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Foundations of Law - LAWS1052
 Law Books

 
Faculty: Faculty of Law
 
 
School:  Faculty of Law
 
 
Course Outline: See below
 
 
Campus: Kensington Campus
 
 
Career: Undergraduate
 
 
Units of Credit: 6
 
 
EFTSL: 0.12500 (more info)
 
 
Indicative Contact Hours per Week: 5
 
 
Enrolment Requirements:
 
 
Currently enrolled in a program in the Faculty of Law.
 
 
Excluded: JURD7152
 
 
CSS Contribution Charge:Band 3 (more info)
 
   
 
Further Information: See Class Timetable
 
  

Description

Foundations of Law introduces students to the history and operation of our legal system and provides students with a grounding in key legal skills, including common law reasoning and statutory interpretation. The course is a foundational and compulsory subject in the law degree and has two components, a Coursework Seminar and a Research Tutorial.

This course is taught intensively and classes begin in the O Week of each Session. Please contact the Faculty for further information about the timetable for Foundations of Law.

Recommended Prior Knowledge

None

Course Objectives

This course aims to provide students with:
  • An understanding of the principal legal institutions in Australia, including their history and the relationships between them;
  • Foundational legal research skills, a preliminary understanding of appropriate research strategies and an understanding of legal terminologies and the elements of good legal writing;
  • A capacity to analyse case law and interpret statutes, and to identify and apply legal principles;
  • A feel for the "dynamic" of the law, that is, for the way that it has changed in the past, and will continue to change, in response both to social changes and to the continued operations of the legal system itself;
  • A contextual and critical approach to legal principles and institutions, rather than treating them as inevitable phenomena whose desirability cannot be questioned at any level;
  • A conception of law as a social phenomenon which may usefully be investigated from the viewpoint of many kinds of investigator - not just the judge, the practising lawyer or the law reformer, but also the historian, the sociologist, the anthropologist, the political scientist, the economist, or the philosopher.

Main Topics

  • The current structure of the Australian legal system;
  • The historical development of the principal institutions of government under our constitutions - parliaments, the executive and the courts;
  • An introduction to some of the significant theoretical ideas underpinning our legal system, including the significance of the idea of the rule of law and theories of justice;
  • The role of judges, lawyers and other personnel in the court system;
  • How to read and analyse case law, the nature of the common law and the development of precedent;
  • The nature of statutes and the techniques for interpreting legislation.
  • An introduction to some of the theoretical frameworks that have been used to analyse law and legal decision making;
  • The circumstances of the adoption of the common law in the Australian states and the effect on the Indigenous population;
  • The different ways in which law can be classified and organised, including key categories such as private law and public law, law and equity, as well as classification within an area of private law, the law of torts;
  • How to research primary materials such as case law and legislation;
  • An introduction to secondary legal materials;
  • Problem solving strategies and legal research;
  • Legal citation methods and referencing.

Assessment

Class participation (20%)
Court Observation Assignment or Applied Research Exercise (10%)
Extended Case-note (40%)
Final Exam (30%)

Course Texts

Prescribed
  • Prue Vines, Law and Justice in Australia: Foundations of the Legal System (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed, Melbourne, 2009)
  • LAWS1052 Foundations of Law Research Exercises and Materials (available on Blackboard)
  • Australian Guide to Legal Citation (Melbourne University Law Review Assn, 3rd ed, Melbourne, 2010 (available in hard copy from the UNSW Bookshop or as a free non-printable download from http://mulr.law.unimelb.edu.au/go/aglc3)
Recommended
  • LexisNexis Concise Australian Dictionary (LexisNexis Butterworths, 4th ed, Sydney, 2011)
  • Michael Brogan & David Spencer, Surviving Law School (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed, Melbourne, 2008).
  • Bruce Bott, & Ruth Talbot-Stokes, Nemes and Coss’ Effective Legal Research (LexisNexis Butterworths, 4th ed, Sydney 2010) OR Sue Milne & Kay Tucker, A Practical Guide to Legal Research (Lawbook Company, 2nd ed, Sydney, 2010) OR Robert Watt & Francis John, Concise Legal Research (Federation Press, 6th ed, Annandale NSW, 2009).
Suggested preliminary reading:
Brogan, M & Spencer, D Surviving Law School, 2nd ed, Oxford University Press, 2008
Chisholm, R & Nettheim, G Understanding Law, 7th ed, LexisNexis Butterworths, 2007; OR
Harlow, C Understanding Tort Law, 3rd ed, Thomson/Sweet & Maxwell, 2005

Resources

Refer to the course outline prior to the beginning of the relevant semester.

URL for this page:

© The University of New South Wales (CRICOS Provider No.: 00098G), 2004-2011. The information contained in this Handbook is indicative only. While every effort is made to keep this information up-to-date, the University reserves the right to discontinue or vary arrangements, programs and courses at any time without notice and at its discretion. While the University will try to avoid or minimise any inconvenience, changes may also be made to programs, courses and staff after enrolment. The University may also set limits on the number of students in a course.