Assuming the signed sales form is incorporated into the contract between Jag& Ed for the sale of the two gas bottles advise Jag of its effects on his possible rights to sue Ed for the loss of his garden shed./Advise Sabba of her rights (do NOT consider the Consumer Protection Act 1987)/Advise Zaffa of any contractual rights he may have against Jag.

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA Please see the Unit Handbook.

read the following case study and answer the questions set out at the end

Jag was going to have a barbeque party in his garden to celebrate his 40th birthday. He discovered the gas barbeque needed more gas so he phoned the usual supplier, Ed, who said he would deliver two bottles ‘on the usual terms’ as he has just a delivery from the manufacturer. These ‘usual terms’ include at deliveryJag signing a sales form which has printed on it in large letters,

‘your bottled gas supplier is not responsible for any loss or damage caused by any products sold’.

Unfortunately, one of the gas bottles had a leak in it and when Jag lit the barbeque some leaking gas ignited shooting flames on to the garden shed causing it to catch fire and explode. Additionally, Jag’s cousin,Sabba, who was standing very close to the barbeque smoking cigarette, suffered severe burns to her upper body.
After the accident, Jag decided to sell his Range Rover. On 12 September whilst at a business conference he met Zaffa and offered to sell it to him for £25,000. Zaffa said he would think about it and get back to him. Two weeks later on 26 September Zaffa made up his mind that he did want the Range Rover so phoned Jag that day. He could not speak to him as Jag was in a client meeting. Zaffa did not want to lose the car so left this message with Jag’s assistant,

‘happy to pay £25,000, deal done, call me back today’.

Two days later as Zaffa had not heard from Jag he sent him an email repeating what he had told the assistant. Although the email arrived in Jag’s inbox, he mistook it for spam and so without opening he just deleted it. On 30 September Jag sold the car to Samantha. Zaffa is furious when he discovers what has happened.

ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS
Q.1 Assuming the signed sales form is incorporated into the contract between Jag& Ed for the sale of the two gas bottles advise Jag of its effects on his possible rights to sue Ed for the loss of his garden shed. (25 marks)

Q.2 Advise Sabba of her rights (do NOT consider the Consumer Protection Act 1987) (25 marks)

Q.3 Advise Zaffa of any contractual rights he may have against Jag. (50 marks)

HOW TO ANSWER LEGAL PROBLEM QUESTIONS AND DEAL WITH CASE STUDIES

What is a problem question?
A legal problem question describes a fictitious scenario (sometimes called a case study) and then asks you to advise one or more of the parties as to their legal rights or possible liabilities arising out of the scenario.
It is important to read the instructions of the problem question. You may be required to advise all the individuals in the scenario or just one. Do not waste time and words advising people when the question has not asked you to do so. It is also important to accept the facts of the problem question. -. Bear in mind that crucial facts will often be deliberately omitted from this type of question. This may then require you to develop an answer based on suggestions e.g. if X applies then my answer would be this, but, if Y applies my answer would be this. Usuallyevery sentence in a problem question is there for a reason, the examiner is trying to assess you on different areas of law and if you choose to ignore certain facts/events in the scenario then you can lose the allocated marks.
A good method to use when tackling problem questions is the ILAC method which creates a logical structured answer: ILAC stands for Issue, Law, Application and Conclusion

Issue: Identify what legal issue(s) needs to be addressed. This can often be the most difficult bit of a problem question. You need to identify what legal question needs to be answered e.g. has a contract been formed, or, has someone been injured due to negligence? A good starting point here is to state who is suing whom and for what, e.g. ‘A is suing B for breach of contract’. Reread the case study very carefully, as this will increase the likelihood of you identifying all the legal issues which the question raises and which should be covered in a good answer.

Law: You must state the law governing the issue you have identified. Eg. For a legal contract to exist an offer must have been accepted and consideration pass
between the parties -It is essential that you make reference to case law or statute to back this up.
Application: Apply the law to the facts of the scenario. Reference to case law is vital at this stage.

Conclude: Make sure you conclude as to what will happen to the person you are advising.
Test yourself by using the ILAC method to answer the question below
Sandra’s very distinctive mountain bike is stolen. She puts as advert in her local paper advertising a reward of £150 to anyone who finds it. Jim, who has not seen the advert, discovers the bike abandoned at the local tip and takes it home. His sister, on seeing the bike, recognizes it as the one for which the reward has been offered and shows Jim the advert. Jim returns the bike to Sandra, but she refuses to pay £150, saying that the offer has been withdrawn.
Sandra in the meantime has decided to buy a car. On Monday, Bill tells Sandra that he has decided to sell his car at a price of £2,500. Sandra says she is very interested, but would like to think about it. Bill says:’ I assume you want it unless you tell me otherwise by Saturday.’ On Friday, Sandra meets Ken who tells her that Bill has just agreed to sell the car to Jamie for £2,700. Sandra, who has decided she wants the car, immediately puts a letter in the post accepting Bill’s offer. Later on that day, however, she changes her mind and calls on Bill to tell him to ignore the letter. Bill tells her that the deal with Jamie has fallen through and he is still keen to sell to Sandra.
Advise Sandra of her legal position.
(Most students did spot that this concerned offer and acceptance – but the chief problems occurred in recognising where there might have been withdrawal of an offer e.g. by a third party and in dealing with the second scenario one stage at a time.)
HOW TO REFERENCE YOUR SOURCES

Inyour coursework assignmentyoushould reference your sources using the Oxford Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities (OSCOLA) method.

