Foundations of Law

Course aim

This course provides an introduction to the Australian legal system, legal institutions, sources of law, with a particular focus upon the judicial system, and legal method.  Fundamental legal skills in legal research, legal reasoning and problem solving will be developed, using a blended learning approach.

Course content

Areas to be examined in this course include:

• The reception and development of the common law system in Australia
• The role of international and comparative law in our legal system
• The constitutional basis of the Federal/State judicial and quasi-judicial systems; and the system of court hierarchies.
• Principles of judicial independence and accountability and the rule of law
• Judicial reasoning and decision making, and the doctrine of precedent
• Case law analysis, case law research and citation
• Legal method and legal problem solving
  
  
  
  

Textbook(s)

James N, Field R & Walkden-Brown J 2019, The New Lawyer: Foundations of Law, 1st Edition, Wiley, Milton, Queensland

Prerequisite(s)

Nil

Corequisite(s)

Nil

Teaching method

Component	Duration
INTERNAL, CITY WEST
Preparatory	1 x 1 week
Lecture	2 hours x 10 weeks
Workshop	2 hours x 10 weeks

Note: These components may or may not be scheduled in every study period. Please refer to the timetable for further details.

Assessment

Presentation, Research paper

Fees

EFTSL*: 0.125
Commonwealth Supported program (Band 3)
To determine the fee for this course as part of a Commonwealth Supported program, go to:
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Fee-paying program for domestic and international students
International students and students undertaking this course as part of a postgraduate fee paying program must refer to the relevant program home page to determine the cost for undertaking this course.

Non-award enrolment
Non-award tuition fees are set by the university. To determine the cost of this course, go to:
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Not all courses are available on all of the above bases, and students must check to ensure that they are permitted to enrol in a particular course.

* Equivalent Full Time Study Load. Please note: all EFTSL values are published and calculated at ten decimal places. Values are displayed to three decimal places for ease of interpretation.