Evidence is perhaps the most important area of law to master if you wish to be an advocate.
Unlike other areas of law, you rarely have the luxury of being able to research the legal point in issue. You must develop the skills to elicit evidence from witnesses, the instinct to know when to object or oppose an objection, and be able to back up your actions with the relevant law whilst on your feet before the judge. However, there will be occasions when you will have time to assess evidence and create strategies for both advancing your case and addressing that of your opponent:this will require preparation in advance of the hearing.
The process of educating oneself in the laws of evidence is a career long journey and this course is designed to prepare you to identify the key issues that will underpin every court appearance you make as well as any advanced training you undertake in the law of evidence.
The course is designed to be practical, so you should feel comfortable with the fundamentals of evidence taught in your compulsory prerequisite. You will also learn new law, for example, dealing with unfavourable witnesses, excluding prejudicial evidence and the oft forgotten Harmann Undertaking.
If you embrace this course, after every lesson you will feel like you have learnt something useful and by the end of this intensive program should be able to run a simple hearing in the confidence that you will be able to put your case to the court in accordance with law.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- Synthesise, evaluate and apply the relevant laws, legal principles and rules of evidence to a given set of facts.
- ?Critically analyse, marshal evidence, and apply professional judgement to argue by way of submissions why evidence is admissible or not.
- Formulate and execute a strategy in relation to the use of and objection to evidence.
- Analyse instructions to prepare an affidavit that complies with the rules of evidence.
- Identify and use a range of legally specific research principles, methods and tools to conduct and communicate research in an area of evidence.
Other Information
Classes may be offered in non-standard sessions and be taught on an intensive base with compulsory contact hours (a minimum of 36 hours). Please refer to the LLB timetable for dates. Please contact the ANU College of Law Student Administration Services to request a permission code to enrol in classes offered in non-standard sessions.
Indicative Assessment
- Forum Discussion (10) [LO 1]
- Prepare an admissible affidavit (40) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Written submissions on evidence in the context of a problem. (50) [LO 1,2,5]
In response to COVID-19: Please note that Semester 2 Class Summary information (available under the classes tab) is as up to date as possible. Changes to Class Summaries not captured by this publication will be available to enrolled students via Wattle.
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
Classes offered during semester periods are expected to have 3 contact hours per week (a minimum of 36 hours). Students are generally expected to devote at least 10 hours overall per week to this course.
Inherent Requirements
N/A
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Students must rely on the approved Class Summary which will be posted to the Programs and Courses site approximately 2 weeks prior to the commencement of the course.
Preliminary Reading
Stephen Odgers: Uniform Evidence Law 11th Edition. Lawbook Company.
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 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2020 | $4110 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2020 | $5460 |
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.
Autumn Session
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5685 | 11 May 2020 | 11 May 2020 | 22 May 2020 | 26 Jun 2020 | Online | View |