What are Sources?

• When you are making a point about law you must cite a statute or case law e.g. In English law misrepresentation is a false statement of fact not opinion, as held in Bissett v Wilkinson. If you cannot find a statute or case to back up what you are saying you need to question whether this is really the true state of the law.

• To find out what the law is you should look at textbooks, or lecture notes. These will point you in the direction of the relevant cases and statutes. You need to cite the primary sources e.g. ‘A person cannot by reference to any contractual term exclude or restrict his liability for death or personal injury’ You should back this up by citing S.2(1) of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 not p37 of Helen Burton’s lecture notes 2015

• When you are making a criticism, explaining how the law works, giving an opinion or suggesting reform you will use opinion based authority such as journal articles or textbooks. If you are unsure how to go about finding such material please go to a library workshop

• Be precise in your citation. Cite the section of the Act or the page in the book not just the entire book or Act.

Why Cite?

Believe it or not the purpose of citation is not to torture you! You must give the references of the sources you have used so that the reader can find the original material if they want to. If you claim for example that Donoghue v Stevenson

established that England has banned all snail products in drinks manufacturing, the person reading your work might want to look up page 567 of the English Reports to check that you have interpreted that source correctly. Using Oscola means that the reader has all the information necessary to do this.

Another reason for citing is to give credit to the original authors for the ideas that you are using. If you don’t cite, you present those ideas as your own and this is an academic offence. (See plagiarism below). This is why it is so important to give full citations.
Where to go to learn about referencing

1 Visit the library homepage and click on referencing, the link is at the top of the page in the centre next to the links toMoodle, site map and library news.

2 Attend one of the referencing lectures on:-

23/11/15 13:00-14:00 King Henry (KH 0.02)
24/11/15 12:00-13:00 St Georges (SG 0.22 )
26/11/15 12:00-13:00 Richmond (RB LT2)
04/01/16 13:00-14:00Park (PK LT 1.23)
05/01/16 12:00-13:00King Henry (KH 0.01)
05/01/16 13:00-14:00King Henry (KH 0.01)

3 Attend the drop in clinic on 06/01/161100-1500 Seminar Room 2 in the Library

4If you need further assistance regarding referencing, please speak to the law librarian Linda Jones. You can email her [email protected]

5 See page 21 for a quick guide

 

Plagiarism
Students are reminded of the need to avoid plagiarism in all assessments. The University Regulations describe plagiarism as:
‘the incorporation by a student in work for assessment of material which is not their own, in the sense that all or a substantial part of the work has been copied without any adequate attempt at attribution, or has been incorporated as if it were the student’s own when in fact it is wholly or substantially the work of another person or persons.’
Any student suspected of plagiarising will be referred to the PBS Student Assessment & Assessment Regulation Lead who will arrange an Academic Misconduct Hearing. Students should ensure that all sources are fully cited in footnotes and in the bibliography and that indentation or quotation marks (as appropriate) are used when quoting. Students who fail to include a bibliography may be penalised.

If any student has a query about any of the above matters and wishes to obtain clarification or further information please contact your seminar tutor or personal tutor.

HINTS AND TIPS

1. In a legal context: Judgment, not Judgement.
2. Liable ‘of’ something = wrong
Liable for something = correct
3. Mixing criminal and civil law terms – someone is‘prosecuted’ for a criminal offence and ‘sued’ in a civil matter.
4. Similarly someone is only described as ‘guilty’ in a criminal matter. In a civil matter they are ‘liable’.
5. Avoid avoid US legal terminology – do not start a ‘suit’ against someone in the UK– we ‘sue’ them, or ‘begin an action’ or ‘make a claim’ against them.
6. Capitalise the proper nouns – Parliament, Human Rights Act 1998 etc.
7. Case Names – if you see R v Wright written in a text book this is a case name. The R stands for Regina – the Latin for ‘Queen’– so the State is prosecuting Jones for an offence he is alleged to have committed.

Criminal cases may also begin with ‘Regina’ or ‘The Queen’ instead of just the letter ‘R’.

Occasionally just to confuse you (mostly in older cases) criminal cases can be written –Smith v Jones. This is because in some old cases, the name of the police officer who brought the defendant before the court appears as the prosecutor e.g.Chief Constable of Nottingham v Blogs
Cooper v White – this is a civil case, as there are the names of two private individuals. This would be spoken of as Cooper and White.

In some cases, the name appears as ‘Re Smith’ only. The ‘re’ (or sometimes ‘in re’)is Latin, meaning ‘inthe matter of’ – so ‘Re Smith’ means ‘In the matter of Smith’. This type of title maycrop up in cases concerning a person’s will or bankruptcy, or commercial cases involving a ship. ‘Re’ is said as one word – some rhyme it with tree and some with tray – it all depends on how much Latin you learned at school! Either is fine.

