TE PIRINGA FACULTY OF LAW
LAWS421-12B Applied Legal Theory 2012 Outline
1.
Identification of Paper
Paper: LAWS421-12B
This paper carries 10 points
2.
Staffing
Gay Morgan
(Convenor)
Phone: 838 4466 x6600
Room: LAW.G.17
email: morgan@waikato.ac.nz
availability: Wednesdays 2-4 , by appointment, or by knocking
3.
Description and Structure of Paper
(a) Description of the paper in University Calendar
A theoretical exploration & analysis of topical issues in law. This year the course will consider the
concept of deception and consider how and when law deceives, and possible theoretical
justifications for legal deception.
(b) Structure of the Paper
This is a semester paper. The teaching component comprises a two hour seminar once a week.
Lecture and stream timetable and rooms
The lecture hours are:
Wednesday: 11am - 1 pm
Law G.04
(c) Attendance
Te Piringa Faculty of Law places great emphasis on providing students with opportunities for high
achievement in law papers. Attendance is therefore required for satisfactory completion of the
paper. An understanding of topics and materials discussed in seminars is essential for success in
the assessments.
4.
Learning outcomes
A student who has successfully completed this paper will have engaged in an in-depth exploration
of the jurisprudential arguments/issues/theories around legal deceptions. The student will have
developed familiarity with the various schools and methods of jurisprudential and moral thought.
The student will have strengthened their expertise in the area of legal theory -- currently most
theory is presented early on in the students’ academic career and at a very basic level. The
student will have built on the basic skills of theoretical analysis of legal and moral issues gained in
Jurisprudence. That student will have gained an academic and professional advantage, and
developed the tools to recognise and to assess the moral issues presented by laws and
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procedures in an independent and critical manner. S/he will have enhanced their abilities as
future lawyers and public policy makers to analyse controversial moral/legal issues in a reasoned
manner and from pluralistic normative perspectives. The successful student will have developed
their ability to construct theoretically sophisticated, sound, and persuasive positions on
controversial moral and legal issues.
What specific attributes would be acquired by students who complete this paper?
This course will allow students with an interest in jurisprudence to develop their jurisprudential
skills and knowledge of theory in a supervised manner -- it will also enhance the sophistication
and depth of theoretical and policy analysis they may apply to their black letter law courses and
to the issues facing them in their careers as lawyers and policy makers. Because of the breadth
of practical material which must be covered in black letter law courses, the course will broaden,
deepen, and extend student’s analytical skills. This course will be particularly useful to those
students considering careers involving policy analysis, appellate advocacy or who are considering
graduate study.
5.
Workload
Students should expect to spend 100 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, Thomson Reuters (2009). This is available from Bennetts, at
an approximate price of $18.90.
These are on desk reserve:
Fuller, R Legal Fictions (1967)
Bok, S Secrets: On the Ethics of Concealment and Revelation (1989)
Bok, S Lying: Moral Choice in Public and Private Life (1989)
Scheppele, KL Legal Secrets: Equality and Efficiency in the Common Law (1988)
Jon Hesk Deception and Democracy in Classical Athens (2000)
Nyberg, D The Varnished Truth: Truth telling and Deceiving in Ordinary Life (1993)
Campbell, J The Liar’s Tale: A History of Falsehood (2001)
Blackburn, S Truth: A Guide (2005).
Lakoff, G & Johnson, M Metaphors We Live By (1980).
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:
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:
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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
School procedures for the presentation of course work are set out in the Te Piringa Faculty of Law
Undergraduate Handbook which is available from http://www.waikato.ac.nz/law/undergraduate.
See also paragraph 11 on referencing guidelines and plagiarism.
Assignment resources are available online at http://www.waikato.ac.nz/law/student/
b)
Coursework: Final Examination Ratio: 1/1
c)
Assessment Components
Component
3 Discussion Papers
Research Paper Proposal
Essay
Percentage of overall mark
Due date
5% each or 15% total
The Monday before relevant Class
Up to 10% (see below)
16 April
75% or 85% (see below)
11 June
An essay, of between 4000 and 6000 words in length, on a topic to be agreed upon between student
and lecturer, concerning the concept of deception and analyzing a particular instance or example of
institutionalized legal deception, must be handed into the School Resource Room by the beginning
of study week, 11 June. The mark awarded for this essay will constitute at least 75% of the final
result
A 4 page proposal must be submitted by the 16 April, which will receive a provisional mark. If the
student’s mark comes down on the essay, the proposal mark will be factored in with a weighting
essay 75%/proposal mark 10% of the final mark. If the essay mark is the same or better than the
proposal mark, the essay mark will carry the full 85% weight of the final mark.
