The Hidden Extra "C" in IRAC: Tips for Students on How To Master Legal Analysis

When starting university there is one acronym you are pretty much guaranteed to be introduced to in your first week; that acronym is ‘IRAC’. IRAC (issue, rule, application and conclusion) is used to signpost what your exam answers should include and how they should be approached. 

Below is a breakdown of what this actually means:

* Critique is our addition. Adding critique to your answer gives you a solid shot of gaining a couple marks. However, not all modules will require critique to reach top marks and some modules may not credit critique with marks at all; it would be useful to ask your module convener about this before adding critique to your evaluation as it will otherwise just take up words which can be more appropriately used to deepen your analysis. One sentence is sometimes sufficient as a critique but sometimes more may be required - this is (annoyingly) a personal judgment call which takes a little trial and error.