Case names are spoken differently from the print form. Say e.g. R and Jones, or R against Jones, or sometimes Crown against Jones (for R v Jonesi). Donoghue v Stevenson is normally spoken of as Donoghue and Stevenson.
8. Judges’ names and titles. When you see the following written, this is how you say it:
DDJ Smith – Deputy District Judge Smith
DJ Smith – District Judge Smith
HHJ Smith – His Honour Judge Smith
Smith J – Mr (or Mrs) Justice Smith
Smith LJ – Lord (or Lady) Justice Smith
Lord Smith – Lord Smith
You may sometimes see a couple of judges listed as Smith and Jones JJ or Smith and Jones LJJ – this denotes first Mr Justice Smith and Mr Justice Jones and second Lord Justice Smith and Lord Justice Jones.

9. Evaluate your sources before using them. Wikipedia, for example, is an excellent invention, but it is not an appropriate source to be using for a law essay – it lacks the authority of case or statute law, as well as that of academic writers in refereed journals. Using such sources may well lead to your being penalised for poor research and content (oftenreferred to in feedback as ‘poor scholarship’).
10. Be careful also when trawling the internet for help on your given topic. The Library runs workshops on ‘Good Googling’, which help you to be a discerning user of the internet. Remember that not all of the pages you turn up will be accurate, they may be referring to the law of another country and they may be written from a biased point of view by a pressure group. Often, they will just be at too simple a level for you, aiming just to describe a topic in outline.

11. Learn to argue rather than assert. An assertion is acceptable and can be right even if unsupported e.g.everyday facts – ‘it is hot when the sun shines’. An argument needs to give the reader a reason why he/she should agree with you so you need to support your view with evidence, for instance, a judge’s comment in a case!

12. If you are picked up on grammar regularly, then you may need to speak to ASK (Academic Skills Unit) and or Study Support – see www.port.ac.uk/students/academic-skills-unit/ Write simply and clearly. The purpose is communicating your thought to the reader.

13. Over-reliance on another text (even with referencing) – so that the structure, choice of arguments, cases discussed, etc all match very closely – or work which is really a
series of lengthy quotations sandwiched together by the odd sentence of your own – but referenced correctly. If you reference all of this, then it is not plagiarism(see page 22) – however, it will be very weak work, because it will demonstrate almost none of your understanding of the topic – it is all the ideas and words of someone else that you have simply selected.

14. You do not identify yourself by name in assessed work – we mark anonymously. It is, in fact, an assessment offence to try to undermine anonymity.
15. Lack of proof reading before coursework is handed in. This usually boils down to not leaving sufficient time to read the work through before it is handed in. Plan your assessment schedule and factor in the time to put the finished piece of work to one side so that you can return to it and have a final proof read before submission. At worst, failure to proofread can lead to work that is impossible to follow because of spelling and grammatical mistakes – and also where cutting and pasting of text has not been properly incorporated, so that the work actually makes no sense. Be aware also that word processing programmes will sometimes change what you have written incorrectly – or will miss spelling mistakes because the typo may be a correctly spelled but be a different word to that intended. This may lead to ridiculous results. For example – contact instead of contract, tortuous for tortious and even testes for tests!
16. Word processing programmes can pick up common points so do use the grammar and spell checker. Use UK English not American English.

17. With both pieces of coursework follow the instructions given with each assessment and read the questions carefully.

Answer the question posed not the question that you would like to answer because you have found some fantastic article on it!

You are entitled to expect feedback from us on your coursework answers which will identify what you need to do to improve your work and explains adequately its strengths and weaknesses. However, before coming to see a tutor to challenge a mark or seek clarification, do read your work again, with the feedback – it may become clearer why you were given that mark. Ultimately, if you are unhappy with a mark or need more feedback, don’t suffer in silence – come and ask.

Once you have read the feedback, please do respond to it by addressing your weaknesses so your marks will improve next time.

PBS Study Support

The Business School Study Support Tutors offer confidential support with all aspects of study skills.

You can send work (drafts or completed documents) to them electronically, or arrange a face-to-face appointment to help develop your skills and enhance your work.

They can provide guidance and feedback on things like academic writing, English language, planning and producing assignments, research skills, working in groups, presentations and exam/revision skills.

The tutors are available Monday-Friday throughout term time and most holiday periods. For more information, email them ([email protected]) or visit their website (www.port.ac.uk/studysupport

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA FOR LEGAL SUBJECTS

LEVEL FIVE
80+
As below plus:
Excellent work – contains accurate, relevant material and shows analysis, originality or creativity of approach and a clear, well-articulated understanding of the subject matter.

Wide research incorporating up to date, relevant original material with proper citation and referencing of primary and secondary sources. The answer has a thoughtful structure, a clear message displaying personal reflection informed by wider reading of articles and/or other commentaries and a good grasp of detail (as evidenced by the choice of relevant examples which are well integrated into the answer’s structure).

Such answers excel in most if not all the following criteria.

