LLM in Drafting Legislation, Regulation, and Policy

The LLM in Drafting Legislation, Regulation, and Policy offers a unique opportunity to drafters, legal officers, policy makers, and those interested in the process of lawmaking and in drafting to study the legislative environment and legislation as a tool for regulation. The programme aims to promote an understanding of the principles of legislative studies, and an in-depth awareness of what constitutes legislative quality and how this can be achieved. The programme is no prescriptive and allows participants to naturalize their knowledge and apply it in their own national environments. Capped class numbers allow individualized tuition. Alumni are usually employed by governments and international organizations.

Available onsite or by distance learning.

Legislative drafting is often perceived as a technical skill, which one learns on the job. The view of the Sir William Dale Centre, as eloquently put by its founder and its staff in numerous publications, has always been that legislative drafting is a phronetic discipline requiring awareness of the theoretical principles of drafting along with experience on the job. Legislative drafting has evolved to become the bedrock of political, economic and social transformation. It is still, however, relatively unexplored as an academic discipline. The LLM examines issues related to the policy process, the legislative process, and the drafting process. Legislation is viewed as a tool for regulation. Effectiveness of regulatory aims is the scope and aim of the drafting process.

The normal minimum entrance requirement is a First or Upper Second Class Honours degree from a university in the UK, or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard (for example a grade-point-average of 3.0 or higher). We will consider applications from candidates who do not meet the formal academic requirements but who offer alternative qualifications and/or relevant experience. Applicants are not required to have a law degree nor a professional qualification in law. English is the language of instruction and applicants are required to demonstrate an appropriate level of proficiency.