Sources of law

QUESTION:

Assess the different sources of the law in England and Wales. To what extent have external sources affected its development.

OBJECTIVE:

The objective of this written assignment is for you to provide a comprehensive description of the main sources of law for the England & Wales legal system. You should identify not only the internal sources of law, but also assess the effect of external sources of law.

TASKS:

You should principally assess the four main sources of law within England and Wales, namely, statute law, the common law, European Union law and the European Convention on Human Rights. You should identify which of these sources are internal and which are external. A detail description of the nature and effect of each source should be provided. Credit will be given for identifying any other relevant sources of law, but you should be aware of the parameters of the overall word count.

When describing each of the main sources, you are permitted to describe an analysis of the institutions relevant to each source and how an institution creates law. Credit will be given to how different sources of law engage with each other, particularly the interaction between statute law and the common law. When describing external influences, you should describe how external sources are implemented within the England & Wales legal system.

You are encouraged to provide critical analysis of the sources in your assignment. However, you should remember that this is a law assignment and not a political assessment. You should therefore avoid providing critical political analysis. You are additionally expected to provide a conclusion which addresses both parts of the question and assesses the extent to which external influences have affected the development of English law.

Your assignment must be electronically submitted via Blackboard by 11.59pm on Friday 4th November 2016. No other method of submission will be accepted. You are strongly recommended to complete your assignment in good time for the 4th November deadline.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMPLETION OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

You should present the assignment in the form of an essay of not more than 1500 words. You will be expected to refer to the recommended textbook, Law for Business Students, Adams, A. (9th Edition). Credit will be given where you have clearly shown independent research by reference to other relevant textbooks, internet resources and legal journals/articles In such event you should provide a detailed bibliography identifying your sources. The bibliography does not form part of the overall word count.

ASSESSMENT:

The written assignment will be marked out of 100. Your assignment counts towards 50% of the overall mark for the LAW4A1 Module.

Marks will be given for:

Quality of response to the presented question.
Demonstrating a broad knowledge and general understanding of the main areas covered by the presented question.
Demonstrating awareness and understanding of the specific issues raised by the presented question.
Collection, comparison and synthesising relevant information from different sources.
Presentation of an analytical conclusion in response to the presented question.