The Criminal Practice course is a jurisdictionally specific, intensive face-to-face elective course in the Admission to Practice Courses component of the ANU Master of Legal Practice (MLP) and Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice (GDLP). The course meets the Australasian Professional Legal Education Council’s (APLEC) Competencies for Entry Level Lawyers in respect of Criminal Practice.
To successfully complete the course students must attend and participate in practical activities and assessments, and demonstrate competency in relation to the APLEC standards for Criminal Practice.
The course may be undertaken by any ANU MLP/GDLP student (after having completed the Becoming a Practitioner Course) – not only those who are based in the particular jurisdiction or who intend to practice there.
Distinguishing features of the course are:
- Concentration on both defence and prosecution practice;
- Emphasis on collaborative, scenario based, experiential learning;
- Bulk of the instruction and practice in small groups;
- Instruction by highly experienced, highly regarded practitioner teachers; and
- Emphasis on socially aware, ethical, professional practice.
The following skills and attributes are particularly emphasised in the course:
- Problem analysis, rigor and precision;
- Work management, practicality and efficiency;
- Effective communication;
- Oral submissions and argument;
- Self-awareness and reflective practice; and
- Skills to recognise and meet ethical and professional obligations.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- Investigate, analyse and evaluate a situation from prosecution and defence perspectives to identify whether the matter is a criminal law matter
- Analyse, research and evaluate the facts of the matter, identify and synthesise the relevant law, the defendant’s rights and police powers to advise the prosecution (when acting as a prosecutor) and the defendant (when acting for the defence.)
- Analyse, research and evaluate the defendant’s rights and potential remedies and options, critically reflect on the breadth and scope of legal issues and applicable law to be able to communicate options and possible outcomes to both defence and prosecution to enable them to make informed decisions
- Research and draft relevant document(s) to identify, evaluate and communicate information to the client (prosecution or defence) and to transmit information (facts and evidence) in the form required by the court to support the client’s case
- Identify, prepare, conduct and document court or tribunal proceedings, including bail applications, pleas, defences, prosecutions, submissions and generally represent the defendant or prosecution professionally and in accordance with good practice
- Demonstrate and reflect critically on their ethical and professional behaviour and responsibilities and reflect on experiences to improve performance
- Achieve the ‘Competency Standards for Entry Level Lawyers’ as determined by the Law Admissions Consultative Council.
Other Information
The jurisdiction studied has no bearing on the state a student plans to be admitted into.
Indicative Assessment
- Assessment is largely by way of performance of criminal practice advocacy, conducting an opposed bail application and a plea. Students are also required to undertake quizzes on elements of criminal law practice, to prepare a matter for trial and to conduct or observe and reflect on a contested hearing. (null) [LO 1,2,3,4,5,6,7]
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 day intensive course, delivered
in a range of locations.
Each day 9am - 5pm, plus pre-reading as required.
Inherent Requirements
Not applicable
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Please refer to the WATTLE site.
Assumed Knowledge
LLB, JD or completion of LPAB program.Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you 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). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 34
- Unit value:
- 3 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 3.00 | 0.06250 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2021 | $1260 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2021 | $1648 |
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.
Summer Session
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1585 | 01 Mar 2021 | 05 Mar 2021 | 05 Mar 2021 | 19 Mar 2021 | Online | View |
Winter Session
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4608 | 13 Sep 2021 | 17 Sep 2021 | 17 Sep 2021 | 01 Oct 2021 | Online | View |
