成人大片

Course Coordinator (until 14 August 2017): Associate Professor Course Coordinator (from 15 August 2017):

Lecturers:
Associate Professor Matthew Stubbs
Cornelia Koch
Associate Professor Lorne Neudorf

Small Group Discovery Experience Leaders: Seminar Leaders:
Contact details and times for consultation will be made available to students on MyUni.

Students should note that the substantive course content is 'front-loaded' and is completed by the end of week 8 (the beginning of the mid-semester break). The exam for this course will be held at 10am on Thursday 28 September 2017 (NO traditional November exam will be available for students unable to attend this date - but supplementary exams in accordance with the usual Replacement/Additional Assessment arrangements will be available in the December RA/A period). After that point, there remains only the Small Group Discovery Experience (where students receive supervision as they complete the major research task).

1	Analyse the foundational principles of Australian constitutional and administrative law, undertake legal research with primary and secondary materials, and evaluate legal information.
2	Apply public law to complex issues, and critique the operation of public law from a policy perspective, either individually or as part of a team.
3	Structure and sustain concise and cohesive written arguments for a legal audience.
4	Conduct and analyse legal research, and write, collaboratively.
5	Analyse the impact of public law from policy perspectives, and in the context of social and cultural diversity.
6	Reflect on their abilities to effectively undertake legal work as a member of a team.

The Legal Practitioners' Education and Admissions Council (LPEAC) sets rules for the academic requirements for admission to legal practice in South Australia. Students must demonstrate a satisfactory level of understanding and application of 11 core areas of legal knowledge. This course teaches the following topics within these core areas:

Administrative Law:

• Organization and structure of the administration
• Administrative law theory
• Administrative Appeals Tribunal (introduction)
• Freedom of Information

Federal and State Constitutional Law:

• State constitutions and constitutional systems
• The Commonwealth Constitution and constitutional system (introduction)
• The constitution and operation of the legislature, executive and judiciary
• The relationship between the different institutions of government and the separation of powers
• The relationship between the different levels of government

There are two sets of materials for the course:

The List of Readings and Seminar Questions will be available at no charge.

The Course Readings will be available for purchase.

You will need both sets of materials. The booklets will be available for collection/purchase from the Image and Copy Centre on Level 1 of the Hughes Building ( has information on location, opening times etc). Paid materials must first
be ordered online through (click on ‘Online
Shop’ from the left hand menu). The material from both booklets will also be available in electronic form on MyUni.

The course textbook is:

Gabrielle Appleby, Alexander Reilly and Laura Grenfell, Australian Public Law (Oxford University Press, 2nd ed, 2014). (Please note: the book has been substantially revised from the 1st edition, so you will need to obtain a copy of the 2nd edition.)

You will also need:

A copy of the Australian Constitution, and the Constitution Act 1934 (SA). Both are available under Additional Materials on the MyUni Website.

Australian Guide to Legal Citation (Melbourne University Law Review Association, 3rd ed, 2010) (Available for download from  or for purchase at Unibooks).

Butterworths, Concise Australian Legal Dictionary (3rd ed, 2004).

Matthew Stubbs (ed), Jack Richardson, Australia's Constitutional Government (LexisNexis, 2016).

Pre-Lecture Videos

In weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 of the course, students will be expected to watch a series of online videos before attending the lecture. At the lecture, we will be working through activities which will require you to know the material in the videos.

Pre-Lecture Quizzes

Because of the importance of understanding the material covered in the videos, and to enable you to test your learning from the videos before you attend the lecture, in each week with pre-lecture videos there will be a pre-lecture quiz to be completed on MyUni before the lecture. Further information on the pre-lecture quizzes is available below under 'Assessment Detail'.

Online Learning Tools

Additional course-related material is available through MyUni, which all students are expected to undertake. This includes:

• An interactive online learning module on legal citation (leading to the 2.5% online citation quiz);
• An interactive online learning module on secondary source research (essential preparation for the Small Group Discovery Experience);
• Video lectures relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the Australian Constitution, and Human Rights Law in Australia, both of which are optional (leading to two optional quizzes, the highest mark from which will count for 2% extra credit).

