RRLLB81/103/1/2025
Tutorial Letter 103/1/2025
LLB Research Report
RRLLB81
Semesters 1
Department of Criminal and Procedural Law
This tutorial letter contains important information about your module.
, CONTENTS
Page
SECTION A:PREPARING ASSESSMENTS 02 AND 3………………………………………. ............................... 5
1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................... ..... 5
2 LEGAL RESEARCH ................................................................................................................................... .... 6
3 THE RRLLB81 RESEARCH JOURNEY ............................................................................ ................. ........... 7
4 THE JOURNEY FROM SELECTING THE TOPIC TO SUBMITTING ASSESSMENT 2 .... ..................... ...... 8
4.1 Selecting a topic ........................................................................................................ ................................... 8
4.2 Formulating your own research question, title, and research aim in respect of the topic you chose ........... 8
4.3 Researching the topic you have chosen ........................................................... ........................................... 9
4.3.1 Types of sources .............................................................................................. ....................................... 10
4.3.1.1 Primary sources ............................................................................................ ....................................... 10
4.3.1.2 Secondary sources ........................................................................................ ...................................... 11
4.3.2 Accessing reliable sources of legal information ........................................................... ........... ................ 11
4.3.2.1 A word of caution on the use of the Internet as a source of information ................ .............................. 11
4.3.2.2 Databases for reliable, authoritative and persuasive sources of law .......... ......................................... 12
4.3.3 Evaluation of sources ....................................................................................... ....................................... 14
4.4 Construct an outline ............................................................................................ ....................................... 15
4.5 Drafting Assessment 2 ....................................................................................... ........................................ 17
4.5.1 Adding content to your report outline ........................................................... ........................................... 17
4.5.2 Components/elements of your draft (and final) research report(s) ............................... .......... ................ 17
4.5.2.1 Front cover ............................................................................................................... ............................ 20
4.5.2.2 Declaration of authenticity ........................................................................................... ......... ................ 22
4.5.2.3 Abstract ......................................................................................................................... .......... ............. 22
4.5.2.4 Keywords ..................................................................................................................... ......... ............... 23
4.5.2.5 List of abbreviations and acronyms ......................................................................... ............................ 24
4.5.2.6 Table of contents ............................................................................................................. ......... ........... 25
4.5.2.7 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... ......... ........... 25
4.5.2.8 Body / Middle chapters ................................................................................................... ......... ............ 27
4.5.2.9 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... ......... ........... 30
4.5.2.10 Bibliography ........................................................................................ ............................................... 30
4.6 Some observations concerning legal writing .......................................... .............. ..................................... 31
4.6.1 Keep it clear and simple ............................................................................ .............................................. 31
4.6.2 Hallmarks of good academic legal writing ................................................ ............................................... 31
4.6.2.1 Clear .................................................................................................................... ................................ 31
4.6.2.2 Concise ................................................ ................................................................................................ 31
4.6.2.3 Formal ........................................................... ...........…........................................................................ 32
4.6.2.4 Substantiated ......................................................... ........ ..................................................................... 32
4.6.2.5 Rational ............................................................................. ................................................................... 32
4.7 Flow of ideas ...................................................................... ........................................................................ 33
4.7.1 Bridge sentences ................................................ ............ ........................................................................ 33
4.7.1.1 The recapitulating bridge................................................ ......... ............................................................. 34
