Last modified: 27 Nov 2025 14:17
This course introduces the fundamental components and characteristics of the Scottish legal system. It includes a study skills programme which covers different facets of the study of law along with a series of practical workshops which introduce key legal information sources (both electronic and paper) and appropriate search strategies. Lectures and tutorials will cover topics such as the Scottish legal tradition, formal sources of Scots law, the legislative process, organisation of the courts, judicial precedent, civil procedure, alternative dispute resolution, the European legal order, legal services and access to justice.
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | First Term | Credit Points | 15 credits (7.5 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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This course introduces the fundamental components and characteristics of the Scottish legal system, including the Scottish legal tradition, the formal sources of Scots law, the legislative process, statutory interpretation, the organisation of the courts, judicial precedent, civil procedure, alternative dispute resolution, the European legal order, legal services and access to justice. The course will include distinctive features of legal literature; key primary, secondary and tertiary UK legal information sources; search strategies for efficient and effective searching and updating of information; use of both paper and electronic resources; academic writing; use of authority; legal citation and referencing.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 60 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
1-hour on-campus exam. Students will use their own laptops and lockdown browsers.
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Factual | Understand | To demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the civil and criminal court hierarchies of Scotland |
| Procedural | Apply | To explain how precedent and the Institutional Writings function as sources of law in Scotland and to interpret them using Scottish legal method |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 40 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback | Word Count | 1000 | ||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Remember | To explain how legislation functions as source of law in Scotland, and to interpret statute through reliance on Scottish legal method |
| Factual | Understand | To demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the legislative competences of the UK and Scottish Parliaments in domestic and international contexts |
| Assessment Type | Formative | Weighting | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback | ||||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Procedural | Apply | To explain how precedent and the Institutional Writings function as sources of law in Scotland and to interpret them using Scottish legal method |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback | ||||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
|
|
||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Factual | Understand | To demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the legislative competences of the UK and Scottish Parliaments in domestic and international contexts |
| Factual | Understand | To demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the civil and criminal court hierarchies of Scotland |
| Conceptual | Remember | To explain how legislation functions as source of law in Scotland, and to interpret statute through reliance on Scottish legal method |
| Procedural | Apply | To explain how precedent and the Institutional Writings function as sources of law in Scotland and to interpret them using Scottish legal method |
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