LAW7213

Law of the internet

Ms Melissa de Zwart and Mr Philip Catania

One two-hour seminar per week
* Second semester
* City

Objectives Upon completion of this subject, students should have an understanding of the Internet in its various guises and what legal principles affect the use and regulation of the Internet in Australia, encompassing more specifically: an understanding of the legal implications of selling goods and services via the Internet, including issues of consumer protection laws (including the law of passing off), trade marks and domain names and contracting and transacting on the Internet; an understanding of the applicability of traditional copyright principles to the digital environment of the Internet; an understanding of how copyright may be infringed on the Internet; an understanding of moral rights in the context of the Internet; an understanding of how the law of defamation operates in an on-line context including what constitutes publication and how this interacts with concepts of free speech; a detailed understanding of the laws affecting content regulation, focussing mainly on the Australian situation, with some reference to overseas developments; an understanding of privacy laws as they arise in the on-line context; an understanding of the international implications of the regulatory framework of the Internet; further development of legal research and writing and legal argument skills by undertaking systematic research into legal policy, rules and procedures relating to the use and regulation of the Internet; and further development of skills or oral presentation of legal concepts, rules and argument in an interactive seminar context.

Synopsis This course will consider the application of a range of existing legal principles to the computing environment know as the Internet. It will examine the various legal issues raised by the Internet, such as copyright, defamation and censorship, and consider the practical effects of legal regulation (or lack thereof) on this rapidly expanding communications and business medium. The course will give students an opportunity to fully explore the nature of the Internet itself, how the different legal issues interrelate and how the application of different legal concepts may shape the future of the Internet.

Assessment Research assignment (5000 words): 50%
* Take-home examination: 50%

Texts

A set of class materials will be issued.