home > the faculty and its members > about the faculty

text:  larger  smaller 

Law has been taught in Oxford for some 850 years. For centuries law meant Roman law. The idea of bringing the common law into the university was conceived here in the eighteenth century and realized in 1758 when Sir William Blackstone became the first Vinerian Professor of English Law. Oxford has since been home to many of the key figures of the modern common law such as Anson, Dicey, Pollock, Cheshire, Cross, Morris, and Hart.

Today's Oxford's Law Faculty keeps faith with all this history, and the study of the common law, including its interaction with modern legislation and regulation, remains central to our pursuits. But our work has also been enriched over the years by strengths in comparative law, the philosophy of law,  international law,  and most recently European Law. Our historic connection with the Roman tradition has been reborn in our collaborations with continental European universities. And specialist centres in criminology and socio-legal studies mean that Oxford is now unsurpassed as a place for interdisciplinary work connected with the law and its development.

Our much-admired tutorial system means that students at all levels enjoy direct and intensive engagement with all this expertise and inspiration. But our students also learn a great deal from each other. We have one of the most diverse student populations in the United Kingdom, and our collegiate system encourages collaborative learning and teamwork, as well as bringing students of many disciplines  into daily contact with each other. This is why our undergraduate law degrees are so highly prized by employers in the legal profession and beyond, and why our graduate law degrees are among the most sought-after in the world.

Some facts and figures - student numbers, student-staff ratios, etc.
Some independent assessments of the Law faculty and its work
About the St Cross Building, our headquarters and location of the Bodleian Law Library