OCR A-Level Law guide FAQ (H418)
Guide overview All 44 topics Sample questions Papers and weighting Look inside Questions and answers
OCR A-Level Law: questions and answers
Specification H418. Two sets, because students and parents ask different things.
For students
Do I sit human rights or contract?
Your school chooses. The third paper pairs the nature of law with either human rights (Component 3) or the law of contract (Component 4). You sit one of the two.
Both are in the guide because schools choose differently. The nature of law topics are on whichever one you sit, so they are never skipped.
Do I need to memorise case names?
Yes. A legal point without its authority scores less than the same point with it, and examiners expect the case that established the test you are applying. The guide asks for the case, the facts in brief and the principle separately.
Is EU law still on the specification?
It is a topic in the guide because it remains on the specification as part of law making. What is examinable is the mechanism and its relationship with domestic law rather than current UK membership.
How is the nature of law examined?
As the first section of your third paper, whichever option you take. It covers law and morality, law and justice, and law and society, and it asks you to apply those to the substantive law you have studied.
How long does one session take?
About twenty minutes for one subtopic, all three steps. Topics here are smaller than most subjects, 10 to 82 questions, so some topics are one or two sessions.
Can I do it in my head instead of writing?
Write. Law marks turn on stating a test precisely and attributing it correctly, and step 2 is where a loose version gets replaced by the exact one. The method page sets out the evidence.
When should I start?
H418 is linear, so all three papers are sat at the end of Year 13. The legal system and criminal law are usually taught first and are compulsory, which makes them the sensible first passes.
Do I still need past papers?
Yes. The method puts the cases and tests into memory. Past papers train applying them to a scenario and structuring the extended evaluations. OCR publishes them free.
For parents
What is this, in plain terms?
A PDF of 1,624 exam-style questions covering the whole of OCR A-Level Law including both third-paper options, with the answers printed after each topic.
My child seems to understand it but cannot recall the cases.
That is the standard gap in Law and it is expensive. Understanding the principle without the authority is worth part marks at best. Case names, facts and principles are exactly what the questions here ask for.
How do I know if it is being used properly?
There should be handwritten answers on paper and three passes over the same questions, and two scores per session to compare.
How much is it compared with a textbook?
£7.00 for the whole specification including both options. An A-Level Law textbook is usually £30 to £40 and often covers one component.
How do I check it is the right course?
The specification code is on the exam timetable. OCR Law is H418.
How much time does the whole course take?
97 subtopics at roughly twenty minutes each is about 32 hours for everything, and less once the unused third-paper option is skipped.
What else does my child need?
Past papers, which OCR publishes free, and their own notes for anything not yet taught.
OCR A-Level Law Active Recall Guide
1,624 questions with their answers, 97 subtopics, one file.