UCL Faculty of Laws

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UCL Faculty of Laws
UCLLaws.pdf
Established1827
Parent institution
 University College London
Dean Professor Eloise Scotford
Academic staff
90
Undergraduates 825
Postgraduates 450
Location
Bentham House, London, United Kingdom
Website www.ucl.ac.uk/laws

The UCL Faculty of Laws is the law school of University College London (UCL), a member institution of the federal University of London. It is one of UCL's 11 constituent faculties and is based in London, United Kingdom. [1]

Contents

With a history dating back to 1827, the faculty was the first law school in England to admit students regardless of their religion, the first to admit women on equal terms with men, the first to award a law degree to a woman, Eliza Orme, and appointed one of the first three female law professors in the UK, Valentine Korah, who pioneered the study of competition law in Europe. [2] [3]

The faculty in 2022-23 reported a student body comprising 825 enrolled undergraduates, 450 taught full and part time post-graduates and around 50 research (MPhil/PhD) students, [4] and offers a variety of undergraduate and graduate degrees. [5] It publishes a number of journals, including Current Legal Problems and the UCL Journal of Law and Jurisprudence. It is the only university in the UK to hold a legal aid contract, which forms part of its Integrated Legal Advice Clinic (iLAC). [6]

History

Bentham House, the main building of the UCL Faculty of Laws. The Gideon Schreier Wing can be seen to the right. Bentham House, UCL.jpg
Bentham House, the main building of the UCL Faculty of Laws. The Gideon Schreier Wing can be seen to the right.

The faculty traces its roots to the appointment of the noted legal philosopher, John Austin, as Professor of Jurisprudence in 1827. Andrew Amos, a successful barrister, became the first Professor of English Law (and later Professor of Medical Jurisprudence). However, numbers fell off after the Law Society and the Inner Temple began offering lectures in law in 1833, leading both professors (who were paid by the number of student taught) to resign. Alexander Murison was professor of Roman Law from 1884 to 1925, still paid "five shillings in the guinea" from the student fees; his successor, Herbert Felix Jolowicz, was guaranteed an income of £800 a year. [7] The royal commission of 1898 that led to the reformation of the University of London as a federal institution found that the law classes at UCL were not well attended and, with the Inns of Court having declined to join the federal university, concluded that the teaching in UCL and King's College was insufficient to allow a faculty of laws to be formed. [8] However, an intercollegiate faculty of laws was established in 1906, bringing together UCL, King's and the LSE. [9]

The UCL Faculty of Laws expanded rapidly in the 1960s and soon outgrew its office space. The Faculty of Laws building, later named Bentham House, was bought by the college in 1965. Expanding beyond its traditional strengths of Roman law and jurisprudence, the faculty appointed the UK's first Professor of Air and Space Law in 1967 and offered courses in Russian and Soviet Law. [10] In the mid-2000s, the faculty expanded into the adjacent 1970s building in Endsleigh Street, now the Gideon Schreier Wing. [11]

Previous deans of the faculty include George Williams Keeton, [12] Bin Cheng, [13] Bob Hepple, [14] Jeffrey Jowell, [15] Dawn Oliver, [16] and Dame Hazel Genn. [17] Eloise Scotford has been dean since 2022. [18] [19]

Building

The faculty is based at Bentham House, Endsleigh Gardens, a Grade II listed building a few minutes walk from the main UCL campus. The building is named after philosopher, jurist and reformer Jeremy Bentham (1748–1832), who is closely associated with UCL, and whose collected works are published by the faculty as part of the Bentham Project. [20] The main building was originally constructed in 1954–8 as a headquarters for the National Union of General and Municipal Workers: the exterior decoration includes at fifth-floor level five relief sculptures of industrial workers by Esmond Burton. [21]

Facilities at Bentham House include teaching rooms, lecture halls, a courtroom for moots, a student lounge, a coffee bar and two computer cluster rooms. [5]

