YEAR 12 LEGAL STUDIES
UNIT:
Family and the Law
UNIT OVERVIEW
This unit looks at how does the law recognise and regulate family relationships? The
law has procedures and requirements for the legal recognition of a family unit. Family
law is sensitive to changing social, cultural, ethical and moral values. The law upholds
certain rights and obligations that apply to family members.
ASSESSMENT:
They are an Extended research response that is written: 1000 – 1500 words, covering
Knowing and understanding the law, Investigating legal issues and Responding to the
law dimensions and an Extended response test: supervised unseen question 600 – 800
words: 1.5 – 2 hours covering Knowing and understanding the law, Investigating legal
issues and Responding to the law dimensions.
UNIT DETAILS:
No
Learning Goal
Success Criteria
(I Know I’ve got it when I can …)
1
Which current legal issues relate to family
law?
Apply the legislation to Family Law and use precedent
cases as examples for each.
2
What is a family and how is this changing?
Brainstorm ‘what is a family?’ and look at various
definitions.
Explain the term "Marriage”.
Identify who is not included in the definition of Marriage
and analyse why.
Debate myths and statistics about marriage and families.
3
How does the law regulate marriage and other
types of personal relationships?
Examine the opinions and social consequences of
stakeholders not permitted to marry (e.g. Same-sex
relationships, transsexuals, transvestites, incest
relationships, polygamists, bigamists)
Explain why issues in family law are so controversial and
problematic for the legal system to regulate.
4
How does the law deal with the dissolution of
family relationships?
Identify social and historical factors, such as the
evolution from fault to no-fault divorce, that have
affected family relationships.
Analyse divorce rates and changes in these trends, using
statistics from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Examine the differences /features between fault and nofault divorce? (Include a brief reference to reasons for
divorce)
Examine and evaluate different stakeholder perspectives
and reasons for their positions.
5
How does the law deal with issues arising with
children such as residence, financial support,
abuse, neglect and domestic violence? What
legal and social issues may arise in families?
Explain what section of the Family Law Act deals with
property settlement?
Investigate the four steps of property settlement and
analyse:
What is a definition of property? e.g. What can be
divided?
What is a contribution? What is the split/ rules to do
with contribution?
What are some of the issues which determine future
needs?
What are some examples of where adjustments are
made by the Court?
Select and organise information from a range of sources
to create a concept map outlining factors affecting the
exercise of family law regarding residency of children and
child support in relationship breakdowns.
Explain what rights do children have? And what is this
presumption of equal shared parental responsibility?
What reasons can be used by the courts to not allow
50/50 responsibility?
Discuss the differences between a parenting order versus
a parenting plan.
Identify and describe what is equal, substantial and
significant time? Identify the Primary and Additional
Considerations relating to children the court must
consider when making decisions.
Examine the legal and social issues may arise in families
such as domestic violence; child abuse and the role of
government agencies.
6
How does the legal system regulate the
distribution of property upon death?
Examine the implications of making and amending a will
and ensuring it has the elements of a legal will.