Effective regulation, including in areas such as competition law, securities, financial services and taxation, requires the availability and use of various dispute resolution and enforcement techniques. This course reviews the forms and techniques of regulation with a view to examining how they interact with methods of enforcement such as negotiation, dispute handling services such as the Financial Ombudsman Service, civil litigation and criminal prosecution.

The course addresses issues common to the enforcement of all regulatory schemes such as:

* a regulator’s coercive investigation and information gathering powers,
* limits on those powers such as legal professional privilege/client legal privilege and the privilege against self-incrimination,
* whistleblowers and immunity,
* mechanisms for the resolution of civil proceedings brought by a regulator, and
* criminal law aspects of regulatory litigation.

The course also examines specific areas in more detail to illustrate policy and procedural issues relevant to regulatory disputes. This includes:

* the interaction between public and private enforcement by examining the interaction between the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and class actions,
* court approval of civil penalty litigation settlements with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, and
* whether conduct should be criminalised such as insider trading or cartels.

More information can be found on the Course Outline Website.