About
Trilby James is a senior lecturer at the Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law.
Trilby James is a senior lecturer at the Hillary Rodham Clinton School of Law.
The Graduate Diploma in Law offered by the School of Law is recognised by the professional bodies (SRA/Bar/ILEX) as providing the necessary academic qualifications for those wishing to progress to the vocational stage of legal training. It is also suitable for those wishing to broaden their legal knowledge. The programme comprises of modules collectively known as the 'Foundations of Legal Knowledge' together with one additional area of law (the Eighth Legal Subject) which is covered by means of a supervised research project.
Module provides an introduction to the organisation and structure of the English Legal System
Business Law & Practice is designed to enable students to appreciate the nature of business media and business transactions, to be able to identify and deal with the steps in such transactions and gain experience through practical exercises from taking instructions through to completion of the advice. During the course students will deal with the legal and commercial issues raised by clients wishing to trade as sole traders, a traditional partnership, an LLP and as a private company limited by shares. Students will undertake authentic trainee solicitor tasks relating to establishing the correct business vehicle, personnel issues, raising finance, dealing with financial difficulties, taxation obligations, protection of the business vehicle, the regulation of commercial relationships and exit strategies.
The module will enable you to appreciate the different types of organisation that provide legal services and the funding arrangements available to clients to access those legal services. It also focuses in detail on how to apply the SRA Principles and Codes of Conduct 2019 and the Solicitors Accounts Rules 2019 to ethical and practical scenarios typical of those you would encounter in practice as a trainee solicitor. The importance of professional conduct and the high levels of integrity expected of solicitors is a key feature of the module, which will help you recognise potential conduct issues as they arise and apply the rules to ensure that you act appropriately. The module will also give you an understanding of the importance of adhering to the Solicitors Accounts Rules and enable you to apply the rules so that you are competent to be entrusted with client money and money belonging to third parties. You will also learn to apply the Financial Services regulatory framework which provides when and how solicitors can deal with investment products.
Interviewing, matter analysis and legal writing skills are essential and integral to the course and to life within legal practice. During the course students will develop these skills using authentic, client and practice-based scenarios based on tasks they would be expected to undertake as a newly qualified solicitor. They will interview and advise clients in the context of the core practice areas of Property Practice and Wills and Administration of Estates, and will learn to prepare detailed an accurate attendance notes. They will conduct case and matter analysis and write letters of advice within all core practice areas covered on the programme.
Legal research, drafting and advocacy skills are essential and integral to the course and to life within legal practice. During the course students will develop these skills using authentic, client and practice-based scenarios based on tasks they would be expected to undertake as a newly qualified solicitor. They will conduct advocacy in the context of the core practice areas of Dispute Resolution and Criminal Practice. They will undertake legal research and drafting tasks within all core practice areas covered on the programme.
Interviewing, matter analysis and legal writing skills are essential and integral to the course and to life within legal practice. During the course students will develop these skills using authentic, client and practice-based scenarios based on tasks they would be expected to undertake as a newly qualified solicitor. They will interview and advise clients in the context of the core practice area of Wills and Administration of Estates and will learn to prepare detailed and accurate attendance notes. They will conduct case and matter analysis and write letters of advice within the contexts of Wills and Administration of Estates and Business Law & Practice.
Interviewing, matter analysis and legal writing skills are essential and integral to the course and to life within legal practice. During the course students will develop these skills using authentic, client and practice-based scenarios based on tasks they would be expected to undertake as a newly qualified solicitor. They will interview and advise clients in the context of Property Practice and will develop their ability to record detailed and accurate attendance notes. They will conduct case and matter analysis and write letters of advice within the core practice areas of Dispute Resolution, Criminal Litigation and Property Practice.
Legal research and drafting skills are essential and integral to the course and to life within legal practice. During the course students will develop these skills using authentic, client and practice-based scenarios based on tasks they would be expected to undertake as a newly qualified solicitor. They will undertake legal research and drafting tasks within the core practice areas of Wills & Administration of Estates and Business Law & Practice .
Legal research, drafting and advocacy skills are essential and integral to the course and to life within legal practice. During the course students will develop these skills using authentic, client and practice-based scenarios based on tasks they would be expected to undertake as a newly qualified solicitor. They will conduct advocacy in the context of the core practice areas of Dispute Resolution and Criminal Practice. They will undertake legal research and drafting tasks within the core practice areas of Dispute Resolution, Criminal Practice and Property.
Students will undertake a piece of legal research in the context of one of the taught areas of law on the LLM Law & Legal Practice. They will be given instructions from a client seeking advice on an untaught topic within the programme syllabus, and undertake independent research in order to find a solution and assist the client in achieving their objectives. Students will produce an internal file note setting out the details of the research undertaken and the basis of their advice, and will write a letter of advice to the client. This will be supervised by a nominated supervisor within the School of Law and convened by the Module Coordinator. Supervision will be provided in accordance with the procedures set out in the Module Handbook.
Business Law & Practice is designed to enable students to appreciate the nature of business media and business transactions, to be able to identify and deal with the steps in such transactions and gain experience through practical exercises from taking instructions through to completion of the advice. During the course students will deal with the legal and commercial issues raised by clients wishing to trade as sole traders, a traditional partnership, an LLP and as a private company limited by shares. Students will undertake authentic trainee solicitor tasks relating to establishing the correct business vehicle, personnel issues, raising finance, dealing with financial difficulties, taxation obligations, protection of the business vehicle, the regulation of commercial relationships and exit strategies.