4.7.1.2 The implication or complication bridge .............................. ........ .......................................................... 35
4.7.1.3 The question ...................................................................... ........ ......................................................... 35
2
, RRLLB81/103/1/2025
4.7.2 Transition words and phrases ............................................................. .................................................... 36
4.7.3 Practical suggestions on how to ensure proper flow ............... .......... ..................................................... 38
4.8 Proofreading, editing and submitting your draft ................................. ............. .......................................... 39
4.9 Ensuring that a Turnitin originality report is created for your submission ....... ........................................... 39
4.9.1 How to submit your document to Turnitin ................................................ ........ ....................................... 39
4.9.1.1 Accepting the End User License Agreement (EULA) ................. ........ ................................................. 39
4.9.1.2 File formats readable by Turnitin ................................................ ........ ................................................. 40
4.9.1.3 What happens after submission? ................................. ........ ............................................................... 42
4.9.1.4 How to open the originality report .......................................... ....... ...................................................... 43
4.9.1.5 What the originality report indicates ....................................... ........ ..................................................... 45
4.9.1.6 Is there an acceptable plagiarism percentage? .............................. ....... ............................................. 45
4.9.1.7 Is there an acceptable similarity percentage? ................................... ........ .......................................... 45
4.9.1.8 How to improve content originality in your submissions ........................ ........ ...................................... 47
4.9.2 Round robin run upon the closing of the assessment .......................... .......... ........................................ 48
4.9.3 Determination of penalties with the aid of Turnitin ............................... ....... ........................................... 48
4.9.4 What to do if you have any problems with any aspect of Turnitin ......... .......... ....................................... 49
5 THE JOURNEY TO SUBMITTING ASSESSMENT 3 ......................... ......................................................... 49
5.1 Ongoing revision .............................................................. .............. ........................................................... 49
5.2 What to expect from the assessment of Assessment 2 ............... ............. ................................................ 50
5.3 Very important warning concerning Assessment 3 .................................. ............. .................................... 51
5.4 Tasks involved in preparing your final research report ......................... ............. ....................................... 52
SECTION B: TOPICS FOR ASSESSMENT 2 AND ASSESSMENT 3…… ...................................... ………….54
3
, Dear Student
You must submit two formative assignments for this module (Assessment 1 and Assessment
2), and one summative assignment (Assessment 3).
• Assessment 1 is a multiple-choice assignment, consisting of twenty (20) questions.
Assessment 1 contributes 25% towards your year mark. Your year mark contributes
40% towards your final mark.
• Assessment 2 is a draft research report. A draft, in this sense, is a preliminary version
of a piece of writing. The work you submit as Assessment 2 will therefore be a
preliminary version of the research report that forms the outcome of this module. The
idea behind this assignment is for us to monitor your progress with the writing of the
final research report. From Tutorial Letter 103/1/2024 (this tutorial letter) you are
required to select ONE (1) topic and base your Assessment 2 AND Assessment 3 on
that topic. From the topic you have selected, you are required to formulate you
own working title or the title of your research report. You may NOT change topics
once you have selected a topic.
Assessment 2 may not exceed 12 pages, excluding the Title Page, Table of Contents,
other preliminary material (such as your list of abbreviations and acronyms) and the
Bibliography. Thus, the overall page limit is around 20 pages. You MUST reference
this assignment according to the School of Law reference style, which is discussed in
Tutorial Letter 102/3/2024 and LLBALLF/302/4/2022.
Assessment 2 contributes 75% towards your year mark. Your year mark contributes
40% towards your final mark.
An Assessment 2 with an overall similarity score of 65% or above on Turnitin will not be
marked and will be awarded 0%, and the student who submitted it will not have the
benefit of feedback on their draft.
• Assessment 3 is your final research report and is a revision of your draft research
report. The final research report (or Portfolio) constitutes the examination. You will
submit it as Assessment 3, and you must submit it using the normal methods of
submission, even though it is the examination for this module.
The final research report may not exceed 15 pages, excluding the Title Page, Table of
Contents, other preliminary material (such as your List of Acronyms and Abbreviations)
and the Bibliography. This should make the overall page limit to be around 23 pages.
If you ignore this limitation, the part of your research report that exceeds the prescribed
length will not be marked, and the research report will be assessed purely on the first
15 pages.
