PSC Explained: Contentious Skills
- Raphael Jucobin
- Tuesday 07th December
- 2 min read
Contentious skills is one of the categories which cover the wide range of elective modules provided by The University of Law as part of its Professional Skills Course offering. Like all other electives, the modules that come under this section are taught over six hours of content in a single day.
It encompasses a variety of skills that can be applied to different practice areas, which means you can tailor the electives you choose to fit your professional interests and the area of law that you’re currently working in as part of your training contract. Specifically, this comprises the issues which are considered to involve a dispute. This includes the following sectors of law:
- Criminal Law,
- Dispute Resolution,
- Employment Law
- Family Law
- Personal Injury.
I’d like more detail about the modules on offer...
For instance, under Criminal Law you can take a module to learn more about the bail process, and how it can be applied and opposed, or you could take a two-day course following a trial at a magistrate’s court, taking part in the trial as an advocate either for the prosecution or defendant.
Dispute Resolution modules include the following topics: Case analysis and management, Civil litigation skills, and Mediation - specifically, the different forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution using case study materials, through which trainees will prepare their own mediation session.
In Employment Law, you can learn about disputes in the context of the workplace, for instance involving disciplinary procedures or unfair dismissals, as well as the specific aspects of an employment contract. You can also learn about advocacy at an employment tribunal, giving you the opportunity to apply advocacy skills to this particular type of situation.
The modules that can be studied under the Family Law subsection include: Advocacy and Practice (both in the context of Care Proceedings and Domestic Abuse), Drafting an Application for a Financial Order, and Interviewing and Negotiating in the context of the Children Act of 1989.
Personal Injury components can look at the specifics of employers’ liability law, funding and damages on injury claims, investigation of a claim, as well as the specific Personal Injury pre-action protocol.