Tort Law: specifically

- Tort of negligence
- Nuisance (Public, Private, and the rule in Rylands v Fletcher)
- Occupier's Liability
- Product Liability
- How to answer problem questions using Issue, Rule, Application, Conclude (IRAC)

Contract Law: specifically

- Existence and formation of a contract, including the core principles of offer, acceptance and consideration. - Contractual terms, unfair terms and exclusion clauses
- The vitiating factors, including misrepresentation and duress.
- Discharge of contract and frustration
- Contracts in restraint of trade
- Remedies, including damages, equitable remedies and unjust enrichment.

1. This assessment requires students to produce an individual letter of legal advice based on a pre-seen tort scenario, addressing issues in negligence, occupier's liability, nuisance, and product liability. It is designed to develop student's ability to apply legal principles to factual situations through critical reasoning, while also demonstrating collaboration in a professional, client-centred context by tailoring advice to the needs, priorities, and level of understanding of a fictional client. The assessment further embeds ethical awareness by requiring students to present balanced, responsible advice, manage client expectations, and consider practical implications such as risk, cost, and reputational impact. These topics have been selected as they align with those areas of tort covered in the Solicitors Qualification exam (SQE).

2. The examination will be an unseen, closed book problem-based assessment. It will require students to demonstrate a comprehensive knowledge, critical reasoning, and understanding of the fundamental principles, legal rules, and key case law governing contract law. Students will be expected to apply this knowledge to given factual scenarios in order to identify and analyse relevant legal issues, evaluate potential liability, and reach well-reasoned and legally sound conclusions.

Lectures will have a focus on contract law and tort law each week, there will be structured and unstructured opportunities for students to interact with the lecture. Activities will also allow students to discuss their learning and practice problem-solving skills both individually and in small groups with the knowledge that they have gained. Skills sessions will introduce and reinforce the IRAC (Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion) method, case analysis techniques, and strategies for writing evidence-based conclusion.

1. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the fundamental principles, legal rules, and key case law governing contract law within the law of obligations.

Knowledge and understanding

2. Apply principles of contract law to factual scenarios through critical legal reasoning in order to identify legal issues, assess liability, and reach reasoned and legally supported conclusions.

Application and problem solving

3. Apply principles of tort law to factual scenarios through critical legal reasoning in order to identify legal issues, assess liability, and provide reasoned legal advice.

Critical reasoning and collaboration

4. Communicate legal advice in a professional and client-centred manner, demonstrating ethical awareness and consideration of practical implications relevant to legal practice.

Communication

Legal databases with access to statutes, case law, and secondary legal resources including journals.

Horsey, K, and Rackley E, Tort Law (OUP, 2025).

Bermingham, V and Brennan, C, Tort Law Directions (OUP, 2024)

McKendrick, Ewan. Contract Law: Texts, Cases and Materials (11th edn, OUP 2024)

Poole, J. Poole’s Textbook on Contract (16th edn, OUP 2023).

This module introduces the Law of Obligations, examining how the law regulates responsibility and liability in civil disputes through the interconnected areas of tort and contract law. You will study how the law responds to harm, loss, and the breakdown of legal relationships, focusing on both fault-based and contractual obligations. In the tort law component, you will explore key principles such as negligence, nuisance, occupier's liability, and product liability, considering how legal rules operate in practice to balance competing interests and allocate responsibility. The contract law component examines the formation and enforcement of legally binding agreements, including the core elements of contract formation, contractual terms and exclusion clauses, vitiating factors, discharge of contracts, and the remedies available for breach. Using real-world examples and case law, the module helps you develop practical legal skills, including analysing problem scenarios and applying legal rules clearly and confidently.