Students on this module must become members of the Kent Law Clinic, and work on 'live' cases for clients of the Clinic under the supervision of solicitors, or other experienced legal practitioners working alongside them. (All Supervisors are members of the academic staff at Kent Law School.) Students will develop their knowledge and understanding of specific areas of English law and procedure, and some specific skills. Clinical work provides an excellent opportunity for active learning, and for studying the interface between theory and practice.
Students are encouraged to view their clinical work not just as a means of acquiring important legal skills but primarily as a means of developing a better understanding of law and legal practice and enhancing their critical analysis of law and of legal practice.
Students are expected to undertake, under supervision, legal work in one or more areas of law of relevance to the objects of the Clinic. Students will normally work on cases rather than projects. A Supervisor will decide whether a student has undertaken sufficient substantial work for the purposes of this module. Students are required to carry out this work to the professional standards expected of paralegal staff employed by solicitors.
In addition, students must carry out, also under supervision, the usual tasks associated with the conduct of legal casework as appropriate to the needs of the case such as case management, statement and précis drafting, legal research, interviewing, legal drafting, corresponding, negotiating, advocating; and orally (or in briefing notes) presenting, explaining and discussing cases and projects (especially with supervisors and in Clinic seminars and meetings).
Students will read and where relevant apply the Law Clinic's Case Management Guidelines. The purpose of these Guidelines is to facilitate the proper conduct of clients’ cases and of projects. Students will maintain a Student Folder, which will contain all drafts and research used by the student in respect of all casework or projects undertaken by that student. They will help to evidence the preparatory and research work undertaken by students.
Total study hours: 150 – consisting of 25 contact hours (with supervisor and in seminars), and the remainder private study.
All Law programmes – optional module in the Autumn
Main assessment methods
100% coursework, as follows:
a) Conduct of Clinical work (i.e. assessment of the conduct of case or project work undertaken by students under supervision in the Law Clinic (50%) *
b) Critical reflection, linked to clinical work undertaken, 2500 words (50%)
* A mark of 40% or more is required in BOTH the 'Conduct of Clinical (or Project) Work' and 'Critical Reflection' elements to pass the module overall.
* Exceptionally, for a variety of reasons, as an alternative to all or part of the requirement to undertake casework a student may be required to work in the Clinic on a project on a topic of relevance to the objects of the Clinic but not on behalf of a client. At the discretion of the Convenor, a student may choose to undertake such a project.
Reassessment methods
Like-for-like
The intended subject specific learning outcomes.
On successfully completing the module students will be able to:
1. Demonstrate detailed and coherent knowledge of substantive law, procedure and practice in one or more fields of social welfare or public law;
2. Demonstrate the ability to analyse complex situations of dispute, identifying appropriate legal and other resolution strategies and evaluating any relevant ethical issues;
3. Critically reflect upon the operation of the law in practice, drawing upon legal practice and original research;
4. Demonstrate specific legal skills, as appropriate to the needs of the case , such as: legal research, interviewing, negotiating, legal drafting, advocacy, presentation, case-management;
The intended generic learning outcomes.
On successfully completing the module students will be able to:
1. Critically analyse complex situations, gaining an overview of the different aspects of a specific problem and identifying the issues which need further research;
2. Demonstrate and test strategies appropriate to unstructured situations of fact, and relating the situation to wider contexts;
3. Present an argument in a clear way, setting out reasoned conclusions and developing an original perspective;
4. Demonstrate general skills of value to employment in legal and other fields ;
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