6-month Amazon Student Prime trial

Oxford's Balliol College is one of the UK’s top universities for law. Whether you applied or got accepted into another university, this law reading list will benefit any soon-to-be law student looking to apply themselves at the highest level.

The study of law is complex. Building a foundation of knowledge and a legal perspective, prior to starting your degree, will aid any law student in comprehending legal principles not just in the early stages of their LLB or degree, but throughout its entirety. This reading list, as recommended by the professors at Oxford’s Balliol College, will offer solid starting base to build upon through your studies.

Do you want to know what it takes to succeed as a law student? Letters to a Law Student by Nicholas McBride has become a classic recommendation to any perspective law student His guide to studying law at university is full of practical advice and helpful answers to the most common questions about studying law or an LLB at university. For those more advanced in their studies, this book is still a great tool to refresh your knowledge, manage your workload and reinforce critical learning tips.

Being able to approach and critically break down legal issues are essential skills to develop and hone throughout your law studies. Great Debates in Criminal Law (2020) by Jonathan Herring is an introduction to more advanced writings on criminal law, primarily designed to allow students to think critically and analyse specific topics. The book aims to illustrate the current debates among those working in shaping the area.

Those are just a few examples of what the professors at Oxford University’s Balliol College Law School are suggested their law students read in preparation of starting their studies. Below is their complete list of recommendations.

Introductions to the Legal System

Letters to a Law Student: A guide to studying law at university (2017)

 Nicholas McBride (Author)

Glanville Williams: Learning the Law (2020)

ATH Smith (author)

Constitutional Law

Public Law (Clarendon Law S.) (2003)

Adam Tomkins (Author)

The Rule of Law (2011)

Rt Hon Lord Bingham of Cornhill KG PC FBA Tom Bingham (Author)

Criminal Law

Roman Law

Criminal Law

An Introduction to Roman Law (Clarendon Law Series) (1976)

Barry Nicholas (author), Ernest Metzger (author)

more Introductions to law