In the mid-2010s, Bentham House was redeveloped for £18.5m by architects Levitt Bernstein, a project which was completed in 2018. [22]

Academics

Research

The main portico of University College London UCL Portico Building.jpg
The main portico of University College London

The faculty was placed first in the UK for the quality of its research in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF). [23] The faculty's Judicial Institute, launched in 2010, was the first specialist academic centre for research and teaching about the judiciary to be established in the UK. [24] UCL Laws is home to a number of associated research centres, groups and institutes: [25]

Teaching

Undergraduate

The faculty reported in 2010 that it receives around 2,500 applications for approximately 140 undergraduate places each year. [26] The minimum entry requirements are A*AA grades at A-level, and a high LNAT score. [27] All candidates to whom an offer is contemplated being made who are identified as requiring particular consideration are interviewed. [27] There are no places available through the UCAS clearing process. [26]

Graduate

The faculty admits approximately 350 students to its on campus LLM course each year, receiving an average of 2,500 applicants for admission. [5] Further, along with Queen Mary University of London's respective law faculty it is also responsible for a joint LLM by examination awarded by the University of London at large.[ citation needed ]

The minimum entry requirements for the MPhil and PhD research degrees are a bachelor's degree with first or high upper second honours together with an LLM with an average grade of 65% (ideally with evidence of first class ability). [28]

Publications

The faculty publishes a number of journals, including Current Legal Problems, first published in 1948, [29] and the student journal, UCL Journal of Law and Jurisprudence. [30]

Public lectures

The faculty hosts a number of free public lectures each week (including, since 1947, the Current Legal Problems series [29] ) on a wide range of legal topics. These lectures are delivered by eminent academics from major universities around the world, senior members of the judiciary and leading legal practitioners. [31]

Reputation and rankings

The faculty was ranked second in the UK for law in The Guardian University Guide 2025, [32] first in the Times Good University Guide 2025, [33] second in the Complete University Guide 2025, [34] 12th globally in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024 by subject: law, [35] and 14th globally in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024: Law & Legal Studies. [36] In analysis of the 2021 Research Excellence Framework results by Times Higher Education, the Faculty of Laws was ranked first in the United Kingdom for the quality of its research. [37]

Notable academic staff

The Faculty has a large number of academic staff active in research across legal domains. These include:

