LSE Law School

Last updated
LSE Law School
Parent school London School of Economics
Established1919;106 years ago (1919)
School type Public law school
Dean Andrew Murray
Location London, United Kingdom
Website www.lse.ac.uk/law
Cheng Kin Ku Building, seat of the LSE Law School. NABuilding.JPG
Cheng Kin Ku Building, seat of the LSE Law School.

LSE Law School is the law school of the London School of Economics.

Contents

The teaching of law at LSE dates back to the university's founding in 1895, although the Law School itself was formally established in 1919 with the appointment of H. C. Gutteridge as Professor of Law. It is one of the largest departments at LSE, with more than 60 academic staff. Since September 2025, Andrew Murray has held the office of the dean, succeeding David Kershaw.

History

In 1895, the year in which LSE was established, commercial and industrial law were among the nine courses offered at the university. [1] In 1906, LSE's law faculty became part of the intercollegiate faculty of law of the University of London, alongside the law schools of University College London and King's College London, which continued into the 1960s for undergraduate courses. Among those teaching law in the early days at LSE were Robert Wright, later appointed a law lord, A. V. Dicey, Vinerian Professor of English Law at Oxford, and L. F. L. Oppenheim. [2]

In 1919, H. C. Gutteridge was appointed as the first full-time Professor of Law at the LSE Law School and Sir Ernest Cassel, was appointed subsequently as Professor of Industrial and Commercial law. Cassel led the expansion of the school from one full-time professor, five part-time lecturers and two other part-time teachers in 1924 to a full-time staff of ten, with four professors, two readers and four lecturers, in 1934, forming the largest law department of any University of London college. [3] [4] [2] [2]

In the 1930s the school was joined by German-Jewish jurists fleeing Nazi persecution, including Otto Kahn-Freund. David Hughes Parry held the professorship of English law from 1930 to 1959, and in 1937 Robert Chorley founded the Modern Law Review at the school. [2]

Facilities

LSE Law School is located on Lincoln's Inn Fields in the Cheng Kin Ku Building (abbreviated as CKK, formerly the New Academic Building, NAB), named in honour of LSE donor Vincent Cheng’s father. [5]

Academic profile

Teaching

LSE Law School offers undergraduate (LLB, BA Law and Anthropology), taught postgraduate (LLM, MSc Law and Finance, [6] and Executive LLM), and research (PhD) degrees. [7] It also offers a conjoint LLB/JD (Juris Doctor) degree with the Columbia Law School at Columbia University in the United States. [8]

Research

LSE Law School has traditionally maintained close academic ties with the Modern Law Review and the London Review of International Law, both of which were founded at the school.[ citation needed ] The school hosts its annual Chorley Lecture, named in honour of Robert Chorley, 1st Baron Chorley.[ citation needed ]

Admissions

The LLB in Laws programme received 17 applicantions for each place in 2024. [9]

Reputation and rankings

Rankings
National rankings
Complete (2026) [10] 5
Guardian (2026) [11] 1
Times / Sunday Times (2026) [12] 2
Global rankings
ARWU (2025) [13] 51–75
QS (2026) [14] 6
THE (2025) [15] 13

Nationally, the Complete University Guide 2026 ranked LSE fifth for law, [16] The Guardian University Guide 2026 ranked LSE first for law, [17] and The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026 ranked LSE second for law. [18] Internationally, LSE was ranked 13th in the world in 2025 by Times Higher Education , [19] sixth in the world for law in the law and legal studies subject ranking of the QS World University Rankings 2025, [20] and in the 51 to 75 range in the Shanghai Ranking Global Ranking of Academic Subjects for 2024. [21]

Notable people

Alumni

At least one prime minister or president of the countries of Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Mauritius, Sierra Leone, Saint Lucia, Ghana, Peru, Jordan and Thailand has earned an LLB or LLM from the law school.[ citation needed ] Former President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen, earned a PhD in law in 1984 [22] Singapore's founding Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, initially enrolled to read law at the school before transferring to Cambridge. [23] Jane Yumiko Ittogi, the First Lady of Singapore, earned both her LLB and LLM from the LSE Law School. [24] Whilst at LSE, she met Tharman Shanmugaratnam, the ninth President of Singapore, who is himself an LSE alumnus. [25] Cherie Blair, a barrister and wife of British Prime Minister Tony Blair, earned an LLB in 1975. [26] Former United States Supreme Court Justice, Anthony Kennedy, spent the final year of his degree at the school. [27]

The school also educated Shami Chakrabarti, [28] Eugenia Charles, [28] John Compton, [28] Jean Corston, [28] Linda Dobbs, [28] Audrey Eu, [28] Tony Grabiner, [28] Mia Mottley, [29] P. J. Patterson, [28] Mónica Feria Tinta [30] and Veerasamy Ringadoo. [28]

Staff

Among the staff of the school, Arnold McNair, Robert Jennings and Rosalyn Higgins went on to become presidents of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), while Hersch Lauterpacht became an ICJ judge. [2] [31] Derry Irvine, who lectured at LSE before being called to the bar, was appointed Lord Chancellor in 1997. [32]

