How to structure your LLM dissertation

In my work as an assessor of LLM dissertations, I see that some students who were adept at writing law essays on either the LLB or GDL, tend find the format of a dissertation difficult. Or even intimidating, despite having the skills and ability.

I am writing to provide guidance to students who are required to write a “practice focussed” dissertation for an LLM. This type of dissertation is set on the BVS LLM. Although there are other LLM courses which set similar dissertation projects. Please check your module/course handbook to ensure that this advice complies with what is being expected of you. 

Always remember – a dissertation is the distillation of the researching, reading and analysing process. So you are not writing up to the word limit. You are attempting to answer a current and relevant question relating to a contemporary legal topic which is connected to the practice of law in England and Wales. Your thoughts, analysis and reasoning should (if written down) exceed the word limit, and require crafting and editing to bring it into the prescribed word limit. It needs to be concise, incisive and free from padding. Students who write up to the word limit tend to waffle and use padding to reach the limit. The padding usually involves long quotations, long recitation of the facts of a case, description of the law.

Dissertation – structure

An LLM practice faced dissertation needs to have a structure and layout appropriate to legal academia. This involves certain formal requirements and other items I would suggest would show a well-researched, complete and well presented piece of legal academic research, analysis and writing.

The introductory pages

Title page – course, title, candidate number, word count, some people include the university logo

Abstract – 300-400 word summary of the dissertation – do not write this until you’ve finished the whole dissertation or it could conflict with the rest of the content

Optional: acknowledgments

Contents – doing this accurately takes a lot of effort, checking and double checking. Do not leave this to the last minute.

Table of statutes – include the sections relied on, the full name of the Act of Parliament and the year

Table of statutory instruments – include the regulations relied on, the full name of the SI, the year and the SI number

Table of cases – include full case names and citations

The dissertation

Chapter 1: Introduction chapter, including:

- Introductory remarks addressing why the topic is important/relevant - reasons for choice, questions being addressed

- Methodology – what it is, why it has been chosen, why it is appropriate to title/subject matter

- Research methods used – keep this brief

- Scope of the research/dissertation – including a justification of any limits

- Overview of structure (if space allows - if you are running out of words, leave this out).

Chapters – 2/3/4 etc – these should usually address the sub-questions you identify. Or your can use the approach below:

Chapter 3 Case Study Examples/Comparative element (with caveats)/critical analysis of key issues/ statistical analysis (with caveats)*

Chapter 4 Evaluation of the law - or Proposal of reforms - Or analysis on the legal doctrine from a critical perspective

Conclusions and recommendations – you should not introduce any new analysis or legal provisions here. But you need to draw together the conclusions which answer the main question here.

At the end

Bibliography – you should be adding to this every time you find a new source, or you may find you miss something. This can lead to allegations of plagiarism because the sources have not been properly credited and cited, so this can be a serious error to make.

Identify: books, practitioner texts, journal articles, newspaper/magazine sources, government reports, Law Commission reports, other reports, websites (give the date of access for these and the URL).

Things to think about

Using subheadings within chapters.

Using sub-sections within the chapters – 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 etc.

Don’t repeat yourself – use cross references to let the reader know where to look back or ahead when necessary.

Ensuring there are not lots of long paragraphs of text. Any single paragraph of, say, more than half a side of A4 (single spaced) is probably too long.

Avoiding setting out long quotations from cases, statute or journals with no good reason. Try to pick out what is essential and keep it brief. Remember that TurnItIn measures the content against other sources for similarity.

Avoid setting out long explanations of the facts of a case – only use the facts where they directly influence the reasoning of the court and help illustrate an important point.

Keeping quotations from sources separate from your analysis to avoid any possibility of being accused of plagiarism. This means careful use of quotation marks and ensuring as you compile your notes it is clear what comes from the course and what is your analysis or commentary.

Accurate pagination is a must. This means you must not leave your work until the last minute as this is when things are most likely to go wrong.