Current academic staff

Emeritus and former academic staff

Honorary and visiting staff

Notable alumni

Judiciary

Sir Alfred Wills SirAlfredWills (useable).jpg
Sir Alfred Wills

Other

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "The Academic Units of UCL". UCL Academic Services. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  2. ↑ Colomo, Pablo Ibáñez (5 September 2023). "In Memoriam Valentine Korah (1928–2023)". Journal of European Competition Law & Practice. 14 (5): 265–265. doi:10.1093/jeclap/lpad037. ISSN   2041-7764.
  3. ↑ Sweeney, Joseph C. (2004). "Professor Valentine Korah: A Biographical Note". Fordham International Law Journal. 28: xvii.
  4. ↑ HESA. "HE student enrolments by HE provider and subject of study Academic years 2014/15 to 2022/23". Higher Education Statistics Agency. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 "About UCL Laws". UCL Faculty of Laws. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  6. ↑ UCL (13 July 2022). "UCL Integrated Legal Advice Clinic recognised with Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year award". UCL News. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  7. ↑ Negley Harte; John North; Georgina Brewis (21 May 2018). The World of UCL. UCL Press. pp. 43, 116–117, 170. doi:10.14324/111.9781787352933.
  8. ↑ "Report to accompany statutes". University of London: The Historical Record (1836–1912). University of London. p. 103.
  9. ↑ "History of LSE Law". London School of Economics. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  10. ↑ Negley Harte; John North; Georgina Brewis (21 May 2018). The World of UCL. UCL Press. pp. 229, 231. doi:10.14324/111.9781787352933.
  11. ↑ UCL (13 November 2017). "UCL Laws delighted to host Schreier family for tour of redevelopment of Bentham House". UCL Faculty of Laws. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  12. ↑ "Keeton, George Williams, (22 May 1902–2 Oct. 1989), Barrister-at-law; Principal, London Institute of World Affairs, 1938–52, President, since 1952; Leverhulme Fellow, 1971", Who Was Who, Oxford University Press, 1 December 2007, doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u165942 , retrieved 30 January 2025
  13. ↑ "Bin Cheng, 98: Air and space law professor who was fond of Morecambe and Wise". www.thetimes.com. 21 December 2019. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  14. ↑ Barnard, Catherine; Deakin, Simon (26 August 2015). "Sir Bob Hepple obituary". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  15. ↑ "Sir Jeffrey Jowell KCMG KC (Hon)". Blackstone Chambers. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  16. ↑ "Middle Temple | The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple". www.middletemple.org.uk. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  17. ↑ "Dame Hazel becomes dean of UCL law". The Lawyer. 29 September 2008. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  18. ↑ UCL (12 September 2022). "Professor Eloise Scotford appointed as Dean of UCL Faculty of Laws". UCL Faculty of Laws. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
  19. ↑ "UCL Faculty of Laws announce appointment of new Dean". www.laws.ucl.ac.uk. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
  20. ↑ UCL (17 May 2018). "The Collected Works of Jeremy Bentham". Bentham Project. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  21. ↑ Cherry, Bridget; Pevsner, Nikolaus (1998). London 4: North. The Buildings of England. London: Penguin. p. 274. ISBN   0140710493.
  22. ↑ "Green light for Levitt Bernstein's £18.5 million UCL scheme". Building Design. 3 November 2014. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  23. ↑ UCL (12 May 2022). "UCL Laws is rated top law school for research excellence in the UK in REF 2021". UCL Faculty of Laws. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
  24. ↑ "UCL launches institute to teach students about workings of the judicial system". Legal Week. 15 November 2010. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  25. ↑ "UCL Laws Research: Areas of Expertise". UCL Faculty of Laws. Retrieved 26 August 2010.
  26. 1 2 "Frequently Asked Questions". UCL Faculty of Laws. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  27. 1 2 "UCL Laws Undergraduate Programmes". UCL Faculty of Laws. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  28. ↑ "UCL Laws Research Degree Programmes". UCL Faculty of Laws. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
  29. 1 2 "Preface". Current Legal Problems. 1 (1): vii–vii. 1948. doi:10.1093/clp/1.1.vii. ISSN   2044-8422.
  30. ↑ Oxford University Press. "About: Current Legal Problems". Oxford Academic. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  31. ↑ OUP. "About: Current Legal Problems". Oxford Academic. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  32. ↑ "Best UK universities for law – league table". the Guardian. 7 September 2024.
  33. ↑ "UK university league table 2025". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  34. ↑ "Law Subject League Table 2025". www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  35. ↑ "World University Rankings 2024 by subject: law". Times Higher Education. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  36. ↑ "QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024: Law & Legal Studies". Top Universities. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
  37. ↑ "REF 2021: Law". Times Higher Education. 12 May 2024.
  38. ↑ "Baroness Hale appointed Honorary Professor at UCL". UCL. 17 December 2019.
  39. ↑ Robert Henry Mair (1886). Debrett's House of Commons and the Judicial Bench. London: Dean & Son. p. 286.
  40. ↑ "10th anniversary for Israel alumni group". UCL. 29 November 2007. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
  41. ↑ Morgan, Oliver (12 September 2004). "The CBI's megaphone man". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  42. ↑ "UCL marks a place in British intellectual history for John Stuart Mill". UCL. 23 March 2006. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
  43. ↑ "Annual Tagore Lecture Series in Comparative Literature". UCL. 9 July 2020. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
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