ACCA LW exam guide: format, syllabus and how to pass

The ACCA LW exam (Corporate and Business Law) is a two-hour computer-based exam with two sections and a pass mark of 50%. This guide covers the English variant, LW-ENG, which is the one most UK-based students sit. It gives you the legal knowledge an accountant needs, from the basics of contract to company law and insolvency.

This guide covers what the exam looks like on screen, the two sections and how the marks fall, the syllabus, the pass rate, and how to prepare for a paper that has the highest pass rate in the qualification but a lot of law to remember.

What is ACCA Corporate and Business Law?

LW is one of the six Applied Skills exams, the level above Applied Knowledge. It is a largely standalone, knowledge-based paper: there is very little calculation, and most of the exam tests whether you know the law and can apply it to a short scenario. If you are mapping out the whole qualification, our guide to the ACCA exams in order shows where it fits among all 13 papers.

Older materials call it ACCA F4, or Corporate and Business Law. It is the same paper at the same level; ACCA simply renamed it when the old paper codes were retired. There are several national variants; this guide is the English (ENG) version.

LW is available both as a session exam and, in many markets, on demand as a computer-based exam, so you may be able to sit it at a time that suits you. Check availability for your variant on ACCA's exam pages.

The ACCA LW exam format

The exam lasts two hours, is computer-based, and every question is compulsory. There are 100 marks available and you need 50 to pass. It is split across two sections.

Section A is 70 marks: a set of objective test questions, a mixture of one-mark and two-mark questions, drawn from right across the syllabus. Because this section is most of the paper and covers everything, you cannot afford large gaps in your knowledge.

Section B is 30 marks: five multi-task questions worth six marks each. Each is based on a short scenario and asks you to apply the law rather than simply recall it, so this is where reading and application matter.

The ACCA LW syllabus at a glance

LW moves from the legal system, through the law of obligations, to company law and insolvency. Here is what the syllabus covers and where candidates tend to lose marks.

Notice that LW is mostly recall plus a little application. It is a memory paper with a practical edge, which is why the people who pass it comfortably are the ones who revised across the whole syllabus rather than betting on a few topics.

The ACCA LW pass rate

ACCA's published pass rates put LW at 82% for the December 2025 sitting, the highest of any ACCA paper. The reason is the format: a large, objective-tested Section A rewards broad, steady knowledge, and the law itself is more about knowing the rule than performing under pressure.

That said, the high pass rate is not a reason to be complacent. LW covers a lot of law, and the candidates who fail are usually the ones who under-revised whole areas or leaned too heavily on a handful of topics. Cover the syllabus properly and LW is one of the most winnable papers in the qualification.

If you want the wider context on how the papers compare, our breakdown of which ACCA exams are the hardest puts LW's numbers alongside the rest of the qualification.

How to pass ACCA LW first time

LW rewards two things above all: broad, reliable recall across the whole syllabus, and the ability to apply a rule to a short scenario in Section B. Neither is difficult on its own; the work is in the breadth.

Revise the whole syllabus and drill objective questions

Because Section A is 70 marks of objective testing across everything, the highest-value preparation is broad coverage plus lots of practice questions. Work objective test questions from every area, note the ones you get wrong, and go back to them. Do not gamble on question-spotting in a paper that tests the whole syllabus.

Practise applying the law in Section B

The five multi-task questions ask you to apply the law, not just state it. Practise reading a short scenario, identifying the relevant rule, and reaching a clear conclusion. That structure, rule then application then conclusion, is what earns the Section B marks.

The fastest way to build all of this is to test yourself rather than only read. If you would rather learn LW by doing, the whole free ACCA LW course teaches every area with instant-marked questions as you go.

A study plan for ACCA LW

LW is more manageable than most Applied Skills papers, and if it is available on demand you can sit it when ready. Six to eight weeks of steady study is a realistic shape for most people, weighted towards broad coverage and question practice.

Weeks 1 to 2: the legal system and the law of obligations. Get contract and negligence solid early, as they underpin a lot of the paper.

Weeks 3 to 4: employment law and the formation and constitution of companies.

Weeks 5 to 6: capital and financing, company management and administration, insolvency, and corporate criminal behaviour.

Weeks 7 to 8 if you have them: objective test practice across the whole syllabus, Section B application, and timed mocks so the two-hour pace is familiar.

LW stands largely on its own, but the company-law grounding it gives you is useful background for the governance and reporting you meet later at Strategic Professional. It sits among the six Applied Skills papers in the qualification.

Frequently asked questions