Overview
This unit examines in greater depth the sale and purchase of an interest in land in Queensland. You will be exposed to the contractual provisions for the sale of an interest in land. You will need to identify those involved in the sale of an interest in land so as to gain not only an understanding of their contractual obligations, but also other obligations arising from the common law and legislation. This unit will examine the enforceability of contracts for the sale of an interest in land in Queensland. There will be an emphasis on the significant and evolving role of technology in land contracts and through electronic conveyancing.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Prerequisite: LAWS 12065 Foundation of Property Law. Corequisite: LAWS12066 Land Law.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2018
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Course evaluation
Assessment design
Thought will be given ensuring assessments are designed with accuracy and clarity to ensure to purpose and expected outcomes are clearly understood even though factual scenarios and or conveyancing documents maybe in their nature ambiguous to test the students' legal and problem skills and discernment.
Feedback from Course evaluation
Assessment return
Assessments will be returned in a timely manner.
- Analyse the process of sale for various types of interests in land.
- Evaluate the enforceability of contracts for various types of interest in land.
- Identify the parties involved in the sale of an interest in land and analyse their compliance with the obligations (common law and legislative) in an encountered fact situation.
The unit is accredited by the Legal Practitioners Board of Queensland.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Portfolio - 20% | |||
| 2 - Presentation and Written Assessment - 30% | |||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 50% | |||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||
| 5 - Team Work | |||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 1 - Portfolio - 20% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Presentation and Written Assessment - 30% | ||||||||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 50% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
Land Contracts in Queensland
Edition: 4th (2016)
Authors: SA Christiansen, WM Dixon, WD Duncan and SE Jones
The Federation Press
Sydney Sydney , NSW , Australia
ISBN: 9781760020507
Binding: Paperback
Principles of Land Contracts and Options in Australia
Edition: 1st (2003)
Authors: Rossiter, C
LexisNexis Butterworths
Sydney Sydney , NSW , Australia
ISBN: 9780409311280
Binding: Paperback
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- UCROO
- Zoom Conferencing (Webcam and Microphone)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Australian Guide to Legal Citation, 3rd ed
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
j.a.milburn@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Introduction to Land Contracts and Conveyancing
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016, Chapter 1
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Real Estate Agent
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016 Chapter 2
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Seller Disclosure Before Contract - Houses and Land
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016, Chapter 3
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Seller Disclosure Before Contract - Body Corporate and Commercial Contracts
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016, Chapter 3
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Formation of Contracts
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016, Chapter 4
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Formation of Contract-2
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016, Chapter 4
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Subject Matter of Sale
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016, Chapter 5
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Contract to Completion
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Special Conditions
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016, Chapter 8
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Remedies
Chapter
Christensen, Dixon, Duncan and Jones, Land Contracts in Queensland, 4th ed, Federation Press, Leichhardt, 2016, Chapter 9
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Review
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
No Assigned Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Portfolio
For assessment 1, you are to prepare an article for inclusion in Proctor (the Queensland Law Society’s flagship publication).
What is Proctor? According to the Queensland Law Society website:
| Proctor, our flagship publication, is the pre-eminent magazine for the Queensland legal profession. Published 11 times a year, it educates its readers with information they must be aware of, including changes in legislation, significant case law, practice directions and more. It informs its readers with articles on legal topics and people, providing them with a clearer perspective of the functioning of the law in Queensland and their role within the profession. It entertains its readers with social news and events, humour and interests such as wine and dining. Proctor also provides a monthly portrait of the QLS, its activities and the services it provides to its members. Members also receive access to an online version, a decade of archived issues and a searchable index providing citation for more than 13,000 articles published in Proctor since 1982. |
You may add this material to your legal professional portfolio.
Notes
- I expect students to present their assessment work on time. Please note that I will not consider any request for an extension of time unless you upload an application in the appropriate manner, supported by documentation and made prior to the due time/date.
