Training for life.
Law is part of all social activity. It defines relationships, protects rights, imposes obligations and gives structure to governmental and commercial enterprise. Law graduates are well equipped to analyse complex issues, find solutions to a wide variety of problems and contribute to decision making at all levels. They are skilled in the precise use of language, both oral and written. They understand the limits of law and its relationship with other social forces. Many graduates find careers as lawyers in private practice, but others prefer to work in business, government, the public sector or welfare agencies.
Why study Law?
The LLB degree provides an excellent grounding in such skills as analysing, decision making, negotiation, researching and forming legal and other arguments. Law graduates are skilled in the precise use of oral and written language and these skills are used in a variety of occupations. Among the students enrolling in the First Year Law paper are many who want to gain an understanding of how the law works in New Zealand as part of their degree course. These include students enrolled in Commerce, Science, Physical Education, Health Science, Arts, Consumer and Applied Science and other degrees.
Career opportunities
Law graduates work as legal advisers and company secretaries in the commercial world, they work in management and executive positions in business and private enterprise. Two thirds of Law students at Otago complete double degrees because Otago’s flexible cross-credit system opens up job opportunities in areas like the media, public relations, entertainment industry, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, information technology consultancies.
Private practice has a variety of fields of law to choose from e.g. commercial, property, public, environmental, banking, wills and trusts, family, criminal, sports, media, civil, tax, maritime, intellectual property and medical law. All government departments and local bodies employ lawyers for specialist legal advice. Otago Law graduates work in law firms all over the world and also in organisations like the United Nations, the International Labour Organisation and Amnesty International. A Law degree is training for life.
Background required
There are no specific requirements regarding subjects taken at school, for entry into the Legal System paper. In general, students are advised to take those subjects at school which interest them and they do well in. The sorts of skills which are useful for Law are good language skills (English is therefore very useful), and skills of analysis (Maths is useful here). Another relevant subject, normally first encountered at University, is Philosophy. You could develop your language and analysis skills by taking part in activities such as drama and debating at school and at university.
Qualifications
Explore your study options further. Refer to enrolment information found on the following qualification pages.
- Bachelor of Laws (LLB)
- Bachelor of Laws with Honours (LLB(Hons))
- Master of Laws (LLM)
- Doctor of Laws (LLD)
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Programme requirements
Programme requirements
Bachelor of Laws (LLB)
| Year | Papers | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1st year | LAWS 101 The Legal System 108 points from any degree * | 36 108 |
| 2nd year | LAWS 201 Criminal Law LAWS 202 Law of Contract LAWS 203 Property Law LAWS 204 Public Law LAWS 298 Legal Writing | 30 30 30 30 0 |
| 3rd and 4th years | LAWS 301 Law of Torts LAWS 302 Jurisprudence 210 further LAWS points (30 points of which may be from any other subject at 200-level or higher) LAWS 398 Legal Research Skills LAWS 498 Research and Writing LAWS 499 Advocacy Skills | 30 30 210 0 0 0 |
* LAWS 101 and at least 72 non-LAWS points are normally taken in the first year; any further papers to make a total of 108 non-LAWS points must be taken in the third or fourth year. |
Bachelor of Laws with Honours (LLB(Hons))
| Year | Papers | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1st year |
LAWS 101 The Legal System 108 points from any degree * |
36 108 |
| 2nd year |
LAWS 201 Criminal Law LAWS 202 Law of Contract LAWS 203 Property Law LAWS 204 Public Law LAWS 298 Legal Writing |
30 30 30 30 0 |
| 3rd and 4th years |
LAWS 301 Law of Torts LAWS 302 Jurisprudence 210 further LAWS points (30 points of which may be from any other subject at 200-level or higher) LAWS 398 Legal Research Skills LAWS 498 Research and Writing LAWS 499 Advocacy Skills |
30 30 210 0 0 0 |
| Honours Requirements |
LAWS 380 (taken in the third year) LAWS 490 (taken in the fourth year) |
0 60 |
|
|
* LAWS 101 and at least 72 non-LAWS points are normally taken in the first year; any further papers to make a total of 108 non-LAWS points must be taken in the third or fourth year. |
Master of Laws (LLM)
| Thesis |
|---|
|
Papers
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, a selection of on-campus papers will be made available via distance and online learning for eligible students.
