TE PIRINGA FACULTY OF LAW
Issues in Health Law 2014 Outline
.
1.
Identification of Paper
Paper: LAWS469-14S
This paper carries 20 points
2.
Staffing
Associate Professor Kate Diesfeld
(Convenor)
Phone: 09 921 9999 x 7837
Room: TBA
email: kdiesfel@aut.ac.nz
I am available by appointment during the block course, by email and by
phone.
3.
Description and Structure of Paper
(a) Description of the paper in University Calendar
Explores the role of New Zealand law in health care. Students will critically analyse select
legislation, legal processes and institutions that impact upon health care delivery. Topics include
issues across the lifespan from the beginning to the end of life, disability, consent, confidentiality
and professional discipline.
(b) Structure of the Paper
This is a summer school paper. The teaching component comprises 48 contact hours.
Lecture and stream timetable and rooms
The lecture hours are:
Monday 13 January through and including Friday 17 January. The initial Monday lecture is at
9:00 but otherwise the lectures are 8:00 to noon and 1:00 to 5:00 in Room G.B.03
The compulsory exam is Tuesday 28 January from 9:30 to 10:30, room to be announced.
The compulsory oral presentations are Monday 10 February from 9:00 to 6:00 (and potentially
also on Tuesday 11 February).
(c) Attendance
Te Piringa Faculty of Law places great emphasis on providing students with opportunities for
high achievement in law papers and attendance is therefore advisable to maximise academic
benefits. Attendance will be taken.
4.
Learning outcomes
A student who has completed the course successfully will be able to:



Acquire a conceptual understanding of key laws (domestic and select international) and
policy on the right to health care
Attain knowledge of the New Zealand health care system and how it is legally regulated
Demonstrate a conceptual understanding of selected health law issues encountered by
New Zealanders under the current health care system


Produce a written project of independent, analytic legal research regarding health law
o Frame a health law topic into a research based assessment
o Critically evaluate relevant primary and secondary sources of law and policy for the
research project
o Integrate relevant independent research
o Construct relevant and research-based recommendations for reform
o Develop a critical legal analysis of the selected legal topic
Deliver an oral presentation
5.
Workload
Students should expect to spend 200 hours in total on this paper. In addition to lecture
attendance, significant time will need to be spent on background and complementary reading.
Students should allow for periods of more-focused research time in the preparation of
assignments.
6.
Required and Recommended Reading
All law students are required to purchase, for use in all law papers, a copy of McLay, Murray &
Orpin, New Zealand Law Style Guide, 2nd ed, Thomson Reuters (2011). This is available from
Bennetts, at an approximate price of $37 incl GST.
In addition to the texts identified below, the Law School requires that students purchase the
course materials book(s) for this paper. These are available from Waikato Print.
The course materials book contains the required readings for this paper. In addition, the following
texts are recommended:
Skegg PDG and R Paterson (ed) Medical Law in New Zealand (ThomsonBrookers, Wellington,
2006).
The following are highly recommended:
Keenan R (Ed) Health Care and the Law (4th NZ ed, Thomsen Reuters, Wellington, 2010).
Tennent D Accident Compensation Law (Lexis Nexis, Wellington, 2013).
The following are recommended:
Dawson J and Gledhill K (Eds) (2013) New Zealand’s Mental Health Act in Practice (Victoria
University Press, Wellington, 2013)
Paterson R The Good Doctor (University of Auckland Press, Auckland, 2012).
Further material may be provided on the paper site on Moodle (http://elearn.waikato.ac.nz), the
University of Waikato’s online learning system. Any such material is provided on the following
terms:
University of Waikato owns the intellectual property rights, including copyright, in and to this site,
or has acquired the necessary licenses to display the material on the site. As a student of the Te
Piringa Faculty of Law, you are granted a limited license to use (access, display or print a single
copy) the material from the papers in which you are enrolled for the purposes of participating in
the paper only, provided the information is not modified. Materials may not under any
circumstances be copied, stored, distributed or provided in any form or method whatsoever to
any third party. Any other use of the material is prohibited. None of the material may be
otherwise reproduced, reformatted, republished or re-disseminated in any manner or form
without the prior written consent of University of Waikato. To obtain such consent, please contact
the Te Piringa Faculty of Law.
7.
Online support
Online support for this paper is provided via Moodle.
8.
Assessment
a)
Requirements for assessed work
Faculty procedures for the presentation, submission and referencing of course work are set out in
the Te Piringa Faculty of Law Undergraduate Handbook at p. 51 which is available from
http://www.waikato.ac.nz/law/undergraduate. See page 66 on plagiarism. Also refer to
paragraph 12 in this document.
An assignment template document including coversheet is available on the Law Student
Homepage www.waikato.ac.nz/law/student/.
