Introduction to the Law exam

The Law exam is included at this level to introduce the legal rules in which accountants operate. Your studies for this exam will include elements of civil and criminal law as well as ethical guidelines.

• Civil law is the law that governs relationships between individuals. A number of different areas of civil law are examinable and you will see some of the differing legal obligations that exist for individuals and the implications of a breach of these obligations
• Criminal law is a type of public law. This area of law exists to ensure that members of society behave in a certain way through threat of punishment. The Law exam focuses on the crimes that affect a business
• Ethics is another area of the syllabus that places expectations on the way accountants, as members of a profession, should behave

The exam is made up of 50 questions – worth two marks each. The questions are either multiple-choice questions or multi-part multiple-choice questions.

• Multiple-choice questions –  you will be asked to choose between four options, with one correct answer. You may be given a scenario that you need to apply legal rules to, or you may just be asked to demonstrate your knowledge
• Multi-part multiple-choice question – this form of question has two parts to them and for each you must choose between two options. You must correctly answer both parts to score the marks for the question. Again, these questions may be purely knowledge based or feature a scenario

You will have 1.5 hours to complete the exam. It should not be too time-pressurised but it is important not to spend too long on any one question. You should allow roughly 1.8 minutes for each question in the exam.

Question practice is key. Complete all the questions in the question bank at least once. Ensure you understand the model answers by reviewing them carefully and referring to your study material where necessary. Complete the sample exams on the ICAEW website.

When attempting  the questions in the exam:

• Do not attempt to question spot – any area of the syllabus could be tested
• Read the questions carefully. Look out for negative words in the question (such as ‘not’) as these can change the meaning of the question entirely
• Read all answer options carefully
• Do not rush or skim read a question as this means you are more likely to misinterpret it