CQUniversity Unit Profile
LAWS13017 Civil Procedure
Civil Procedure
All details in this unit profile for LAWS13017 have been officially approved by CQUniversity and represent a learning partnership between the University and you (our student).
The information will not be changed unless absolutely necessary and any change will be clearly indicated by an approved correction included in the profile.
General Information

Overview

LAWS13017 Civil procedure explores the issues of cost, delay and access to justice as critical issues in modern case management. In this unit you will examine in detail the following issues in civil litigation: court adjudication under an adversary system; the cost of litigation and the use of costs to control litigation; service of originating process - as foundation of jurisdiction, including service out of the relevant State or Territory and choice of forum; joinder of claims and parties, including group proceedings and the defence of prior adjudication as instances of the public interest in avoiding a multiplicity of proceedings and inconsistent verdicts; defining the questions for trial - pleadings, notices to admit and other devices; obtaining evidence - discovery of documents, interrogatories, subpoena and other devices; disposition without trial, including the compromise of litigation; extra-judicial determination of issues arising in the course of litigation; judgment; appeal; enforcement; alternative dispute resolution; and obligations of parties and practitioners relating to the resolution of disputes. This unit meets the LPAB requirements for civil dispute resolution.

Details

Career Level: Undergraduate
Unit Level: Level 3
Credit Points: 6
Student Contribution Band: 10
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load: 0.125

Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Prerequisite:- LAWS11061, LAWS11062, LAWS11063 & LAWS11064

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

Distance

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).

Class and Assessment Overview

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

Bundaberg, Cairns, Emerald, Gladstone, Mackay, Rockhampton, Townsville
Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney

Assessment Overview

1. Written Assessment
Weighting: 35%
2. Practical Assessment
Weighting: 35%
3. Online Quiz(zes)
Weighting: 30%

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.

Previous Student Feedback

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 Have Your Say

Feedback

Assessments were practical and relevant to everyday work in a law firm.

Recommendation

Continue to use authentic assessment.

Feedback from Have Your Say

Feedback

The wide variety of assessment options in assessment 2 was appreciated.

Recommendation

Continue to provide students with a wide variety of assessment options.

Feedback from Have Your Say

Feedback

Further clarification of some assessment tasks is needed.

Recommendation

Assessment tasks to be reviewed to balance authenticity against academic scaffolding. Authenticity demands students be capable of handling tasks beyond their immediate knowledge, as would occur in practice.

Feedback from Have your Say

Feedback

Further feedback on assessment would have been beneficial.

Recommendation

Markers be required to provide detailed personal feedback.

Unit Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
  1. Comprehend and critically examine the court adjudication process under the adversarial system in Australia in comparison with the Civil Law inquisitorial system
  2. Articulate and apply Supreme Court civil procedure, referencing legislation, rules, practice directions and court forms
  3. Research and draft appropriate pleadings for a hypothetical fact situation
  4. Apply civil procedure knowledge in a clinical setting.


Alignment of Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Graduate Attributes
N/A Level
Introductory Level
Intermediate Level
Graduate Level
Professional Level
Advanced Level

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes

Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Written Assessment - 35%
2 - Practical Assessment - 35%
3 - Online Quiz(zes) - 30%

Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes

Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
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 - Written Assessment - 35%
2 - Practical Assessment - 35%
3 - Online Quiz(zes) - 30%
Textbooks and Resources

Textbooks

Prescribed

Civil Procedure Commentary and Materials

Edition: 6th (2015)
Authors: Colbran, Spender, Douglas, Jackson
Lexis Nexis Butterworths
Sydney Sydney , NSW , Australia
ISBN: 9780409339758
Binding: Paperback

IT Resources

You will need access to the following IT resources:
  • CQUniversity Student Email
  • Internet
  • Unit Website (Moodle)
  • Zoom account (Free)
Referencing Style

All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Australian Guide to Legal Citation, 3rd ed

For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.