Research
The word count for the compulsory written assessment is 4000 words, excluding footnotes and
bibliographies.
b)
Coursework: Final Examination Ratio: 1:0
c)
Assessment Components
Component
[b)
Percentage of overall mark
Due date
Assessment Components
Assessment Components
% of Total
In-class test
30%
Oral Presentation of Research Paper
20%
Presentation of the Research Paper
50%
Due Date
Tuesday, 28 January
9:30-10:30 a.m.
Room TBA
Tuesday, 10 February
(potentially also
11 February)
Room TBA
Wednesday
11 February
Time TBA
In-class test (one hour): 30%
The in-class test (worth 30% of the overall mark) on Tuesday, 28 January from 9:30 to 10:30. This
is a compulsory, closed book test. The test will enable students to apply the substantive law
relevant to health law in New Zealand. This test will assist students to understand the material
covered and to develop skills in answering questions regarding substantive health law in test
conditions. Students bring their own note paper. Electronic devices will not be allowed.
Research Paper: 50%
Students will be chose a topic within a list of selected research topics. The list will be distributed
on 13 January. The topic must be selected, the research question formed, and emailed to the
convenor by 20 January. Students are strongly encouraged to consult with the convenor regarding
their topic and supporting resources in January. Students may forward one draft of the research
project to the convenor for comment by 1 February. This is the single opportunity for draft review.
The completed research paper should be no longer than 4,000 words. Footnotes and the
bibliography are not to be included in the word count. The paper must comply with the
requirements for assessed work, including application of the Style Guide for citation.
Presentation: 20%
Students will be required to make a 10 minute presentation on the research paper, followed by 5
minutes to respond to questions from the convenor and other students. Both portions will be
assessed. Based upon the research project, during the oral presentation, students will:
o Frame the health law topic into a research assessment
o Critically evaluate relevant primary and secondary sources of law and policy for the
research project
o Integrate relevant independent research
o Construct relevant and research-based recommendations for reform
o Develop a critical legal analysis of the selected legal topic
o Respond to questions from the convenor regarding the research topic
o Deliver a professionally presented oral presentation
There is no examination for the paper in 2014.
d)
Handing in, marking time and collection
All assignments must be submitted electronically through Moodle (http://elearn.waikato.ac.nz),
and include a coversheet. The coversheet template is provided on the Law Student Homepage
(www.waikato.ac.nz/law/student). See Te Piringa Faculty of Law Undergraduate Handbook,
available at www.waikato.ac.nz/law/undergraduate. It is the policy of Te Piringa Faculty of Law to
return marked work to students within five weeks of submission.
If you require assistance with Moodle, or encounter any problems, please contact the Help Desk.
You can send a message to Help Desk by using the instant message service in your paper (from the
participants list within the People block). Alternatively, you can email them directly at
help@waikato.ac.nz or call 838 4008.
e)
Measurement of Achievement
Achievement in examinations and tests will be measured primarily in terms of levels of
understanding and knowledge gained. Achievement in assignments will be measured also in terms
of fluency and accuracy of expression and referencing.
f)
Management of assessment deadlines, process for requesting extensions and special
consideration, and for appeals
(i)
Extensions
Students are required to complete and submit all internal assessment by specified dates. The
meeting of deadlines is a mark of professionalism and its enforcement is essential for fairness to
all students taking the paper. Handing in course work on or before the due in date also facilitates
the timely return of marked work by academic staff. Students should meet requirements as to
time deadlines for course work, or make a request for an extension or special consideration in
appropriate circumstances (see Undergraduate Programmes Manual available from the School of
Law Undergraduate website http://www.waikato.ac.nz/law/undergraduate/). Failure to comply
with requirements as to the time deadlines for internal assessment without having successfully
applied either for an extension or special consideration with supporting evidence before the due
date will result in deduction of 2.5 marks for each day the work is late. Lateness of more than a
week may result in the work not being marked. No deadlines may be extended beyond two weeks
after the last teaching day of the semester(s) in which the paper is taught as final grades must go
to the Board of Examiners at this time. Unless an extension in writing has been granted, a lecturer
may refuse to accept a piece of work which is submitted after the specified date, and
automatically award it no mark, or may lower the mark as a penalty for lateness.
Applications for extension, on the form obtainable from the Resource Room, must be submitted to
the Chief Examiner or nominee. Students should not submit the extension form to the lecturer,
nor should students seek extensions from the lecturer via other forms of communication.
Extensions will be granted only on evidence of illness, family bereavement, or serious personal
accidents or circumstances. Please note that too many assignments due at the same time is NOT
an acceptable reason, neither are claims that computers and/or printers have crashed. Account
will be taken of the time in which the student has had to complete the internal assessment before
the supervening event occurred. It will be important to consider if the grant of the extension will
give the student in question an unfair advantage over other students. A maximum period of 14
days will be given as an extension unless there are exceptional circumstances. In determining
applications the Chief Examiner or nominee may consult with the Convenor or lecturer of the
relevant paper.
