A-Levels for law that don't include History

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DD is predicted all 8/9s at GCSE, she wants to study Law at uni but is having a hard time picking A-Levels.
She is set on English Lit and French (her best subjects by far), her careers advisor is pushing for history, she's expecting an 8 but doesn't enjoy history at all, she says it's among her least favourite.
She likes Religious Studies and Business Studies a lot and is expecting a 9 in Maths but doesn't really love it (very good at it just not her favourite), she hates science with a passion!
Her GCSE subjects are English Lit and Lang, Maths, French, Business, Religious Studies, Combined Science, History and Music. The last 3 are expecting 8,8 , 8 and 8 again, the first are all predicted 9s.
They are encouraged at DDs school to pick 4 A-Levels then drop one if they wish for Y13.
So far she is considering

• Politics
• Religion
• Economics
• Business

She is keen to try economics and Politics but is worried she won't like them as has no experience. She is also worried that compared to History they aren't looked on as fondly by Universities.
She's been encouraged by school to consider Oxbridge when the time comes but in DDs word "that's not my vibe" she is more keen on London Unis (UCL, Kings and LSE) but I know this could change.
Any advice?

Religious studies and economics would be a good pair. History is traditionally considered the best due to the need to research and reference, which explains the school pushing for it.

@Hols24 Oxford didn't accept business studies. My dates may be out though.

Re was my dds favourite subject and that was a no too from some. But as I said dates might be out.

Sorry folks. I just checked. No specifics, three As. Essay writing subjects favoured.

RE is quite a good one if the A Level syllabus concerned does ethics. Our DC does History but has found it less enjoyable than the GCSE. Politics is a good course if a tad less traditional. Always choose Economics over Business unless not good at Maths or wanting to study Business as a degree. Do they do Philosophy at the sixth form, it’s a really good course at DCs sixth form. Psychology also good but might be too science based if she dislikes science

What an odd thing to say. Anything can be dull to anyone if they are not interested in it! Just because she doesn't like history, doesn't mean she'll find law dull. There may be transferable skills but the content is very different!

Which universities won't accept RE or Business Studies?

RS I'm going to guess is about as many as require a gcse MFL

Business studies - well, it is on this Cambridge list as 'less useful'

https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/apply/before/choosing-high-school-subjects

But that doesn't necessarily mean it won't be accepted, and if it's in addition to 3 academic subjects it might not be a demerit if it adds breadth. (I'm pretty sure there are plenty of Cambridge students who've done Performing Arts btw)

Of course if in doubt about specific course preferences the applicant can contact the admissions tutor to ask their advice.

Statistics seem to be important everywhere now. Would that appeal as a subject?
RS as a brain training subject deffo. I know a barrister who did a Theology degree.

Is stats available as a separate A level now, I thought it was just included in A level maths?

Thanks @ErrolTheDragon, that's interesting.

I do know someone who got into Cambridge with Media Studies as one of his 3 A-levels though, so like you say, "less useful" isn't the same as "not accepted" 🙂

Irish common law is identical to English common law, since the countries existed under the same administration for centuries. Current English and Welsh precedents tend to be followed in Ireland too. They're not legally binding but they are persuasive.

There is more difference - by a long shot - between English/ Welsh and Scottish law than there is between English/ Welsh and Irish law. In both style and substance, Irish and English/ Welsh law are very closely aligned.

Additionally, Irish solicitors can practice in England and Wales, and vice versa, without having to sit any exams. Irish and Scottish solicitors need to sit exams before qualifying to practice in the other jurisdiction. Same goes for barristers, though there are hurdles to cross (exams). In the wake of Brexit, there has been a significant amount of registration of English and Welsh lawyers of both stripes in Ireland.

@ErrolTheDragon , It seems that it is Pearson Edexcel, 9ST0. From 2017.
It was an A/S level only. Now fully examined.

@mathanxiety I'm an English lawyer married to an Irish (English qualified) lawyer. The systems have common roots but they are not the same. In fact I had a case a few years back that partly involved Irish law. The English legal team brought in Irish lawyers to deal with that.