Teaching Contacts
Benjamin Buckley Unit Coordinator
b.buckley@cqu.edu.au
Schedule
Week 1 Begin Date: 09 Jul 2018

Module/Topic

Court adjudication, Case management and ADR

Chapter

Ch 1, 2, 3.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 2 Begin Date: 16 Jul 2018

Module/Topic

Jurisdiction and Limitation of Actions

Chapter

Ch 4, 6.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 3 Begin Date: 23 Jul 2018

Module/Topic

Instituting proceedings, Service and Notice of Intention to Defend

Chapter

Ch 7, 8, 9.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 4 Begin Date: 30 Jul 2018

Module/Topic

Parties and Joinder, Class action, Non-compliance, Amendment and Time

Chapter

Ch 5, 10.

Supreme Court of Queensland Practice Direction No 2 of 2017 Representative Proceedings

Kylie Downes QC and Hamish Clift, Queensland’s new class action regime. 2017 May Proctor 28-29

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 5 Begin Date: 06 Aug 2018

Module/Topic

Pleading and Summary Disposition

Chapter

Ch 12, 13.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Vacation Week Begin Date: 13 Aug 2018

Module/Topic

Chapter

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 6 Begin Date: 20 Aug 2018

Module/Topic

Disclosure

Chapter

Ch 14.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 7 Begin Date: 27 Aug 2018

Module/Topic

Further means of obtaining evidence and Affidavits

Chapter

Ch 15, 16.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Written assessment (35%) due.


Pleading Due: Week 7 Monday (27 Aug 2018) 11:45 pm AEST
Week 8 Begin Date: 03 Sep 2018

Module/Topic

Interlocutory procedures

Chapter

Ch 17.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 9 Begin Date: 10 Sep 2018

Module/Topic

Disposition without Trial

Chapter

Ch 18.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 10 Begin Date: 17 Sep 2018

Module/Topic

Trial

Chapter

Ch 19.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Week 11 Begin Date: 24 Sep 2018

Module/Topic

Appeal and New Trial

Chapter

Ch 20.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Practical assessment (35%) due.


Practical Assessment Due: Week 11 Wednesday (26 Sept 2018) 11:45 pm AEST
Week 12 Begin Date: 01 Oct 2018

Module/Topic

Costs and Enforcement

Chapter

Ch 21, 22.

Events and Submissions/Topic

Assessment Tasks

1 Written Assessment

Assessment Title
Pleading

Task Description

This task will involve drafting a Claim and Statement of Claim to be filed in the Supreme Court of Queensland. Detailed facts will be provided in week 2.


Assessment Due Date

Week 7 Monday (27 Aug 2018) 11:45 pm AEST


Return Date to Students

Week 9 Monday (10 Sept 2018)


Weighting
35%

Assessment Criteria

Criteria Excellent Good Poor
Basic goals (20%):
Identification of primary issues Identification of all major issues. Identification of most major issues. Identification of some major issues.
Demonstrated understanding of the subject matter Excellent demonstrated understanding of the subject matter. Good understanding of the subject matter. Lacks understanding of the subject matter.
Structured argument Superbly structured document. Well-structured document. Poorly structured document.
Higher order goal (7.5%):
Analytical ability Demonstrated high level of analysis. Some analytical errors or omissions. Numerous analytical errors or omissions.
Skills (7.5%):
Demonstrated clear and concise written expression Clear and concise written expression. Some unclear or verbose written expression. Numerous examples of unclear or verbose written expression.
Spelling and grammar No identifiable spelling or grammatical issues. Minor spelling or grammatical issues. Numerous spelling or grammatical issues.
Plain English drafting No Plain English drafting errors. Some Plain English drafting errors. Numerous Plain English drafting errors.


