Studying law includes a research proposal. It is a complex and extensive piece of writing that is required to obtain a law degree. This piece of writing will provide you with the guidelines of how to write a research proposal, mini dissertation or dissertation. A good dissertation has some key elements that are: • A clear problem statement. • It has an argument that is addressed all through the dissertation. • Planned and thorough research. • Structured and supportive materials, sections and paragraph sentences are appropriately defined that is to present a convincing argument. • It observes the terms of research. 1. How to structure a proposal? A well structured proposal is a way to earn good points. It only happens so when you follow these: • Problem statement is clearly put together. • Importance of the problem is explained • Solution is recommended. • The solution is suggested through literature survey. • The argument is identified. • The method to verify the argument is given. • The definitional problems are simplified. • The bibliography of the sources is given To simplify the structure for you, let’s look further into the outline: Problem Statement is clearly defined: The proposal commences with the problem statement. What issues that you want to deal with? What issues intrigues you? It is usually practical to define in the first paragraph of your proposal to make the reader aware of the issue you will be addressing. Once the problem is unpacked, now you have to mention the background and what are the logical building blocks in law or practice that lead to the problem. The sources of the issue are fundamental as they are verified by chapters that reflects your argument. Importance of the problem is explained: This is what you will be explaining your examiner or supervisor. If the issue is importance of the answer to the problem will be equally important. Your aim should be to state the importance of your research that you will be doing. Answer or argument- solution is clarified: Once you have read the relevant materials you must have developed an argument or answer to the problem by now. You must dwell on the outline you have decided to clear you argument or suggest the answer. This argument joins the dissertation together. You might have an idea of the answer or solution to the problem when you started but as you research for the material your answer or argument may be developed, modified or changed. This is where you shape or address the argument you developed along the way. Literature survey: The standard by which your law dissertataion will be measured, does it contribute to the knowledge on the topic or not. You must show the originality of the argument by showing how it compares to the existing literature on the issue. This can only be done by reading extensively around the issue, what writers have to say. In some cases, when you have described the literature on the topic, you may evaluate that no one has yet addressed the issue. If it is addressed already, you may judge that it was wrongly or ineffectively done. This literature review is mainly on the literature, what other authors have written. Verifying the argument: The volume of the dissertation is to verify the argument. It is done by breaking the arguments into basic parts and devoting each to a chapter. Identifying how each part makes up the argument and thus reaches to a solution or answer. Methodology: The method that will verify your argument is essential. What materials that you will rely on? If you are analyzing court judgments your primary source of information are case reports, legislation, official documents, policies, notices etc. The secondary source will be what authors have written about the same cases or legislation in the relevant field. Bibliography: All the materials referred to in the proposal are listed in alphabetical order in bibliography by using following captions: • Laws, regulations and other legal instruments • Other government applications. • Case law • Books, chapters in books, articles, reports and internet sources. 2. The terms of the research is observed: The quality of the proposal or dissertation is based on thorough research, connecting the material like law, judgment, books, articles, and papers on the internet, government reports, together to form an opinion or argument. The main principle is to distinguish your thoughts to others. Stay away from plagiarism-it’s an academic sin. It leads to the ultimate failure of your dissertation. The academic principle is to recognize other authors work by indicating the source of an idea, paragraph, and sentence in a footnote. When you use an idea or argument of some other author, you acknowledge this fact by referring to the source; that’s the function of the footnote. When exactly quoting the words of an author, they must appear in the quotation marks, with full reference to the source in footnote. Footnotes are used to provide authority for a statement of fact or law that you may make. If the statement is about the content of the law, then the citation of the appropriate law and section in that law is required. The style of the footnotes must be according to the guidelines, if the format is not followed, then the proposal will not be acceptable. 3. Dissertation writing: • Logical and coherent writing: The successful dissertation focused on the manner in which the argument is presented, that is to say in logical and coherent formation of argument, verified by the relevant material. All the chapters should be arranged in such a manner that one leads to the other, and each paragraph logically connects with the other addressing one idea or concept only. Adding information that is irrelevant to the argument you make adds nothing to the dissertation. Be specific, precise and focused. Make use of heading and subheadings to make visible the structure of the argument. In pursuit of verifying your arguments, you refer to sources that are relevant whether distract or support your argument. In case of opposing argument or information you have to argue why such arguments or information being either relevant or not. Adding irrelevant material may detract you from dissertation, suggesting that the author doesn’t understand the relevance of the material to the argument being advanced. To make the task easier when adding information that you doubt to be relevant then ask yourself a question: is the information necessary to understand or dealing with problem statement? If the answer is no, leave it out. • What you suggest? Remember, it’s your argument; it’s your answer to the problem. You may refer to materials that support your argument or answer. But make your argument defined and visible. Expressions like ‘It is submitted that’ may do the job. Use your words to make the answer sound and valuable, resist the temptation of using someone else’s quote that nicely articulates what you are arguing. • Name the chapter: Each chapter has the introductory paragraph telling what this chapter is dealing with. A dissertation is not a detective novel, keeping the main idea hidden and revealing it in the end. The reader should be well informed of the topic all the way to the end. Having done that, the chapter then concludes with: ‘I have been shown...” Conclusion: It is always the part where you wrap up the argument; it provides a more elaborate argument covering all the relevant materials used in the chapters. Your conclusion must summaries your findings. As the dissertation address the significant problem, the conclusion must contain how the knowledge was gained and can be best applied. The recommendation must be clear and unambiguous. Be careful not to suggest something that was never mentioned all through law dissertation or is irrelevant. Conclusions don’t deliver new information. Make sure all the information has been rightly presented and detailed arguments have been made in the body of dissertation so that you can use the conclusion to summaries the argument.