The Scottish system is also a different legal system (with different roots). I have worked on many cases with Scottish lawyers over the years.

My advice to the OP's daughter is that if you want to qualify as an English lawyer study law in England or Wales, not some other country.

Any of those choices will be absolutely fine, so dig into the curriculum and let her pick the ones she finds most interesting. The more engaged she is with them the better she’ll do and good grades are most important.
That said, as you wanted some thoughts on those four:
I would probably say business is least advisable, because there will likely be a large proportion of less academic students on it, which can be frustrating for a student as able as your DD. RE would probably be a the best option because she seems to love it from what you’ve said and the skills are nicely transferred. Politics or economics are both great - depending on what area of law she’s most interested in she should pick the one that matches it most?

The foundations are exactly the same. The substance is extremely similar, as is the style. In the area of business law in particular, owing to Ireland's continuing close trade links to the UK long after independence from the UK and then within the EEC and subsequently the EU, law remained and remains very closely aligned. Thanks to continued trade and strong commercial links including land ownership on either side of the border between Ireland and NI, and educational links between the two jurisdictions, sols in NI and Ireland often practice on both sides of the border. There are professional indemnity hoops you have to jump through, but the systems are well aligned.

It's possible that your one case was an exception, but you mention that Irish lawyers were brought in, so you can see for yourself that practicing in England (and Wales) is possible for Irish lawyers.

The daughter in question is considering French as an option for A Levels, and could well end up with an EU-UK practice, which is what has attracted the 4-5000 English solicitors who have registered in Ireland since Brexit. That number also speaks to an ease of transfer of qualifications (no exams required), as well as an advantage in considering Ireland.

She could do law in Ireland and either get a training contract in England, or qualify as a sol in Ireland and then move back.

You are right that lots of English lawyers have qualified in Ireland due to Brexit but that's not to practise Irish law, it's to practise EU law because of the restrictions in place post-Brexit. It has been an administrative headache for those lawyers and the Irish regulators that have had to deal with the influx.

You are also right that Irish solicitors can easily cross qualify into England, but that is a different question as to whether an English student should look to do a law degree in Ireland in order to qualify as a lawyer in England. To become Irish solicitors they will have had to do the Irish professional exams and a training contract to become qualified first - it's a pretty indirect route to working as a lawyer in England.

In the case I mentioned the Irish lawyers were not practising in England - they were advising our clients on points of Irish law from Ireland. I practise in an international area so it is common to work with lawyers in other jurisdictions.

This is all rather beyond the question of A level choices though!

I use maths far more in my legal work than I ever thought I would. My maths A Level has been useful.

The key nowadays is to do three subjects that you will get A or A star in. As long as one is an essay based subject it doesn’t really matter what the subjects are. DSs friend has just gone to Oxford to do law on Drama, English Language and RE.. Years ago that combination would not have been advisable for aspiring lawyers.

Sounds like a well rounded set of A Levels. I’m over 60 and I don’t remember any local sixth form options offering English Language or combined Lit and Lang at A Level, it was all English Literature. So much more choice now

That combo would be great for an aspiring barrister.

Yes indeed, and it also trains you to think logically through a problem consisting of a certain set of facts, using a certain set of rules, and arrive at a conclusion that can be tested.

Bloody hell! Why do people do this?

I think she also needs to accept that parts of law can be very boring. I loved criminal law, tort pretty dull, signed up to a law of the sea module with my housemate because we thought it might be about pirates (I was 18) , it was largely about fishing quotas. I ended up not practicing but going into an adjacent criminal justice field that was a lot more interesting than the pure application of the law.
FWIW I did English, German, History and A level law and went to Durham

But if she did A level history the school would have to focus on the period the A level curriculum covers. Does she know the period covered in the A level syllabus? It might be more to her taste.

Any subject is fine for law. A friend's son did all maths/science subjects for example. Another popular choice is drama.

Basically whatever will get them the highest grades.

This link is old now but back when there used to be a thing about "facilitating subjects) someone did a Freedom is Information request with several RG universities and one of the subjects they chose was law.

https://cfey.org/2013/09/what-a-level-subjects-do-russell-group-universities-prefer/