Year
2024Credit points
10Campus offering
Prerequisites
LAWS104 Foundations of Law and Legal Research LAWS105 Contract Law LAWS206 Torts
Teaching organisation
4 hours per week for twelve weeks or equivalent.Unit rationale, description and aim
The Rule of Law, and access to legal advice, are the basis of free, democratic, and just societies which promote personal dignity, thriving communities, and the Common Good. Law graduates working in legal practice, in business, in government, and in the community play an essential role in promoting and upholding the Rule of Law in Australia and across the world. The Bachelor of Laws degree is an accredited degree for admission as a legal practitioner in Australia.
Civil Procedure and Alternative Dispute Resolution deals with the law relating to the resolution of civil disputes between two or more parties. It focuses on the resolution of such disputes using the court system, including how issues are identified through pleadings, how evidence is obtained and used, the conduct of trials, the nature and enforcement of judgments and the right of appeal. The unit will also examine alternative dispute resolution in particular mediation and arbitration and the skill of legal negotiation.
Learning outcomes
To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.
Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.
Explore the graduate capabilities.
| Learning Outcome Number | Learning Outcome Description |
|---|---|
| LO1 | Describe and critically evaluate rules governing the curial and non-curial adjudication of civil disputes |
| LO2 | Demonstrate an understanding of the rationale and content of pleadings and other documents used in civil proceedings |
| LO3 | Apply the law to factual situations involving civil disputation and be able to advise clients of their rights and obligations in those situations and the advantages and disadvantages of the procedural avenues open to them to resolve those disputes |
Content
Topics will include:
This content reflects the academic areas of knowledge required for accreditation, Schedule 1, Legal Profession Admission Rules 2015.
(a) Court adjudication under an adversary system
(b) The cost of litigation and the use of costs to control litigation
(c) Service of originating process—as foundation of jurisdiction, including service out of the relevant State or Territory and choice of forum
(d) Joinder of claims and parties, including group proceedings and the defence of prior adjudication as instances of the public interest in avoiding a multiplicity of proceedings and inconsistent verdict
(e) Defining the questions for trial—pleadings, notices to admit and other devices
(f) Obtaining evidence—discovery of documents, interrogatories, subpoena and other devices
(g) Disposition without trial, including the compromise of litigation
(h) Extra-judicial determination of issues arising in the course of litigation
(i) Judgment
(j) Appeal
(k) Enforcement
(l) Alternative dispute resolution
(m) Obligations of parties and practitioners relating to the resolution of disputes,
or topics of such breadth and depth as to satisfy the following guidelines:
The topics should embrace the general study of rules of civil procedure and alternative dispute resolution relevant in the State or Territory. The law concerning jurisdiction, the initiation and service of process, the definition of issues through pleadings and judgment and enforcement should all be included.
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
Mode: Lectures, tutorials, electronic consultation, library research tasks and presentations or Online lectures and activities.
Duration: 4 hours per week over 12 weeks or equivalent. Students are expected to spend 150 hours in total for this unit.
This level two specified Law unit allows students to demonstrate knowledge, skills and understanding in a specialist area of law to meet the requirements of accreditation.
Our strategy is to encourage students to creatively engage with unit content and to apply fundamental legal knowledge, skills and understandings to address legal problems.
The unit is designed to be delivered in intensive, weekly attendance or online mode. We have taken a multimodal learning approach to provide accessibility and flexibility to our students and a student-focused approach that increases depth of learning and engagement through actively utilising Canvas.
Assessment strategy and rationale
The assessment strategy is designed to assess knowledge, skills and understanding in a specialist area of law required for accreditation.
The assessment tasks for this unit are designed to demonstrate achievement of each of the learning outcomes listed.
Overview of assessments
| Brief Description of Kind and Purpose of Assessment Tasks | Weighting | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|
utorial participation: A criteria-referenced assessment marking rubric will be utilised to assess students. | 20% | LO1, LO2, LO3 |
Assessment based on eExperiential lLearning such as a court visit and reflective journal; solving a real legal problem; drafting legal submissions for a real legal problem or other experiential learning activity/assessment. A criteria-referenced assessment marking rubric will be utilised to assess students. | 40% | LO1, LO2, LO3 |
Examination: A criteria-referenced assessment marking rubric will be utilised to assess students. | 40% | LO1, LO2, LO3 |
Representative texts and references
Required text(s)
• Cairns B, Australian Civil Procedure (Thomson Reuters, 12th ed, 2020)
• Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2015 (Vic)*
• Civil Procedure Act 2010 (Vic)*
• Uniform Civil Procedures Rules 2015 (Vic)*
*These can be accessed online through the various data bases available through the ACU library.
Recommended references
• Colbran S et al, Civil Procedure: Commentary and Materials (LexisNexis Butterworths, 6th ed, 2015)
• Boniface, Kumar & Legg Principles in Civil Procedure (Thomson Reuters 2nd edition 2012
• Bamford and Rankin, Principles of Civil Litigation (Thomson Reuters, 4th ed, 2021)
• Spencer D, Principles of Dispute Resolution (Thomson Reuters, 3rd ed, 2020)
• Spencer D, Barry L and Akin Ojelabi L, Dispute Resolution in Australia: Cases, Commentary & Materials (Thomson Reuters, 5th ed, 2023)