Public Law - LAWS1140
Faculty: Faculty of Law
School: Faculty of Law
Course Outline: See below
Campus: Kensington Campus
Career: Undergraduate
Units of Credit: 3
EFTSL: 0.06250 (more info)
Indicative Contact Hours per Week: 2
Enrolment Requirements:
Co-requisite: LAWS1071 or JURD7171
Excluded: JURD7140, JURD7141, LAWS1141
CSS Contribution Charge: 3 (more info)
Tuition Fee: See Tuition Fee Schedule
Further Information: See Class Timetable
View course information for previous years.
Description
This course aims to introduce students to the study of public law, including its methods of reasoning, history and fundamental principles. It asks students to engage with introductory principles and theories of constitutional and administrative law as they apply to the essential features of our system of government. Specific topics which students will be required to learn and analyse include the Westminster System, Federation, Indigenous Peoples and the Question of Sovereignty, the Federal Parliament, the Separation of Powers, Human Rights and Bills of Rights. This course introduces students to concepts which are crucial to their later study of Administrative Law and Federal Constitutional Law, and associated electives.
Recommended Prior Knowledge
Course Objectives
- An understanding of core public law principles
- Knowledge of the Australian system of government
- A preliminary grasp of constitutional and administrative law frameworks
- An appreciation of topical arguments in favour of and against various proposals for public law reform
- An ability to cogently discuss these concepts in a scholarly and persuasive manner
Main Topics
- Introduction and Constitution Exercise
- Constitutionalism, Coups and Judicial Review
- The Westminster System
- Dicey, Parliamentary Sovereignty and the Rule of Law
- Federation to Popular Sovereignty
- Indigenous Peoples and the Question of Sovereignty
- Voting Rights and Election to the Federal Parliament
- State Constitutions
- The Executive
- The Separation of Judicial Power
- Human Rights and Bills of Rights
Assessment
Mid-semester progress exercise - 0%
Final exam - 80%
Course Texts
Prescribed
Tony Blackshield and George Williams, Australian Constitutional Law & Theory: Commentary and Materials (5th ed, Federation Press, 2010)
Recommended
Refer to Course Outline provided by lecturer.
Study Levels
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