• comprehensiveness and accuracy;

• clarity of argument and expression;

• integration of a range of materials;

• evidence of wider reading;

• insight into the theoretical issues.
70-79
As below plus:
Very good work – contains accurate, relevant material, which is clearly written, well-argued and covers the subject matter in a thorough, thoughtful and competent manner. Contains some originality of approach, insight or synthesis.

Good evidence of research and good use of source material. Uses and presents references effectively with proper citation of relevant legal authorities.

Excellence in one or more of the following areas should be in addition to the qualities expected of an upper second class answer. Typically, a first class answer will spot points not seen by the majority of students.

• comprehensiveness and accuracy;

• clarity of argument and expression;

• integration of a range of materials;

• evidence of wider reading;

• insight into the theoretical issues.
60- 69
As below plus:
A very good, well presented piece of work covering much of the subject matter and which is clearly and lucidly written. Good attempt to consider and evaluate the material presented.

Evidence of research in the topic area and good use and presentation of references including citation of most of the relevant legal authorities.

An upper second class answer generally shows a sound understanding of both the basic principles and relevant details of the law, supported by examples which are demonstrably well understood and which are presented in a coherent and logical fashion.

Such answers are clearly competent and typically possess the following qualities:

• generally accurate and well-informed;

• reasonably comprehensive;

• well-organised and structured;

• provide evidence of general reading;

• demonstrating a sound grasp of basic principles;

• demonstrating a good understanding of the relevant details;

• succinctly and cogently presented;

• displaying evidence of analytical ability.

One essential aspect of an upper second class answer is that it must have competently dealt with the question asked by the examiner. In problem questions – i) all the major issues and most of the minor issues must have been spotted; ii) the application of the legal rules must be accurate and comprehensive, iii) the application of the legal rules must be coherent; iv) there should be a conclusion that summarises the legal position of the relevant parties.

50- 59
As below plus:
Work that attempts to address the topic with some understanding and discussion, key aspects of the subject matter covered.

Evidence of research in the topic area extending beyond key texts.

Satisfactory citation and referencing of sources, which includes some use of relevant legal authorities.
Satisfactory presentation with respect to structure, use and flow of language, grammar, spelling and format.

The majority of students might normally be expected to fall within this range.

In problem questions – i) some of the key issues must have been spotted; ii) the explanation of the legal rules must be reasonably accurate, iii) there must be some attempt to apply relevant legal rules iv) there should be a conclusion that seeks to identify the legal position of the relevant parties.
40-49
Adequate work that attempts to address the topic and demonstrates some understanding of the basic aspects of the subject matter.

Some research using texts and relevant legal authorities. Attempts to use and present references in the appropriate manner.

A satisfactory attempt to follow directions regarding structure, use and flow of language, grammar, spelling and format.

In problem questions there must be identification and explanation of some of the relevant legal rules and some attempt to apply to those rules to the legal position of the relevant parties. Typically, there may be a lack of reference to relevant authorities or over-reliance on the detailed facts of previously decided cases.

30-39
FAIL Work in this range attempts to address the question/problem but is substantially incomplete and deficient. Serious problems with a number of aspects of language use are often found in work in this range and the work may be severely under/over length and/or fails to grasp the nature of the subject matter. Content, analysis, expression, structure and use of sources will be very weak or missing.

<29
FAIL No serious attempt to address the question or problem, and/or manifests a serious misunderstanding of the requirements of the assessment. Acutely deficient in all respects.
MARKS AND FEEDBACK

Marks for the first coursework will be released to studentson or before 5th February 2016(save in the case of work submitted after the due date). Marks will be posted on the Student Portal, and marked coursework withtutor’s feedback will be available for collection from the Undergraduate Centre. Students will be emailed when it is ready for collection, please wait for this email before contacting the UGC.

If there is any delay in the processing of marks, the Unit Co-ordinator will communicate this to students.
Individual feedback will be provided on feedback sheets which will be attached to student’s coursework. These sheets will highlight thestrengths of the work and identify development points to help a student to work out where they went wrong and how they can improve their performance in the future.

General feedback on performance in the coursework will also be posted on Moodle

Please note that courseworkmarks remain provisional until they have been confirmed by the Unit Assessment Board which sits in June 2016
If a student isnot happy with their mark–

Part 12 paragraph 1.4 of the Examination and Assessment Regulations September 2014 makes it clear that students may not question the academic judgement of the examiners and states that any requests for a review of a mark based on such grounds alone will be dismissed.

Students can only request a re-mark under the following circumstances: there has been a material and significant administrative error; or there has been a procedural irregularity in the assessment process as defined in the Examination and Assessment Regulations. You can obtain a copy of the Regulations by following this link:

www.port.ac.uk/accesstoinformation/policies/academicregistry/filetodownload,10383,en.pdf

Although you cannot question the academic judgement of a tutor, we are happy to meet with students to discuss their performance. Tutors’ weekly office hours provide a good time for this discussion and you should approach the unit co-ordinator in the first instance. However, you must make sure that you have read and reflected on your individual feedback before you get in touch with a tutor to arrange a meeting to discuss your work.

