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Banking and financial law is legislation applied on a national or international level to regulate and stabilise the economy and to prevent or minimise large-scale financial problems. The subject also covers fraud, corruption and financial irregularities. If you want to take this sort of course, you will need to become familiar with the language of international finance – securities, loans, bonds, derivatives and how they work.
LLMs in banking and financial law consider different aspects of relevant legislation, especially compliance (with policies and regulations) and diligence (monitoring of procedures). The ability to make balanced political, economic and monetary risk assessments, to see the broad picture as well as homing in on small details and to untangle very complicated legal requirements lies at the heart of these subjects. Students who are interested in how the financial world operates and who are willing to probe into the frameworks that surround it will find a master’s in banking or financial law fascinating.
There are around 15 master’s in aspects of banking/financial law in the UK, although they are not always listed under this title. All courses tend to be ‘taught’ rather than research orientated, so they involve attending lectures classes and tutorials. A few institutions, such as the London School of Economics (LSE), also run research LLMs. As with almost every LLM course, a final dissertation is required, typically 12,000–15,000 words. The largest number of courses is run by constituent colleges of the University of London: LSE, King’s College London, the School of African and Oriental Studies, Queen Mary University of London, University College London and the University’s External LLM Programme. Oxford Brookes is amongst the other universities that also offer specialisation in these subjects.
Many LLMs in banking and financial law are based in London, which is a world centre for financial markets, but don’t ignore the programmes located elsewhere: most of these are well established, with a strong reputation and teaching staff who are experts in their field.
It is usual to have a first degree in law, but, depending on the course title and content, students with a bachelor’s qualification in economics, finance or a business subject may be accepted.
In order to cope with the level of complex reading and written work that these subjects demand, graduates whose first language isn’t English will generally require high IELTS (or equivalent) scores of 6.5–7.0.
LLMs in banking/financial law are normally studied on a one-year (full-time) basis, commencing in September/October. Many universities also provide a part-time option that runs for two years, with some allowing three or four years (eg the School of African and Oriental Studies and the LSE). Distance learning is a possibility if you enrol on the University of London’s External LLM Programme, through which you can concentrate on a number of subjects relevant to the banking and finance area.
Core topics for LLMs in banking law cover capital markets, corporate finance, investment management, insolvency and international transactions, plus liabilities and responsibilities, including a duty of care and confidentiality to clients in the electronic age. Corporate finance is available at the University of Westminster, law and finance at Bournemouth, and finance and financial law at the School of African and Oriental Studies (the course also gives students the opportunity to concentrate on Chinese and East Asian banking law).
You might like to look at our other Web pages to see the large number of master’s in business and commercial law (many of which have an international or European focus), as these often cover banking and tax in some detail and may allow you to specialise or produce a dissertation on this theme. Master’s in corporate governance at various universities, including Manchester, Warwick and Portsmouth, also include many features common to LLMs in banking/tax law (and that last one gives you a dual qualification from the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators). Some of the institutions already mentioned have other LLMs in financial/legal topics that you could also find relevant – for instance, Oxford Brookes University’s LLM in International Economic Law. The University of Leeds has an LLM in Insolvency Law, while City University runs a research programme covering equity and trusts. Also consider the LLM recently introduced at the College of Law’s several centres throughout the UK. It contains compulsory and elective subjects that are relevant to banking and, in some cases, can be studied online.
The LLM qualification is held in high regard in countries throughout the world. By obtaining a master’s in banking or financial law, you will demonstrate legal skills that can be applied to general and specialist business matters. Apart from legal firms, the qualification is of interest to financial institutions and to government agencies. It does not enable you to practise law in the United Kingdom, for which you require qualification as lawyer in your own country or to have taken the Legal Practice Course/Bar Vocational Course in England and Wales (or the Scottish equivalents).
The Institute for Fiscal Studies website will give you helpful background information.
Modern Banking Law, E Ellinger (ed)
Introduction to Global Financial Markets, S Valdez
Gillian Sharp
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