• Offered by Law School
  • ANU College ANU College of Law
  • Course subject Laws
  • Areas of interest Law
  • Academic career UGRD
  • Course convener
    • Peta Spender
  • Mode of delivery In Person
  • Offered in First Semester 2015
    See Future Offerings

This course is an introduction to dispute resolution focussing upon mediation and civil litigation.  The course will examine dispute resolution within and outside the legal system and will explore litigation via the principles of civil procedure.  The interlocutory steps in civil litigation will be analysed alongside the strategies adopted by lawyers in the conduct of litigation.  The course is structured to meet the requirements for admission as a legal practitioner in the Australian States and Territories but also provides opportunities for critical appraisal of litigation policy and practice.

Topics to be covered include:

  • access to justice
  • the importance of process
  • mediation procedures
  • confidentiality and power imbalances in dispute resolution
  • when and how to commence proceedings in court
  • class actions
  • urgent applications
  • gathering evidence.

Learning Outcomes

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

The course aims to have you:

(1) Develop:
  • an understanding of dispute resolution techniques and the law and practice of dispute resolution, including litigation;
  • an appreciation of the context of litigation and the policy which underpins design of the justice system;
  • knowledge of the technical and strategic skills necessary to mediate a dispute and conduct litigation.
(2) Critically evaluate and analyse the law and practice of dispute resolution and litigation.

Other Information

This course is best undertaken by students later in their degree.  In particular, students will benefit from an understanding of Corporations Law.

Technology Requirements:
No specific requirements but access to a computer and the internet is recommended.

Indicative Assessment

Research essay, take home exam, tutorial presentation and participation.

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

Four to five teaching hours per week plus at least 6 hours of reading per week.

Requisite and Incompatibility

To enrol in this course you must be studying a program which includes the Bachelor of Laws, completed LAWS1203/LAWS6103 Torts and LAWS1204/LAWS6104 Contracts and must have completed or be completing five 1000 level LAWS courses.

Prescribed Texts

Colbran, Spender, Jackson, Douglas, Civil Procedure: Commentary and Materials, (5th ed) LexisNexis, 2012.

Assumed Knowledge

Material covered in the compulsory International Law course LAWS2250, although there will be a brief revision at the start of the course.

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. Tuition fees are indexed annually. 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
Domestic fee paying students
Year Fee
2015 $2958
International fee paying students
Year Fee
2015 $4146
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.

First Semester

Class number Class start date Last day to enrol Census date Class end date Mode Of Delivery Class Summary
1460 16 Feb 2015 06 Mar 2015 31 Mar 2015 29 May 2015 In Person N/A

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