Assuming the signed sales form is incorporated into the contract between Jag& Ed for the sale of the two gas bottles advise Jag of its effects on his possible rights to sue Ed for the loss of his garden shed./Advise Sabba of her rights (do NOT consider the Consumer Protection Act 1987)/Advise Zaffa of any contractual rights he may have against Jag.

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA Please see the Unit Handbook.

read the following case study and answer the questions set out at the end

Jag was going to have a barbeque party in his garden to celebrate his 40th birthday. He discovered the gas barbeque needed more gas so he phoned the usual supplier, Ed, who said he would deliver two bottles ‘on the usual terms’ as he has just a delivery from the manufacturer. These ‘usual terms’ include at deliveryJag signing a sales form which has printed on it in large letters,

‘your bottled gas supplier is not responsible for any loss or damage caused by any products sold’.

Unfortunately, one of the gas bottles had a leak in it and when Jag lit the barbeque some leaking gas ignited shooting flames on to the garden shed causing it to catch fire and explode. Additionally, Jag’s cousin,Sabba, who was standing very close to the barbeque smoking cigarette, suffered severe burns to her upper body.
After the accident, Jag decided to sell his Range Rover. On 12 September whilst at a business conference he met Zaffa and offered to sell it to him for £25,000. Zaffa said he would think about it and get back to him. Two weeks later on 26 September Zaffa made up his mind that he did want the Range Rover so phoned Jag that day. He could not speak to him as Jag was in a client meeting. Zaffa did not want to lose the car so left this message with Jag’s assistant,

‘happy to pay £25,000, deal done, call me back today’.

Two days later as Zaffa had not heard from Jag he sent him an email repeating what he had told the assistant. Although the email arrived in Jag’s inbox, he mistook it for spam and so without opening he just deleted it. On 30 September Jag sold the car to Samantha. Zaffa is furious when he discovers what has happened.

ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS
Q.1 Assuming the signed sales form is incorporated into the contract between Jag& Ed for the sale of the two gas bottles advise Jag of its effects on his possible rights to sue Ed for the loss of his garden shed. (25 marks)

Q.2 Advise Sabba of her rights (do NOT consider the Consumer Protection Act 1987) (25 marks)

Q.3 Advise Zaffa of any contractual rights he may have against Jag. (50 marks)

HOW TO ANSWER LEGAL PROBLEM QUESTIONS AND DEAL WITH CASE STUDIES

What is a problem question?
A legal problem question describes a fictitious scenario (sometimes called a case study) and then asks you to advise one or more of the parties as to their legal rights or possible liabilities arising out of the scenario.
It is important to read the instructions of the problem question. You may be required to advise all the individuals in the scenario or just one. Do not waste time and words advising people when the question has not asked you to do so. It is also important to accept the facts of the problem question. -. Bear in mind that crucial facts will often be deliberately omitted from this type of question. This may then require you to develop an answer based on suggestions e.g. if X applies then my answer would be this, but, if Y applies my answer would be this. Usuallyevery sentence in a problem question is there for a reason, the examiner is trying to assess you on different areas of law and if you choose to ignore certain facts/events in the scenario then you can lose the allocated marks.
A good method to use when tackling problem questions is the ILAC method which creates a logical structured answer: ILAC stands for Issue, Law, Application and Conclusion

Issue: Identify what legal issue(s) needs to be addressed. This can often be the most difficult bit of a problem question. You need to identify what legal question needs to be answered e.g. has a contract been formed, or, has someone been injured due to negligence? A good starting point here is to state who is suing whom and for what, e.g. ‘A is suing B for breach of contract’. Reread the case study very carefully, as this will increase the likelihood of you identifying all the legal issues which the question raises and which should be covered in a good answer.

Law: You must state the law governing the issue you have identified. Eg. For a legal contract to exist an offer must have been accepted and consideration pass
between the parties -It is essential that you make reference to case law or statute to back this up.
Application: Apply the law to the facts of the scenario. Reference to case law is vital at this stage.

Conclude: Make sure you conclude as to what will happen to the person you are advising.
Test yourself by using the ILAC method to answer the question below
Sandra’s very distinctive mountain bike is stolen. She puts as advert in her local paper advertising a reward of £150 to anyone who finds it. Jim, who has not seen the advert, discovers the bike abandoned at the local tip and takes it home. His sister, on seeing the bike, recognizes it as the one for which the reward has been offered and shows Jim the advert. Jim returns the bike to Sandra, but she refuses to pay £150, saying that the offer has been withdrawn.
Sandra in the meantime has decided to buy a car. On Monday, Bill tells Sandra that he has decided to sell his car at a price of £2,500. Sandra says she is very interested, but would like to think about it. Bill says:’ I assume you want it unless you tell me otherwise by Saturday.’ On Friday, Sandra meets Ken who tells her that Bill has just agreed to sell the car to Jamie for £2,700. Sandra, who has decided she wants the car, immediately puts a letter in the post accepting Bill’s offer. Later on that day, however, she changes her mind and calls on Bill to tell him to ignore the letter. Bill tells her that the deal with Jamie has fallen through and he is still keen to sell to Sandra.
Advise Sandra of her legal position.
(Most students did spot that this concerned offer and acceptance – but the chief problems occurred in recognising where there might have been withdrawal of an offer e.g. by a third party and in dealing with the second scenario one stage at a time.)
HOW TO REFERENCE YOUR SOURCES

Inyour coursework assignmentyoushould reference your sources using the Oxford Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities (OSCOLA) method.