Other notable current and former professors at LSE Law School include Julia Black, [33] Robert Chorley, [28] Hugh Collins, [34] Ross Cranston, [35] Paul Davies, [36] Neil Duxbury, [37] Conor Gearty, [38] John Griffith, [28] Jim Gower, [28] Christopher Greenwood, [39] Jeremy Horder, [40] Emily Jackson, [41] Otto Kahn-Freund, [28] David Kershaw, [42] Nicola Lacey, [43] Niamh Moloney, [44] David Hughes Parry, [28] Thomas Poole, [45] Stanley Alexander de Smith, [28] Sarah Worthington, [46] Bill Wedderborn, [28] Glanville Williams [28] and Michael Zander. [47]

References

  1. ↑ Reed, Hayley (2015-10-07). "LSE's first prospectus - LSE History". LSE History - Telling LSE's story. Retrieved 2025-08-28.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "History of LSE Law". London School of Economics and Political Science. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  3. ↑ Richard Rawlings (1997). "Distinction and Diversity: Law and the LSE". Law, Society, and Economy: Centenary Essays for the London School of Economics and Political Science, 1895-1995. Oxford University Press. pp. 2, 4, 5. ISBN   978-0-19-826228-2.
  4. ↑ Harold D. Hazel time (1909). "Legal education in England". American Law School Review. Vol. 2, no. 7. West Publishing Company. p. 321.
  5. ↑ Science, London School of Economics and Political (2023-06-14). "A gift to strengthen our financial future". London School of Economics and Political Science. Retrieved 2023-09-30.
  6. ↑ London School of Economics and Political Science. "MSc Law and Finance". London School of Economics and Political Science. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  7. ↑ Science, London School of Economics and Political. "Study". London School of Economics and Political Science. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  8. ↑ "Best universities in the UK for law degrees 2023". Times Higher Education. 27 October 2022.
  9. ↑ "LLB Bachelor of Laws". The London School of Economics and Political Science. Retrieved 2025-03-16.
  10. ↑ "Complete University Guide 2026". The Complete University Guide. 10 June 2025.
  11. ↑ "Guardian University Guide 2026". The Guardian. 13 September 2025.
  12. ↑ "Good University Guide 2026". The Times. 19 September 2025.
  13. ↑ "Academic Ranking of World Universities 2025". Shanghai Ranking Consultancy. 15 August 2025.
  14. ↑ "QS World University Rankings 2026". Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd. 19 June 2025.
  15. ↑ "THE World University Rankings 2025". Times Higher Education. 9 October 2024.
  16. ↑ "Law". Complete University Guide. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  17. ↑ "Best UK universities for law – league table". The Guardian. 13 September 2025. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 16 September 2025.
  18. ↑ "UK university rankings 2026: League table". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved 2025-09-19.
  19. ↑ "World University Rankings by Subject 2025: Law". Times Higher Education. 15 January 2025. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  20. ↑ "QS World University Rankings for Law & Legal Studies 2025". Top Universities. 5 March 2025. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  21. ↑ "2024 Global Ranking of Academic Subjects: Law". Shanghai Ranking. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  22. ↑ "LSE statement on PhD of Dr Tsai Ing-wen". London School of Economics. 8 October 2019.
  23. ↑ "Lee Kuan Yew | Biography, Education, Achievements, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. 2024-11-05. Retrieved 2024-11-06.
  24. ↑ "Guest of Honour". scale.nus.edu.sg. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
  25. ↑ "Tharman Shanmugaratnam: The student activist who wants to bring his 'practical idealism' to the presidency". CNA. Retrieved 2025-09-03.
  26. ↑ "Cherie Blair". World Justice Project. Retrieved 2025-09-01.
  27. ↑ "LII: US Supreme Court: Justice Kennedy". www.law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2025-09-02.
  28. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 "LSE Law Centenary". London School of Economics and Political Science. Retrieved 2023-09-20.
  29. ↑ "LSE alumna Mia Mottley elected Barbados' first female prime minister". London School of Economics. 25 May 2018. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  30. ↑ "Ms Monica Feria Tinta". Lauterpacht Centre for International Law. Archived from the original on 31 October 2023.
  31. ↑ "Dame Rosalyn Higgins (Professor of International Law, 1981-1995)". LSE Law. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  32. ↑ Mark Lobel (12 June 2003). "The Guardian Profile: Lord Irvine". The Guardian.
  33. ↑ "Julia Black". Nuffield College, Oxford. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  34. ↑ "Professor Hugh Collins". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  35. ↑ "Professor Sir Ross Cranston". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  36. ↑ "Professor Paul L Davies". Jesus College, Oxford. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  37. ↑ "Professor Neil Duxbury". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  38. ↑ "Professor Conor Gearty". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  39. ↑ "Sir Christopher Greenwood". Magdalene College, Cambridge. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  40. ↑ "Professor Jeremy Horder". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  41. ↑ "Professor Emily Jackson". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  42. ↑ "Professor David Kershaw". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  43. ↑ "Professor Nicola Lacey". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  44. ↑ "Professor Niamh Moloney". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  45. ↑ "Professor Thomas Poole". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  46. ↑ "Professor Dame Sarah Worthington". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  47. ↑ "Professor Michael Zander KC". LSE Law School. Retrieved 29 September 2025.

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