Recommended textbooks for 3rd year Law at Cambridge?
Hey again,
So I'm attempting to cut myself a bit more slack in my final year of Law at Cambridge by getting textbooks that are bearable/easy(ish) to read/readily understandable. I think it's largely my response to the horror of Treitel last year.
Can anyone therefore recommend good textbooks for the following:
Commercial Law
Company Law
Labour Law (yeah I picked stodgy subjects)
EU Law
and Equity?
I.e. should I go with the books on the reading list or are there other, better books out there? I'd like to get them "cheap" if I can before heading back.
I'd really appreciate responses from Cambridge students because the content of these subjects might vary between universities.
Thanks,
Em
So I'm attempting to cut myself a bit more slack in my final year of Law at Cambridge by getting textbooks that are bearable/easy(ish) to read/readily understandable. I think it's largely my response to the horror of Treitel last year.
Can anyone therefore recommend good textbooks for the following:
Commercial Law
Company Law
Labour Law (yeah I picked stodgy subjects)
EU Law
and Equity?
I.e. should I go with the books on the reading list or are there other, better books out there? I'd like to get them "cheap" if I can before heading back.
I'd really appreciate responses from Cambridge students because the content of these subjects might vary between universities.
Thanks,
Em
Original post by EmmaBr
Hey again,
So I'm attempting to cut myself a bit more slack in my final year of Law at Cambridge by getting textbooks that are bearable/easy(ish) to read/readily understandable. I think it's largely my response to the horror of Treitel last year.
Can anyone therefore recommend good textbooks for the following:
Commercial Law
Company Law
Labour Law (yeah I picked stodgy subjects)
EU Law
and Equity?
I.e. should I go with the books on the reading list or are there other, better books out there? I'd like to get them "cheap" if I can before heading back.
I'd really appreciate responses from Cambridge students because the content of these subjects might vary between universities.
Thanks,
Em
So I'm attempting to cut myself a bit more slack in my final year of Law at Cambridge by getting textbooks that are bearable/easy(ish) to read/readily understandable. I think it's largely my response to the horror of Treitel last year.
Can anyone therefore recommend good textbooks for the following:
Commercial Law
Company Law
Labour Law (yeah I picked stodgy subjects)
EU Law
and Equity?
I.e. should I go with the books on the reading list or are there other, better books out there? I'd like to get them "cheap" if I can before heading back.
I'd really appreciate responses from Cambridge students because the content of these subjects might vary between universities.
Thanks,
Em
Can only comment second hand, as I haven't sat any of these papers.
My gf did company and really liked the core texts book. She got it very late in the game, and wished she'd started working from that sooner. I don't know anything about commercial/labour texts. The core text and Catherine Barnard's new book on the four pillars are meant to be good for EU--again, gf's recommendation. My gf really liked Parker and Mellows for equity, and my DOS swears by the new Routledge law masters book (which has the virtue of brevity).
I'm planning on waiting to buy until I actually have looked at several books, as the texts I bought at the beginning of the year weren't always my favourites. (E.g., didn't like McKendrick, loved O'Sullivan and Hilliard; Markesinis and Deakin was awful, and initially didn't like Hepple and Metthews but warmed to it.)
Sorry I don't have any firsthand suggestions!
Original post by Aack
Any "how to" guide books on being an arrogant tosser might come in handy.
Promoting your own books online is considered poor form.
Original post by jjarvis
Promoting your own books online is considered poor form.
Touché.
Original post by EmmaBr
Really not sure where the arrogant tosser remark came from but hey, this is the internet I guess. Thanks to jjarvis for the actual advice, I'll check those out (and I agree, McKendrick was really not that good)
You are an arrogant tosser because nobody cares if you're at Cambridge or not.
It's hardly relevant to your question, seeing as you don't want to use the recommended texts.
Trust me, that wasn't bragging. It was not wanting to spend a lot of money on books based on recommendations from people studying very different syllabuses. There are almost always several recommended texts for each subject so it's never just a case of choosing to use the rec'd texts or not.
Original post by EmmaBr
Thanks to jjarvis for the actual advice, I'll check those out (and I agree, McKendrick was really not that good)
No worries, hope some are helpful. If you get a chance, let me know if you find a particularly good EU book and whether you try the Law Masters equity book. I might steal my gf's Parker and Mellows if she lets me, but otherwise I'm not sure about EU texts.
On the same note, do you remember what crim book(s) you used? I'm an affiliate, so doing crim next year along with equity/EU.
Seeley and Hooley is quite good for commercial, especially if you have Merrett as your supervisor.
Did law at Cambridge so in a good position to advise here
Commercial Law
Sealey and Hooley. There really aren't any other viable options, don't think you have a choice here. There are other specific ones useful at particular points (I found Atiyah's Sale of Goods quite useful).
Sealey's casebook is quite good. Gower and Davies is also quite good, one of the few "standard texts" that is actually readable and useful to undergrads. Quite important to really pay close attention to the statute and use journal articles for this subject.
Labour Law (yeah I picked stodgy subjects)
Am jealous that they didn't offer this in my third year
EU Law
Barnard's "four freedoms" is pretty mandatory for the second part of the course. The counterpart Hartley's book "foundations of law" is good for the first part. Craig and De Burca is a great general text. Think this lot should have you covered.
