Centre for the Study of Legal Professional Practice
This Centre has developed from the role of City Law School in providing a full range of high quality legal education and training within the context of a growing, research active Law School. The purpose is to enable academic researchers, professionally focused authors, legal practitioners and others to share expertise, and to be able to do so in London, one of the most important legal centres in the world. We believe that enabling practitioners and legal academics to work more closely together can provide substantial benefits, especially at a time of great change and development in legal practice. The Centre focuses on key areas of school expertise through the following groups:
Advocacy Forum
Robert McPeake is the Convenor of the Advocacy Forum and teaches advocacy at postgraduate level on the LLM in Criminal Litigation and on the Bar Professional Training Course. Read more about the Advocacy Forum
Alternative Dispute Resolution Forum
Susan Blake is the Convenor of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Forum. Susan is also the Course Director for the LLM Civil Litigation and Dispute Resolution and teaches on the Bar Professional Training Course. Susan has written professionally focused books on alternative dispute resolution and on civil litigation.
Read more about the Alternative Dispute Resolution Forum
Civil Litigation Forum
Stuart Sime is the Convenor of the Civil Litigation Forum and Course Director of the Bar Professional Training Course. He teaches Civil Litigation, ADR and Company Law.
Read more about the Civil Litigation Forum
Criminal Litigation Forum
Robert McPeake is the Convenor of the Criminal Litigation Forum. He teaches Criminal Litigation at postgraduate level on the LLM in Criminal Litigation and on the Bar Professional Training Course.
Read more about the Criminal Litigation Forum
Evidence and Proof Forum
Legal Education Forum
The Convenors of the Legal Education Forum are:
Linda Jotham
Linda Jotham is a Senior Lecturer and Deputy Director of the Legal Practice Course (LPC).
Marcus Soanes
Marcus Soanes teaches on the Bar Professional Training Course and LLM in Criminal Litigation
Read more about the Legal Education Forum
Legal Ethics Forum
The Convenors of the Legal Ethics Forum are:
Professor Nigel Duncan
Nigel Duncan is Professor of Legal Education and he is also Course Director of the LLM in Professional Legal Skills. He teaches mainly on the Bar Professional Training Course and LLM in Criminal Litigation
Read more about the Legal Ethics Forum
The aim of the Centre is to promote the use of high quality academic work to support development and standards in legal professional practice and training. This is done through professionally focused research and writing, and through a range of seminars, lectures and other activities in which practitioners and academics can share views on legal professional practice. Some events are arranged for specific groups, but wherever appropriate events are open to City Law School staff and students, and some events are open to the public.
Many aspects of legal professional practice are changing. At a time of substantial evolution in processes, structures and funding, we seek to ensure that change is properly informed by research and analysis. The Centre supports this not only through the work of staff but by helping to build networks of those with relevant expertise and interests. We also support the growth of expertise in relation to the development of legal professional practice through recruiting PhD students, and offering professionally focused LLM programmes.