The caveats

*Caveats: Comparative analysis is very difficult to do successfully. It usually ends up being nothing more than padding, with descriptive writing of the jurisdiction being compared. CLS sets a limit on comparative analysis in the LLM dissertation. I would avoid it as far as possible. Statistical analysis should be based on information already available (eg; Employment tribunal statistics, Office of National Statistics information). You cannot do data collection on a dissertation of this type. Unless you are just using the figures from other studies, you will need statistical analysis skills and you will need to explain your methods. Proper statistical analysis is a skill in itself, which you must be able to carry out accurately.

The dissertation files

You might find these other posts helpful:

Dissertation tips: https://snigsclassroom.blogspot.com/2020/02/llm-dissertation-tips.html

Methodology matters: https://snigsclassroom.blogspot.com/2020/07/methodology-matters.html

My recommended book on LLM dissertations is “Law Dissertations: A step-by-step guide” by Laura Lammasniemi.

For guidance on research methods and methodology in particular, I would recommend “Research Methods In Law” by Dawn Watkins and Mandy Burton, Routledge.

For guidance on critical thinking [because your writing must not be descriptive, it must be critical in nature] I would recommend “Critical Thinking: The Basics” by Stuart Hanscomb, Routledge.

Your dissertation will need to use OSCOLA referencing and the guide to this system can be found here: oscola_4th_edn_hart_2012.pdf (ox.ac.uk)

I strongly encourage students to draw up a timeline for your research and writing, please see: https://explorationsofstyle.com/2017/04/18/can-you-have-too-much-writing-time/

Good luck with your work!

Snigdha Nag

June 2021

How to prepare for the drafting assessment

This blog post is primarily intended for students on the BVS (Bar Vocational Studies), BTC (Bar Training Course), the ICCA Bar Course, and Bar Practice Course (BPC). However it may also assist LPC students who are assessed on statements of case.

This blog post has been updated on 5 January 2026 in response to the BSB approach to the use of AI. It was updated on 9 January 2025 to reflect new exam arrangements, and was updated in January 2024 to reflect changes to the assessment methods and process at CLS's BVS course. The updates are all flagged up for clarity. 

 

UPDATE FOR 2026 – THE USE OF AI

We were informed by the BSB that the use of AI is not permitted for the Drafting assessment. This means that whatever you may have been taught about the use of specialist legal AI systems (Lexis+ AI, or Westlaw AI), you will not be able to use these platforms for your work. I would also suggest you do not try to use other AI systems, even language checking ones. I have already seen a draft with “fake facts” (in other words, events on a date which never happened in the instructions, involving people not mentioned in the instructions) which felt like reading an AI hallucination. We have been warned by the High Court in R v London Borough of Haringey (ex parte Ayinde) [2025] EWHC 1040 that it is for practitioners to check the accuracy of their work (in this context it was about fake cases) and that errors are the responsibility of the practitioner and a matter of professional conduct. Given how the structure of a draft is dictated by the “Stages” introduced in Chapter 7 of the OUP Bar Manual for Drafting, and given that you can put together resources for the actual wording of your draft (please see the further guidance below), there is no need for you to use AI for the assessment. You are allowed digital and/or printed resources in this open book assessment, so with planning and care you will suffer no disadvantage.

 

The drafting exam usually involves students being informed of the core areas of law in advance, but not the nature of the draft to be completed. This means you need to conduct a process of research, some revision of what your learned in drafting during the module, and a review of your previous work before the exam. You need to build an exam drafting resource , which I will call your “drafting file”. You also need to think about what you will do in the exam timeframe available to you.

 

This blog post is designed to take you through each stage of this process.