Online Communication

The MyUni Discussion Board will be activated by the start of teaching and will be available until immediately before the primary exam. All questions relating to substantive course content and assessment should be posted on the Discussion Board, rather than emailed to staff. Guidelines on communication, including the use of the Discussion Board, will be posted on MyUni.

Students are expected to check MyUni regularly to keep up to date with announcements during the semester.

The teaching in Principles of Public Law has (from 2014 onwards) moved away from the 'traditional' lecture-seminar format to embrace blended learning and flipped classroom pedagogy, as well as to include a Small Group Discovery Experience (see below).

Blended learning essentially combines online and traditional face-to-face teaching and learning modes. We are using this because it enables us to spend more of our face-to-face time actually working with you, rather than talking at you; and because it gives you much more control and flexibility to manage your own learning.

The flipped classroom describes inverting the traditional use of lecture time for didactic (talking-head) presentation of content to a passive body of students (who, research tells us, do not in fact learn very much from this). Instead, we will use lectures for active learning, where students are solving problems (for example, applying the law to a practical situation), learning and practising skills (for example, advanced skills of case analysis) and working together to develop teamwork and practice peer instruction (that is, to help teach each other) - again, research tells us that this contributes to much better learning outcomes for students (and, also, to better grades).

In our seminars, we will be undertaking traditional problem-solving activities, but will have a particular focus on understanding different perspectives on the law under examination, and the development of critical thinking skills.

Your learning process for each week should be structured as follows:

Pre-Lecture

• Read the assigned readings
• Watch the pre-lecture videos
• Make topic notes based on this material
• Prepare for the in-lecture activities
• Complete the pre-lecture quiz on MyUni

In Lecture

• Engage and participate actively in all of the in-lecture activities
• Make special note of new skills or understandings that you have developed, or errors/difficulties that you have identified

Pre-Seminar

• Update your topic notes based on what has occurred in the lecture, and if necessary refer again to the readings and pre-lecture videos
• Prepare for the seminar activities

In Seminar

• Engage and participate actively in all of the seminar activities
• Make special note of new understandings that you have developed, or errors/difficulties that you have identified

Post-Seminar

• Revise your topic notes to ensure they capture all that you have learned
• Refer again to the readings and pre-lecture videos if you have any areas of uncertainty
• Attend the PASS seminar (the following week) to further consolidate your learning
• If you have any questions, post them on the Discussion Board

Lecture Recording

Traditional lecture-style content is now available on MyUni in the form of pre-lecture videos.

We will also continue to record our interactive lecture sessions, mainly because these may be useful revision tools. However, attendance at the interactive lectures is essential to your learning in the course. You should make every effort to attend all of the lectures in this course. Moreover, because the lecture will be interactive, there is a lot that will not be captured on the video and which you will simply miss. Listening to a lecture online after it is given is, therefore, no substitute at all for personal attendance. If you skip a lecture, you are penalising yourself, your learning in the course will suffer, and so will your grades.

The University expects full-time students (ie those taking 12 units per semester) to devote a total of 48 hours per week to their studies during semester. This means that in addition to lectures and seminars, students should spend an additional 9 or 10 hours per week in private study in the course across the semester – this includes doing the readings, watching the pre-lecture videos, taking the pre-lecture quizzes, preparing for the lecture and seminar activities, participation in group work, and undertaking the assessment tasks.

