If you want to write a great essay, you must have an introduction. It sounds simple enough, but students struggle with the concept of stating their conclusion in their introduction.
When my lecturer suggested I write a “formal” introduction and conclusion, I thought he was nuts. It seemed like an utter waste of time and precious word-count.
Despite my better judgment, I tried it. My arguments became stronger and my marks improved.
Professor Robbins has a structured and comprehensive approach which is worth emulating – you’ll see that he sets up his argument, and then spends the rest of his essay supporting that argument.
The article might not be as interesting to read if Prof Robbins had merely started with the history of bird flipping, gone around the houses and then concluded with an, “oh, and by the way, it is/should be illegal to arrest someone for flipping the bird, The End”. Unfortunately, this is what most students do – and it just doesn’t leave the reader convinced the essayist knows what he’s doing or talking about.
Nobody is a natural born essay-writer. Good essay-writers learn from reading great essays – and set out their conclusions from the start.
I like to deal with common misunderstandings on Day One of Public law, and, being a bit of a pedant, I like to clarify that the UK is a constitutional monarchy and the US is not a “democracy”: It’s a constitutional republic. Democracies, as far as I’m concerned, are mob rule.
The United States’ Declaration of Independence roots that nation in natural law and Enlightenment principles with its Declaration that, “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”.
That Thomas Jefferson was able both to own slaves and to think it self-evident that all men are endowed with certain inalienable rights may be a topic for another post. The point is, nowhere in the Declaration or the Constitution does it say, “except for gay people”. So California, for example, can hold as many referendums to deny marriage to gay people as they like, but the fact remains that the majority of citizens cannot vote away minority citizens’ rights. Well, ok, they can – but it’s unconstitutional.
I am very interested to see Ted Olson (a conservative) and David Boies (a liberal) join forces in taking the matter to court. As they explain, it’s not about being a conservative or a liberal – it’s about upholding the Rule of Law and the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution. The video below explains. (Be sure to follow the prompts to the remaining four parts – they’re definitely worth it.)
Breaking news from Al Jazeera: Saudi Arabia could soon allow women lawyers to appear in court to argue cases for the first time.
I was excited – and then slightly underwhelmed to read, as the article goes on to note: “The female lawyers would be able to represent women in marriage, divorce, custody and other family cases”.
Ok, yay [...]
If I had to do it all over again, I’d definitely get involved with pro bono work during my LL.B., rather than waiting to after qualification. There’s is no better way to learn client care and how to apply the law to real life situations. Pro Bono’s a great way to make a positive contribution [...]
The best revision advice I’d ever received came, not from a law tutor, but from a recent graduate of the Metropolitan Police’s training school in Hendon. It’s the, “One day, one week, one month” approach to memory and study.
Here’s how it works - if you learn about Mrs Carlill, her smoke-ball and unilateral contracts today, [...]
It’s hard not to feel sorry for Munir Hussain (left) and his brother Tokeer.
But put your emotions to one side and see if you can find Munir and Tokeer a defence in law.
“Mr Hussain’s nightmare began on September 3 last year when he, his wife, 18-year-old daughter and two sons aged 18 and 15 returned [...]
Ahhh, the memories. Blasphemy used to be a English law exam and essay topic favourite. It had everything.
Blasphemy was especially fun to research and write about as you could chart English legal history from canon to common law, all the way down and through to Mary Whitehouse’s private prosecution of Denis Lemon for his publication [...]
As an Anglo-American lecturer in English Criminal and Public (constitutional and administrative) law, I am bemused by the myriad of approaches to US Constitutional interpretation.
So here’s a question: Is Miranda v Arizona “unconstitutional”? How do you approach the Sixth Amendment right “to have the assistance of counsel”?
The Sixth Amendment states:
“In all criminal prosecutions, the accused [...]
Up and down this country, law graduates on the Legal Practice Course (LPC) are waking up to the fact that they aren’t in Kansas anymore.
While the LPC does have a fairly high pass rate – LL.B students shouldn’t fool themselves into thinking the course is a piece of cake. The fact is, many people who [...]
As explained in my previous post on answering problem questions, there are generally two elements to be proved in order to convict someone for the commission of a crime – the actus reas and mens rea. Criminal liability generally attaches where the Defendant has the intent to do an illegal act (mens rea) at the [...]
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