Undergraduate Law Reading List

Why should I read these?

We have put this list of the best books and other reading for law students together to help you in the following ways:

They will familiarise you with some of the terminology used during your law degree, before you begin studying at law school
If you haven’t applied yet, the cases and information held in these sources, as well as your own reading, can help you to write a strong personal statement
The various content, from human rights to criminal law, will help you to start thinking about where your career may lie, as you form your own interests and opinions.

Reading List and Online Resources

Blogs

The Law and Policy Blog - A blog focusing on current affairs and politics from a legal standpoint
Commentary from David Allen Green, covering current news, and how it relates to various areas of law and policy.

UK Supreme Court Blog - A useful source of information about recent and upcoming cases in the UK Supreme Court
A law blog dedicated to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and a useful insight into the careers of influential solicitors and barristers, who comment on the Supreme Court's decision making.

Books

Letters to a Law Student (Nicholas McBride, 2017)
Covering information that prospective law students need to know before starting their studies, providing a useful guide to those considering a law degree and helping you prepare for your first year of study.

The Secret Barrister (The Secret Barrister, 2018)
A book about a junior barrister specialising in criminal law, which aims to provide an accessible explanation of our criminal justice system and how it works for future solicitors and barristers.

What about Law? Studying Law at University (Catherine Barnard, 2011)
A short, accessible 'taster' of law as an academic subject, designed to help you decide whether law is the right choice for you at university.

Podcasts

Better Human - A human rights podcast with Adam Wagner (available from iTunes)
An exploration of the most important human rights issues through accessible interviews with high-profile guests and straightforward guides to key concepts and events for those interested in human rights law.
The Law In Action - Radio 4 podcast series (available from BBC Sounds)
A long running programme, featuring reports and interviews on various legal matters and news, for those looking to keep up to date with current law issues.
Law Pod UK - Practising barristers cover developments across civil and public law in the UK. Keeping you up to date with developments in medical law, how the law features in tackling climate change, and issues with AI. This is supplemented with advice on how to get a pupillage and interviews from leading professional and practitioners.
Nothing But The Truth - Whether you want to know what it is really like to be a barrister, or how to work with a barrister, this podcast will tell you all you want to know, with honest insights into life at the Bar.
Combatting Terrorists’ Online Activities – In this episode of Swansea University’s Exploring Global Problems Podcast, Professor Stuart Macdonald discusses his research into counterterrorism. The episode explores Stuart’s work on terrorists’ use of the internet, particularly cyberterrorism and online propaganda and radicalisation.
How Do We Prove Human Rights Violations - In this episode of Exploring Global Problems, Professor Yvonne McDermott Rees and Hillary Rodham Clinton Global Challenges Programme scholars Charlotte Morgan and Andrea Stanišić discuss child poverty, environmental human rights, and how social media evidence can be used for accountability for mass human rights violations.

Websites and Online Content

Each Other human rights website
Articles, videos and infographics by journalists, professional storytellers and creatives to increase your knowledge of human rights.

Human Rights Careers website
A 'one stop shop' for Human Rights careers and education information, including a piece providing 10 reasons why careers in human rights are important.

The Law section of The Guardian UK newspaper
Keep up to date with all areas of the law in relation to the news, looking at everything from land law and conveyancing, to employment or criminal law.

UK Parliament: How it Works PDF
A useful introduction to UK Politics and how it relates to the law and government of the UK. Also available in Welsh.

Investing In Your Future

Here at Swansea, we invest in the future of each and every one of our law students. We provide free access to a series of online databases, which saves our students money on having to buy hard copies. We provide access to the following resources:

HeinOnline, i-Law, Law Trove, Legislation.co.uk, Lexis Library, Lexis PSL, Oxford Scholarship, Practical Law, and Westlaw