All About LLMs LLM courses, news & advice. All good. All in one place.

You know you want to...

LLM Medical Law

Due to the ever-changing nature of medical science and technology, new problems in medical law are constantly needing to be resolved. An LLM in medical law will focus on these issues, as well as addressing the potential conflicts between medical professionals and patients.

This LLM is an option for lawyers who are looking to specialise in medicine, or for healthcare professionals who would like more legal knowledge in their field. Many courses will provide a foundation module to teach non-lawyers the basic legal concepts they will need.

Core modules

Module options will vary from law school to law school, so it's worth doing your research if there is a very specific area you are interested in. These topics are likely to come up:

  • Medical consent
  • Clinical negligence
  • Patient confidentiality
  • Public health
  • Medical practice and malpractice
  • Beginning and end of life

Course structure

A few law schools around the UK offer an LLM in law, but a significant number offer the course part-time to allow those who work in the medical field to balance the two.

A Medical Law LLM will offer a selection of core and optional modules, which will be taught in seminars and lectures. Modules will usually be examined by written coursework, and you will most likely be required to submit a dissertation on a topic of your choice.

Entry requirements

Medical law is a particularly difficult legal area, so for most courses you will need at least a 2:1 in your undergraduate degree, if not a first. A law degree is not essential, but it would help your application to have some relevant work experience.

By Lauren Bowes, Editor, AllAboutLLMs.com