What are Sources?

• When you are making a point about law you must cite a statute or case law e.g. In English law misrepresentation is a false statement of fact not opinion, as held in Bissett v Wilkinson. If you cannot find a statute or case to back up what you are saying you need to question whether this is really the true state of the law.

• To find out what the law is you should look at textbooks, or lecture notes. These will point you in the direction of the relevant cases and statutes. You need to cite the primary sources e.g. ‘A person cannot by reference to any contractual term exclude or restrict his liability for death or personal injury’ You should back this up by citing S.2(1) of the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 not p37 of Helen Burton’s lecture notes 2015

• When you are making a criticism, explaining how the law works, giving an opinion or suggesting reform you will use opinion based authority such as journal articles or textbooks. If you are unsure how to go about finding such material please go to a library workshop

• Be precise in your citation. Cite the section of the Act or the page in the book not just the entire book or Act.

Why Cite?

Believe it or not the purpose of citation is not to torture you! You must give the references of the sources you have used so that the reader can find the original material if they want to. If you claim for example that Donoghue v Stevenson

established that England has banned all snail products in drinks manufacturing, the person reading your work might want to look up page 567 of the English Reports to check that you have interpreted that source correctly. Using Oscola means that the reader has all the information necessary to do this.

Another reason for citing is to give credit to the original authors for the ideas that you are using. If you don’t cite, you present those ideas as your own and this is an academic offence. (See plagiarism below). This is why it is so important to give full citations.
Where to go to learn about referencing

1 Visit the library homepage and click on referencing, the link is at the top of the page in the centre next to the links toMoodle, site map and library news.

2 Attend one of the referencing lectures on:-

23/11/15 13:00-14:00 King Henry (KH 0.02)
24/11/15 12:00-13:00 St Georges (SG 0.22 )
26/11/15 12:00-13:00 Richmond (RB LT2)
04/01/16 13:00-14:00Park (PK LT 1.23)
05/01/16 12:00-13:00King Henry (KH 0.01)
05/01/16 13:00-14:00King Henry (KH 0.01)

3 Attend the drop in clinic on 06/01/161100-1500 Seminar Room 2 in the Library

4If you need further assistance regarding referencing, please speak to the law librarian Linda Jones. You can email her [email protected]

5 See page 21 for a quick guide

 

Plagiarism
Students are reminded of the need to avoid plagiarism in all assessments. The University Regulations describe plagiarism as:
‘the incorporation by a student in work for assessment of material which is not their own, in the sense that all or a substantial part of the work has been copied without any adequate attempt at attribution, or has been incorporated as if it were the student’s own when in fact it is wholly or substantially the work of another person or persons.’
Any student suspected of plagiarising will be referred to the PBS Student Assessment & Assessment Regulation Lead who will arrange an Academic Misconduct Hearing. Students should ensure that all sources are fully cited in footnotes and in the bibliography and that indentation or quotation marks (as appropriate) are used when quoting. Students who fail to include a bibliography may be penalised.

If any student has a query about any of the above matters and wishes to obtain clarification or further information please contact your seminar tutor or personal tutor.

HINTS AND TIPS

1. In a legal context: Judgment, not Judgement.
2. Liable ‘of’ something = wrong
Liable for something = correct
3. Mixing criminal and civil law terms – someone is‘prosecuted’ for a criminal offence and ‘sued’ in a civil matter.
4. Similarly someone is only described as ‘guilty’ in a criminal matter. In a civil matter they are ‘liable’.
5. Avoid avoid US legal terminology – do not start a ‘suit’ against someone in the UK– we ‘sue’ them, or ‘begin an action’ or ‘make a claim’ against them.
6. Capitalise the proper nouns – Parliament, Human Rights Act 1998 etc.
7. Case Names – if you see R v Wright written in a text book this is a case name. The R stands for Regina – the Latin for ‘Queen’– so the State is prosecuting Jones for an offence he is alleged to have committed.

Criminal cases may also begin with ‘Regina’ or ‘The Queen’ instead of just the letter ‘R’.

Occasionally just to confuse you (mostly in older cases) criminal cases can be written –Smith v Jones. This is because in some old cases, the name of the police officer who brought the defendant before the court appears as the prosecutor e.g.Chief Constable of Nottingham v Blogs
Cooper v White – this is a civil case, as there are the names of two private individuals. This would be spoken of as Cooper and White.

In some cases, the name appears as ‘Re Smith’ only. The ‘re’ (or sometimes ‘in re’)is Latin, meaning ‘inthe matter of’ – so ‘Re Smith’ means ‘In the matter of Smith’. This type of title maycrop up in cases concerning a person’s will or bankruptcy, or commercial cases involving a ship. ‘Re’ is said as one word – some rhyme it with tree and some with tray – it all depends on how much Latin you learned at school! Either is fine.

