Legal Practice Course (LPC) Course Skills Syllabus

Course Skills syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Course Skills in Legal Practice Course (LPC), not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Practical Legal Research

   4 topics

   • Identifying and analysing the legal issue
   • Using primary and secondary legal sources
     • Legislation and statutory interpretation
     • Case law databases and citators
   • Recording and reporting research findings
   • Updating the law and checking for currency
2. 2

   Legal Writing and Drafting

   4 topics

   • Principles of clear and concise legal writing
   • Drafting letters of advice to the client
   • Drafting legal documents and agreements
     • Structure, defined terms and operative provisions
     • Boilerplate clauses and precedents
   • Drafting from the lay client's perspective and avoiding ambiguity
3. 3

   Interviewing and Advising

   4 topics

   • Structuring the client interview
   • Questioning, listening and note-taking techniques
   • Advising on options, risks and costs
   • Establishing rapport and managing client expectations
4. 4

   Advocacy

   4 topics

   • Preparation and structure of submissions
   • Making and opposing interim applications
     • Opening, the legal framework and persuasive argument
     • Responding to questions from the bench
   • Examination-in-chief and cross-examination basics
   • Court etiquette and professional presentation

Course Skills flashcards for Legal Practice Course (LPC)

23 of 50 cards from the Course Skills deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What are the typical first steps in identifying and analysing a legal issue from a set of facts?

   Identify the material facts, determine the area(s) of law engaged, isolate the precise legal question(s) in dispute, separate fact from law, and frame the issue as a specific question to be researched.

2. What is the difference between primary and secondary legal sources?

   Primary sources are the law itself (legislation/statutes, statutory instruments, and case law/judgments). Secondary sources explain, analyse or summarise the law (textbooks, journals, practitioner works like Halsbury's Laws, encyclopedias, and commentary).

3. Give three examples each of primary and secondary legal sources used in English legal research.

   Primary: Acts of Parliament, statutory instruments, and reported case law (e.g. The Law Reports). Secondary: Halsbury's Laws of England, practitioner textbooks (e.g. Chitty, Archbold), and academic journal articles.

4. What is the recommended order for approaching a legal research problem?

   Analyse the facts and identify the legal issue, identify keywords/areas of law, consult secondary sources for an overview, locate and read the relevant primary law, check that the law is current, and record/report the findings with full citations.

5. Why are secondary sources usually consulted before primary sources in research?

   They give a structured overview, explain how the primary law fits together, provide cross-references and citations to the relevant statutes and cases, and save time by pointing the researcher to the correct primary authorities.

6. What does it mean to 'update' the law and check for currency in legal research?

   Confirming that a statute is in force and unamended/unrepealed, and that a case is still good law (not overruled, reversed, distinguished or doubted), using updating tools so advice rests on the current state of the law.

7. Which tools are commonly used to check whether a case is still good law?

   Citators such as Westlaw's KeyCite (case analysis flags) and LexisNexis case overview/signals, plus checking subsequent judicial consideration and the case history.

8. What information should always be recorded when noting a legal research finding?

   The precise legal question, sources consulted, the full citation of each authority relied on, the date the research was carried out (currency), the answer/conclusion, and any unresolved points or assumptions.

9. Why is recording the date of legal research important?

   The law changes, so the date shows the state of the law when the research was done; it provides an audit trail, supports professional accountability, and signals when the research may need updating.

10. What is a research trail and why should it be maintained?

    A documented record of the search terms, databases, sources and steps used. It allows the research to be verified, repeated or updated, supports accountability, and lets a supervisor or colleague check the work.

11. What is the neutral citation format for an English case and what does it tell you?

    A court- and year-based citation independent of any law report series, e.g. [2020] EWCA Civ 123, identifying the year, the court (EWCA Civ = Court of Appeal Civil Division) and the judgment number; it allows the judgment to be found regardless of report series.

12. Distinguish ratio decidendi from obiter dicta.

    The ratio decidendi is the legal reasoning essential to the decision and is binding; obiter dicta are remarks made in passing, not essential to the outcome, and are only persuasive.

13. What are the core principles of clear and concise legal writing?

    Use plain English, short sentences and paragraphs, an active voice, logical structure with headings, define terms once, avoid unnecessary jargon and Latin, and write for the intended reader.

14. Why should legal writing generally prefer the active voice over the passive voice?

    The active voice is clearer and shorter, identifies who must do what, reduces ambiguity about responsibility, and makes obligations and actions easier for the reader to follow.

15. List the typical structure of a letter of advice to a client.

    Reference/heading and date, a clear opening stating purpose, summary of instructions/facts, the relevant law in plain terms, application to the client's situation, advice on options and recommendation, next steps/action required, and costs information where relevant.

16. What tone and language should a letter of advice to a lay client adopt?

    A professional but accessible tone, plain English with technical terms explained, no unexplained jargon or Latin, clear practical advice, and a structure that directly answers the client's questions.

17. What is meant by drafting 'from the lay client's perspective'?

    Writing so that the lay client can understand the document and advice, anticipating their questions and level of knowledge, explaining consequences in practical terms, and ensuring the document reflects the client's actual objectives and instructions.

18. Why is avoiding ambiguity especially important in legal drafting?

    Ambiguous wording can be interpreted against the drafter, lead to disputes over meaning, defeat the client's intentions, and create liability; precise, unambiguous drafting ensures the document has the intended legal effect.

19. Name common drafting techniques used to avoid ambiguity in legal documents.

    Using defined terms consistently, the active voice, the singular 'shall/must' for obligations carefully, avoiding 'and/or', listing items with clear conjunctions, careful punctuation, precise dates and figures, and consistent terminology throughout.

20. What are the usual component parts of a formal legal agreement?

    Commencement/parties, recitals (background), definitions and interpretation clauses, operative clauses (obligations and rights), boilerplate clauses (e.g. governing law, notices, entire agreement), and execution/attestation (signatures).

21. What is the function of a recitals (background) clause in an agreement?

    Recitals set out the context and purpose of the agreement and the parties' intentions; they are not usually operative obligations but can aid interpretation of the operative clauses.

22. What is the purpose of a definitions and interpretation clause?

    To give specific words defined meanings used consistently throughout the document, reduce repetition, remove ambiguity, and set rules for interpretation (e.g. headings, singular/plural, references to statutes).

23. What are 'boilerplate' clauses and give three examples?

    Standard administrative clauses appearing in most agreements. Examples: governing law and jurisdiction, notices, entire agreement, severance, assignment, and force majeure.

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