Law and Economics

Law and economics is a combination that has transformed both disciplines over the past half century. Law without economics is incomplete: understanding why legal rules produce the outcomes they do requires an understanding of how people respond to incentives, how markets work, and what efficiency means in different contexts. Economics without law is similarly limited: property rights, contracts, regulation and liability rules are all legal constructs that shape how markets function and how economic resources are allocated.

Together, the two disciplines give you a uniquely powerful analytical toolkit for understanding how the rules that govern society interact with the economic forces that drive it.

At the University of Strathclyde, this four-year full-time degree is studied as a BA combination, which gives you serious academic engagement with both disciplines without qualifying you directly for entry to the legal profession: students who want to practise law in Scotland or England should follow the LLB programme. The BA combination is well suited to those who want to understand the economic dimensions of law and the legal dimensions of economics, whether for roles in policy, regulatory affairs, consultancy, research or business. You will study the core areas of legal theory and analysis alongside economic theory and method, developing analytical rigour in both.

A year abroad is available, giving you the opportunity to study in another academic environment and to broaden your perspective on how law and economics interact in different institutional contexts.

You will develop strong analytical, argumentation and quantitative skills, and the ability to examine legal and economic questions with complementary methods.

Graduates move into economic and policy consultancy, regulatory analysis, government and public administration, competition policy, financial services, research, international organisations, journalism, and a wide range of other roles where legal and economic analysis intersect. Postgraduate study in law, economics or public policy is a well-supported pathway.