How to “Critically Evaluate” and “Analyse” in Law Essays

How to “Critically Evaluate” and “Analyse” in Law Essays

The main objective behind studying law isn't just to memorise legal rules. You also need to be able to critically evaluate and analyse the law in your law essays. Many students struggle to perform critical analysis and evaluation because of a few common mistakes. But as a law student it is essential that you learn the skill of correct, thorough and precise critical evaluation and analysis so you can do well in your essays and exams. Also, if you are good at analysing and assessing legal documents, you are more likely to become a good lawyer.

Once you have graduated from your law school, you will soon realise that most of the law practice is based on your interpretation and analysis. That's why these skills also prepare you for the real world. If you cannot perform a critical analysis of documents and events in the context of law, you will struggle during your law practice as well. That’s why I prepared a list of three major mistakes that many law students make when they critically evaluate their law essays.

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​Karolina Sieler is an online law tutor and former Senior LLB Lecturer who has helped over 7,000 law students improve their grades during 10+ years of teaching career.

First published on: 17 September 2024

Last updated on: 08 July 2025

Mistake 1: Your essay only explains what the cases or statute sections are about

As a law student, you surely understand that laws are derived from cases or statute sections. While it is essential to have that knowledge, when writing your essay you cannot take the convenient path and simply regurgitate the law. What you need to do instead is critically evaluate and analyse those cases and statute sections. This means that you have to consider why the rules established in them were introduced in the first place and what could have been other possible alternatives.

Simply stating the legal rules in your law essay will not bring you any closer to getting a first. Instead, you need to perform a critical analysis so you are in a position to evaluate it. For example, you will find many instances where the law is inadequate or has some weaknesses. In your essay you can point out those weaknesses or explain why the law is inadequate, and then propose how it can be improved.

The idea is to brainstorm with yourself and think critically about the laws that you are studying instead of just accepting them as they are. This will not only make you do well in your exams, but it will also prepare you to practise law in the real world.

TIP: If you want to learn more about how to critically evaluate law in your essays, make sure to check out my 1st Class Law Essay Writing Course.​

Mistake 2: You don’t answer the right questions

In order to critically evaluate a law essay, you need to go beyond asking the basic questions. Just stating the specific law on a certain issue isn't enough to make you a good lawyer. You need to build the ability to think for yourself and have an opinion on every case and statute, which you can defend with solid arguments.

You need to develop a thorough understanding of the law in terms of its value, contextual history, and current relevance. The following are a few questions that you should aim to answer when critically evaluating the law in your law essays:

  • Think about the underlying reason. Why was this particular law introduced? For example, was introducing a particular statute section necessary or could any other section have been used to handle this particular issue? If the law is changed or removed, what could be the potential consequences?
  • Ask yourself whether the law you need to critically evaluate does its job. Does the law address the issue it was passed to address? Does it achieve the goal for which it was introduced? If not, what sort of amendments can be made to make it more relevant and well-rounded?
  • Question the quality of the law. Think about whether it is a good or bad law? There can be numerous aspects that you can take into account in terms of judging the quality of the law, including its scope, the ability to address a certain case or issue, and how adequately it deals with the said issue.
  • Don't base your opinion about the law on your emotional response to it or what you think is 'morally' right. You need to come up with a rational and logical argument to support your opinion - something that's strong and compelling enough to be taken seriously in court. For example, make a bullet point list mentioning the pros and cons of the law so you can critically evaluate whether it's a good or bad law when you consider all the factors.
  • Think about situations in which the law falls short and fails to address the problem. You may be able to find a few cases where that particular law wasn't able to deal with the issue and resulted in an unfair judgment. Add your opinion about how you think the law can be improved to enhance its functional and legal scope and reduce its weaknesses.​

Mistake 3: Your essay includes the wrong type of evaluation

Many essays discuss the law critically, but they do it in the wrong way. On many occasions, students evaluate their law essay critically, but they go down the wrong path by answering questions that don't need to be answered. That's why it is critical that you know what questions need to be answered and what's the central argument in your essay.

In order to do this right, you need to read the topic of your essay carefully and thoroughly so you know that you are answering the right question. Once you understand the question that you need to answer, ask yourself that question in relation to every single case and statute section you are going to talk about in your essay.

This will enable you to produce a more critical essay, as you will be studying and thinking about the law from different perspectives instead of just a single one.

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Mistake 4: You don't apply the IRAC method correctly

Some students find evaluating and critically analysing particularly challenging in problem-style assignments, where you need to apply legal rules to a scenario and reach a conclusion. This is usually done by using the IRAC law method which forces you to discuss the Issue, Rule, Application and Conclusion.

The method itself was designed to support students in writing problem-style assignments. But in reality, it often causes confusion because students take it too literally. The key thing is to understand that the Issue, Rule, Application, Conclusion approach is a useful tool, but that the main body of your essay cannot simply consist of paragraphs with bullet points addressing each part of the IRAC method.

Instead, you have to incorporate this method into your writing in a more sophisticated way. You should make sure that your answers to the Issue, Rule, Application & Conclusion parts are well integrated into the paragraphs of your essay. Also, on occasion you might want to depart from this method a bit to make the argument in your essay flow better.

For example, you might want to:

  • Introduce two different Rules instead of one and only then discuss their Application
  • Save the Conclusion part until the end of the heading instead of stating it in relation to every single Issue
  • State the Issue part only at the beginning of the heading instead of repeating it in relation to every Rule.

Final word

When students think about the critical evaluation of a law essay, they get intimidated by the sound of the task at hand. They believe they are not ready and prepared enough to critically evaluate their essays, which leads to poor quality essays. But if you follow the recommendations given above, you will be able to carry out critical analyses of your law essays without much difficulty.

Suggested read: How to Find and Use Relevant Case Law for Your Essays