In Progress
Please note that this Unit Profile is still in progress. The content below is subject to change.Overview
Family Law is a third-year unit delivered via intensive mode. The assessment in Family Law will require you to participate in advocacy-based tasks, which may include live oral assessment in the form of a viva voce, peer work conducting a hearing, written advice and submissions. Family Law will equip you with the knowledge and skills to practice family law. You will develop the ability to identify legal issues and structure legal arguments to resolve the issue. Family Law will provide you with an understanding of the legislation and case law relating to the dissolution of the marriage relationship and de facto relationship, financial arrangements including the division of property, spousal maintenance and child support, the role of dispute resolution in family law and negotiating child focused arrangements pertaining to children.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Pre-Requisites:72 credit points in LAWS units including LAWS12078 Equity and Trusts
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 - 2022
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 Student communication with UC and feedback survey
Increased advocacy based tasks for assessments
The assessment tasks in this unit will be re-written to focus on a broad range of advocacy skills. Future assessment tasks may include written and oral advocacy.
Feedback from Student communication with the UC
Students spoke positively of the unit being delivered via intensive mode
The unit will continue to be delivered via intensive mode.
Feedback from Student communication with the UC
Students spoke positively of the unit materials and assessment one availaible two weeks before the term commence
The unit coordinator will ensure all unit notes, the podcasts and assessment one are available on Moodle the day the unit goes live to give students an opportunity to start the unit prior to week one.
Feedback from Identified by the UC
Update required of the unit learning outcomes and overview of the unit given the merger of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia and the Family Court of Australia
A proposal has already been initiated to amend the unit profile to reflect the new court name and associated court rules.
Feedback from Identified by the UC
If the unit moves towards a broad range of advocacy tasks, we need to ensure the unit overview in the unit profile specifies the types of assessment tasks students might have to undertake for example oral assessment
A proposal has already been initiated to amend the unit profile to state the assessment tasks will include advocacy work such as oral advocacy and written advocacy.
Feedback from Feedback via the have your say survey
Students gave positive feedback that the UC discussed each topic in the live Zoom sessions based on real life examples and the topics were discussed through a family law scenario so they could see how the issues are dealt with and evolve in legal practice and the court room
The UC will continue to use real life family law scenarios when discussing family law legal issues.
- Research and analyse the approach taken by the courts in resolving family law issues applying the family law legislation, Practice Directions, the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia Rules and case law.
- Critically evaluate family law disputes, identifying relevant legal issues and options to resolve family law disputes relating to relationships, property, maintenance, child support, children and international jurisdictional issues including the removal of children from Australia.
Not applicable.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | |
| 1 - Practical Assessment - 40% | ||
| 2 - Take Home Exam - 60% | ||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | |
| 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 | ||
Textbooks
Family Law Principles
3rd Edition (2021)
Authors: Harland, Cooper, Turnbull and Rundle
Thomson Reuters Lawbook Co.
Sydney Sydney , NSW , Australia
ISBN: 9780455244532
Binding: Paperback
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)