This course will provide students with an introduction to the general principles of insurance law. It will include an overview of the legislation that relates to insurance, particularly the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth), and the legislation that regulates the insurance industry, particularly Chapter 7 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and the Insurance Act 1973 (Cth), as well as an examination of the common law relating to insurance law. There will also be a consideration of the fundamental principles in insurance law such as the duty of utmost good faith, the duty of disclosure, double insurance, contribution, subrogation and reinsurance. This course is taught with an emphasis on the practical application of the principles of insurance law. Therefore, the fundamental principles will be considered in a practical context. In addition, there will be a consideration of various insurance policies, standard policy conditions and exclusions as well as indemnity issues. The course will also include an examination of insurance law in a dispute resolution framework in terms of the nature of insurance disputes, dispute resolution mechanisms and insurance litigation.
Topics covered include:
- Introduction to Insurance Law and the Insurance Contracts Act
- Regulation of the Insurance Industry
- Formation of the Contract of Insurance
- Insurance Agents and Brokers
- Interim Contracts of Insurance
- Duty of Utmost Good Faith, Duty of Disclosure and Misrepresentation
- The Policy
- Construction of the Contract of Insurance
- Renewal, Variation and Cancellation of Insurance
- Mistake
- Waiver and Estoppel
- The Claim
- Double Insurance and Contribution
- Subrogation
- Reinsurance
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
At the conclusion of this course students should be able to:
- understand the basic principles of insurance law;
- explain and apply the general principles of insurance law;
- understand the legislation that regulates insurance, especially the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth) and Chapter 7 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth);
- provide an overview of the interaction between legislation and the common law relating to insurance;
- understand the operation of insurance law in a practical context.
Indicative Assessment
The proposed assessment of this course comprises class participation (10%) and a take home exam (90%).
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Workload
The course will be taught intensively over Summer involving at least 36 contact hours.
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Readings will be contained in a brick of materials. Information about prescribed texts and other recommended reading will be available in the course outline on the course home page.
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 to 12 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 |
| 7.00 | 0.14583 |
| 8.00 | 0.16667 |
| 9.00 | 0.18750 |
| 10.00 | 0.20833 |
| 11.00 | 0.22917 |
| 12.00 | 0.25000 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $492 per unit |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $691 per unit |
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.