For many law students, the initial semesters are quite hard to figure out. By the time they actually manage to figure out studying law, it already gets too late for many.

After suffering through the first semester of an LL.B. degree and eventually figuring out how things work, putting together a guide for incoming law students only seemed fair.

1. Understanding the legal system or the basic concepts

Many might wait for their classes to start before actually beginning their studies. While that is not necessarily wrong, studying law becomes much easier when there is at least a basic understanding of how the legal system works before going deeply into individual subjects.

Things such as the hierarchy of courts, their jurisdictions, the Constitution, legislation and judicial precedent may seem basic, but they provide a framework for understanding almost everything that comes afterwards. One will eventually become familiar with these concepts, but having that basic understanding from the beginning gives a much better roadmap for studying law. The Legal System of Bangladesh by Barrister Md Abdul Halim is a good book for understanding such basics.

Many students might not even understand the difference between a statute and a law textbook when they first enter law school.

A statute is the actual law that you study, which is enacted by the legislature, while textbooks and commentaries are secondary sources that explain, analyse and discuss the law, often with reference to statutes and judicial decisions.

Take contract law, for example, which is often introduced quite early in an LL.B. programme. The Contract Act, 1872 is one of the principal statutory sources governing contract law in Bangladesh, while a book such as Dr Muhammad Ekramul Haque’s Law of Contract helps students understand the Act, the relevant cases and the legal principles surrounding it. Knowing this difference from the beginning makes it much easier to understand what exactly one is reading and what legal weight that source actually carries.

2. Assuming Law is only about memorising

Some might think in law, you only need to memorise everything, while others may assume it is only about critical analysis The truth is that it is a bit of both, and it quite really depends on what aspects are in question.

For getting good grades, and even for the long-term goal of passing the Bar, memorisation cannot simply be ignored. Without retaining the relevant legal provisions, principles and authorities, there would hardly be enough material to work with when writing an answer in an examination.

However, in almost every law exam, you will also need to critically analyse the relevant laws and cases in light of the problem given to you. For that, you will certainly need to memorise the relevant statutory provisions, legal principles and important case authorities, but memorisation alone will not be enough. You must also understand what those authorities actually establish and know how to apply them to the facts before you.

3. Not following ILAC/IRAC in the proper manner

ILAC or IRAC is one of the fundamental methods students use to structure answers to legal problem questions. It requires identifying the issue, stating the applicable law or rule, applying that law to the relevant facts, and then reaching a conclusion. It is quite prominent even among senior law students who fail to write their answers following ILAC/IRAC properly.

Every part of it must be understood and followed accordingly. Many online articles and videos are available on YouTube that can be followed to understand ILAC/IRAC. However, to see whether you have finally developed a good grasp of ILAC or IRAC, it is always better to meet your teacher and have them review your writing.

4. Waiting for your actual exams before knowing your potential and your teacher’s expectations

One thing that sets apart a good student from a student with a good student is their preparation for facing adversities (exams, really) early. Studying a day before an exam can get you marks, good marks even sometimes, but it can never get you the best possible marks.

It is advisable to consult your instructor early to know how you should answer in the exams, what materials you should study, and what aspect of studying you should focus more on. One thing that can be done is making a problem question yourself and writing its answers to show it to your teacher. Their evaluation can help you determine how much of an improvement you need to make before you appear for your actual exams.

5. Not adapting

It is a common issue for all undergraduate programmes, really. Every undergraduate programme has its own way of teaching, assessing and expecting students to approach their studies, and law is no different. Just for a head start, Legal English is quite different from plain English. It might often feel ambiguous and definitely difficult for a fresher to understand. One should study more and more to get comfortable with the language.

One should also try to integrate Legal English into their writing. It is not going to be easy, and it is definitely not going to be perfect, but trying hurts nobody. It will help you adapt to legal studies and your undergraduate study more than you might realise.

Finally, every person is different, and everyone’s hardships and the problems they face are different. There can be no universal guide for everybody. Keep trying, and only the sky is the limit.