The module will enable you to appreciate the different types of organisation that provide legal services and the funding arrangements available to clients to access those legal services. It also focuses in detail on how to apply the SRA Principles and Codes of Conduct 2019 and the Solicitors Accounts Rules 2019 to ethical and practical scenarios typical of those you would encounter in practice as a trainee solicitor. The importance of professional conduct and the high levels of integrity expected of solicitors is a key feature of the module, which will help you recognise potential conduct issues as they arise and apply the rules to ensure that you act appropriately. The module will also give you an understanding of the importance of adhering to the Solicitors Accounts Rules and enable you to apply the rules so that you are competent to be entrusted with client money and money belonging to third parties. You will also learn to apply the Financial Services regulatory framework which provides when and how solicitors can deal with investment products.
Business Law & Practice (¿BLP¿) is designed to enable students to appreciate the nature of business media and business transactions, to be able to identify and deal with the steps in such transactions and gain experience through practical exercises from taking instructions through to completion of the advice. During the BLP course students will deal with the legal and commercial issues raised by clients wishing to trade as ¿sole traders¿, a ¿partnership¿ and as a ¿company limited by shares¿. Students will undertake realistic ¿trainee¿ tasks relating to establishing the correct business vehicle, personnel issues, raising finance, dealing with financial difficulties, taxation obligations, protection of the business vehicle, the regulation of commercial relationships and exit strategies. Business Accounts is integrated into the BLP Module to enable students to appreciate the basic principles of business accounting and be aware of how to interpret business accounts to ensure clients are appropriately advised in an number of commercial matters such as options for financing and insolvency. Students will learn to undertake tasks relating to the final accounts for a sole trader, a partnership and a limited company. Students will explore how the information contained in final accounts can be interpreted to provide a better view of the financial performance of a business (the topics making up Business Accounts will be taught after the relevant substantive law on the business entity in question has been covered. For example, Partnership Accounts will be dealt with once students have been introduced to the legal and commercial issues surrounding partnerships). By the end of the module students will have fully understood the Objectives and achieved the Learning Outcomes (which have been designed to meet the individual elements of the BLP Outcomes and the general outcomes, taxation and Professional Conduct and Regulation elements for the new LPC) set out below.
Commercial law is the fastest growing and most internationally orientated area of legal practice and covers a wide range of legal issues affecting businesses of any size. This elective focuses on commercial law with special emphasis on intellectual property, e-commerce and mergers and acquisitions. Commercial law covers a wide range of legal issues affecting businesses from employment law to company law and from marketing agreements to avoidance of liability within contract law. By covering the major issues in these practice areas, once the elective is completed, students will be able to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of commercial law and employ the skills they have acquired in these practice areas so far, whilst continuing to build upon and develop these skills. By setting the elective in a practical context, after its completion, students will be able to use the legal knowledge and skills they have acquired and apply the necessary procedures and behaviours appropriate to each client and each transaction or matter. The students will learn to undertake tasks relating to aspects of the law relating to the affairs of a firm¿s business clients in both a contentious and non-contentious context. They will gain an understanding of the needs of the business client by examining the substantive law covering the commercial field. In addition, the students will become aware of business practices and the practical implications of the substantive law for those practices and gain an understanding of the typical needs of a commercial client and the particular needs of an individual client. The practical nature of the elective which is based upon a transactional model, will involve students undertaking tasks and being encouraged to discuss issues and highlight problems as they arise, therefore allowing students to be able to identify the overall nature of the transaction, plan and progress that transaction or matter through a series of steps and decisions, and where appropriate, to draft relevant documentation.
1. Confirmation of responsibilities ¿ Name and status of fee-earner ¿ Name of supervising partner ¿ Name of person to whom service problems (complaints) should be addressed 2. Client care Explanation of issues, action to be taken and keeping the client informed about progress 3. Costs information Differentiation between the firm¿s charges, VAT and disbursements. Costs information should be given in a way every (individual) client can understand. Costs information should be given in writing ¿ a failure to do so could leave the firm exposed. Funding options In addition fact patterns will also deal with: Rule 1: Core Duties Rule 3: Conflicts of Interest Rule 4: Confidentiality Rule 10: Relations with third parties Rule 11 Litigation and advocacy
The Solicitors¿ Accounts module aims to impress upon students the importance of adhering to the Solicitors Accounts Rules (the Rules) and to give students a thorough understanding of solicitors¿ accounts, such that they are competent to be entrusted with client money. Students will complete realistic exercises that require them to record all the ledger entries that would occur on a typical file, using a double entry bookkeeping system that accords with the Rules. This will entail repeatedly identifying client, office and controlled trust money and the steps that must be taken when handling this money. Students will record the financial transactions that are typical of civil litigation (including conditional fee agreement), property, probate, company and commercial work. Students will also practice preparing completion statements. As well as these transactional exercises, students will encounter stand alone exercises in which they are required to apply the Rules and identify an appropriate course of action. Students will be given an intensive introduction to Solicitors¿ Accounts in the foundation course, with 2 LGS and 2 SGS. This is followed by a further 3 LGS and 3 SGS. Ordinarily a topic will be introduced in LGS before being explored in SGS the following week. As well as these discreet sessions, students will also be required to identify SAR issues as they arise in the Core Practice Areas and deal with these in an appropriate manner. In particular, Solicitors¿ Accounts will be regularly encountered in PLP, Civil Litigation and Probate. Students will have a mock assessment in Solicitors¿ Accounts which will be marked and returned to students, to enable students to reflect on their performance before the assessment.
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