Case names are spoken differently from the print form. Say e.g. R and Jones, or R against Jones, or sometimes Crown against Jones (for R v Jonesi). Donoghue v Stevenson is normally spoken of as Donoghue and Stevenson.
8. Judges’ names and titles. When you see the following written, this is how you say it:
DDJ Smith – Deputy District Judge Smith
DJ Smith – District Judge Smith
HHJ Smith – His Honour Judge Smith
Smith J – Mr (or Mrs) Justice Smith
Smith LJ – Lord (or Lady) Justice Smith
Lord Smith – Lord Smith
You may sometimes see a couple of judges listed as Smith and Jones JJ or Smith and Jones LJJ – this denotes first Mr Justice Smith and Mr Justice Jones and second Lord Justice Smith and Lord Justice Jones.

9. Evaluate your sources before using them. Wikipedia, for example, is an excellent invention, but it is not an appropriate source to be using for a law essay – it lacks the authority of case or statute law, as well as that of academic writers in refereed journals. Using such sources may well lead to your being penalised for poor research and content (oftenreferred to in feedback as ‘poor scholarship’).
10. Be careful also when trawling the internet for help on your given topic. The Library runs workshops on ‘Good Googling’, which help you to be a discerning user of the internet. Remember that not all of the pages you turn up will be accurate, they may be referring to the law of another country and they may be written from a biased point of view by a pressure group. Often, they will just be at too simple a level for you, aiming just to describe a topic in outline.

11. Learn to argue rather than assert. An assertion is acceptable and can be right even if unsupported e.g.everyday facts – ‘it is hot when the sun shines’. An argument needs to give the reader a reason why he/she should agree with you so you need to support your view with evidence, for instance, a judge’s comment in a case!

12. If you are picked up on grammar regularly, then you may need to speak to ASK (Academic Skills Unit) and or Study Support – see www.port.ac.uk/students/academic-skills-unit/ Write simply and clearly. The purpose is communicating your thought to the reader.

13. Over-reliance on another text (even with referencing) – so that the structure, choice of arguments, cases discussed, etc all match very closely – or work which is really a
series of lengthy quotations sandwiched together by the odd sentence of your own – but referenced correctly. If you reference all of this, then it is not plagiarism(see page 22) – however, it will be very weak work, because it will demonstrate almost none of your understanding of the topic – it is all the ideas and words of someone else that you have simply selected.

14. You do not identify yourself by name in assessed work – we mark anonymously. It is, in fact, an assessment offence to try to undermine anonymity.
15. Lack of proof reading before coursework is handed in. This usually boils down to not leaving sufficient time to read the work through before it is handed in. Plan your assessment schedule and factor in the time to put the finished piece of work to one side so that you can return to it and have a final proof read before submission. At worst, failure to proofread can lead to work that is impossible to follow because of spelling and grammatical mistakes – and also where cutting and pasting of text has not been properly incorporated, so that the work actually makes no sense. Be aware also that word processing programmes will sometimes change what you have written incorrectly – or will miss spelling mistakes because the typo may be a correctly spelled but be a different word to that intended. This may lead to ridiculous results. For example – contact instead of contract, tortuous for tortious and even testes for tests!
16. Word processing programmes can pick up common points so do use the grammar and spell checker. Use UK English not American English.

17. With both pieces of coursework follow the instructions given with each assessment and read the questions carefully.

Answer the question posed not the question that you would like to answer because you have found some fantastic article on it!

You are entitled to expect feedback from us on your coursework answers which will identify what you need to do to improve your work and explains adequately its strengths and weaknesses. However, before coming to see a tutor to challenge a mark or seek clarification, do read your work again, with the feedback – it may become clearer why you were given that mark. Ultimately, if you are unhappy with a mark or need more feedback, don’t suffer in silence – come and ask.

Once you have read the feedback, please do respond to it by addressing your weaknesses so your marks will improve next time.

PBS Study Support

The Business School Study Support Tutors offer confidential support with all aspects of study skills.

You can send work (drafts or completed documents) to them electronically, or arrange a face-to-face appointment to help develop your skills and enhance your work.

They can provide guidance and feedback on things like academic writing, English language, planning and producing assignments, research skills, working in groups, presentations and exam/revision skills.

The tutors are available Monday-Friday throughout term time and most holiday periods. For more information, email them ([email protected]) or visit their website (www.port.ac.uk/studysupport

ASSESSMENT CRITERIA FOR LEGAL SUBJECTS

LEVEL FIVE
80+
As below plus:
Excellent work – contains accurate, relevant material and shows analysis, originality or creativity of approach and a clear, well-articulated understanding of the subject matter.

Wide research incorporating up to date, relevant original material with proper citation and referencing of primary and secondary sources. The answer has a thoughtful structure, a clear message displaying personal reflection informed by wider reading of articles and/or other commentaries and a good grasp of detail (as evidenced by the choice of relevant examples which are well integrated into the answer’s structure).

Such answers excel in most if not all the following criteria.

