LAWS20063 - Governance and Business Law

General Information

Unit Synopsis

Organisations are legal as well as economic entities. Managers are legally required to advance the interests of the organisation, yet firms and businesses operate in a diverse range of environments and as such require different governance systems. In this unit you will address the legal status of organisations and the corporate governance structures that should be established to ensure company directors and managers fulfill their legal and ethical obligations. You will consider international conventions and agreements from organisations such as the United Nations, the International Labour Organisation and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and how these influence legislation within different countries. You will examine the day-to-day legal and management issues faced by organisations, such as employment law, anti-discrimination and OH&S requirements, so that organisations act responsibly and ethically. The unit seeks to increase your awareness and understanding of the legal risks associated with management and business decision making.

Details

Level Postgraduate
Unit Level 9
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 4
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Only students enrolled in CL20 (Master of Business Administration), (CC52 Graduate Diploma of Business Administration), (CC51 Graduate Certificate in Business Administration), CM36 (Graduate Diploma of International Business), CL21 (Master of Business Management) and CL97 (Master of Business Administration (Global)) can enrol in this unit.

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).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2024

Term 1 - 2024 Profile
Melbourne
Online
Term 1 - 2025 Profile
Melbourne
Online

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).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Postgraduate 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.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Practical Assessment 35%
2. Report 35%
3. Presentation 30%

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

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2024 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 65.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 35.09% response rate.

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.

Source: Student evaluations
Feedback
The unit coordinator was helpful and provided exceptional support
Recommendation
Continue to provide support to students in studying the unit and undertaking the assessment tasks
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Student evaluations
Feedback
The recorded lectures were very good
Recommendation
Ensure the recorded lectures are of a high quality
Action Taken
Recorded lectures maintained to ensure high quality
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Assess and evaluate the key aspects of the legal systems that operate in Australia and internationally and their impact on the operation of organisations within different legal jurisdictions
  2. Analyse critically the legal issues that confront organisations and managers and explain the legal risks associated with key management decisions
  3. Assess and evaluate the specific legislation that governs managers and leaders action within organisations as they relate to employment, anti-discrimination, occupational health and safety and consumer law
  4. Analyse corporate governance frameworks that organisations need to employ to successfully manage business activity to minimize legal risks
  5. Evaluate the role of law in enabling an organisation to achieve its corporate goals through strategies that are socially responsible, sustainable and ethical.

The proposed change will assist in acquiring international accreditation. CQUniversity is currently pursuing accreditation with the Association of MBAs in the UK which specifically requires content dealing with Law, Governance and Risk.

Extracts from AMBA Accreditation criteria Section 7.4 states:

"(vii) the impact of environmental forces on organisations, including: legal systems; demographics; ethical; social and technological change issues;

(xiii) the international dimension to the above, including political risk and contemporary processes of regionalisation, emerging markets, global governance and globalisation".

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Practical Assessment • • •
2 - Report • • •
3 - Presentation • • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Knowledge • • • • •
2 - Communication • • • • •
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills • • • • •
4 - Research • • • • •
5 - Self-management • •
6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility • • • • •
7 - Leadership • • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8