 

Phase 1: research and revision

 

UPDATE FOR 2024: CLS will allow students to put together digital resources for the exam. Ideally you should ensure these are saved to your computer, so that you do not need to tax your battery life. You will be able to access the internet resources such as Lexis+ and Westlaw in the exam. However, I would advise against spending time in the exam doing online research. You should do this in advance, and save the results to your computer. You may also want to think about whether you want a combination of paper and digital resources. For your paper resource, you can take printouts or photocopies of anything, provided you can find your way around your paper resource in the exam. 

 

UPDATE FOR 2025: Wifi reliability cannot be guaranteed, so you are advised to save all of your resources to your computer to avoid access issues. 

 

Do your research on the areas of law you were notified may apply. Ensure you understand the area/s of law before you go any further. Don’t neglect the Remedies manual as a resource for what can be claimed or which liability can be resisted. 

UPDATE FOR 2025: CLS students can only use a hard copy of the Remedies or Drafting manual if part of a student support plan. Otherwise, you are only permitted a soft (electronic) copy. CLS students can access the full Remedies and Drafting manual from Moodle, at BVS Central.

 

Yes, you can do extensive legal research online. Do so, but don’t go mad printing out huge swathes of online materials. Make sure you understand the ingredients of the cause of action and the likely remedies. Bullet point notes and strategic materials are what you need, whether paper or digital. 

 

Put together bullet point notes on the recoverability of damages in breach of contract, negligence, negligence personal injury claims, misrepresentation. You don’t want to have long notes – read the Remedies manual chapters thoroughly, and pick out the most important points

 

Top up your understanding with research from practitioner sources. Make notes and collect printouts as needed. Keep it realistic, based on what you realistically and practically think you can refer to during the exam period.

 

There are some fundamental questions you need to have a basic understanding about:

 

What are the main purposes of: a Particulars of Claim, a Defence, a Defence and Counterclaim? What are you trying to achieve? What do the CPR and/or Practice Directions say about them?

Which losses are recoverable? Which arguments might be used to deny recoverability?

What are the acceptable responses in a Defence? When you deny an allegation, what must you set out?

 

What is the format for a counterclaim? What are the formal requirements?

 

What professional conduct issues arise from drafting?

 

Go back to the Drafting manual. The most important chapters for you are:

 

Chapter 7 – PoC

 

Chapter 8 – Defences

 

Chapter 9 – Advanced PoC

 

Chapter 10 – Advanced Defences

 

Chapter 13 – Defence and Counterclaim  

 

UPDATE FOR 2026: The module leader at CLS has suggested the following reading, in addition to the above; Chapter 2: Guidance on the use of Precedents; Chapter 4.5: Contents of Statements of Case (rules on stating material facts, rules as to format & content etc); Chapter 6.1: Rules for claiming interest.

 

The “Stages” approach to Drafting as introduced in Chapter 7 is fundamental, not just to the content of your draft, but to its structure. You need to know what the paragraphs of your statement of case need to deal with, and in which order. This can help you remember what you need to include. It will also help you recognise in what order to raise them – establish the obligation, show how the obligation has been breached, explain what happened as a result, claim relevant remedies, etc…

 

Remembering the order of issues will help you with the structure of your draft. Remember which issues need to go in your draft will help you with your case analysis.

 

Phase 2: check lists and crib sheets

I find that I can’t remember lists of things very well. If I make a shopping list and forget it at home when I go to the shops, remembering what was in my list is almost impossible. Similarly, creating a list in my head from scratch is very difficult. When you have the stress of an assessment, when you are trying to read a set of papers, analyse those papers, plan your draft and then actually it out in full within your time limit, having to remember lists of useful information is probably too much to manage with.

If you need to make up checklists, do so. Checklists mean you don’t need to rely on your memory.  [Update: these checklists can be paper or digital. But do prepare them in advance.]

For example:

STAGES lists: breach of contract, negligence (general), misrepresentation, negligence (Personal injury)

What are the necessary facts to plead a contract?

 

Which facts help show a duty of care? What are they in a road traffic accident? What are they in a professional negligence case?

 

What are the necessary elements for a claim of misrepresentation? What facts are necessary to make out those elements? Remember that for a single element you may need more than one fact.

