LLB Part II-IV and LLB(Hons) Degree Planning

There is no timeframe in which the LLB must be complete.Please note, if you are intending to practise law, the New Zealand Council of Legal Education deems qualifications of certain age prior to admission as stale qualifications.

You can find more information by visiting the New Zealand Council of Legal Education's Stale qualifications page.

LLB Part II consists of five compulsory full-year courses. Students must self-enrol for both A and B components (i.e. both Semester One and Two) before the second Friday of Semester One.

Find more information on general LLB degree planning and workloads.

To be eligible to enrol for LLB Part II courses, students must have been admitted unconditionally to the LLB Part II and accepted their offer. Students already active in LLB Part II-IV do not need to reapply.

As condition of admission to LLB Part II, students must enrol for LAW 298 and at least one other LLB Part II course. Failure to do so will result in students being withdrawn from the LLB Part II programme.

Students continuing with a single LLB may opt to take LAW 298 alongside three LLB Part II courses upon admission and in their third year, enrol for their final LLB Part II course alongside law electives. The LLB Part II course you leave for your third year should be a course which is not a requisite for any law electives you wish to take. For example, if you wish to take LAWCOMM electives, you may wish to leave LAW 201 until your third year as few law electives require this as a requisite.

Find more information about law electives below, eligibility and applying for LLB Part II, and sample degree structures.

Students continuing with a conjoint often split LLB Part II across two years. In LLB Part II and II.5, the order of LAW 201-241 can be varied. This diagram shows just one possible arrangement.

Students who may be completing their other conjoint component and need to enrol for Law Electives alongside their remaining LLB Part II courses in LLB II.5 should plan their degree in advance to ensure they have met the requisites for enough law electives to be considered full-time.

For any degree planning or to make sure you’re on track with your studies, contact Student Hubs.

LLB Part III/IV consists of four compulsory courses, two being full-year courses (LAW 301 and 306), and law electives.

*Compulsory course

Students are unable to enrol in any LLB Part III courses until all LLB Part II courses have been completed. Requisite waivers for law courses are not permitted. Students may however enrol into law electives (400 level law courses), so long as the pre/corequisites have been met.

**Although LAW 458 is an elective course for the LLB/LLB(Hons), the Council for Legal Education (CLE) requires students intending to be admitted to the Bar to complete this course.

Like LLB Part II courses, LAW 301 Land Law and LAW 306 Equity are full year courses where students must self-enrol for both A and B components (i.e. both Semester One and Two) before the second Friday of Semester One.

LAW 316 Jurisprudence and LAW 458 Legal Ethics are available in both Semester One and Two of each year and can be taken in the final year of study.

Find more information on Law Courses, Law Electives, LLB Requirements, and Law School Timetables.

In the final term of LLB Part IV, students must self-enrol for LAW 498 Advanced Legal Research, Writing and Communication, although the requirements may be met any time prior to enrolment.

Find more information on LAW 498 Requirements.

In the third and fourth years of the LLB degree, Part III and IV students can choose from a diverse range of elective courses. While the LLB is a general degree without a specific major, students have the option to specialise in particular areas of law.

Important Notes:

• Elective Variability: Law electives may change from year to year, and there is no guarantee that the same electives will be offered. Some courses may also have limited availability.
• LAW 458 Requirement: Although LAW 458 is an elective for both the LLB and LLB(Hons) programmes, the Council for Legal Education (CLE) mandates that students intending to be admitted to the Bar must complete this course.
• Postgraduate Courses: Students who have completed LAW 301 and LAW 306 may apply for a concession to enrol in certain postgraduate courses (up to a maximum of 30 points). To be eligible, students must:
  • Meet the necessary prerequisites
  • Achieve the required GPA

These postgraduate courses will count towards your law elective requirements.

See our full list of law electives and the undergraduate and the postgraduate timetable for LLB students. 

In 2025, as part of a University-wide initiative, all law elective courses that were previously 20 or 10 points were converted to 15 point courses. Consequently, some students may be compelled to enrol in 5 or 10 additional points to that required to fulfil the requirements of the LLB degree (e.g., 485 or 490 points rather than 480 points).

To prevent students having to enrol in 5 or 10 additional points, we have introduced the following courses, which will enable students to fulfil the LLB degree requirements without needing to enrol in additional points:

• LAWGENRL 400 – Directed Study (5 points)
• LAWGENRL 416 – Directed Study (10 points)

LAWGENRL 416 can be counted as a sustained piece of legal writing for LAW 498.

These courses are exclusively available to students currently fulfilling LLB degree requirements during the Summer School and Semesters 1 & 2 of 2025, and who would otherwise be forced to enrol in additional points to complete their degree.

Please note that a student needing to 5 or 10 points to complete their degree may alternatively elect to enrol in a normal 15 point course.

In subsequent academic years (e.g. 2026, 2027), for students who find themselves short of the 5 or 10 points needed to complete their LLB degree requirements, these courses will be available for enrolment during their final academic year of study.

The LLB requirements have changed over the years. Depending on when you were admitted into LLB Part II and/or took a certain course/s, the minimum amount of law electives you need to complete may differ.

If you’re unsure of your programme requirements, contact Student Hubs for degree planning.

Please note:

• Students completing a conjoint, please check with Student Hubs for your other degree programme requirements.
• Students who had not enrolled into any LLB Part III courses prior to 2019 are not required to enrol into LAW 399 but must enrol into 10pts of electives in lieu of LAW 399.
• Although LAW 458 is an elective courses for the LLB and LLB(Hons) programmes, the Council for Legal Education (CLE) required students intending to be admitted to the Bar to complete this course.
• LLB(Hons) students will complete a full-year LAWHONS seminar (20pts) and a LAWHONS dissertation (40pts) in addition to the LLB Part I, compulsory courses and law elective courses.
  

In addition to the LLB requirements, students admitted into LLB(Hons) are required to enrol for a full-year 20-point Honours Seminar Course in the year of admission. Attendance at every class is compulsory and students are expected to participate fully throughout.

Enrolment for the 40-point Dissertation is done in the semester following completion of LLB Part IV. It’s not recommended to complete your Dissertation while working, as you should not underestimate the time required to complete this comprehensive piece of work.

LLB(Hons) adds an extra semester of study.

Find more information on LLB(Hons) requirements, honours courses, sample degree structures, and frequently asked questions.