NG Bar Part I Criminal Law study guide
NG Bar Part I Criminal Law · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
Criminal Law is one of the Bar Part I courses of the Nigerian Law School programme, listed on the School's official website alongside Property Law, Corporate Law and Professional Ethics. Bar Part I is the vocational stage that law graduates undertake after their LL.B before proceeding toward Call to the Bar as barristers and solicitors of the Supreme Court of Nigeria; Criminal Law sits within that skills-based, clinical training rather than the academic syllabus. Candidates should treat the paper as practice-facing: expect to reason from statute and case authority, apply doctrine to fresh fact patterns, and write answers in the professional format the School teaches. The School's site confirms Bar Part I registration adverts, calendars and portals, and separately advertises resit registration, so candidates who do not clear a paper should watch the site for resit notices. Preparation should combine a current Criminal Law and Procedure text, the Criminal Code and Penal Code frameworks, the Evidence Act where relevant, and sustained practice on past-style problems under timed conditions. Use the official portal for registration, examination numbers and results, and this independent page only for study guidance. Topics on this exam: Criminal Law. The NG Bar Part I Criminal Law study guide has 1 section and about 408 words.
01Criminal Law
The Nigerian Bar Part I Criminal Law paper tests general principles and their application under the Criminal Code Act (Cap C38, LFN 2004), the Penal Code in the North, and federal statutes such as the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act and the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000. Expect elements-based questions, offence classification, parties, inchoate liability, and defences. Actus reus and mens rea must concur. The conduct must be voluntary (Criminal Code s 24); a reflex or act during automatism is not criminal.
408 words, about 2 minMore study resources for NG Bar Part I Criminal Law
- Practice questionsUnder the Criminal Code of Japan, which theory of punishment justifies the death penalty and imprisonment by reference to the offender's future dangerousness and the deterrent effect on society?
- FlashcardsActus reus. The physical element of a crime: a voluntary act, or an omission where a legal duty to act exists, such as a statutory duty, contract, or relationship creating dependence.
- Cheat sheetActus reus requires a voluntary physical act or an omission where a legal duty to act exists; status alone (e.g., addiction) cannot be criminalized.
- Key termsActus Reus. The external, physical element of an offence: the prohibited conduct, its circumstances, and any consequence required by the definition.
- Study planMap the entire Criminal Law syllabus into a one-page outline covering general principles, inchoate offenses, offenses against persons, property offenses, and offenses against public order.
- Common mistakesCandidates memorize elements lists as single words and treat 'intent' as a universal solvent; they never drill the state-of-mind ladder against fact patterns, so they default to the broadest label when the call of the question asks for the narrowest one.
- Exam-day guidePrint or save the confirmation you received when you booked.