 

If you are relying on a conviction, which facts are required to do so?

 

If you are making a claim relating to a debt under the Late Payments legislation, what are the facts and requirements needed to support such a claim?

 

There are many other examples, but these are useful to begin with.

There are certain forms of words which are commonly used in drafting. They can be found in practitioner precedent sources, or in the drafting manual. But you will want to be able to find them quickly. You have two options – have them in your manual and your drafting file (if printed from practitioner precedents) – or to put together crib sheets in your drafting file which are easy for you to find. The choice is yours. [Update: you can make these crib sheets digital and save to your computer.]

UPDATE FOR 2026: I would suggest having separate lists in your Bank of useful phrases for Particulars of Claim (covering negligence, breach of contract, misrepresentation, and any other causes of action you have covered on the course), for Schedule of Loss, for Defences (including set off), and for Counterclaims.

Think about whether you want to have a “crib sheet” of useful wordings or a "Bank of useful phrases"…. Such as:

 

- The typical way in which a contract (agreement) is pleaded

- The lead in to particulars of negligence

- The lead in to particulars of breach of contract

- The lead in to particulars of falsity (misrepresentation)

- How to plead vicarious liability

- How to combine concurrent liability

- The set off paragraph

- Formal elements of a Late Payments claim

- Interest – fixed claim, claim to be assessed, County Court, High Court, Late payments claim

 

Different formulas for denials:

- Denial of causation

- Denial of foreseeability of loss

- How to allege a failure to mitigate 

- Denial of a single fact, admitting the rest

- Admission of a single fact, denial of the rest

  

This list is not exhaustive, think about what else you have met on the course which you think it might be helpful to have in front of you in case you need to be guided by or replicate a particular form of words. 

 

UPDATE FOR 2025: You are required to know and set out the full wording of the Statement of Truth for the given Statement of Case you will be drafting. Make sure you have the wording noted down somewhere in your notes. 

 

Phase 3: review you own work and put together your drafting exam file

  

Look back at your work, to review what you have learned about drafting. This is best done by printing out your work and reviewing it to the feedback you have received and comparing with the suggested answer. Carry out some consolidation and reflection on your work and the feedback you have received. [Update: you could download all of your work digitally and see what comments your tutor has provided you, both in class and for the formative.] 

 

Read the commentaries of the suggested answers so you understand the reasoning behind the approach and analysis. If you haven’t already marked up your work, do so now – with advice to yourself on case analysis, wording, things you missed, tactics and practicality.

 

If you have often cut corners on case analysis, go back to the Case Preparation and Opinion Writing Manual. Please do not start writing your draft until you have completed your case analysis. The vast majority of people who do not pass drafting are people who carry out little or no case analysis.

 

Your previous attempts at work, the suggested answers, your printouts and notes on the core law and your checklists should form part of your drafting file – your digital or paper toolkit. Go back to Moodle and check the class slides from class. Is there anything useful here you'd like to have with you in the exam - make a note or print it out or download it.

 

Get all your drafting work together – notes from the VLE (Moodle), suggested answers, preparation notes, any slides which you have found useful, all of your notes on drafting.

Put them in a folder. [Update: this can be a digital compilation.]

 

You may want to use Tabs or insert dividers – splitting up the file into Particulars of Claim, Defences, Defence and Counterclaim, Part 20 Claims. UPDATE FOR 2025: Consider separate folders saved on your computer.

 

You may also want to consider: Injunction Orders, Witness statements (in other words – start with statements of case). Check what you might be assessed upon - which might be different depending on your provider.

 

UPDATE FOR 2026: How to structure your Drafting file

You can either have sections/tabs/folders for each statement of case:

Particulars of Claim

Schedule of loss

Defence

Defence and Counterclaim

 Or you can be more specific

Particulars of Claim – contract

Particulars of Claim – negligence

Particulars of Claim – misrepresentation… etc

Have the “Stages” document first, the list of elements of the cause of action, the “Bank of useful phrases”, then your remedies notes, then anything else you think would be useful.

