This course focuses on the international economic law of the digital economy, focusing on the datafication of the global digital economy, the international economic law disciplines applicable to global digital trade and investment, and the global regulatory frameworks governing the digital economy. It adopts an interdisciplinary approach focusing on both legal and political aspects of global digital trade as well as the political economy driving the digital economy. Students attending this course will be able to develop a deep understanding of the international, regional and domestic frameworks on digital trade; the applicable rules in WTO law and Regional Trade Agreements including Bilateral Investment Treaties; the regulation of cross-border data flows and its interface with transnational and domestic data governance including issues of privacy and cybersecurity governance; and the interface of international economic law and emerging digital and data-driven technologies. The course will specifically focus on the role of cross-border data governance in digital trade and how datafication of the global economy influences international economic law and vice versa. A component of the course will focus on Australian's foreign digital trade policy and familiarise students regarding Australia's obligations in various digital trade agreements. The course would be of interest to anyone who is interested to learn more about the global digital trade and e-commerce markets, the applicable frameworks and the future evolution of the regulatory framework of the digital economy.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- Examine key trade barriers to digital trade and the underlying policy implications for the digital economy.
- Relate key provisions of international trade law and cases to digital trade disputes of the future.
- Evaluate and appraise core obligations in BITs applicable to digital trade disputes.
- Critically analyse the global and regional institutional frameworks governing economic aspects of digital trade including the ongoing negotiations in trade bodies, policy development in standard setting institutions and other multilateral/multi stakeholder initiatives on digital trade and regulation.
- Generate creative, informed, independent and critical opinions on digital trade regulation, and provide informed perspective on the interaction of international economic law and digital economy.
- Synthesise Australia’s engagement with digital trade rules at various forms and their foreign digital trade policy.
Indicative Assessment
- Quiz (20) [LO 1,2,3,4]
- Participation in Class discussions and public forum on Wattle (10) [LO 1,2,3,4,5,6]
- Research essay (70) [LO 1,2,3,4,5,6]
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 in non-standard sessions will be taught on an intensive base with compulsory contact hours (approximately 26 hours of teaching). The course will also require advanced preparation through assigned readings. In total, it is anticipated that the hours required for completion of this course (class preparation, teaching and completion of assessment) will not exceed 120 hours.
- Classes offered during semester periods are expected to have 3 contact hours per week.
Click here for the LLM Masters Program timetable.
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
No prescribed texts - students will be provided readings for each topic on Wattle. The students will also provide a list of recommended readings for advanced understanding of the materials covered in the course and for possible future reference.
Preliminary Reading
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
Assumed Knowledge
No prior knowledge of international law, international relations or economics is necessary to take this course although it may be helpful to have a basic/background knowledge of these areas. Students enrolling in this course must be willing to engage in interdisciplinary teaching and learning as the course is designed to study the global digital economy from different perspectives.
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:
- 6 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 |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Course fees
- Domestic fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2022 | $4740 |
- International fee paying students
| Year | Fee |
|---|---|
| 2022 | $6000 |
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.
Winter Session
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4567 | 03 Jul 2023 | 04 Jul 2023 | 14 Jul 2023 | 01 Sep 2023 | Online | View |