- Because I release the task at the start of term, you are less likely to obtain an extension even if supported by documentation, than would be the case if I released the task shortly before the time it was due. If you make an application for an extension of time, you should understand that I consider several factors in deciding whether the request for sustainable or not. I encourage you to allow for contingencies.
- I will impose a penalty deduction of 5% per day for late work until the nominated cut-off date, Saturday, 1 September 2018 (AEST). Beyond that date, in the absence of an approved extension, you will not have an opportunity to complete the task after that date and you will receive a mark of zero for this assessment task.
- I will provide personalised feedback soon after the last date for submission of work. You will receive your mark at that time.
- I require you to upload your assessment through the Moodle course website. Submit your entire answer in a single Word document. Do not submit in multiple parts.
- You may consult with peers at your discretion, but the final answer must be yours and I will check it via Turnitin for originality. When sharing ideas, it is important to retain something original for your own response. This is an individual assessment and you may not collude; which means that you cannot act together to cheat or to plagiarise or engage in academic misconduct.
- There is no prescribed format or template for this assignment and its final form will reflect your own individual and evolving approach to law and legal problems. I will assess you on your ability to communicate your process.
- Please reference external resources using the Australian Guide to Legal Citation.
Week 6 Thursday (23 Aug 2018) 11:45 pm AEST
I expect students to present their assignment work on time. Please note that I will not consider any request for an extension of time unless you upload an application in the appropriate manner, supported by documentation and made prior to the due time/date. I will impose a penalty deduction of 5% per day for late work until the nominated cut-off date, Saturday, 1 September 2018.
Week 8 Tuesday (4 Sept 2018)
Student satisfaction surveys in the past indicate student concerns when a unit coordinator does not provide assessment feedback quickly. Generally, I release the feedback and marks the day after the final cut-off date (that is, I provide feedback and marks 10 days after the due date).
Assessment criteria
I assess students on their ability to demonstrate thinking and writing skills, to comprehend the material, to process the material and to provide a critical analysis and logical discussion of issues relevant to a mock Proctor submission. Students are required to communicate an answer clearly and logically and in a concise manner. I expect you to present your paper in a professional manner. Please paginate your paper and use correct spelling and grammar. You must reference your work appropriately and attribute the work of others.
High distinction standard
- You wrote your answer very well and expressed yourself clearly and concisely
- You presented your paper in a logical structure
- You demonstrated an appreciation and understanding of the issues involved
- You backed your answer by well-reasoned arguments demonstrating a detailed insight and analysis of issues
- You produced a sophisticated analysis from a variety of perspectives
- You demonstrated mastery of the AGLC referencing system
Distinction Standard
- Your answer is well written and expressed
- You produced a well-structured and logical paper
- You clearly identified, and appreciated, legal issues
- You referenced your material correctly
- You referred to appropriate case law, but your analysis and interpretation was not as detailed and reasoned as for high distinction standard
Credit Standard
- Your answer is generally well written and expressed
- Your paper is well structured and sequential
- Your coverage of issues is reasonably comprehensive with a good treatment and analysis
- Referencing is satisfactory
- Your analysis is not as detailed and reasoned as for distinction standard
Pass Standard
- I could follow and understand your paper
- You could better organise and structure your paper
- You could identify and address issues in more depth
- Your paper is confusing or incorrect
- Core facts/issues not clearly understood or identified
- You demonstrated some familiarity with legislation and case law
- Your conclusions reached are somewhat simplistic
- You included quantities of material of marginal relevance in your paper
- Referencing needs improvement
- Your analysis is not as detailed and reasoned as for credit standard
- Analyse the process of sale for various types of interests in land.
- Evaluate the enforceability of contracts for various types of interest in land.
- Identify the parties involved in the sale of an interest in land and analyse their compliance with the obligations (common law and legislative) in an encountered fact situation.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Ethical practice
2 Presentation and Written Assessment
For assessment 2, you are to assume that you are in practice and your supervising partner requests that you prepare a memorandum of advice.