• comprehensiveness and accuracy;

• clarity of argument and expression;

• integration of a range of materials;

• evidence of wider reading;

• insight into the theoretical issues.
70-79
As below plus:
Very good work – contains accurate, relevant material, which is clearly written, well-argued and covers the subject matter in a thorough, thoughtful and competent manner. Contains some originality of approach, insight or synthesis.

Good evidence of research and good use of source material. Uses and presents references effectively with proper citation of relevant legal authorities.

Excellence in one or more of the following areas should be in addition to the qualities expected of an upper second class answer. Typically, a first class answer will spot points not seen by the majority of students.

• comprehensiveness and accuracy;

• clarity of argument and expression;

• integration of a range of materials;

• evidence of wider reading;

• insight into the theoretical issues.
60- 69
As below plus:
A very good, well presented piece of work covering much of the subject matter and which is clearly and lucidly written. Good attempt to consider and evaluate the material presented.

Evidence of research in the topic area and good use and presentation of references including citation of most of the relevant legal authorities.

An upper second class answer generally shows a sound understanding of both the basic principles and relevant details of the law, supported by examples which are demonstrably well understood and which are presented in a coherent and logical fashion.

Such answers are clearly competent and typically possess the following qualities:

• generally accurate and well-informed;

• reasonably comprehensive;

• well-organised and structured;

• provide evidence of general reading;

• demonstrating a sound grasp of basic principles;

• demonstrating a good understanding of the relevant details;

• succinctly and cogently presented;

• displaying evidence of analytical ability.

One essential aspect of an upper second class answer is that it must have competently dealt with the question asked by the examiner. In problem questions – i) all the major issues and most of the minor issues must have been spotted; ii) the application of the legal rules must be accurate and comprehensive, iii) the application of the legal rules must be coherent; iv) there should be a conclusion that summarises the legal position of the relevant parties.

50- 59
As below plus:
Work that attempts to address the topic with some understanding and discussion, key aspects of the subject matter covered.

Evidence of research in the topic area extending beyond key texts.

Satisfactory citation and referencing of sources, which includes some use of relevant legal authorities.
Satisfactory presentation with respect to structure, use and flow of language, grammar, spelling and format.

The majority of students might normally be expected to fall within this range.

In problem questions – i) some of the key issues must have been spotted; ii) the explanation of the legal rules must be reasonably accurate, iii) there must be some attempt to apply relevant legal rules iv) there should be a conclusion that seeks to identify the legal position of the relevant parties.
40-49
Adequate work that attempts to address the topic and demonstrates some understanding of the basic aspects of the subject matter.

Some research using texts and relevant legal authorities. Attempts to use and present references in the appropriate manner.

A satisfactory attempt to follow directions regarding structure, use and flow of language, grammar, spelling and format.

In problem questions there must be identification and explanation of some of the relevant legal rules and some attempt to apply to those rules to the legal position of the relevant parties. Typically, there may be a lack of reference to relevant authorities or over-reliance on the detailed facts of previously decided cases.

30-39
FAIL Work in this range attempts to address the question/problem but is substantially incomplete and deficient. Serious problems with a number of aspects of language use are often found in work in this range and the work may be severely under/over length and/or fails to grasp the nature of the subject matter. Content, analysis, expression, structure and use of sources will be very weak or missing.

<29
FAIL No serious attempt to address the question or problem, and/or manifests a serious misunderstanding of the requirements of the assessment. Acutely deficient in all respects.
MARKS AND FEEDBACK

Marks for the first coursework will be released to studentson or before 5th February 2016(save in the case of work submitted after the due date). Marks will be posted on the Student Portal, and marked coursework withtutor’s feedback will be available for collection from the Undergraduate Centre. Students will be emailed when it is ready for collection, please wait for this email before contacting the UGC.

If there is any delay in the processing of marks, the Unit Co-ordinator will communicate this to students.
Individual feedback will be provided on feedback sheets which will be attached to student’s coursework. These sheets will highlight thestrengths of the work and identify development points to help a student to work out where they went wrong and how they can improve their performance in the future.

General feedback on performance in the coursework will also be posted on Moodle

Please note that courseworkmarks remain provisional until they have been confirmed by the Unit Assessment Board which sits in June 2016
If a student isnot happy with their mark–

Part 12 paragraph 1.4 of the Examination and Assessment Regulations September 2014 makes it clear that students may not question the academic judgement of the examiners and states that any requests for a review of a mark based on such grounds alone will be dismissed.

Students can only request a re-mark under the following circumstances: there has been a material and significant administrative error; or there has been a procedural irregularity in the assessment process as defined in the Examination and Assessment Regulations. You can obtain a copy of the Regulations by following this link:

www.port.ac.uk/accesstoinformation/policies/academicregistry/filetodownload,10383,en.pdf

Although you cannot question the academic judgement of a tutor, we are happy to meet with students to discuss their performance. Tutors’ weekly office hours provide a good time for this discussion and you should approach the unit co-ordinator in the first instance. However, you must make sure that you have read and reflected on your individual feedback before you get in touch with a tutor to arrange a meeting to discuss your work.