Assessment 3 contributes 60% towards your final mark, while the year mark contributes
the remaining 40%. You must achieve 40% as the subminimum in the examination
4
Tutorial Letter 103/1/2025
LLB Research Report
RRLLB81
Semesters 1
Department of Criminal and Procedural Law
This tutorial letter contains important information about your module.
, CONTENTS
Page
SECTION A:PREPARING ASSESSMENTS 02 AND 3………………………………………. ............................... 5
1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................................... ..... 5
2 LEGAL RESEARCH ................................................................................................................................... .... 6
3 THE RRLLB81 RESEARCH JOURNEY ............................................................................ ................. ........... 7
4 THE JOURNEY FROM SELECTING THE TOPIC TO SUBMITTING ASSESSMENT 2 .... ..................... ...... 8
4.1 Selecting a topic ........................................................................................................ ................................... 8
4.2 Formulating your own research question, title, and research aim in respect of the topic you chose ........... 8
4.3 Researching the topic you have chosen ........................................................... ........................................... 9
4.3.1 Types of sources .............................................................................................. ....................................... 10
4.3.1.1 Primary sources ............................................................................................ ....................................... 10
4.3.1.2 Secondary sources ........................................................................................ ...................................... 11
4.3.2 Accessing reliable sources of legal information ........................................................... ........... ................ 11
4.3.2.1 A word of caution on the use of the Internet as a source of information ................ .............................. 11
4.3.2.2 Databases for reliable, authoritative and persuasive sources of law .......... ......................................... 12
4.3.3 Evaluation of sources ....................................................................................... ....................................... 14
4.4 Construct an outline ............................................................................................ ....................................... 15
4.5 Drafting Assessment 2 ....................................................................................... ........................................ 17
4.5.1 Adding content to your report outline ........................................................... ........................................... 17
4.5.2 Components/elements of your draft (and final) research report(s) ............................... .......... ................ 17
4.5.2.1 Front cover ............................................................................................................... ............................ 20
4.5.2.2 Declaration of authenticity ........................................................................................... ......... ................ 22
4.5.2.3 Abstract ......................................................................................................................... .......... ............. 22
4.5.2.4 Keywords ..................................................................................................................... ......... ............... 23
4.5.2.5 List of abbreviations and acronyms ......................................................................... ............................ 24
4.5.2.6 Table of contents ............................................................................................................. ......... ........... 25
4.5.2.7 Introduction ...................................................................................................................... ......... ........... 25
4.5.2.8 Body / Middle chapters ................................................................................................... ......... ............ 27
4.5.2.9 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... ......... ........... 30
4.5.2.10 Bibliography ........................................................................................ ............................................... 30
4.6 Some observations concerning legal writing .......................................... .............. ..................................... 31
4.6.1 Keep it clear and simple ............................................................................ .............................................. 31
4.6.2 Hallmarks of good academic legal writing ................................................ ............................................... 31
4.6.2.1 Clear .................................................................................................................... ................................ 31
4.6.2.2 Concise ................................................ ................................................................................................ 31
4.6.2.3 Formal ........................................................... ...........…........................................................................ 32
4.6.2.4 Substantiated ......................................................... ........ ..................................................................... 32
4.6.2.5 Rational ............................................................................. ................................................................... 32
4.7 Flow of ideas ...................................................................... ........................................................................ 33
4.7.1 Bridge sentences ................................................ ............ ........................................................................ 33