The purpose of the essay is to demonstrate the student’s facility with theoretical concepts and an
ability to use them in analysis and critique of current legal issues and/or in pursuit of reform. The
student’s research skills will also be further honed in the development of their chosen topic and its
analysis.
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3 short discussion papers, of at least one page in length, engaging with the readings for the week,
are to be posted on Moodle, at the discussion site for the week, on the Monday before the relevant
class considering those readings. These papers will constitute 15% of the final result (5% each). The
discussion papers will be marked on the basis of good faith and thoughtful engagement with the
relevant reading.
The Law School places great emphasis on providing students with opportunities for high
achievement in law papers. Seminars allow students to learn effectively in small groups and
attendance at the weekly seminars is an important element of the paper. An understanding of topics
and materials discussed in the seminars will be very helpful to the student’s success in the paper.
d)
Handing in, marking time and collection
All assignments must be submitted electronically through Moodle (http://elearn.waikato.ac.nz).
See
Te
Piringa
Faculty
of
Law
Undergraduate
Handbook,
available
at
http://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.
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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 2012 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 2012, 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.
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 2012:
Assessment Regulations 2005
Student Discipline Regulations 2008
Computer Systems Regulations 2005
Policy on the Use of Māori for Assessment
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Student Research Regulations 2008
Ethical Conduct in Human Research and Related Activities Regulations 2008.
10.
Links to other papers
Jurisprudence is a pre-requisite for Applied Legal Theory.
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.
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 (2012
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 Ms Alison Saunders who is in Room Law G44
at ext 4167.
14.
Class representation
See p 68 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, are as follows: Samantha Whittle, Student Services, ext.
6264, CHSSG.25 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 2012. See also the
document Student Support Structure at Te Piringa Faculty of Law, available from the Resource
Room.
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Lecture Schedule A Semester
Week Commencing
Programme of lecture topics
5 March
Overview and Meir Dan-Cohen “Decision
Rules and Conduct Rules: On Acoustic
Separation in Criminal Law” (1984) 97
Havard Law Review 625-677.
12 March
Michael S. Moore “The Semantics of
Judging” (1981) 54 Southern Cal. Law
Review 151-294.
Lon Fuller Legal Fictions (1967) Chpt 1
Lon Fuller Legal Fictions (1967) Chpt 2
19 March
J.M. Balkin “Deconstructive Practice &
Legal Theory” 96 Yale Law Journal 743
Scott Brewer (1987) “Figuring the Law
Holism and Tropological Inference in Legal
Interpretation” ( 1988) 97 Yale Law Journal
823
Lon Fuller Legal Fictions (1967) Chpt 3.
26 March
Blackburn, S Truth: A Guide (2005)
2 April (6 April Good Friday)
Campbell, J The Liar’s Tale: A History of
Falsehood (2001)
9 April (9-10 Easter Monday and Holiday)
Teaching Recess
16 April
Teaching Recess
23 April (25 April ANZAC day)
No Class (read Sissela Bok Lying: Moral
Choice in Public and Private Life (1989)
30 April
Sissela Bok Secrets: On the Ethics of
Concealment and Revelation (1989)Davic
7 May
Nyberg The Varnished Truth: Truth Telling
and Deceiving in Ordinary Life (1993)
14 May (16 May Kingitanga Day)
No Class (read: Kim Lane Scheppele Legal
Secrets: Equality and Efficiency in the
Common Law 1988
7
21 May
Jon Hesk Deception and Democracy in
Classical Athens (2000)
28 May
Lakoff, G & Johnson, M Metaphors We
Live By (1980)
4 June (4 June Queen’s Birthday)
Synthesis and discussion of research
projects
11 June
Study Week
18 June
Examinations
25 June
Examinations
2July
Teaching Recess
9 July
Teaching Recess/Enrolment
8
Lecture Schedule B semester
Week Commencing
Programme of lecture topics
16 July (B Semester begins)
23 July
30 July
6 August
13 August
20 August
27 August
Teaching Recess
3 September
Teaching Recess
10 September
17 September
24 September
1 October
8 October
15 October
22 October Labour Day 22 October
Study Week
29 October
Examinations
5 November
Examinations
9
Lecture Schedule Summer School 2
Week Commencing
Programme of lecture topics
12 November (Summer semester 2 begins 12
November)
19 November
26 November
3 December
10 December
17 December
24 December
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University closed