Laws and Legal Practice (Graduate entry) (Honours)

The Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice (Honours) may be taken as a first degree in a minimum of four years full-time (or the equivalent part-time) or as a graduate-entry program in a minimum of three-and-a-half years full-time (or the equivalent part-time).

The course is offered by the College of Business, Government and Law.

This course is designed to offer students of exceptional merit the opportunity to maximise their potential, by providing an environment in which students with similar capabilities and interests will work with key staff of the College to develop their legal knowledge and expertise as they pursue their studies.

The course extends the curriculum offered in the Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice and includes higher performance expectations and the demonstration of independent research capabilities and advanced knowledge and understanding.

The course meets all of the academic and professional training requirements for admission to legal practice.Graduate-entry students who do not wish to undertake the Practical Legal Training component may be eligible to transfer to the Bachelor of Laws (Graduate Entry) (Honours) and complete in three-and-a-half years of full-time study (or the equivalent part-time).

However, these students cannot be admitted to Legal Practice without completing further practical legal training.

Graduate-entry students who choose to transfer to the Bachelor of Laws (Graduate Entry) (Honours) must complete 94.5 units of compulsory topics, a 13.5 unit dissertation topic, and 18 units of option topics at Honours/Masters level as listed under Option - Year 4 topics in the Bachelor of Laws (Graduate Entry) (Honours) course rule.

To qualify for the Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice (Honours) as a graduate entry student, a student must complete 126 units with a grade of P or NGP or better in each topic, comprising 90 units of compulsory topics, 22.5 units of Legal Practice core topics and the 13.5 unit dissertation topic, as set out below. Students will need to have a GPA of 5.70 or higher to enter the final year of the course. Those not meeting this requirement will transfer to the Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice (Graduate Entry). Students enrolled in the Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice (Graduate Entry) may transfer to the Bachelor of Laws and Legal Practice (Graduate Entry) (Honours) if they have achieved a GPA of at least 5.70 after completion of 36 or 72 units of the degree. Under exceptional circumstances and subject to specific conditions, the Dean (Education) may invite other students.

Except with permission of the Dean (Education) the program must be completed within ten consecutive years.

The award of a grade of Fail (F) on more than one occasion in the same topic, which may include attempts of the same topic undertaken in other awards, may constitute prima facie evidence of unsatisfactory progress for the purposes of the University's Policy on Student Progress.

The Dean (Education) may specify that two or more topics represent unacceptable combinations.

Core - Year 1 topics

36 units comprising:

LLAW1311 Introduction to Law and Justice (4.5 units) LLAW1312 Essential Legal Skills (4.5 units) LLAW1313 Ethics and Professionalism (4.5 units) LLAW1321 Indigenous Peoples, Colonialism and Law (4.5 units) LLAW1322 International Law and Global Perspectives (4.5 units) LLAW1323 Criminal Law and Procedure (4.5 units) INNO1100 Legal Innovation and Creative Thinking (4.5 units) INNO2100 Innovation for Social Justice Impact (4.5 units)

Core - Year 2 topics

36 units comprising:

LLAW2311 Torts (4.5 units) LLAW2312 Contracts (4.5 units) LLAW2313 Property, Equity and Trusts (4.5 units) LLAW2321 Jurisprudence (4.5 units) LLAW2322 Real Property Law (4.5 units) LLAW2323 Corporate Law (4.5 units) INNO3001A From Innovation to Impact (4.5 units)

Plus one of:

LLAW3301 Law in a Digital Age (4.5 units) LLAW3302 Law in Action (4.5 units)

Core - Year 3 topics

36 units comprising:

LLAW3311 Administrative Law (4.5 units) LLAW3312 Constitutional Law (4.5 units) LLAW3322 Evidence (4.5 units) LLAW3321 Civil Procedure (4.5 units) LLAW7000 Practical Legal Training: Civil Litigation Practice (4.5 units) LLAW7100A Dissertation (Part 1) (4.5 units) LLAW7100B Dissertation (Part 2) (4.5 units) LLAW7100C Dissertation (Part 3) (4.5 units)

Core - Year 4 topics

18 units comprising:

LLAW7001 Practical Legal Training: Legal Practice Management (4.5 units) LLAW7002 Practical Legal Training: Transactional Legal Practice (9 units) LLAW7003 Practical Legal Training: Criminal Practice and Advocacy (4.5 units)

The minimum requirements for consideration for entry to all undergraduate courses are specified in detail in the University Entry Requirements.

Applicants must normally hold an approved degree or equivalent qualification

At the completion of the course, students will be able to demonstrate:

• an extensive, well-founded and advanced knowledge of key areas of current Australian law, including new and developing areas
• the ability to find, interpret, understand and critique Australian law within its historical and comparative contexts, using effective learning strategies and appropriate methods, including both recent and traditional technologies
• the ability to use their knowledge to plan, analyse and think critically, logically and creatively, including by reflecting upon and evaluating facts, ideas, options and resolutions to disputes and debates, and considering client instructions and the requirements of procedural and jurisdictional contexts
• the capacity to use plain English vocabulary, legal terminology and conventions as appropriate to the situation, to convey their knowledge, reasoning and decisions in a clear and fluent manner
• the capacity to listen well and respond constructively in written and spoken formats as they apply skills of oral advocacy, persuasion, interviewing, negotiation, argument and counter-argument, as appropriate to particular audiences and settings;
• professionalism and self-reliance in their learning and their work within legal contexts, including skills and attributes such as initiative, goal setting, organising activities, prioritising tasks and managing time productively
• the capacity for, and a commitment to, lifelong learning: recognising that the world is dynamic and changing and therefore being prepared constantly to review, update and adapt their knowledge and skills
• the willingness and ability to exercise intellectual independence and take responsibility for their decisions and actions and to operate effectively within any relevant contextual framework
• the capacity to interact effectively with others in a variety of legal practice settings, including, where appropriate, working cooperatively and productively towards a common outcome as a team member and leader. This also includes group dynamics, showing respect for others and for their ideas and perspectives and learning to negotiate and resolve conflict or difficulties in a constructive manner;
• awareness of the philosophy and the social and global contexts of law, and willingness to uphold their community responsibility to advocate for justice and to act with integrity in all matters in their professional work and personal lives. As potential officers of the court, they must learn and apply ethical standards applicable to the legal profession and legal practice, and to show understanding of the complexity of ethical issues and debates, applying relevant decision-making models to arrive at ethical solutions to problems and taking responsibility for their actions
• the capacity to recognise the colonial and immigrant context of Australian law and legal practice, and to engage positively with people and ideas beyond the limit of their own geographical, disciplinary, social and cultural background, including by synthesising ideas and principles across various legal doctrinal areas; critically analysing and taking appropriate action in complex global and cultural contexts; and forging constructive links between the world of study and the world of work
• the capacity to engage in significant academic research and writing which has been planned and executed with a degree of independence and which, with an awareness of the academic process for the development of ideas, will better equip students for postgraduate studies.

Credit

Credit may be granted for equivalent level topics taken at other institutions. Other than in exceptional circumstances and with the approval of the Dean (Education), at least half of the units towards the degree must be obtained from topics offered by Flinders University.