Your final product should take the form of a persuasive, well-set-out document. You should include reference to relevant practitioners’ conduct rules, statutes, caselaw, academic writing and the standard REIQ contracts for conveyancing and appointment of agents.
One of the key foundations of this unit is a professional standard of writing. I will assess your spelling, grammar and syntax as part of this assessment. You are writing for a professional, informed audience.
Notes
- I expect students to present their assessment work on time. Please note that I will not consider any request for an extension of time unless you upload an application in the appropriate manner, supported by documentation and made prior to the due time/date.
- Because I release the task at the start of term, you are less likely to obtain an extension even if supported by documentation, than would be the case if I released the task shortly before the time it was due. If you make an application for an extension of time, you should understand that I consider several factors in deciding whether to grant your request. I encourage you to allow for contingencies.
- I will impose a penalty deduction of 5% per day for late work until the nominated cut-off date, Saturday, 29 September 2018 (AEST). Beyond that date, in the absence of an approved extension, you will not have an opportunity to complete the task and you will receive a mark of zero for this assessment task. You may submit your work any time before the due date.
- I will provide personalised feedback soon after the last date for submission of work. You will receive your mark at that time.
- I require you to upload your assessment through the Moodle course website. Submit your entire answer in a single Word document. Do not submit in multiple parts.
- You may consult with peers at your discretion, but the final answer must be yours and I will check it via Turnitin for originality. When sharing ideas, it is important to retain something original for your own response. This is an individual assessment and you may not collude; which means that you cannot act together to cheat or to plagiarise or engage in academic misconduct.
- There is no prescribed format or template for this assignment and its final form will reflect your own individual and evolving approach to law and legal problems. I will assess you on your ability to communicate effectively.
Week 10 Thursday (20 Sept 2018) 11:45 pm AEST
I expect students to present their assignment work on time. Please note that I will not consider any request for an extension of time unless you upload an application in the appropriate manner, supported by documentation and made prior to the due time/date. I will impose a penalty deduction of 5% per day for late work until the nominated cut-off date, Saturday, 29 September 2018.
Week 12 Tuesday (2 Oct 2018)
Student satisfaction surveys in the past indicate student concerns when a unit coordinator does not provide assessment feedback quickly. Generally, I release the feedback and marks the day after the final cut-off date (that is, I provide feedback and marks 10 days after the due date).
I assess students on their ability to demonstrate thinking and writing skills, to comprehend the material, to process the material and to provide a critical analysis and logical discussion of issues relevant to a mock Proctor submission. I require students to communicate an answer clearly and logically, and in a concise manner. I expect you to present your paper in a professional manner. Please paginate your paper and use correct spelling and grammar. You must reference your work appropriately and attribute the work of others.
High distinction standard
- You wrote your answer very well and expressed yourself clearly and concisely
- You presented your paper in a logical structure
- You demonstrated an appreciation and understanding of the issues involved
- You backed your answer by well-reasoned arguments demonstrating a detailed insight and analysis of issues
- You produced a sophisticated analysis from a variety of perspectives
- You demonstrated mastery of the AGLC referencing system
Distinction Standard
- Your answer is well written and expressed
- You produced a well-structured and logical paper
- You clearly identified, and appreciated, legal issues
- You referenced your material correctly
- You referred to appropriate case law, but your analysis and interpretation was not as detailed and reasoned as for high distinction standard
Credit Standard
- Your answer is generally well written and expressed
- Your paper is well structured and sequential
- Your coverage of issues is reasonably comprehensive with a good treatment and analysis
- Referencing is satisfactory
- Your analysis is not as detailed and reasoned as for distinction standard
Pass Standard
- I could understand your paper
- You could better organise and structure your paper
- You could identify and address issues in more depth
- Your paper is confusing or incorrect
- Core facts/issues not clearly understood or identified
- You demonstrated some familiarity with legislation and case law
- Your conclusions reached are somewhat simplistic
- You included quantities of material of marginal relevance in your paper
- Referencing needs improvement
- Your analysis is not as detailed and reasoned as for credit standard
- Analyse the process of sale for various types of interests in land.