They recommend some real stinkers for Equity and buying books for it can be a real minefield. Its also a subject that is taught in very different ways at Cambridge depending on what superviser you get and what exam questions they direct you to, there is a very live debate on the fundamental nature of the subject and some supervisers (and most of the lecturers) take a slightly nut-job view of the fundamental nature of the subject. Lectures handouts tend to be very good for equity though.
Just be careful what you buy for this, perhaps use the library until you've tried some books and asked your superviser. That said, I found the "Core Text Series" on Trusts by Penner very good. I hear that Hudson's books are extremely good although they aren't currently in the top reading list recommendations at Cambridge.
Original post by EmmaBr
Sealey and Hooley. There really aren't any other viable options, don't think you have a choice here. There are other specific ones useful at particular points (I found Atiyah's Sale of Goods quite useful).
Company Law
Sealey's casebook is quite good. Gower and Davies is also quite good, one of the few "standard texts" that is actually readable and useful to undergrads. Quite important to really pay close attention to the statute and use journal articles for this subject.
Labour Law (yeah I picked stodgy subjects)
Am jealous that they didn't offer this in my third year
EU Law
Barnard's "four freedoms" is pretty mandatory for the second part of the course. The counterpart Hartley's book "foundations of law" is good for the first part. Craig and De Burca is a great general text. Think this lot should have you covered.
and Equity?
They recommend some real stinkers for Equity and buying books for it can be a real minefield. Its also a subject that is taught in very different ways at Cambridge depending on what superviser you get and what exam questions they direct you to, there is a very live debate on the fundamental nature of the subject and some supervisers (and most of the lecturers) take a slightly nut-job view of the fundamental nature of the subject. Lectures handouts tend to be very good for equity though.
Just be careful what you buy for this, perhaps use the library until you've tried some books and asked your superviser. That said, I found the "Core Text Series" on Trusts by Penner very good. I hear that Hudson's books are extremely good although they aren't currently in the top reading list recommendations at Cambridge.
Thanks a lot Jacketpotato, I'll definitely look into these. I thought Equity might be an area filled with dubious recommended texts so I'll browse a few and see what approach my tutor seems to take before I buy.
And jjarvis: I really like Smith & Hogan for Criminal, it's nice and easy reading in spite of being a practitioner text. I also liked Herring, similar style of textbook. Some colleges recommend Simester and Sullivan but I found it incredibly dense for a primary textbook: it is good food for thought in exam term though as it offers a more theoretical approach.
And jjarvis: I really like Smith & Hogan for Criminal, it's nice and easy reading in spite of being a practitioner text. I also liked Herring, similar style of textbook. Some colleges recommend Simester and Sullivan but I found it incredibly dense for a primary textbook: it is good food for thought in exam term though as it offers a more theoretical approach.
Just spotted this. Second what jacketpotato said about Four Freedoms and the Foundations books. They're both excellent. Foundations is *really* dry though. But my only issue with Four Freedoms this year was discovering I don't agree with most of the author's opinions on things like the effect of Trailers [2009] on the law or that the four freedoms are converging. But it makes everything incredibly clear.
However, if Barnard and Albors Llorens are lecturing again (and they probably will be), their lectures and handouts are half a textbook in themselves! I definitely recommend getting hold of their handouts when they're available and going to every lecture: easily enough to get a 2.1 there. And Hinarejos' at the beginning, actually, assuming she's also lecturing. The final lecturer does great lectures and his handout is structured but not filled with the same amount of info.
If you find out anything about labour, I'd love to know too! I hope it's a Barnard book - she's a great textbook writer!
However, if Barnard and Albors Llorens are lecturing again (and they probably will be), their lectures and handouts are half a textbook in themselves! I definitely recommend getting hold of their handouts when they're available and going to every lecture: easily enough to get a 2.1 there. And Hinarejos' at the beginning, actually, assuming she's also lecturing. The final lecturer does great lectures and his handout is structured but not filled with the same amount of info.
If you find out anything about labour, I'd love to know too! I hope it's a Barnard book - she's a great textbook writer!
(edited 12 years ago)
Original post by gethsemane342
Just spotted this. Second what jacketpotato said about Four Freedoms and the Foundations books. They're both excellent. Foundations is *really* dry though. But my only issue with Four Freedoms this year was discovering I don't agree with most of the author's opinions on things like the effect of Trailers [2009] on the law or that the four freedoms are converging. But it makes everything incredibly clear.
However, if Barnard and Albors Llorens are lecturing again (and they probably will be), their lectures and handouts are half a textbook in themselves! I definitely recommend getting hold of their handouts when they're available and going to every lecture: easily enough to get a 2.1 there. And Hinarejos' at the beginning, actually, assuming she's also lecturing. The final lecturer does great lectures and his handout is structured but not filled with the same amount of info.
If you find out anything about labour, I'd love to know too! I hope it's a Barnard book - she's a great textbook writer!
However, if Barnard and Albors Llorens are lecturing again (and they probably will be), their lectures and handouts are half a textbook in themselves! I definitely recommend getting hold of their handouts when they're available and going to every lecture: easily enough to get a 2.1 there. And Hinarejos' at the beginning, actually, assuming she's also lecturing. The final lecturer does great lectures and his handout is structured but not filled with the same amount of info.
If you find out anything about labour, I'd love to know too! I hope it's a Barnard book - she's a great textbook writer!
Thanks!
(Also, how are the TC apps going? What news? PM/fb message me if you'd rather it be private...)
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