Conflict of Laws, also sometimes called Private International Law, is concerned with what happens in cases where not all of the facts are tied to one jurisdiction. In the federal system of Australia, this can occur both within a domestic intra-Australia context and in an international context. While this course deals with a number of specific theoretical frameworks, it is taught largely from a practical standpoint aimed at preparing lawyers for handling cases with trans-jurisdictional issues. The three core components of the course investigate:
- Jurisdiction: When domestic courts can hear cases that involve parties and property from outside the territory of the court.
- Choice of Law: Which law is applicable when a case has connections with a number of different jurisdictions. In particular, this course considers contract, family and tort disputes that involve a variety of jurisdictions.
- Enforcement of Judgements: How to enforce a court judgement or arbitral award from another jurisdiction in local courts.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
By the end of this course, you should be able to:
- explain the similarities and differences between international and domestic civil litigation in practical and theoretical terms
- describe the three stages of international litigation, and explain the relationship between them
- explain and apply the principles relevant to determining the Australian courts' jurisdictional competence and the circumstances in which they will decline to exercise that jurisdiction
- explain and apply the principles relevant to determining whether a foreign judgement, and an international arbitral award, will be recognised in Australia and how foreign judgements and international arbitral awards can be enforced
- explain the choice of law process, and be able to identify and apply choice of law rules which are applicable to internation disputes, particularly those relevant to contract, tort and family matters
- analyse, research and resolve problems in international litigation from theoretical and practical perspectives.
Other Information
This is an extremely useful course both for people who plan to practice litigation in a domestic and international context. People who intend to be transactional lawyers will also benefit from having a sound grounding on the issues to be able to draft predictable outcomes in light of Conflicts risks.
Indicative Assessment
Please refer to the course home page
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
39 contact hours plus private study time.
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Please refer to the course home page.
Preliminary Reading
Students wishing to gain an understanding of the subject may wish to read the introductory chapter in either R Mortensen, R Garnett and M Keyes, Private International Law in Australia (2nd ed, 2011), or M Davies, AS Bell and PLG Brereton, Nygh's Conflict of Laws in Australia (8th ed, 2010).
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Students continuing in their current program of study will have their tuition fees indexed annually from the year in which you commenced your program. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 3
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees. Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1994-2003 | $1626 | |
| 2014 | $2808 | |
| 2013 | $2808 | |
| 2012 | $2808 | |
| 2011 | $2778 | |
| 2010 | $2718 | |
| 2009 | $2670 | |
| 2008 | $2670 | |
| 2007 | $2670 | |
| 2006 | $2646 | |
| 2005 | $2298 | |
| 2004 | $1926 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 1994-2003 | $2916 |
| 2014 | $3762 |
| 2013 | $3756 |
| 2012 | $3756 |
| 2011 | $3756 |
| 2010 | $3750 |
| 2009 | $3426 |
| 2008 | $3426 |
| 2007 | $3426 |
| 2006 | $3426 |
| 2005 | $3234 |
| 2004 | $2916 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
First Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5015 | 17 Feb 2014 | 07 Mar 2014 | 31 Mar 2014 | 30 May 2014 | In Person | N/A |