Referencing Style

Submission
Online

Submission Instructions
The assessment is to be submitted as one pdf file containing your answer. Name your pdf submission as follows: __LAWS13017_1.pdf

Learning Outcomes Assessed
  • Articulate and apply Supreme Court civil procedure, referencing legislation, rules, practice directions and court forms
  • Research and draft appropriate pleadings for a hypothetical fact situation


Graduate Attributes
  • Communication
  • Problem Solving
  • Critical Thinking
  • Information Literacy

2 Practical Assessment

Assessment Title
Practical Assessment

Task Description

The 35% Practical Assessment for LAWS13017 Civil Procedure is a clinical practice exercise which will occur at some point during weeks 7 -11. In some options you will be required to do some reading and training on professional conduct before undertaking a placement activity. The exercise will involve you choosing one of the following experiences:

· Option 1 - A Court Report.

· Option 2 - A law reform submission/proposal.

· Option 3 - Researching and reflecting on the law for an actual client matter.

· Option 4 - Research article on any approved civil procedure topic. Send an email to the unit coordinator for approval.

· Option 5 - Supervised client interview. To participate in this option students must have completed LAWS13013 Legal Professional Conduct. Students should contact the unit coordinator by the end of week 4 if they wish to pursue this option as it needs to be scheduled with a community legal center.

· Option 6 - Researching and summarising the law in the form of a fact sheet for use with clients at a community legal center. You will be assessed on the quality and presentation of our research.

The written outcomes are due Wednesday 26th September 2018 at 23:45 AEST.

Your final version must be submitted as a single PDF using 'e-Submission'. No consideration will be given to content which exceeds the 2500 word limit. When uploading your file make sure that you adopt the following naming convention: "<student number>_<surname>_LAWS13017_Assignment_2.pdf" eg 16789909_Bloggs_LAWS13017_Assignment_2.pdf.


Assessment Due Date

Week 11 Wednesday (26 Sept 2018) 11:45 pm AEST


Return Date to Students

Review/Exam Week Monday (8 Oct 2018)


Weighting
35%

Assessment Criteria

Detailed rubrics for each assessment option are available on the Moodle site in the document entitled "Practical Assessment 2018".


Referencing Style

Submission
Online

Learning Outcomes Assessed
  • Articulate and apply Supreme Court civil procedure, referencing legislation, rules, practice directions and court forms
  • Apply civil procedure knowledge in a clinical setting.


Graduate Attributes
  • Communication
  • Problem Solving
  • Critical Thinking

3 Online Quiz(zes)

Assessment Title
Quiz

Task Description

Instructions

The Quiz will be in multiple-choice format with 6 choices per question. Some questions have one correct answer, others will require multiple components to be selected to constitute a correct answer. Each question will indicate the number of responses required to constitute a correct answer. The quiz will be of a duration of 120 minutes and will have a total of 36 questions consisting of 3 questions from each week of the 12 week course.
The Quiz will be available for 24 hours. Make sure you start and complete the 120 min quiz within the 24 hour period. Once you start the quiz you must complete the quiz within 120 min.
In the absence of an approved extension, there will be no opportunity to complete the task after this date and there will be no opportunity to apply a late penalty of five per cent per day. You will receive a mark of zero for this assessment task.
You will receive a mark out of 30 (<your score>x30/36) representing 30% of your grade for this unit.


Number of Quizzes


Frequency of Quizzes

Other


Assessment Due Date

Review/Exam Week Tuesday (9 Oct 2018) 1:00 am AEST

The quiz opens Tuesday, 9th October 2018, 1:00am and closes Wednesday, 10 October 2018, 1:00 am.


Return Date to Students

Week 11 Tuesday (25 Sept 2018)


Weighting
30%

Assessment Criteria

The quiz opens Tuesday, 9th October 2018, 1:00am and closes Wednesday, 10 October 2018, 1:00 am.


Referencing Style

Submission
Online

Learning Outcomes Assessed
  • Comprehend and critically examine the court adjudication process under the adversarial system in Australia in comparison with the Civil Law inquisitorial system
  • Articulate and apply Supreme Court civil procedure, referencing legislation, rules, practice directions and court forms


Graduate Attributes
  • Problem Solving
  • Critical Thinking

Academic Integrity Statement

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?