Credit
points:
Assumed knowledge:
Prerequisite(s):
10 Mode:
Teaching of this unit will not
Location: assume that you have completed any other units in the degree course in Law.
This unit introduces the student to the study of law.
Equally, the unit will supplement the learning of students who do have prior knowledge of other units in the degree course in Law.
Nil Learning method:
Online only (but suitable for both
Internal and External
Enrolments).
Online delivery of learning materials only with live interactive seminar sessions
(tutorial equivalents) on-line for internal and external students together.
Year:
Semester:
2012
Semester 2
Unit coordinators:
phone:
A resourced based learning process delivered through a combination of on-line lectures, on-line seminars, readings and coursework.
Mr Geoff James (Legal
History) and
Mr Ken Parish
(Jurisprudence)
61 8 8946 6791

School:
Unit
Lecturers:
Law, Business &
Arts
Mr Geoff James
(Legal History)
UNIT DESCRIPTION
email: and and
61 8 8946 6642
Learnline Unit
Discussion Board
Mr Ken Parish
(Jurisprudence)
The two (2) principal elements of this unit are:
1. A review of the historical origin of the main institutions of the legal systems of the English speaking world and evaluation of their relevance to contemporary institutions and doctrines of law; and
2. A review and critical examination of the major historical and contemporary approaches to analytical legal philosophy including the nature of law and judging, the interrelationships between social, historical, economic and political events and key common law and statutory concepts by reference to various approaches to legal theory and the principles that underpin human rights.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completion of this unit a student should be able to:
1. Describe and review the historical origin of the main institutions of the legal systems of the English speaking world and evaluate their relevance to contemporary institutions and doctrines of law;
2. Identify, describe and critically analyse the major historical and contemporary approaches to analytical jurisprudence;
3. Discuss and critically analyse the legal philosophical underpinnings of human rights and the nature of law and judging; and
4. Critically examine the interrelationships between social, historical, economic and political events and key common law and statutory concepts by reference to various approaches to legal theory.
TEACHING AND LEARNING STRATEGIES
Unit Information S212 LWB205 Page 2 of 9

No Formal Lectures
Our study of Legal History and Jurisprudence will be done through utilization of learning resources provided on the unit web site on a weekly basis. There will not be any in-person lectures delivered in theatre.
The Learning Resources
Learning resources to be provided will be in audio, written or reference form. The range includes:
1.
Audio Resources: These will be audio recordings of spoken commentaries and guidance on the main themes of the unit and will be the equivalent of the traditional lecture.
Note: These audio resources will be available only on-line and will be the principal resource provided as a way of giving students a general instructional overview of the main themes and topic areas studied in this unit.
The audio resources will cover the same material as would lectures if delivered in person. These resources are to be thought of as the unit’s lecture equivalents and will substitute for the conventional two (2) hours per week personal lecturing session normally offered in HE units at CDU.
2.
Resource Papers: These resources will mainly be the equivalent of “lecture notes” but offered in shorter more manageable lengths.
(There will be other forms of written resources offered; see: later).
3.
Special Resources: The lecturer will provide special resources from time to time. These may be in audio or written form or may be publications or decided cases. Usually special resources will take the form of commentaries that are focused on specific matters. These may relate to particular cases, concepts or principles. Or, the commentaries may be provided to demonstrate model solutions to typical problems in the law studied in this unit with emphasis on solutions to problems similar to those required to be solved by students in their course work.
The special resources will usually be in audio form to conserve the lecturer’s time.
4.
Reference Resources: This is mainly a reference to any prescribed texts for the unit but may also include a selection of other material covering various themes, topics and issues from time to time on an ad hoc basis.
Unit Information S212 LWB205 Page 3 of 9

Participation
Seminars
Students will participate in a weekly seminar online commencing in week
2 and continuing until week 12.
The seminar sessions will substitute for the conventional lecture and tutorial periods. Their purpose will be to help you digest the material convered by, or arising from, the weekly learning resources. During the sessions you will have the opportunity to question the Lecturer, to explore the validity of your understanding of the learning resources.
The unit will also have a Discussion Board for discussion of the learning resources of the unit with the lecturer and amongst members of the class as a whole.
SEMINAR Time Table
A seminar of 1 hour 30 minutes will be convened, on a weekly basis begining in the 2 nd week of semester, on-line per CDU Learnline for all students (internal and external) on a day an time yet to be established under the university’s timetable.
All students, of which ever classification (internal or external), are to attend these sessions.
The times and dates of the seminars can also be obtained by accessing the class timetable on the university’s web site.
OVERVIEW OF ASSESSMENT
Item
1.
Description
Assessment for a Pass (or better) in this Unit will be based on the following criteria allocated as between the two respective components of the unit in the following proportions:-
Value
Relates to learning outcomes
Unit Information S212 LWB205 Page 4 of 9