	Pre-Lecture Videos and Lectures	Seminars	Assessment
Week 1	Introduction to Public Law: Constitutionalism as a Check on Unlimited and Arbitrary Power; The Framing of the Australian Constitution; The Constitution of South Australia	Introduction to Public Law	Pre-Lecture Quiz (2.5%) due 2pm Tuesday
Week 2	The Separation of Powers in Theory, the Separation of Judicial Power under the Australian Constitution, and Boilermakers	Legislative, Executive and Judicial Powers	Pre-Lecture Quiz (2.5%) due 2pm Tuesday
Week 3	Defining Judicial Power	Identifying Powers, Critical Perspectives on the Separation of Judicial Power	Pre-Lecture Quiz (2.5%) due 2pm Tuesday
Week 4	The Separation of Judicial Power – Applications and Exceptions	Critical Perspectives on Judicial Power and Detention, the Persona Designata Exception	Pre-Lecture Quiz (2.5%) due 2pm Tuesday
Week 5	The Separation of Judicial Power – Consequences for State Courts	The Kable Doctrine	Pre-Lecture Quiz (2.5%) due 2pm Tuesday
Week 6	Executive Power and the Political Accountability of the Executive	Accountability of the Executive Government	Pre-Lecture Quiz (2.5%) due 2pm Tuesday
Week 7	Executive Accountability to Independent Review and Freedom of Information	Freedom of Information	Pre-Lecture Quiz (2.5%) due 2pm Tuesday
Week 8	Revision	(No seminars)
COURSE FINAL EXAM: Thursday 28 September
MID SEMESTER BREAK
Week 9	Introduction to Small Group Discovery: Group Work and Legal Research	Small Group Discovery Week 1	Online Legal Citation Quiz (2.5%) due by 2pm Tuesday
Week 10	(No lecture)	Small Group Discovery Week 2
Week 11	(No lecture)	Small Group Discovery Week 3
Week 12	(No lecture)	Staff will be available for consultation on the SGDE project - times TBA on MyUni.	Small Group Project (25%) due Friday 2pm

There are no additional requirements for completion of this course other than described elsewhere in this document.

Hurdle Requirement

To pass the course, students MUST attend ALL 3 Small Group Discovery Experience seminars, in the seminar in which they are enrolled (in weeks 9, 10 and 11).

Students who do not attend the required seminars will FAIL the course.

In extraordinary medical or compassionate circumstances ONLY, students may apply (by email to the course coordinator) to submit written work in lieu of attendance. Even in such circumstances, entitlement to share in the group research report mark will depend on the student making an alternative contribution to their group's research project (see the section on group work below).

This requirement exists because the Small Group Discovery Experience can only work effectively if every member of every group contributes to the research project being undertaken.

Principles of Public Law gives its students a Small Group Discovery Experience (SGDE) in weeks 9, 10 and 11.

The SGDE will commence with instruction on legal research and group work skills. Students will then be allocated into groups of either 3 or 4 to undertake research into critical contemporary public law issues.

The SGDE classes contain the same students, and occur at the same times, as the seminar classes for the rest of the course. However, all SGDE classes will:

• be held in the Law Library computer suite (with access to all Law Library facilities);
• be supervised by leading academic researchers in public law; and
• have library staff who are legal research experts available to assist.

Full instructions on the SGDE will be made available to students on MyUni.

 

Assessment item	% of final mark	Dates	Length	Redeemable in exam?	Course Learning Outcomes
Online Citation Quiz (Compulsory)	2.5%	Due by Tuesday of Week 9, 2pm		No	1, 4
Online Pre-Lecture Quizzes - Weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 (Compulsory)	2.5% each, total of 17.5%	Tuesday 2pm in the week to which the quiz relates (or, with the late penalty specified below, any time before 2pm on Wednesday 27 September)		No	1,2,5
SGDE Project (Compulsory)	25%	Friday of Week 12, 2pm	2,000 words	Yes (UNLESS student fails to make a reasonable contribution to their group)	1,2,3,4,5,6
Exam (Compulsory)	55% or 80%	10am, Thursday 28 September	2 hours and 30 minutes, plus 10 minutes reading time		1,2,3,5
Extra credit: Online Quizzes - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the Australian Constitution & Human Rights Law in Australia (Optional)	Up to 2% extra credit (that is, in addition to the 100% of required assessment specified above)	Any time before Friday 2pm in swot-vac week		N/A	1,2,5

Special note on Online Pre-Lecture Quizzes in weeks 1-7:

Students who do not complete the quiz before the lecture (for any reason, including medical/compassionate) will have access to complete the same quiz at any time before 2pm on Wednesday 27 September, but their mark for that quiz will be subject to a late penalty of half the score obtained (so, for a student who scores 100% for a quiz, which would normally contribute 2.5 marks out of 100 to their total grade, they will instead receive only 1.25 marks towards their total grade; a student who scores 60% for a quiz, which would normally contribute 1.5 marks towards their final grade, will instead receive 0.75 marks).

Specific instructions on each item of assessment will be made available to students on MyUni.

1. Online Citation Quiz (2.5%, Compulsory, NOT Redeemable)

A multiple-choice online MyUni quiz assessing your ability to use appropriate legal citation that complies with the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (3rd ed, 2010).

