Traditional law assessments — essays and exams — primarily test knowledge recall and analysis. But legal practice requires a much broader range of skills. Modern legal education should assess what students can do, not just what they know.
1. Skills-Based Assessment Methods
| Assessment | Skills Tested | Implementation |
|---|---|---|
| Simulated client interview | Communication, empathy, issue identification | Students interview a role-player; assessed on technique and advice |
| Negotiation exercise | Persuasion, compromise, strategy | Pairs negotiate a settlement; assessed on process and outcome |
| Drafting task | Precision, clarity, legal accuracy | Draft a contract clause, letter, or memo to a defined brief |
| Moot / advocacy | Oral advocacy, legal reasoning, court etiquette | Present arguments before a "judge"; assessed on structure and persuasion |
| Reflective portfolio | Self-awareness, professional development | Students reflect on learning experiences over the semester |
| Group project | Teamwork, project management, collaboration | Team produces a legal report or presentation |
2. Designing Rubrics
Skills assessments require detailed rubrics to ensure consistency and fairness:
- Define specific criteria for each skill (e.g., "Identifies all relevant legal issues" vs "Identifies some legal issues")
- Use grade descriptors that describe observable behaviours, not vague qualities
- Provide exemplars showing what excellent, good, and poor performance looks like
- Train all markers on the rubric before assessment begins
3. Mapping to SQE Competencies
The SRA's Statement of Solicitor Competence provides a framework for skills assessment. Align your assessments with these competencies:
- Ethics, professionalism, and judgment
- Technical legal practice
- Working with other people
- Managing themselves and their work
4. Practical Considerations
- Resource intensity: Skills assessments require more staff time than written exams. Consider using trained postgraduate students as role-players
- Moderation: Video-record oral assessments for moderation and external examining
- Student anxiety: Many students find oral assessments more stressful than written ones. Provide practice opportunities and clear guidance
- Feedback: Skills assessments provide excellent opportunities for formative feedback — prioritise this over summative grading