Phase 4: what happens in the exam

 

In the exam, you will need to think carefully about how to use your time. I would suggest that you ensure you go through 4 stages of work:

 

1. Reading

 

2. Analysis

 

3. Planning: stages/paragraph planning and then detailed factual paragraph planning

 

4. Drafting

 

UPDATE FOR 2025: You can make notes on paper or electronically on your laptop during the assessment, so you may want to consider the advice below and make notes towards your draft accordingly. 

 

Let us look at those for stages of work in detail:

 

Reading

 

This involves asking yourself – who is my client? Be mindful of the difference between claiming and defending.

 

What does my client want to achieve?

 

What document am I required to draft?

 

Careful reading of the papers – thinking about the chronology and time line.

 

What are the client’s objectives?

 

What is the cause of action?

 

What are my preliminary thoughts on losses?

 

Case analysis

 

What are the elements of the cause of action?

 

What is my view on the relevant causes of action?

 

How can I use the principles of law to achieve it?

 

What facts can I use which relate to those principles?

 

What is my view on remedy?

 

How do the facts interact with those elements? Are they all present on these facts?

 

What has the client lost? Prepare a working list of heads of loss, with some bullet points on amount with cross reference to your papers for later reference.

 

How can principles of remedies been applied to help the client recover what they have lost?

 

What can be claimed?

 

How can the recovery of loss be maximised?

 

What are the required aspects of the kind of draft I am required to write?

 

Hint #1: for particulars of claim, you are seeking to establish elements of the cause/s of action in order to claim a remedy.

 

Hint #2: for a defence, you are seeking to attack the elements of the cause of action and/or raise defences which exist as a matter of law to ensure the claimant cannot get a remedy.

 

Planning

 

The first step is working out the full list of matters which need to be pleaded. This involves planning how many paragraphs you need – depending on the stages, the elements of the cause of action, the structure of the particulars of claim and the necessary responses and positive case of the defendant…

 

Literally all this means is working out what broad topic – defining parties/addresses/status, factual background, storytelling or a “stage” of the claim/defence you are dealing with and putting them in the right order. [Update: you can jot down your thoughts on the relevant stages in your blank document in the exam.]

 

Then you need to draft a plan of your draft with an idea of what goes in each paragraph. So the plan is more than a list of topics – it is a thought out (brief) skeleton of the draft. You need to know which facts you need to establish, which facts are relevant and how to set them out. [Update: you set out your paragraph by paragraph plan in your blank document on your computer in the exam.]

 

 

Drafting

 

This is actually putting together the whole draft. This will take some time because the precision and concision of expression is very important. 

 

You are not just copying stuff from your instructions or draft witness statements. 

 

You are also not just copying stuff from your suggested answers, because each case is dependent on its own facts and your case analysis is key. 

 

Your draft has to avoid pejorative and emotional language. 

 

You have to draft in accordance with the principles of ethics. 

 

You have to endeavour to be precise and concise in your wording.

 

You have to comply with the relevant procedural rules. 

You need to give yourself time to think about these matters carefully.

 

Don’t forget to check your draft at the end! Proofreading is very important - you cannot solely rely on the spell checker. Try to leave yourself 10-15 minutes for proofreading.

 

Don’t forget to pay attention to the heading and the formalities at the end.

 

These are important!

 

UPDATE FOR 2025:

You will be using your own laptop. You can bring a backup power pack, but you are very unlikely to have access to a plug, so you need to ensure your computer can last for the whole exam time. You can have your phone with you (ON SILENT!) for 2 factor authentication, but you won't be able to use it for anything else. If you need a calculator, bring an old school pocket calculator, or use a calculator app on your laptop. You can bring your hard copy White Book and/or a dictionary. 

 

Good luck with the drafting assessment!