PgDip Legal Practice

As this course is approved by the SRA, you must also apply through the Central Applications Board (LawCAB). Their application requires you to submit a personal statement and you can apply to up to three institutions.

Apply through LawCAB

You should have either a Qualifying Law Degree (QLD), usually with a minimum 2:2 classification, or have successfully completed an undergraduate degree in a subject other than law and have successfully completed the GDL qualification.

The Legal Practice Course is designed for applicants who are currently studying or have obtained their Qualifying Law Degrees (QLD/LLB) or Graduate Diploma in Law (GDL) in the UK or for those who have been admitted as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (FILEx).

Find institutions that offer Qualifying Law Degrees on the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) website. You can also review the award titles of the qualifying degrees.

The LPC is not designed for students who have studied law degrees outside of the UK unless the degree has been recognised by the UK QAA and has been awarded in collaboration with a UK institution such as the University of London.

Please contact our Admissions Tutor at lawadmissions@herts.ac.uk to discuss entry requirements further.

Application Guidance

You'll be required to upload evidence of your QLD or GDL; if your degree result is pending, note this in the qualification section of the application form (i.e. pending result TBC).

We do not require references or a detailed personal statement so you can put N/A in that field. If you do have one you can upload it.

Please note, any offers made (even if you already meet the academic entry requirements) will be conditional on you submitting your LawCAB application.


Institution code	H36
School of study	Hertfordshire Law School
Course length	Full Time, 1 Years
Location	University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield

Employability

Careers

Hertfordshire Law School have a genuine interest in your career aims. We'll do all we can to guide and support you in your steps towards your career goals.

As well as embedding key professional skills into your modules, we work closely with the University’s Careers Team to organise career talks and events to support you in gaining the relevant knowledge, skills and experience needed to enhance your employability in the legal profession and other graduate roles. For example, we have a series of ‘conversation with’ sessions involving alumni and other speakers who share their career journeys and tips for success. We run and participate in graduate and law fairs, as well as hosting our annual law ‘speed-networking’ event with local employers.

We have a dedicated Law School ‘Employability and Career Enhancement’ site with a large number of career resources and up to date information about events and opportunities. We also have a LinkedIn group for Hertfordshire Law School students and alumni. Our University Careers platform ‘Handshake’ gives you access to wide range of support, events, job vacancies and skills enhancement resources. One to one support is readily available with our Director of Employability and the University’s Careers Team, as well as your own Academic Support Tutor.

About the course

If you want to be a solicitor and work in the legal profession, the full-time one-year PgDip Legal Practice course is your great starting point prior to a full masters LLM programme.This course offers an established route into the legal profession preparing you to obtain a prestigious LLM.

In Semesters A and B, you will study Stages 1 and 2 of the Legal Practice Course (LPC), both of which are required by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA):

Stage 1 includes compulsory modules on Professional Conduct and Regulation, Wills and Administration of Estates, Solicitors' Accounts, Legal Writing, Legal Drafting, Practical Legal Research, Advocacy, Interviewing and Advising, plus 3 core practice areas of Business Law and Practice, Litigation (both Criminal and Civil) and Property Law and Practice.
Stage 2 elective modules (choice of 3) include Employment Law, Family Law, Immigration Law, Personal Injury, Private Client and Estate Planning, Commercial Law, Commercial Property Law and Private Acquisitions.

Why choose this course?

University of Hertfordshire is well known for its great links with industry and the professions, its first-class teaching, high-quality facilities and dedicated staff. Naturally, this PgDip Legal Practice course is no different. Taught by experts, including practising solicitors and barristers, it will equip you with all the up-to-date, transferable, interpersonal and practical skills you will need for your career in the legal profession.

Our innovative teaching methods utilise experiential learning to prepare you for practice, including our state-of-the-art courtroom where you will develop advocacy skills – a core component of the LLM Legal Practice. You will also have many opportunities to undertake co-curricular activities to strengthen your skills in areas such as commercial awareness, adjudication and family mediation and to participate in a range of pro-bono projects, including our award-winning Law Clinic.

We limit class sizes to ensure that you receive the best teaching and pastoral support. This also enables the teaching to be flexible and focused on the needs of the individual students, setting them on their chosen pathways into highly successful legal careers.

You may be eligible for financial support from Student Finance England, so you can focus entirely on your studies to maximise your potential. Find out more about a Postgraduate Master's Loan on the Government website.

Hertfordshire Law School has helped graduates forge successful careers for 40 years. You’ll benefit from our reputation for being forward thinking, innovative, and responsive to the world around us.

Award-winning: Best Contribution by a Team of Students helping vulnerable people at risk of homelessness in Hertfordshire (Law Works Student Pro Bono Awards, 2022). Ranked 4th for law in the Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey (PTES, Advance HE, 2023).

