WJEC/Eduqas A Level Law: Book 1 Revision Guide

Law reform Spec spotlight In this section students will develop their knowledge of: WJEC AS/A Level 1.1: Law making Eduqas AS Level 1.1.1: Parliamentary and European law making Eduqas A Level 1.1.1: Parliamentary and European law making • The influences on Parliament; the advantages and disadvantages of influences on law making • Law reform; role of official law-reform agencies, including the Law Commission, and the role of pressure groups and judicial influences For more on law making, see pages 24–31 of WJEC/Eduqas A Level Law Book 1 . LINK Revision booster For lower mark questions testing AO1 knowledge and understanding, you need a good understanding of the various law reform bodies to explain their role in bringing about changes in the law, including the role of the Law Commission, of pressure groups and of the judges who make the law. This topic could also feature as a higher mark question testing AO2 application skills. For these types of question, you would be required to advise someone about issues relating to the topic. For example, you could be asked to advise someone on how they would go about trying to get a law changed. For these longer responses, as with all application questions, you should provide a clear structure which will include: • an introduction with a clear definition of the law concerned and any relevant key terms • followed by a description of the relevant law with supporting cases • finally, an application of that law to the scenario that is featured in the question. It is essential to apply the law and think about the methods that would be most appropriate for an individual to bring about a change in the law; for example, they would be unlikely to successfully apply to the Law Commission for a change in the law. Build your revision notes around… • Judicial change • Judges make law through the system of judicial precedent • Relies on the individual taking a case to court, which is not always successful. Example : Tony Nicklinson wanted to change the law on assisted suicide 18