Course

Commercial Contracts: Problems of Performance, Breach and Termination - LAWS8023

Faculty: Faculty of Law

School: Faculty of Law

Course Outline: See below

Campus: Sydney

Career: Postgraduate

Units of Credit: 6

EFTSL: 0.12500 (more info)

Indicative Contact Hours per Week: 2

Enrolment Requirements:

Prerequisite: Academic Program must be either 9200, 9210, 5740 or 9230

CSS Contribution Charge: 3 (more info)

Tuition Fee: See Tuition Fee Schedule

Further Information: See Class Timetable

View course information for previous years.

Description

The course examines systematically and in-depth (to an extent not feasible in basic undergraduate Contract law courses) major principles of Australian law governing the performance, breach and termination of many commercial and conveyancing transactions. It is primarily concerned with complex applications of general contract law principles rather than the more specific rights that are sometimes conferred by statutes dealing with "consumer" contracts.

As well as investigating many practical problems in applying the law, the course makes a sustained attempt to assist students to discern frequently unrecognised interrelations between legal principles, and thus to acquire a better integrated view of an area of law which (despite its practical importance) is widely regarded as amorphous and highly challenging. The course addresses a range of difficult practical, legal and evidentiary questions that have been raised in recent appellate judgements but often remain incompletely answered.


LLM Specialisations

Recommended Prior Knowledge

Knowledge of the topics covered in core Undergraduate Contract Law courses in Australian Law Schools. For example UNSW courses LAWS1071 and LAWS1072.

Course Objectives

  • To assist students to develop an in-depth understanding of the major principles of an area of contract law that is of immense importance in commercial activity: i.e. the law of performance, breach and discharge of contractual obligations
  • To assist students to develop further their capacities for disciplined analysis of facts and for legal reasoning according to the methods of the common law
  • To stimulate students to examine the law of contract in a social and historical context

Main Topics

The course examines systematically (and in sequence) the following major areas of contractual performance:
  • Contingent conditions precedent to performance
  • Promissory and Concurrent conditions
  • Discharge by performance
  • Nature of breach
  • Entitlement to terminate for breach and repudiation
  • Entire and severable contracts
  • Affirmation following serious breach
  • Nature and consequences of termination for serious breach

Assessment

Class participation Preparation and engagement in class 20%
Research essay 4,000 words 40%
Take home exam 3 questions (1,500 words per question) 40%
 

Course Texts

Prescribed
None

Recommended

  • Contract Law in Australia, 4th ed (2002) Butterworths, by JW Carter and DJ Harland
  • Principles of Contract Law, 2nd ed (2005) Law Book Co, by JM Paterson, A. Robertson and P.G. Heffey
  • The Law of Contract (1987) with supplements to 1993, Law Book Co, by D.W. Greig and JLR Davis, especially Chapters 20 and 21; (more advanced)
  • Breach of Contract, 2nd ed (1991), Law Book Co, by J.W. Carter (more advanced)

Resources

Please refer to course outline provided by the Lecturer.
Esme's Cafe

Study Levels

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