What will I study?

Hertfordshire Law School have a genuine interest in your career aims. We'll do all we can to guide and support you in your steps towards your career goals.

As well as embedding key professional skills into your modules, we work closely with the University’s Careers Team to organise career talks and events to support you in gaining the relevant knowledge, skills and experience needed to enhance your employability in the legal profession and other graduate roles. For example, we have a series of ‘conversation with’ sessions involving alumni and other speakers who share their career journeys and tips for success. We run and participate in graduate and law fairs, as well as hosting our annual law ‘speed-networking’ event with local employers.

We have a dedicated Law School ‘Employability and Career Enhancement’ site with a large number of career resources and up to date information about events and opportunities. We also have a LinkedIn group for Hertfordshire Law School students and alumni. Our University Careers platform ‘Handshake’ gives you access to wide range of support, events, job vacancies and skills enhancement resources. One to one support is readily available with our Director of Employability and the University’s Careers Team, as well as your own Academic Support Tutor.

Level 7

Module	Credits	Compulsory/optional
Practical Legal Research LPC	0 Credits	Compulsory
The module supports students understanding of the significance of practical legal research in the context of Business Law and Practice. The capacity for Legal Research clearly underpins professional practice and it is therefore incorporated across all Stage 1 modules.
Business Law and Practice (LPC)	30 Credits	Compulsory
The module considers the role of commercial organisations and their legal regulation. It analyses in detail the structure and powers of companies, partnerships and sole traders and considers their relationship to organisations and individuals with whom they have dealings. Students are also introduced to the concept of Business Accounts and the processes of construction of balance sheets and profit and loss accounts.
Litigation (LPC)	30 Credits	Compulsory
This module seeks to develop in students an appreciation of the nature of criminal and civil litigation, the ability to identify the critical steps in the process of litigation and to provide opportunities for the practice of some of those elements of litigation. Students also develop an understanding of the ethics of advocacy and will develop their skills through practice.
Property Law and Practice (LPC)	15 Credits	Compulsory
The module aims to enable students to complete with confidence a domestic sale or purchase whether dealing with registered or unregistered land, freeholds, leaseholds, the part or whole, or new or existing properties. Students are expected to develop awareness of taxation issues, professional conduct and regulation including potential conflicts of interest and financial services legislation on advice given to clients.
Wills and Administration of Estates (LPC)	0 Credits	Compulsory
The module is a core requirement and introduces students to the law and practice of wills and administration of estates. Students are expected to develop the skill of writing and drafting in the context of wills and administration of estates using appropriate resources and precedents and to present their findings in an effective and clear format.
Solicitors Accounts (LPC)	0 Credits	Compulsory
This module will introduce students to the role of the Solicitors Regulation Authority to secure compliance with the Solicitors' Accounts Rules. Students are introduced to the range of accounts required, the rules relating to the transfer of funds between accounts and client accountability. On a practical level, students acquire the ability to post entries in the double entry system reflecting common transactions between solicitors and their clients and learn how to draft a completion statement.
Professional Conduct and Regulation (LPC)	0 Credits	Compulsory
The module pervades Stage 1 of the programme. It is a pivotal aspect of the whole programme due to its significance to the legal profession. It is considered in detail throughout all modules.
Interviewing and Advising LPC	0 Credits	Compulsory
The module introduces students to the techniques and ethics of interviewing and advising a client. The skill is formally assessed in Business Law and Practice, however as an essential skill it pervades Stage 1 core modules. Students have informal assessment opportunities in face to face workshops and a formal formative assessment (mock) which is video recorded and provided to the student with feedback prior to the summative assessment.
Legal Writing LPC	0 Credits	Compulsory
The module introduces students to the skill of legal writing in the context of Wills and Administration of Estates, with particular reference to the development of the skill of effective legal writing. Students are expected to develop the skill of writing using appropriate resources and precedents and to present their findings in an effective and clear format.
Advocacy LPC	0 Credits	Compulsory
The module introduces students to the techniques and ethics of advocacy.
Drafting LPC	0 Credits	Compulsory
The module introduces students to the skill of legal drafting in the context of Civil Litigation with particular reference to the development of effective legal drafting. Students are expected to develop the skill of drafting using appropriate resources and precedents and to present their findings in an effective and clear format.
Commercial Law LPC	15 Credits	Optional
The module considers commercial activity and its legal regulation. It analyses commercial and consumer transactions and the legal framework in which they exist. It considers the law of agency and distributorship. Students are expected to demonstrate awareness of professional conduct and financial services legislation on advice given to clients.
Commercial Property (LPC)	15 Credits	Optional
The module considers commercial property and its legal regulation. It examines drafting of commercial leases and advice on litigation in relation to the pursuance of a remedy. It considers the implications of planning law and compulsory purchase. Students are expected to demonstrate awareness of professional conduct and financial services legislation on advice given to clients.
Personal Injury (LPC)	15 Credits	Optional
The module considers Personal Injury and relevant statutory regulation. It examines the process of personal injury claims and how to solve these through litigation and negotiation, together with the litigation procedures which underpin these legal issues. Students are expected to demonstrate awareness of professional conduct in advice given to clients.
Private Client and Estate Planning (LPC)	15 Credits	Optional
The module examines commonly arising matters of private client work in small and medium sized practices. Consideration is given to will drafting and trust planning and administration, tax planning, the elderly client and incapacity and post death processes. Students study the legal and procedural processes of each matter and are given the opportunity to practise these skills in the context of case studies in the workshops. Students are expected to demonstrate awareness of professional conduct in advice given to clients.
Employment Law (LPC)	15 Credits	Optional
The module considers the employment contract and its statutory legal regulation. It examines the legal requirements for the formation of a contract of employment, wrongful and unfair dismissal, discrimination and Employment Tribunal procedures and remedies. Students are expected to demonstrate awareness of professional conduct in advice given to clients.
Family Law (LPC)	15 Credits	Optional
The module considers Family Law and its statutory legal regulation. It examines the process of divorce and the drafting of divorce petitions, the protection of children in the family and approaches to the resolution of domestic violence, together with the litigation procedures which underpin these legal issues. Students are expected to demonstrate awareness of professional conduct in advice given to clients.
Immigration Law	15 Credits	Optional
The module considers Immigration Law and relevant statutory legal regulation. It examines the process of immigration disputes and how to solve these through litigation and negotiation, together with the litigation procedures which underpin these legal issues. Students are expected to demonstrate awareness of professional conduct in advice given to clients.
Private Acquisitions	15 Credits	Optional
This module considers the legal and practical aspects of the acquisition and disposal of companies and businesses. It examines transaction process, transaction structure (including factors influencing the choice of structure) and the tax implications of such transactions, as well as practical aspects of carrying out due diligence, risk allocation and the drafting and negotiation of contractual provisions commonly used in this context. It also considers related professional conduct and financial services issues.
Employability Skills and Career Planning	0 Credits	Optional
Students will be able to access employability and enterprise resources including workshops, online materials and books in order to help them formulate a career or post"graduate study plan. Students will have the opportunity to hear speakers from a variety of areas give advice and guidance as to how to enter those fields. Students will be required to undertake a certain number of activities and reflect on what they have learned in order to complete the module successfully.