4.7.1.1 The recapitulating bridge................................................ ......... ............................................................. 34
4.7.1.2 The implication or complication bridge .............................. ........ .......................................................... 35
4.7.1.3 The question ...................................................................... ........ ......................................................... 35
2
, RRLLB81/103/1/2025
4.7.2 Transition words and phrases ............................................................. .................................................... 36
4.7.3 Practical suggestions on how to ensure proper flow ............... .......... ..................................................... 38
4.8 Proofreading, editing and submitting your draft ................................. ............. .......................................... 39
4.9 Ensuring that a Turnitin originality report is created for your submission ....... ........................................... 39
4.9.1 How to submit your document to Turnitin ................................................ ........ ....................................... 39
4.9.1.1 Accepting the End User License Agreement (EULA) ................. ........ ................................................. 39
4.9.1.2 File formats readable by Turnitin ................................................ ........ ................................................. 40
4.9.1.3 What happens after submission? ................................. ........ ............................................................... 42
4.9.1.4 How to open the originality report .......................................... ....... ...................................................... 43
4.9.1.5 What the originality report indicates ....................................... ........ ..................................................... 45
4.9.1.6 Is there an acceptable plagiarism percentage? .............................. ....... ............................................. 45
4.9.1.7 Is there an acceptable similarity percentage? ................................... ........ .......................................... 45
4.9.1.8 How to improve content originality in your submissions ........................ ........ ...................................... 47
4.9.2 Round robin run upon the closing of the assessment .......................... .......... ........................................ 48
4.9.3 Determination of penalties with the aid of Turnitin ............................... ....... ........................................... 48
4.9.4 What to do if you have any problems with any aspect of Turnitin ......... .......... ....................................... 49
5 THE JOURNEY TO SUBMITTING ASSESSMENT 3 ......................... ......................................................... 49
5.1 Ongoing revision .............................................................. .............. ........................................................... 49
5.2 What to expect from the assessment of Assessment 2 ............... ............. ................................................ 50
5.3 Very important warning concerning Assessment 3 .................................. ............. .................................... 51
5.4 Tasks involved in preparing your final research report ......................... ............. ....................................... 52
SECTION B: TOPICS FOR ASSESSMENT 2 AND ASSESSMENT 3…… ...................................... ………….54
3
, Dear Student
You must submit two formative assignments for this module (Assessment 1 and Assessment
2), and one summative assignment (Assessment 3).
• Assessment 1 is a multiple-choice assignment, consisting of twenty (20) questions.
Assessment 1 contributes 25% towards your year mark. Your year mark contributes
40% towards your final mark.
• Assessment 2 is a draft research report. A draft, in this sense, is a preliminary version
of a piece of writing. The work you submit as Assessment 2 will therefore be a
preliminary version of the research report that forms the outcome of this module. The
idea behind this assignment is for us to monitor your progress with the writing of the
final research report. From Tutorial Letter 103/1/2024 (this tutorial letter) you are
required to select ONE (1) topic and base your Assessment 2 AND Assessment 3 on
that topic. From the topic you have selected, you are required to formulate you
own working title or the title of your research report. You may NOT change topics
once you have selected a topic.
Assessment 2 may not exceed 12 pages, excluding the Title Page, Table of Contents,
other preliminary material (such as your list of abbreviations and acronyms) and the
Bibliography. Thus, the overall page limit is around 20 pages. You MUST reference
this assignment according to the School of Law reference style, which is discussed in
Tutorial Letter 102/3/2024 and LLBALLF/302/4/2022.
Assessment 2 contributes 75% towards your year mark. Your year mark contributes
40% towards your final mark.
An Assessment 2 with an overall similarity score of 65% or above on Turnitin will not be
marked and will be awarded 0%, and the student who submitted it will not have the
benefit of feedback on their draft.
• Assessment 3 is your final research report and is a revision of your draft research
report. The final research report (or Portfolio) constitutes the examination. You will
submit it as Assessment 3, and you must submit it using the normal methods of
submission, even though it is the examination for this module.
The final research report may not exceed 15 pages, excluding the Title Page, Table of
Contents, other preliminary material (such as your List of Acronyms and Abbreviations)
and the Bibliography. This should make the overall page limit to be around 23 pages.
If you ignore this limitation, the part of your research report that exceeds the prescribed
length will not be marked, and the research report will be assessed purely on the first
15 pages.
Assessment 3 contributes 60% towards your final mark, while the year mark contributes
the remaining 40%. You must achieve 40% as the subminimum in the examination
4
