and careers prospects.

We’ll be selecting the candidates for this course by looking at their applications – there are no interviews or additional selection activities. For that reason, make sure your application really stands out from the crowd, and leave us in no doubt as to why you should be joining BU. For more information, take a look at our postgraduate how to apply pages.

Full time applications for this course should be submitted through LawCAB. 

If you will need a visa to come to the UK to study, please think carefully about the length of time it will take for your visa application to be processed and make sure your visa will be ready in time for the beginning of your course.

Part time applications should be submitted to BU. Click the green ‘Apply now’ button to submit your application free of charge online through myHub, our application portal. You will create your own myHub account so that you can track the progress of your application. Don’t forget to save your application as you go; you can return to it at as many times as you want before you submit it. For more information visit our How to apply section.

What’s included in your tuition fee?

Your tuition fee covers expenses associated with your course including tuition materials, access to facilities, mandatory field trips and the following:

• Materials for laboratory and field-based teaching activity.
• Support for finding placements (UK or abroad) and fieldwork, and non-financial support whilst on placement if this is part of your course of study.
• A range of student services – advisors, help desks, counsellors, placement support and careers service.
• The Library – access to a wide range of electronic resources (databases, e-journals and e-books), print and multimedia collections, subject librarians and study spaces.
• Access to Brightspace, our virtual learning environment, which offers a responsive and personalised learning experience with powerful learning analytics capabilities, integrated social media and advanced video features.
• IT labs (some open 24/7), wireless network, AV equipment to borrow.
• Disability and additional learning support, according to individual circumstances. 
• The BU Language Centre to help you develop/improve foreign or English language skills.
• 24 hours a day, 365 days a year security team.

Additional costs

We are committed to offering you value for money and ensuring there are no hidden costs while you are studying with us, therefore we have listed below any additional costs you may incur that are not covered by your tuition fee:

• Laptops, tablets and mobile devices and any software used on personal devices. Access to a personal computer is strongly recommended for your study. If you are experiencing financial difficulty, visit our website for information regarding hardship funds.
• Textbooks, general stationery and other supplies. Our award-winning library is stocked with a large range of textbooks and online resources, free of charge. The Students’ Union shops stock a wide range of stationery supplies on both campuses​​.
• Accommodation and living costs. Our accommodation price guide can be found on our website.
• Travel costs for optional field trips, outdoor wear and footwear for mandatory and optional field trips (if applicable). 
• Travel costs to and from the University campus. An annual bus pass can be purchased alongside your rent if you are living in halls of residence/Unilet accommodation or may be purchased separately.
• Clothing or equipment costs required for your placement if this is part of your course of study. 
• SportBU membership.

While all aspects of the programme, including required field trips, are included in the fee, additional, optional or extra curricula activities may be available for which a student contribution is required.

If you need to repeat one or more units during the course of your studies (with or without attendance) the pricing will be pro-rata of the full time fee.

International (not Rep. of Ireland) students need to pay a non-refundable £3,000 deposit to secure their place on a postgraduate course. You will need to pay your deposit by the date stated in your offer letter. The remainder of your fee will be payable on registration/enrolment/ There are two exceptions to the non-refundable rule on the deposit.

• You fail to meet the academic or English requirements of your offer
• You are refused a visa to enter the UK, provided the reason for the refusal is not a fraudulent application.

We offer a range of scholarships to eligible students who are beginning their studies at BU. Please visit our funding pages for details on living costs, budgeting and paying your tuition fees.