When the Chief Examiner or nominee has made a decision on the application for extension, the
Resource Room Administrative Assistant will advise the student of the decision by email.
Following this, the extension form will be given to the relevant lecturer who will retain it until after
the assignment is marked and returned to students. The form will then be placed on the student’s
file. It should be noted that if an extension of longer than 14 days is granted, the assignment will
not be automatically printed out and delivered to the lecturer, therefore the lecturer is
responsible for ensuring the assignment is printed. In appropriate cases, when a student’s
application for extension is declined the Chief Examiner or nominee will inform the student of the
process for applying for special consideration.
ii)
Special Consideration
The Assessment Regulations 2005 as set out in the University Calendar 2014 list in detail the
university-wide policies and procedures, which apply concerning missed examinations, impaired
performance or impaired preparation time for an examination, and missed or impaired course
work. Students are responsible for ensuring that they comply with these regulations. Application
forms for special consideration for internal assessment are available from the Resource Room.
iii)
Appeals (University Calendar 2014, Assessment Regulations 2005, Reg. 24)
A student may appeal against any decision taken under these regulations.
An appeal, comprising a written statement of the circumstances of the appeal, together with
supporting evidence if available, must be submitted by the student in writing to the Head of
Student & Academic Services not more than seven days after the date on which notification of the
relevant decision is received.
No electronic devices are allowed in any internal or external exams.
Appeals under this section are considered and decided by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor by
delegated authority of the Academic Programmes Committee.
A decision by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor is notified in writing, and is final.
9.
University Calendar Regulations and Policies
Your attention is drawn to the following regulations and policies, which are published in the
University Calendar 2014:
Assessment Regulations 2005
Student Discipline Regulations 2008
Computer Systems Regulations 2005
Policy on the Use of Māori for Assessment
Student Research Regulations 2008
Ethical Conduct in Human Research and Related Activities Regulations 2008.
10.
N/A
Links to other papers
11.
Fees
Refer to http://calendar.waikato.ac.nz/admission/tableoffeesandcharges.html.
12.
(a)
(b)
(c)
Referencing guidelines and caution against plagiarism
Referencing must be in accordance with the New Zealand Law Style Guide (2nd ed)
Thomson Reuters 2011.
All written work submitted for the purposes of assessment must be your own work.
Copying or paraphrasing all or part of another person’s work, be it published or
unpublished, without clear attribution, is plagiarism. Plagiarism is misconduct and is dealt
with under the disciplinary procedures of the University as outlined in the Student
Discipline Regulations 2008 in the University Calendar.
“Plagiarism means presenting as one’s own work the work of another, and includes the
copying or paraphrasing of another person’s work in an assessment item without
acknowledging it as the other person’s work through full and accurate referencing; it
applies to assessment presented through a written, spoken, electronic, broadcasting,
visual, performance or other medium.” See section 3, Assessment Regulations (2014
Calendar).
The Te Piringa Faculty of Law’s policy regarding plagiarism is contained in the Te Piringa
Faculty of Law Undergraduate Handbook and the Te Piringa Faculty of Law Undergraduate
Programmes Manual, available from http://www.waikato.ac.nz/law/undergraduate/.
13.
Health and safety
The Law School’s Health and Safety representative is TBA and located in Room Law G44 at ext
4167.
14.
Class representation
See
Te
Piringa
Faculty
of
Law
Undergraduate
Handbook
available
from
http://www.waikato.ac.nz/law/undergraduate/. Contact details for the Student Representation
Coordinator, Academic Services Division, is at ext 8221 and email: student.reps@waikato.ac.nz.
15.
Complaints procedures
The brochure Student Concerns and Complaints Policy provides details of the University’s process
for handling concerns and complaints and is available from Faculty and School Offices, The
Gateway and Student Services Division and is contained in the Calendar 2014. See also the
document Student Support Structure at Te Piringa Faculty of Law, available from the Resource
Room.
Lecture Schedule Summer School 1
Date
Programme of lecture topics
(may be subject to change)
Day 1: Monday 13 Jan START AT 9:00
Introduction and Overview of Course
Right to health & the regulation of health care in NZ
Health rights regime: HDC, CHDSCR
Day 2: Tuesday 14 Jan
Consent
Privacy and confidentiality
Accident compensation and health law interface
Day 3: Wednesday 15 January
Professional regulation and discipline
Criminal law
Legal issues of disability
Day 4: Thursday 16 Jan
Mental health law
Issues at the beginning of life
Issues at the end of life
Day 5: Friday 17 Jan
Research Techniques Tutorial
Organ Donation
Public health
Tuesday 28 Jan 9:30
Exam
Monday 10 February
Oral Presentations
Tuesday 11 February
Research Paper