Teaching
The University has a long tradition in the field, as the Chair of Civil Law was founded in 1710, with Civil Law taught continuously in the University since then. The Centre for Legal History has a reputation for success in postgraduate study.

The Centre for Legal History contributes to a number of civil law and legal history courses as part of the LLB at Edinburgh Law School.
Learn more about the undergraduate courses at Edinburgh Law School
Edinburgh Law School offers one of the widest ranges of legal masters programmes in the UK.
Masters programmes at Edinburgh Law School
Doctoral researchers must complete a thesis of a certain length on a topic chosen in consultation with their supervisors. Regular assessment meetings are held. The normal time period for this degree is three academic years.
For all postgraduate enquiries in Legal History, contact the Director of the Centre for Legal History, Professor Paul du Plessis.
The University of Edinburgh and Edinburgh Law School offer a range of scholarships for our students.
Scholarships for research degrees
The Muirhead Prize is awarded annually to the student who obtains first place in the Civil Law (Ordinary) class. The prize, founded in 1891, is named in honour of Professor James Muirhead (1830-1889), Chair of Civil Law from 1862 to 1889.
The Forensic Essay Prize, established in 1862, is awarded to the student with the highest mark in the essay in the Civil Law (Ordinary) class.
Image credit: Cutting from an academic diploma of the University of Padua or possibly the lower margin of a title-page for a manuscript or Venetian incunable showing the 'Triumph of an Academic', Italy (Padua), c. 1465-1470, British Library. Further details