units

LAW5125

Faculty of Law

18 September 2017 19 April 2024
Monash University

Undergraduate - Unit

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2013 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

print version

6 points, SCA Band 3, 0.125 EFTSL

To find units available for enrolment in the current year, you must make sure you use the indexes and browse unit tool in the current edition of the Handbook.

LevelUndergraduate
FacultyFaculty of Law
OfferedClayton First semester 2013 (Day)
Clayton Second semester 2013 (Day)
Clayton Summer semester A 2013 (Day)
Clayton Summer semester B 2013 (Day)

Synopsis

Topics include: history, organisation, education, functions and regulation of lawyers in Victoria and elsewhere; reform issues; nature and significance of a profession; independence of courts and lawyers; changing face of dispute resolution; the cost of justice and different modes of legal service delivery; standards of professional conduct including basic trust accounting, complaints and disciplinary procedures; ethical rules and moral values, with a particular emphasis on identifying and resolving ethical issues. The unit meets the requirements of the Council of Legal Education for admission to practice in Victoria in the area of 'professional conduct' (including basic trust accounting).

Outcomes

Students successfully completing this unit should:

  1. have an understanding of the legal profession in its historical and societal contexts and issues surrounding the regulation of the profession
  2. be able to analyse critically the role of the lawyer in the Australian legal system with reference to questions such as the independence of courts and lawyers, the adversarial nature of the system, dispute resolution, the cost of justice and different modes of legal service delivery
  3. have examined and understood the concept of trust in the lawyer-client relationship
  4. have developed skills in recognising and distinguishing types of professional and personal conduct and questions of moral, ethical and legal obligation
  5. have developed skills in applying the law of contract and torts in relation to lawyer-client duties, breaches and remedies
  6. have enhanced skills in critical analysis and presentation of argument.

Assessment

Summer: Research assignment (compulsory) (2000 words): 40%
Examination (60%) - 2.5 hours writing, 30 minutes reading and noting
Semester 1: Two ten-minute roleplays on ethics and client communication: 10%; research assignment (compulsory) 2000 words: 40%; take-home examination (2,500 word): 50%
Semester 2: Research assignment (compulsory) 2000 words: 40% and examination (60%) - 2.5 hours plus 30 minutes reading and noting time

Chief examiner(s)

The Hon Nahum Mushin (First Semester)
Ms Oyiela Litaba (Second Semester)
Associate Professor Gaye Lansdell (Summer Semester)

Contact hours

Semester 1: three hours of lectures per week and one hour tutorial every four weeks.
Semester 2: Stream 1 - six hours of lectures per week for 6 weeks, commencing in Week 7 of semester. Stream 2 - three hours of lectures per week for 12 weeks.
Summer Semester A: 12 hours of lectures per week for 3 weeks (4 hours per day - 3 days per week)

Prerequisites

LAW1100 or LAW1101 and LAW1102 or LAW1104; LAW2100 or LAW2101 and LAW2102; LAW2200 or LAW2201 and LAW2202