2. LEGAL HISTORY
60% of assessment marks are attributable to
Legal History and shall be derived from the following assessable tasks:
Two (2) Assignments (1500 - 2000 words) of 30 assessment marks value each;
Assignment No.1 (in the form of an essay of
1500 - 2000 words) of value 30 assessment marks:-
Particulars:
Topics will be notified in the relevant sub-folder of the assessments page on the Monday of week 2 of the semester;
Assignment No. 1 will be due for submission by upload to Learnline before 08:00 hours on the
Monday of week 5 of the semester.
Assignment No.2 (also an essay of 1500 -
2000 words) also of value 30 assessment marks:-
Particulars:
Topics will be notified on the relevant subfolder of the assessments page on the Monday of Week 5;
The Assignment will be due for submission at
08:00 hours at the Monday of week 9.
60 % 1
JURISPRUDENCE
40% of unit assessment marks are attributable to Jurisprudence and derived from the following assessable task:
A take home examination of 40 assessment marks value dealing only with the
Jurisprudence component of the unit will be set for students to undertake Between Friday of week 12 and Monday of week 13 (the
40% 1, 3 and 4
Unit Information S212 LWB205 Page 5 of 9

beginning of the revision week).
Particulars:
Take Home Examination becomes visible on the relevant sub-folder of the assessments page at 08:00 hours CST on the Friday of Week
12 of the semester;
Take Home Examination will be due for submission at 08:00 hours CST on the Monday of week 13 (revision week).
Special Requirements
Nil
Required textbook(s)
Legal History
There is no set text for the Legal History element of this Unit. Reading material and lists will be provided and supplemented by the lecturer throughout the semester.
Jurisprudence
The set text for the Jurisprudence element of this course is:
“Understanding Jurisprudence – An Introduction to Legal Theory”:
Wacks, R; Oxford University Press; 2nd Edition 2009 ISBN 978-0-19-
953212-4
The required textbook can be ordered from the CDU Bookshop which may be contacted through particulars available on the University’s website.
CDU On-Line Learning System
In this unit, Learnline will be used to:
• provide important announcements about the unit;
•
• work; distribute online resources for the unit; will be used to retain your journal and submission of your course
•
• access feedback from tasks and grades for assessable work; provide a communication point where you contribute to
Unit Information S212 LWB205 Page 6 of 9

discussions as part of your assessment, and to interact with other students in the unit;
You will need to connect to the Internet to access it, at http://learnline.cdu.edu.au/
Access to Learnline may not be available until Day 1 of Semester.
If this is your first time using Learnline, click on ‘Student Learnline
Support’ in the left-hand navigation panel BEFORE logging in.
It is recommended that all students have access to regular and reliable broadband access to complete unit requirements. e-Reserve e-Reserve allows electronic copies of journal articles, book chapters and lecturer notes that have been recommended by a lecturer as part of their course reading requirements. You can access e-Reserve at: http://www.cdu.edu.au/library/ereserve/index.html.
This site is password protected. Your CDU student login will provide you access. You can then search for items by Lecturer, Unit Code, Title,
Author, keyword, Year or Date if you have that information.
LEARNING SCHEDULE
The program for learning in the unit throughout the semester will be facilitated by resources posted in the Learning Materials folder of the unit web site in the sequence.
WEEK 1 to WEEK 7:- Exclusively the Legal History component of this unit.
WEEK 8 to WEEK 11:- Exclusively the Jurisprudence component of this unit.
WEEKS 12 and 13 are intended as the Revision Period
WEEKS 14 and 15 are the examination period.
Assignment Cover Sheet
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Assignment Cover Sheets will be used for authentication of Course Work.
They can be downloaded from the university’s website.
CDU Graduate attributes
CDU graduate attributes refer to those skills, qualities and understandings that should be acquired by students during their time at the University regardless of their discipline of study. (See http://www.cdu.edu.au/teachingandlearning/gradattributes.html
).
In this unit, the following graduate attributes are developed:
Attribute Description
Learning outcomes
Acquisition 1, 2, 3 and 4
Application
Can identify, retrieve, evaluate and use relevant information and current technologies to advance learning and execute work tasks.
Is an efficient and innovative project planner and problem solver, capable of applying logical and critical thinking to problems across a range of disciplinary settings and has self-management skills that contribute to personal satisfaction and growth.
2 and 3
Knowledge base
Communication
Has an understanding of the broad theoretical and technical concepts related to their discipline area, with relevant connections to industry, professional, and regional knowledge.
Demonstrates oral, written, and effective listening skills as well as numerical, technical and graphic communication skills in a cross generational environment.
1, 2, 3 and 4
1 and 3
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Social
Responsibility
Is able to apply the values studied in Legal
History and Jurisprudence, and has a sense of social responsibility, sustainability, and sensitivity to other peoples, cultures and the environment.
1, 2, 3 and 4
******End of Unit Information******
Unit Information S212 LWB205 Page 9 of 9