Key staff

Dr Raashi Chauhan
Programme Leader
Find out more about Dr Raashi Chauhan

Further course information

Course fact sheets
PgDip Legal Practice	Download

Programme specifications
PgDip Legal Practice	Download

Additional information
Sandwich placement or study abroad year	n/a
Applications open to international and EU students	Yes

Student experience

At the University of Hertfordshire, we want to make sure your time studying with us is as stress-free and rewarding as possible. We offer a range of support services including; student wellbeing, academic support, accommodation and childcare to ensure that you make the most of your time at Herts and can focus on studying and having fun.

Find out about how we support our students

You can also read our student blogs to find out about life at Herts.

Funding and fees
Other financial support

Find out more about other financial support available to UK and EU students

Fees 2024
UK Students

Full time
- £14805 for the 2024/2025 academic year
EU Students

Full time
- £14805 for the 2024/2025 academic year
International Students

Full time
- £14805 for the 2024/2025 academic year
*Tuition fees are charged annually. The fees quoted above are for the specified year(s) only. Fees may be higher in future years, for both new and continuing students. Please see the University's Fees and Finance Policy (and in particular the section headed "When tuition fees change"), for further information about when and by how much the University may increase its fees for future years.

View detailed information about tuition fees

Living costs / accommodation

The University of Hertfordshire offers a great choice of student accommodation, on campus or nearby in the local area, to suit every student budget.

View detailed information about our accommodation

Read more about additional fees in the course fact sheet

International/EU applicants without pre-settled status in the UK

Apply through our international/EU application portal

Home and EU applicants with pre-settled/settled status in the UK

2024

Start Date	End Date	Link
07/09/2024	31/07/2025	Apply online (Full Time)

2025

Start Date	End Date	Link
07/09/2025	31/07/2026	Apply online (Full Time)

Book an open event

Apply now

PgDip Legal Practice

Application Guidance

Careers

About the course

Why choose this course?

What will I study?

Key staff

Further course information

Student experience

Other financial support

Fees 2024

UK Students

Full time

EU Students

Full time

International Students

Full time

Living costs / accommodation

International/EU applicants without pre-settled status in the UK

Home and EU applicants with pre-settled/settled status in the UK

2024

2025