LLM (Master of Laws)

Why you?

The LLM (Master of Laws) programme is ideal for LLB graduates or legal professionals who wish to expand their knowledge of, and critical engagement with, law, particularly as it relates to the Global South.

You will join an international alumni of graduates from the LLM at SOAS, many of whom are now working at the UN, in NGOs, in government, in private practice, in policy work or academia.

Students must take modules to a total value of 180 credits, consisting of a dissertation (60 credits) and 120 credits of taught modules. Taught modules are worth either 15 or 30 credits. The dissertation topic will be connected to one of the taught LLM modules studied.

Please note that not all modules listed will be available every year.

Compulsory module

• LLM Dissertation in Law

General Law Options

• Gender and the Law of War
• Gender and the Law of Peace
• Human Rights of Women
• Law and Natural Resources
• Law, Religion, and the State in South Asia
• Israel, Palestine, and International Law
• International Human Rights Clinic
• Human Rights and Islamic Law
• International Commercial Arbitration
• Law and Development in Africa
• Intellectual Property Law (PG)
• International laws on the use of force
• Foundations of International Law
• The Law of Armed Conflict
• Colonialism, Empire and International Law
• Justice, Reconciliation and Reconstruction in Post-Conflict Societies
• Water Justice: Rights, Access and Movements
• Comparative Constitutional Law
• Law and Society in Southeast Asia
• Law and Postcolonial Theory
• International Criminal Law
• Gender, Law and Society in The Middle East and North Africa
• Gender, Sexuality and Law: Selected Topics
• Gender, Sexuality and Law: Theories and Methodologies
• International Investment Law
• Law, Rights & Social Change
• Law, Environment and Social Justice
• International Migration Law
• International Refugee Law
• Law, Environment, and the Global Commons: Ice, Sea, Space and Beyond
• International Environmental Law
• The Prohibition of Torture in International Law
• Water and Development: Commodification, Ecology and Globalisation
• Multinational Enterprises and the Law I
• Multinational Enterprises and the Law II
• Business and Human Rights in the Global Economy
• Comparative Company Law
• Israel, Palestine, and International Law
• Palestine, Resistance, and the Law
• Alternative Dispute Resolution I
• Alternative Dispute Resolution II
• Law and the Climate Crisis
• International Protection of Human Rights
• Islamic Family Law
• Islamic Legal Theory
• Transnational Law, Finance and Technology
• Colonial Geographies of International Law
• Law and Society in The Middle East and North Africa
• Law and the Biodiversity Crisis

Teaching and Learning

All Masters programmes consist of 180 credits, made up of taught modules of 30 or 15 credits, taught over 10 or 20 weeks, and a dissertation of 60 credits. The programme structure shows which modules are compulsory and which are optional.

We recommend that part-time students have between two-and-a-half and three days a week free to pursue their course of study.

• SOAS is ranked in the UK top 20 (QS World University Rankings 2023)
• We're ranked 6th in the UK for employability (QS World University Rankings 2023)
• Our research publications have been rated first in the UK - and our School of Law rated sixth in the UK - in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021

Knowledge and understanding

• Students will acquire specialist knowledge of the chosen subject areas of law.
• This includes, but is not necessarily limited to, knowledge and understanding of the following:
  1. the theoretical and practical underpinnings of law;
  2. the context in which law is made, interpreted, adjudicated, and amended;
  3. the role played by law in different social and economic environments;
  4. the role and function of legal institutions;
  5. the weight and significance of different sources and methodologies.
• Students will develop knowledge of how to locate relevant materials and assess their relevance and/or importance.

Intellectual (thinking) skills

• Students should develop rigour in the analysis and assessment of legal arguments.
• Students should develop the ability to understand, summarise and critically assess differing perspectives on theoretical debates.
• Students should develop independence of thought and the confidence to challenge the accepted wisdom.
• Students should learn to identify issues and formulate questions for further research through independent work.
• Students will be encouraged to bring to bear their own previous experience and knowledge in addressing legal issues in an interdisciplinary manner.

Subject-based practical skills

The programme will help students develop the ability to:

• Write clear research essays and dissertations.
• Research in a variety of specialized research libraries and institutes and online, and retrieve, sift and select information from a variety of sources.
• Present seminar papers and defend the arguments therein.
• Discuss ideas introduced during seminars.
• Develop essay and dissertation research questions.
• Read legal source materials rapidly and critically.
• Present legal arguments in moots and debates.

Transferable skills

The programme will enable students to:

• Communicate effectively in writing.
• Structure and communicate ideas and arguments effectively both orally and in writing.
• Read and comprehend significant quantities of reading rapidly and effectively and develop critical faculties.
• Find and use a variety of written and digital materials, especially legal materials, in libraries and research institutes.
• Present (non–assessed) material orally.
• Develop teamwork skills.

SOAS Law graduates leave SOAS as civic-minded and critically engaged individuals who can effectively contribute to their communities and societies. With a thorough understanding of the legal dimensions underlying many of our global challenges today, our Law students are valued by employers due to their analytical skills, specialist knowledge, and global perspective.

SOAS Law graduates have found the LLM a vital boost to their work as legal professionals and that this Law Master provides an excellent base for further study towards a research degree such as a PhD leading to an academic career.

Recent graduates have been hired by organisations including:

• PwC LLP
• BLM Law
• BloombergNEF
• British Medical Association
• Clifford Chance
• DAC Beachcroft LLP
• Department for Work and Pensions
• EY
• HM Treasury
• Latham & Watkins
• Legal Cheek
• Linklaters
• Simpson Millar Solicitors
• The Economist
• Travers Smith
• Vodafone
• World Cancer Research Fund