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The research assistant role is demanding and will require you to get up to speed quickly with complex legal topics. The eligibility criteria reflect the skills that are necessary to do the job.
Competition for the role is extremely high. We receive over 600 applications each year and there are usually less than 20 vacancies. We look for exceptional candidates and select them based on the following criteria:
Minimum requirements: essential academic skills
You will need to show in your application form how you satisfy the minimum academic requirements. If you are unable to do this, we won’t be able to take your application any further.
By September you should have completed a course/s involving two years’ full-time substantive legal studies or the equivalent in part-time study.
Your academic results for at least one course must be at, or at the equivalent of, first class or good 2.1 standard, with at least some elements of first-class work.
What counts as “two years’ legal studies”?
Most candidates will have a law degree or a combined degree, of which at least two-thirds is in law.
Some will be completing a law degree and will need to show that they will have obtained their degree by September 2024 (*needs updating).
If you do not have a first degree in law, you may meet the minimum requirements if you have at least two years’ post-graduate studies in law. This may be a single course (such as a two- year MPhil) or a combination of courses (such as the Graduate Diploma in Law and a one-year masters).
If your only legal training consists of a completed GDL/CPE and a year’s professional qualification (LPC or BPTC) – whether taken separately or combined into a two-year degree – you should apply only if you can demonstrate substantial additional skills or knowledge. These should be relevant to the work of the Law Commission and achieved either by academic study or work. If you think you fall into this category, you’ll be asked to outline how you satisfy the minimum academic criteria during the application.
What counts as a degree at ‘good 2.1 standard’?
If you have completed an undergraduate law degree or a combined degree with at least two years of legal study at 2.1 standard, we will look at the marks of all the papers you have taken that count towards your final degree.
At least three-quarters of these marks must be at or above 60% (2.1 standard), with at least one of these marks at or above 70% (first class standard),
If you are currently taking a law degree or a combined degree, and have marks from at least four papers, we will look at those marks and apply the same test: at least three-quarters 23 must be at or above 60% (2:1 standard), with at least one of these marks at or above 70% (first-class standard).
If you do not have marks from at least four papers we will look at your previous academic results, usually A-levels. We will expect you to have marks of at least one A* and two As. If you took your A-levels before the introduction of the A* grade, we require three As.
Other ways of showing academic ability equivalent to ‘first or good 2.1 standard’
If you do not satisfy our minimum requirements on the basis of your undergraduate degree, you can demonstrate the academic standard through one or more of the following completed qualifications:
- a GDL (or CPE) at distinction, or at commendation with at least one mark at distinction
- completed Masters Degree in law (LLM, BCL, MA or M Phil) at 2.1 (merit) or above
- a completed PhD in law
Some qualifications combine the GDL and professional qualifications into a two-year degree. For this you must have achieved a first or distinction.
Other essential criteria:
In addition to satisfying the essential academic skills minimum requirements, you will be asked to demonstrate the following:
Behaviours:
- Communicating and influencing (lead behaviour)
Experience:
- Legal research (lead)
- legal skills
- CV
Technical:
- Motivational fit
Further details are provided in the following pages on how to complete the online questions designed to test your ability in these areas.