Top Law School Study Techniques for Law Students

​Law school exams are very different from any exams you might have taken before university. Because of that, in order to get a first you will have to use different study techniques and strategies than those you used in the past. But it's definitely worth the try, as getting a first in law can open a lot of doors for you in the future. Here are some law school study techniques and tips to help you achieve first class grades.

Study technique 1: Use smart revision notes & guides

Working smart and not hard is the key to a successful law study. Unless you adopt this strategy, you will end up wasting a lot of time and effort while the results might not be the best. For example, proper law textbooks are bulky and difficult to follow, but you can easily help yourself by starting your study with ready revision notes and guides. Instead of spending countless hours over textbooks and getting confused by the complex language they use, try to first understand each topic by reading an easy-to-follow set of revision notes. You can then supplement your study by speed-reading or scanning through selected textbook chapters. Here’s why it’s important to start with good revision notes:
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• Revision notes and guides contain only critical cases, statutes and definitions. This will help you to quickly revise the points before the exam without wasting time reading unnecessary content.
  
  
• Specific definitions, cases, and statute sections are explained in good revision notes in very simple and easy language.
  
  
• Quality revision notes contain good examples and illustrations of how the law operates, which explain things in an uncomplicated and straightforward way.
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• Revision notes and other similar law study materials highlight high-priority and low-priority content, which will help you to identify the critical points for revision. ​

Study technique 2: Enrol in law essay writing courses

Unfortunately, the support and study materials provided by most law schools may not be enough to help you develop good essay writing skills. Lecturers are busy people who don't have enough time to teach students the basics of essay writing. That’s why you should enrol in external law essay writing courses that take you through every aspect of law essay writing step-by-step. Here are some benefits of enrolling in professional law essay writing courses:

• Good law essay writing courses include lessons prepared by law experts and experienced tutors that guide you through the entire essay writing process. They give you much more knowledge and insight than you could ever get from your own law school.
  
  
• Quality essay writing courses in law also provide you with access to essay templates and assignment writing sheets that can help you structure and speed up your writing process.
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• Online law essay writing courses in particular are a great investment, because they provide you with access to pre-recorded online video lectures which you can access at any point throughout your degree and revisit as often as you want to.

​Study technique 3: Use smart essay writing tools

Law essay writing used to be quite challenging in the past, when there were no technologies to help students. But these days there are a ton of online tools you can use to help you with your essay writing. Let's divide them into two categories: general essay writing tools and law-specific essay writing tools.

General essay writing tools

Making sure that your essay uses correct grammar, punctuation and is free from spelling mistakes is a must. Even the most well-structured essay with carefully written arguments as well as the right cases, statute sections and journal articles will be marked down if it is full of grammar and spelling mistakes. Luckily, there are plenty of online tools out there that will correct your writing for you. For example, Grammarly will gladly review your essays, point out any grammar, punctuation and spelling mistakes and suggest improvements. It will even suggest changes to your writing style to improve the clarity of your essay. While tools like that are usually pricey, they are often worth the investment as you will be using them throughout your degree.

Law-specific essay writing tools

Once you have your essay writing basics covered, you can then look for support writing law essays in particular. For example, the Essay Generator which I created is a wonderful tool that helps you structure any law essay you will come across in your degree. You simply select the number of words, the essay type (essay-style or problem-style) and - in case of problem-style essays - the number of legal issues. The Generator then provides you with several questions regarding your essay. You simply fill in the answers and the generator puts them together into a well-structured, consistent essay with the right number of cases, statute sections and journal articles.

Final word

Passing law school with flying colours is every law student’s dream. It’s true that law school can be quite competitive, which has its own ups and downs. But that’s not to say that you are doomed to getting average or below average marks. You can definitely still get a first by following the correct approach to writing law essays and using the right study techniques.

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