Law Essay Writing: A Complete Guide to IRAC and OSCOLA Referencing

The IRAC method is a structure for answering law problem questions: identify the Issue, state the Rule (the relevant law from cases and statutes), Apply that rule to the facts, and reach a Conclusion. OSCOLA is the referencing style used by most UK law schools, with citations in footnotes rather than in the text. Master both and you remove two of the most common reasons law assignments lose marks: disorganised analysis and inaccurate referencing.

This guide covers how to write a law essay and a problem question, a worked IRAC example on negligence, and the OSCOLA rules you need, with correctly formatted examples.

Law essay vs problem question

Law assignments come in two main forms, and they need different approaches.

For essays, don't recite the law. State a position in your introduction ("This essay argues that...") and use cases and academic debate as evidence. For problem questions, the facts are designed to trigger specific legal issues; every fact usually matters.

The IRAC method step by step

1. Issue: state the legal question raised by the facts in one sentence. "The issue is whether X owes Y a duty of care in negligence."
2. Rule: set out the relevant law with authority: the leading case, any statute and how later cases have developed it. Be precise and cite properly.
3. Application: this is where most marks are. Apply each element of the rule to the specific facts, compare them with the facts of the authorities, and deal with counter-arguments.
4. Conclusion: give a reasoned answer for that issue, with an honest view of how likely it is. Then move on to the next issue.

A problem question usually contains several issues. Run a mini-IRAC for each one, in a logical order, rather than one giant IRAC for the whole answer.

IRAC variants: CREAC, ILAC and others

Your module may use a different acronym. They share the same logic:

• ILAC: Issue, Law, Application, Conclusion. Essentially IRAC with "Law" instead of "Rule"; common in Australian and some UK law schools.
• CREAC: Conclusion, Rule, Explanation, Application, Conclusion. Popular in US legal writing. You state your conclusion first, then explain how courts have interpreted the rule before applying it.
• IPAC: Issue, Principle, Application, Conclusion.

Use whichever your tutors expect. What matters is that application is detailed and every legal statement is supported by authority.

Worked problem question IRAC example: negligence

Facts (hypothetical): Sam buys a sealed bottle of smoothie from a shop. The bottle was produced by FreshCo Ltd. Halfway through drinking it, Sam finds a piece of glass, cuts her mouth and needs treatment. Advise Sam on a claim in negligence against FreshCo.

Issue. Does FreshCo owe Sam a duty of care, and if so, is it liable in negligence for her injury?

Rule. In Donoghue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562 (HL), the claimant drank ginger beer from an opaque bottle that allegedly contained the decomposed remains of a snail. The House of Lords held that a manufacturer of products owes a duty of care to the ultimate consumer where the products reach the consumer in the form in which they left the manufacturer, with no reasonable possibility of intermediate examination. Lord Atkin's "neighbour principle" at 580 states that you must take reasonable care to avoid acts or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would be likely to injure your neighbour. Later, Caparo Industries plc v Dickman [1990] 2 AC 605 (HL) set out a three-stage approach for novel situations, but Robinson v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police [2018] UKSC 4, [2018] AC 736 confirmed that where a duty has been established by precedent, courts apply that precedent rather than the Caparo test. Negligence also requires breach, causation and damage that is not too remote.

Application. Manufacturer and consumer is an established duty category, so following Robinson there is no need to apply Caparo. Like the ginger beer in Donoghue, the smoothie was sealed, so neither the shop nor Sam could reasonably examine it before drinking. On breach, a reasonable manufacturer would have systems to prevent glass contamination; the presence of glass strongly suggests those systems failed, although FreshCo may try to show it took all reasonable precautions. On causation, but for the glass, Sam would not have been injured (Barnett v Chelsea and Kensington Hospital Management Committee [1969] 1 QB 428 (QB)). A cut to the mouth is exactly the type of harm foreseeable from glass in a drink, so it is not too remote (Overseas Tankship (UK) Ltd v Morts Dock and Engineering Co Ltd (The Wagon Mound) [1961] AC 388 (PC)).

Conclusion. FreshCo very likely owes Sam a duty of care, and she has a strong claim in negligence for her injury. A stronger answer would also note that Sam may have an alternative claim under Part I of the Consumer Protection Act 1987, which imposes strict liability on producers of defective products, and a contractual claim against the shop under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

Notice how the application compares the new facts with the facts of the leading case. That comparison is what markers are looking for.

Want a model problem question answer to see how this works in tort, contract or criminal law? Our law assignment help team provides expert guidance and model answers to learn from.

OSCOLA referencing: the key rules

OSCOLA (the Oxford University Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities) is used by most UK law schools. Most still require the 4th edition, but check your module handbook in case it specifies a newer edition. The core rules are:

• Footnotes, not in-text citations. Put the footnote marker at the end of the sentence or clause, after punctuation. Each footnote ends with a full stop.
• Minimal punctuation. No full stops in abbreviations: write "edn", "UKSC", "HL", "s 2", "QB", not "ed.", "U.K.S.C." or "s. 2".
• Case names in italics in footnotes; party names separated by "v" with no full stop.
• Square or round brackets. Use square brackets when the year identifies the volume of the report series (such as [1932] AC). Use round brackets when the series has its own volume numbers and the year is extra information, such as (1868) LR 3 HL 330.
• Neutral citations first. For cases from 2001 onwards with a neutral citation, give it first, then the best law report.
• Pinpoints. Point to the exact page or paragraph you rely on: page numbers after a comma or space, paragraph numbers in square brackets.
• Subsequent references. Use a short form with a cross-reference such as "(n 3)", or "ibid" for the immediately preceding footnote.
• Bibliography and tables. For longer work, list cases in a table of cases and legislation in a table of legislation, and put secondary sources (books, articles) in the bibliography. In the bibliography, the author's surname comes first followed by initials.

OSCOLA footnotes: correctly formatted examples

In a real footnote, case names and book titles would be italicised.

Note that bibliography entries have no full stop at the end, while footnotes do. The pinpoints in the book examples are illustrative; always use the page you actually relied on. For a comparison with other styles, see our guide to referencing styles explained.

Common mistakes in law essays

• Describing the law at length without applying it to the facts.
• Citing a case without saying what it decided or why it matters.
• Treating one first-instance decision as settled law when appellate authority says otherwise.
• Missing an issue hidden in the facts (for example, a second defendant or an alternative statutory claim).
• Mixing OSCOLA with Harvard-style in-text citations.
• Adding full stops to abbreviations or forgetting pinpoints.
• Relying on websites or revision guides instead of primary sources and academic journals.

Get support with your law assignments

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Frequently asked questions

What does IRAC stand for in law?

IRAC stands for Issue, Rule, Application and Conclusion. It is a method for structuring answers to problem questions: identify each legal issue, state the law with authority, apply it to the facts and reach a reasoned conclusion. Variants include ILAC and CREAC.

Should I use IRAC for a law essay?

IRAC is designed for problem questions. For essay questions, use a thesis-led structure with an introduction, themed sections that build an argument, and a conclusion that answers the question. You might use IRAC-style reasoning within a section, but the essay as a whole should argue a position.

Does OSCOLA use a bibliography?

Short assignments sometimes need footnotes only, but most longer law essays and dissertations require a table of cases, a table of legislation and a bibliography of secondary sources. In the bibliography, list authors by surname then initials, and remove the final full stop. Always check your module guidance.

Do I put a full stop at the end of OSCOLA footnotes?

Yes, every OSCOLA footnote ends with a full stop. However, OSCOLA does not use full stops within abbreviations, so write "edn", "s 3" and "UKSC" rather than "ed.", "s. 3" or "U.K.S.C.".