Legal essays require you to form your own, original arguments based on existing scholarship and your analysis of the law in a particular area. While some description or explanation will be necessary for your reader to understand your argument, this background information should be kept to a minimum. In fact, one of the most common errors in essays is to spent too much of the word count on unnecessary and derivative description.
The quiz below tests your ability to differentiate an argument from a description of the law. Once you’re clear on the difference between the two, you will be better equipped to avoid providing too much description without a corresponding argument.