An important element of legal writing is the ability to reference relevant material in a manner that conveys clearly and concisely the nature of the material referred to, and the means of locating it. This is what the accepted system of citation (of cases, legislation, books, articles and other materials) is designed to achieve. Students’ ability to operate within the conventions of citation will be assessed in this short online quiz.

2. Online Pre-Lecture Quizzes (17.5%, Compulsory, NOT redeemable)

Because of the importance of understanding the material covered in the videos, and to enable you to test your learning from the videos before you attend the lecture, in each week with pre-lecture videos there will be a pre-lecture quiz to be completed on MyUni before the lecture. In weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 , the pre-lecture quiz will be worth 2.5% of your final grade in Principles of Public Law (these seven quizzes in total will therefore be worth 17.5% of your final grade).

Students who do not complete the quiz before the lecture (for any reason, including medical/compassionate) will have access to complete the same quiz at any time before 2pm on Wednesday 27 September, but their mark for that quiz will be subject to a late penalty of half the score obtained (so, for a student who scores 100% for a quiz, which would normally contribute 2.5 marks out of 100 to their total grade, they will instead receive only 1.25 marks out of 100 towards their total grade; a student who scores 60% for a quiz, which would normally contribute 1.5 marks towards their final grade, will instead receive 0.75 marks).

As the online videos and quizzes are available from well before the start of the semester, and as students have the option to sit the quiz late (with the penalty indicated above), there will be no extensions for any reason, except in the most exceptional circumstances. (To be clear, acceptable exceptional circumstances does not include being sick that week, even with a medical certificate - because you could have done the quiz earlier.)

3. Small Group Project (25%, Compulsory, Redeemable)

Students will work in groups of 3 or 4 to complete a small group research project as part of their Small Group Discovery Experience, which will be due on Friday of week 12 at 2pm.

The project will give you an opportunity to demonstrate the following skills:

• Group work;
• Legal research;
• Analysis and synthesis of legal material;
• Critical evaluation of legal material and concepts;
• Articulation and structuring of a logical legal argument;
• Clarity in legal writing style; and
• Proper and accurate referencing and citation of sources, in compliance with the Australian Guide to Legal Citation.

Further information about the Small Group Discovery Experience and Project (including word limits, and penalties for late submission or exceeding the word limit) will be made available on MyUni. Your mark for this compulsory project is redeemable by the final exam.


Assessment Item 3: Failure to Contribute Appropriately to your Group
If a student fails to contribute appropriately to their group, they will  suffer a marks penalty that adjusts their mark for this item of  assessment to a level commensurate with their contribution, and this  lower mark will become non-redeemable and thus count in full towards their final grade. Information about how to work in groups, and  the processes to be followed in the event of a failure to contribute appropriately, will be made available on MyUni.

4. Extra credit: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the Australian Constitution & Human Rights Law in Australia: Online Quizzes (Up to 2% extra credit, Optional)

Students have the opportunity, which is entirely optional, to view video lectures on the important topics of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the Australian Constitution, and Human Rights Law in Australia, and to answer online quizzes based on that material.

The quiz for which the student receives the higher grade (of the two optional quizzes) will count for 2% extra credit on top of the student's grade determined through the ordinary assessment scheme.

6. Exam 55%-80%

The exam is two and a half hours in length with 10 minutes reading time. It will be held at 10am on Thursday 28 September (NO traditional November exam will be available for students unable to attend this date - but supplementary exams in accordance with the usual Replacement/Additional Assessment arrangements will be available in the December RA/A period). The exam will comprise two parts: three problem questions (worth 75%), and one essay question (to be chosen by each student from a choice of 2 topics, worth 25%). The exam will cover the whole of the course (excluding material covered only in the video lectures on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the Australian Constitution, and Human Rights Law in Australia, which are only examined in the optional extra-credit assessment).

(N.B. It is each student's responsibility to read the examination timetable. Misreading the timetable is not accepted as grounds for granting a supplementary exam. University staff are not permitted to provide examination times to students over the telephone or in response to personal enquiries.)

The exam is open book: that is, students may bring into the exam any books, notes, and materials, other than books from the library.

