Common Law (graduate entry) [LLB] personal statement example

Why do you want to study this course or subject?

When I ring at our church tower on Thursday evenings, nobody calls out every move. We ring methods, sets of rules agreed long before any of us joined, and the conductor applies them to whatever happens on the night: a band one ringer short, a bell that has swung too far, a learner who needs covering. Much of that depends on judgement rather than the written rule. Reading Tom Bingham's The Rule of Law last year showed me the legal version of the same problem. His insistence that law should be accessible, clear and predictable sits alongside the reality that judges must decide cases no statute anticipated. The common law, built case by case, is where that tension is most visible, and I want to study it properly. My history degree taught me to read old documents closely; now I want to learn to argue from them. I have worked through Donoghue v Stevenson and Caparo v Dickman alongside an introductory tort textbook, following how the duty of care moved from Lord Atkin's broad neighbour principle to a more cautious test. I kept writing notes in the margins about whether Caparo narrowed things too far, which told me this is a question I want to be equipped to answer.

How have your qualifications and studies helped you to prepare?

I graduated last summer with a 2:1 in History. My dissertation examined enclosure in a Leicestershire parish between 1760 and 1800, using the enclosure Act, the commissioners' award and surviving correspondence at the county record office. The most rewarding part was comparing what the award allotted each landholder with complaints written afterwards by smallholders who believed their common rights had been overlooked. It showed me how a legal process could be procedurally correct yet feel arbitrary to those affected, and how much depended on who could afford to press a claim. A second-year module on early modern crime introduced me to assize records, and I enjoyed tracing how similar offences led to different outcomes depending on the jury and the judge. History gave me habits I expect to rely on in law: reading long texts critically, separating evidence from interpretation and writing to strict word limits. A law degree will be more technical, so I have prepared by reading Glanville Williams' Learning the Law, which helped me understand how to read a law report and identify the ratio of a case, and by sitting in the public gallery at my local magistrates' court on several occasions.

What else have you done to prepare outside of education, and why are these experiences useful?

Since graduating I have worked full-time at a bike hire and repair shop. I handle bookings, check returned bikes for damage and explain our hire agreement to customers, many of them tourists who have never read one. Putting clauses on deposits and late returns into plain terms without misstating them has become a regular part of the job, and the owner now asks me to look over any wording he wants to change. Last spring my grandfather decided to set up Lasting Powers of Attorney and asked me to help him and my mum with the forms. He is perfectly well but wanted things settled. We read the official guidance together, discussed the difference between the property and financial affairs and the health and welfare forms, and considered whether his attorneys should act jointly or jointly and severally. I was careful not to give advice I was not qualified to give; my role was to make sure he understood the choices before signing. Bell-ringing has demanded something different: as tower secretary I keep the practice rota and help teach two new learners, which takes patience and steady repetition. I am most engaged when helping people understand rules that affect them, and I want to do that with real expertise.