I keep hearing/reading that "law is different" when it comes to research degrees. I can understand that, insofar as the LLB is essentially a vocational degree, and PhDs in the field are relatively rare. However, it does make me nervous about what to expect when I start my law PhD in January.

My husband and most of my family members have PhDs, but all in the sciences, so while I'm not unfamiliar with the concept, I do worry that, in a way, I'm starting not just with no knowledge, but perhaps with unreasonable expectations. I am aware that I am likely to be very isolated (which is not a concern for me, as I currently work from home) as I will be entirely home- and library-based, but surely that is not peculiar to law?

Is there anything else that I should be aware of, about what makes law PhDs "different". Any insight or words of advice and experience would be much appreciated! Thanks.:-)

======= Date Modified 02 Aug 2009 03:47:04 =======
A PhD in Law is quite different from most other disciplines and in my opinion it's one of the hardest in PhD discipines. Obviously the PhD is very different from the LLB, but then so are most PhDs relative to undergraduate or masters studies. Moving from an LLB to a PhD is quite a leap, and I wouldn't recommend doing a PhD in Law without also having an LLM completed, unless your PhD topic is based on an LLB subject. I would also recommend you have a look at some completed PhDs (you can download some examples at http://ethos.bl.uk/Home.do).

PhDs in Law lean more towards the social sciences/humanities conventions in terms of length, but not in terms of structure (unless looking at a socio-legal issue). Eg. you don't write a literature review.

In terms of working alone etc. this all depends on your university and how pro-active it is with PhD students, and your PhD topic, eg. you may spend a lot of time collecting data/interviewing if your PhD is socio-legal, but otherwise, it will most likely be an isolated pursuit. One of the joys of law is the ability to get virtually all material from online sources, so unless you're looking at older material, you'll have very little call for visiting a library.

======= Date Modified 02 Aug 2009 03:42:23 =======
Duplicate post.