Students will be provided with submission instructions as part of the assessment instructions for each item of assessment which will be made available on MyUni.

Late Submission of Assignments: 5% of the total mark possible will be deducted for every 24 hours or part thereof that it is late, including each day on a weekend. For example, an essay that is submitted after the due date and time but within the first 24 hour period, and that has been graded at 63%, will have 5% deducted, for a final grade of 58%. An essay that is more than 24 hours late will lose 10%, etc. Hard copy submissions made after 5.00pm on a Friday will be assumed to have been submitted on the next business day and will be penalised accordingly.

Word Length: Assignments which exceed the allocated length (word length or page limit) will be subject to a penalty of 5% of total marks possible per 100 words or part thereof (ie with a word limit of 3,000, an essay graded 63% will have 5% deducted if it is 3001 words long, for a final grade of 58%, 10% if it is 3101 words long, etc). Words are calculated including all footnotes and headings within the text but excluding cover page information. Quotations and all referencing information are included in the word count.

Approval of Results by Board of Examiners

Students are reminded that all assessment results are subject to approval (and possible  moderation/change) by the Law School’s Board of Examiners. Assessment  results at the University are not scaled. Under the Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy, students are assessed ‘by reference to their performance against pre-determined criteria and standards … and not by ranking against the performance of the student cohort in the course’. However, under that same policy, the Board of Examiners (as the relevant Assessment Review Committee for courses at Adelaide Law School) is  required to ‘ensure comparability of standards and consistency’ in assessment. On occasions, the Board of Examiners will form the view that some moderation is required to ensure the comparability of standards and consistency across courses and years, and accordingly provide fairness to all law students. All assessment results are therefore subject to approval (and possible change) until confirmed by the Board of Examiners and posted on Acess Adelaide at the end of each semester.

The course is constantly being updated and revised to reflect the evolution of the law, to respond to student feedback, and to engage with the latest teaching practices. Student feedback is collected each time the course is run, including through SELT reports. Previous SELT reports, and staff feedback on them, are posted on the course MyUni site for students to view and consider

The University Writing Centre provides academic learning and language development services and resources for local, international, undergraduate and postgraduate coursework students enrolled at the 成人大片.

The centre offers practical advice and strategies for students to master reading, writing, note-taking, time management, oral presentation skills, referencing techniques and exam preparation for success at university through seminars, workshops and individual consultations.

For more information please check out the Writing Centre website at  
 
Lex Salus Program

Lex Salus was founded in 2013 by Adelaide Law School Wellbeing officers Ms Corinne Walding, Ms Kellie Toole and Dr Mark Giancaspro. Lex Salus is an initiative of the Adelaide Law School aimed at raising law student awareness of the importance of mental, physical and nutritional health across all year levels of the degree, and of the various counselling, disability and equity services both within and outside the University that can provide help. Research shows that law students, both in Australia and in many jurisdictions around the world, experience the highest levels of stress, anxiety and depression out of any other discipline. Many do not get enough sleep, maintain a healthy diet or achieve a realistic work/life balance. Making matters worse, they are unwilling or afraid to speak up for fear of feeling 'weak' or because of the negative stigma that attaches to seeking help. Lex Salus is dedicated to tackling these problems head-on.

Counselling Service

The University Counselling Service provides a free and confidential service to all enrolled students. We encourage you to contact the Counselling service on 8313 5663 to make an appointment to deal with any issues that may be affecting your study and life. More information is available at /counselling_centre/. 

Further information regarding the Law School Policies and Procedures in relation to Supplementary Assessment, Extensions, and Remarks etc can be found at:

Plagiarism and other forms of cheating

Plagiarism is a serious act of academic misconduct. All students must be familiar with the Adelaide Law School Enrolment Guide, and should note in particular the sections relating to plagiarism, grievance procedures and academic conduct within the Law School and the University.

Plagiarism is a serious matter and is treated as such by the Law School and the University. Please be aware that “academic dishonesty” (which goes beyond plagiarism) can be a ground for a refusal by the Supreme Court of South Australia to refuse to admit a person to practice as a legal practitioner in South Australia.

Academic honesty is an essential aspect of ethical and honest behaviour, which is central to the practice of the law and an understanding of what it is to be a lawyer.