- Evaluate the enforceability of contracts for various types of interest in land.
- Identify the parties involved in the sale of an interest in land and analyse their compliance with the obligations (common law and legislative) in an encountered fact situation.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
3 Written Assessment
You have (just over) one day to complete a (total maximum) 2000-word reply to the task.
Notes
- Working to a short deadline and submitting work on time is part of the assessment.
- You must complete this assessment task by Friday 5 October 2018 at 11:45 PM (Qld). In the absence of an approved extension, you will not have an opportunity to complete the task after this date. There will be no opportunity to apply a late penalty of five per cent per day and you will receive a mark of zero for this assessment task.
- I will not return the final take home paper to students. I will not provide personalised feedback. Your mark forms part of your grade for this course.
- I require you to upload your assessment through the Moodle course website. Submit your entire answer, including your outline of submissions, in a single Word (not PDF) document. Do not submit in multiple parts.
- You may consult with peers at your discretion, but the final answer must be yours and I will check it via Turnitin for originality. When sharing ideas, it is important to retain something original for your own response. This is an individual assessment and you may not collude; which means that you cannot act together to cheat or to plagiarise or engage in academic misconduct.
Week 12 Friday (5 Oct 2018) 11:45 pm AEST
You must complete this assessment task by Friday 5 October 2018 at 11:45 PM (Qld). In the absence of an approved extension, you will not have an opportunity to complete the task after this date. There will be no opportunity to apply a late penalty of five per cent per day and you will receive a mark of zero for this assessment task.
You must complete this assessment task by Friday 5 October 2018 at 11:45 PM (Qld). In the absence of an approved extension, you will not have an opportunity to complete the task after this date. There will be no opportunity to apply a late penalty of five per cent per day and you will receive a mark of zero for this assessment task.
I assess students on their ability to demonstrate thinking and writing skills, to comprehend the material, to process the material and to provide a critical analysis and logical discussion of the law. Students are required to communicate an answer clearly, logically and in a concise manner. I expect you to present your paper in a professional manner. Please paginate your paper and use correct spelling and grammar. You must appropriately reference and attribute the work of others.
Fail
You will have shown evidence of the following:
- the written expression is poor and difficult to understand
- the answer is poorly organised
- referencing is generally inadequate
- lack of familiarity with the legislation and its application
- failure to identify and address the issues in the question
- reasoning and application demonstrated is poor
Pass
You will have:
- made a conscientious attempt to address the topic and/or answer the question
- shown evidence of having done the required reading and of having understood the reading
- presented a reasonable argument to back up your conclusions
- demonstrated a reasonable level of spelling and grammatical usage
- used referencing but this may need improvement
- issues that may need to be identified and addressed in more depth
Credit
You will have:
- addressed the topic and/or answered the question directly
- presented soundly based arguments and backed these up with reasons
- gone beyond description to analysis of key issues
- used the English language well
- shown evidence of reading widely
- demonstrated understanding of the reading
- used referencing that is satisfactory
Distinction
You will have:
- met the above criteria for a credit
- demonstrated the attainment of a high degree of understanding of the concepts of the unit
- demonstrated deep insight into the application of knowledge and skills to complex theoretical and practical situations
- used referencing correctly
- referred to all appropriate legislation
High Distinction
You will have:
- met the above criteria for a distinction
- demonstrated the attainment of an outstanding level of achievement regarding the objectives of this unit
- demonstrated an interesting and/or original approach/idea/argument
- demonstrated mastery of the relevant referencing system
- ensured your conclusions are backed by well-reasoned arguments demonstrating a detailed insight and analysis of issues
- ensured your references are made to the appropriate legislation for issues
- Analyse the process of sale for various types of interests in land.
- Evaluate the enforceability of contracts for various types of interest in land.
- Identify the parties involved in the sale of an interest in land and analyse their compliance with the obligations (common law and legislative) in an encountered fact situation.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Ethical practice
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