Find out which papers are available and how to apply on our COVID-19 website
| Paper code | Year | Title | Points | Teaching period |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAWS101 | 2022 | The Legal System | 36 points | Full Year |
| LAWS201 | 2022 | Criminal Law | 30 points | Full Year |
| LAWS202 | 2022 | Law of Contract | 30 points | Full Year |
| LAWS203 | 2022 | Property Law | 30 points | Full Year |
| LAWS204 | 2022 | Public Law | 30 points | Full Year |
| LAWS298 | 2022 | Legal Writing | 0 points | Full Year |
| LAWS301 | 2022 | Law of Torts | 30 points | Full Year |
| LAWS302 | 2022 | Jurisprudence | 30 points | Full Year |
| LAWS350 | 2022 | Lawyers, Clients, and the Profession | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS351 | 2022 | Climate Law and Policy | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS352 | 2022 | International Tax Law and Policy | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS353 | 2022 | The Law in the South Pacific | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS354 | 2022 | Insolvency Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS356 | 2022 | International Labour Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS380 | 2022 | Preliminary Honours Research Papers | 0 points | Full Year |
| LAWS398 | 2022 | Legal Research Skills | 0 points | Full Year |
| LAWS401 | 2022 | Children and the Family Justice System | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS403 | 2022 | Immigration and Refugee Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS404 | 2022 | Administrative Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS405 | 2022 | Civil Liberties and the Private Sector | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS406 | 2022 | Civil Procedure | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS407 | 2022 | Company Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS409 | 2022 | Private International Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS410 | 2022 | Criminology | 15 points | Summer School |
| LAWS411 | 2022 | Family Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS412 | 2022 | International Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS413 | 2022 | Labour Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS414 | 2022 | Law of Evidence | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS415 | 2022 | Resource Management Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS416 | 2022 | Taxation | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS417 | 2022 | Criminal Justice | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS418 | 2022 | Crime and Property | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS419 | 2022 | Securities Market Regulation | 15 points | Summer School |
| LAWS420 | 2022 | Law and the Democratic Process | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS421 | 2022 | International Environmental Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS422 | 2022 | Bill of Rights - Theory and Practice | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS423 | 2022 | Information and Data Protection Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS424 | 2022 | International Criminal Court | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS425 | 2022 | Energy Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS426 | 2022 | Insurance Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS427 | 2022 | Commercial Equity | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS428 | 2022 | Law and Emerging Technologies | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS430 | 2022 | Advanced Criminal Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS431 | 2022 | Advanced Contract and Tort | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS432 | 2022 | Animals and the Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS433 | 2022 | Advanced Family Property | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS435 | 2022 | Banking Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS436 | 2022 | Commercial and Consumer Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS437 | 2022 | Competition Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS438 | 2022 | Civil Liberties and the Public Sector | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS440 | 2022 | Environmental Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS441 | 2022 | Advanced Taxation | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS442 | 2022 | Law and the Sports Industry | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS443 | 2022 | International Investment Law | 15 points | Summer School |
| LAWS444 | 2022 | Intellectual Property | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS447 | 2022 | Law and Medicine | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS448 | 2022 | Law and Psychiatry | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS449 | 2022 | Criminal Procedure | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS450 | 2022 | Law of Restitution | 15 points | Not offered, expected to be offered in 2024 |
| LAWS451 | 2022 | Advanced Legal History | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS452 | 2022 | Legal Theory | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS453 | 2022 | Advanced Legislation | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS454 | 2022 | Negotiation | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS455 | 2022 | Māori Land Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS456 | 2022 | Media Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS457 | 2022 | Secured Transactions | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS458 | 2022 | Sentencing | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS459 | 2022 | Treaty of Waitangi | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS460 | 2022 | Vendor and Purchaser | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS461 | 2022 | Laws and Indigenous Peoples | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS462 | 2022 | Wills and Trusts | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS463 | 2022 | Legal Ethics | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS464 | 2022 | Advocacy | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS465 | 2022 | Law and Society | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS466 | 2022 | Gender and the Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS467 | 2022 | International Human Rights Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS468 | 2022 | Advanced Company Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS469 | 2022 | Law and Religion | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS470 | 2022 | Special Topic 1 | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS471 | 2022 | Special Topic: International Trade Regulation | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS472 | 2022 | Special Topic 3 | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS473 | 2022 | Special Topic 4: Public Health Law | 15 points | Summer School |
| LAWS474 | 2022 | Special Topic 5: International Criminal Law: Terrorism and Human Rights | 15 points | Summer School |
| LAWS475 | 2022 | Special Topic 6: Global and Comparative Animal Law | 15 points | Summer School |
| LAWS476 | 2022 | Special Topic 7 | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS477 | 2022 | Special Topic 8: Mediation | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS478 | 2022 | Special Topic | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS479 | 2022 | Special Topic 10 | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS480 | 2022 | Research Paper | 15 points | Semester 1, Semester 2, 1st Non standard period, Summer School |
| LAWS481 | 2022 | Special Topic 11: International Litigation and Dispute Settlement | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS485 | 2022 | Special Topic 14: Chinese Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS486 | 2022 | Special Topic: Not-for-Profit Law | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS487 | 2022 | Special Topic 16 | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS488 | 2022 | Accidents and the Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS490 | 2022 | Final Honours Research Paper | 60 points | Full Year |
| LAWS498 | 2022 | Research and Writing | 0 points | Semester 1, Semester 2, Summer School |
| LAWS499 | 2022 | Advocacy Skills | 0 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS512 | 2022 | Family Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS515 | 2022 | Resource Management Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS521 | 2022 | International Environmental Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS528 | 2022 | Law and Emerging Technologies | 15 points | Semester 2 |
| LAWS540 | 2022 | Environmental Law | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS547 | 2022 | Law and Medicine | 15 points | Semester 1 |
| LAWS548 | 2022 | Law and Psychiatry | 15 points | Not offered in 2022 |
| LAWS588 | 2022 | Accidents and the Law | 15 points | Semester 2 |
Key information for future students
Contact us
Faculty of Law
Email law@otago.ac.nz
Web otago.ac.nz/law
