• Offered by Law School
  • ANU College ANU College of Law
  • Course subject Laws
  • Academic career PGRD
  • Course convener
    • Dr Dominique Dalla-Pozza
    • Robert McLaughlin
  • Mode of delivery In Person
  • Offered in Spring Session 2014
    See Future Offerings

National Security Law is a burgeoning field of concern for Government, security agencies, civil rights monitors and the Australian public.

As both the nature of threats (represented by, for example, the 11 September 2001 attacks in the US, or the rise of cyber security as a major national security concern) and the concept of 'security' (such as biosecurity) have evolved, legal responses have similarly evolved.

This course offers a broad brush across a number of issues concerning national security law. The course will commence with a series of building blocks (heads of power, conceptions of security, historical background). This will then allow more detailed exploration of a series of institutional issues (such as the legislative arrangements for important national security institutions and the 'security law' making and monitoring process", practical issues (such as use of force and use of classified information in prosecutions) and thematic issues (such as the national security - civil rights balancing debate).

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

A participant who completes this course should be able to:

  • formulate an understanding of what the concept of 'national security' means in an Australian context;
  • explain the main features of the way in which Australian national security institutions are organised, and in particular the legal basis on which they operate;
  • explain the main features of framework of Australian national security law, how this legal framework developed and how it currently operates; and
  • examine, and critically analyse, practical and thematic issues arising from the way in which national security institutions and laws have developed and currently operate in Australia

Indicative Assessment

Class participation  - 10%

Statutory interpretation/analysis exercise - 25%

Research essay - 65%

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

Intensive delivery over four days (26 hours); preparation and prereading for two days (10 hours); Plus time for assessment tasks

Click here for current timetable

Requisite and Incompatibility

To enrol in this course you must be studying a Master of Laws (7300) or Master of Laws (Legal Practice) (7312) or Master of Diplomacy/Master of Laws (7883) or Graduate Diploma in Law.

Prescribed Texts

There will be a reading list provided.

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:
1
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
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
Note: Please note that fee information is for current year only.

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.

The list of offerings for future years is indicative only.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.

Spring Session

Class number Class start date Last day to enrol Census date Class end date Mode Of Delivery Class Summary
8655 01 Dec 2014 01 Dec 2014 12 Dec 2014 15 Jan 2015 In Person N/A

Responsible Officer: Registrar, Student Administration / Page Contact: Website Administrator / Frequently Asked Questions