Course specification for LAW3466

¾«¶«´«Ã½app

USQ Logo
The current and official versions of the course specifications are available on the web at .
Please consult the web for updates that may occur during the year.

LAW3466 Moot Court Bench

Semester 1, 2020 On-campus Springfield
Short Description: Moot Court Bench
Units : 1
Faculty or Section : Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts
School or Department : School of Law and Justice
Student contribution band : Band 3
ASCED code : 090913 - Legal Practice
Grading basis : Graded

Staffing

Examiner:

Requisites

Pre-requisites: (LAW1111 and LAW1112 and LAW1113) or (LAW5111 and LAW5112 and LAW5113) or (LAW1201 and LAW2201) or (LAW5501 and LAW5601)

Other requisites

Students are required to have access to a personal computer, e-mail capabilities and Internet access to UConnect. Current details of computer requirements can be found at .

Rationale

Mooting involves preparing for and then appearing in a simulated court on behalf of a hypothetical client. It is an authentic form of learning that develops many of the core skills required by professional advocates and lawyers of all types, including: advocacy, verbal and written communication, team work, collaboration and legal research. The Moot Court Bench gives students the opportunity to receive instruction in these core skills to then apply and develop the skills in competitive and non-competitive moots. The course will also develop and strengthen the mooting culture at the School of Law and Justice and students will have the opportunity to further develop their skills by nominating for various local, state and national mooting competitions.

Synopsis

Students will study, practise and be assessed in the various skills involved in advocacy and mooting. They will receive instructions from simulated clients as instructing solicitors. They will prepare written briefs for counsel. They will prepare written and oral submissions alone and in teams. They will appear in moots as barristers, instructing solicitors, judges and judges' associates. They will receive written and verbal feedback from the instructor and also from other students and team members. They will visit local courts and observe professional advocates in action.

Objectives

On successful completion of this course students should be able to demonstrate:

  1. an ability to recognise and reflect upon, and a developing ability to respond to, ethical issues likely to arise in professional advocacy contexts;
  2. an ability to apply legal reasoning and research to generate appropriate responses to legal issues that arise in advocacy contexts;
  3. an ability to communicate in ways that are effective, appropriate and persuasive for legal and non-legal audiences, including by demonstrating
    1. skills in legal drafting
    2. skills in oral communication, advocacy and argument;
  4. an ability to collaborate effectively in teams and to demonstrate judgment, courtesy, respect and personal diplomacy in dealings with others;
  5. an ability to effectively prepare for and appear in a moot acting as legal counsel.

Topics

Description Weighting(%)
1. Mooting and advocacy introduction 10.00
2. Collaboration and team work 10.00
3. Researching the issues 15.00
4. Drafting written submissions 15.00
5. Preparing for court 25.00
6. Appearing in court 25.00

Text and materials required to be purchased or accessed

ALL textbooks and materials available to be purchased can be sourced from (unless otherwise stated). (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/textbooks/?year=2020&sem=01&subject1=LAW3466)

Please for alternative purchase options from USQ Bookshop. (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/info/contact/)

There are no texts or materials required for this course.

Reference materials

Reference materials are materials that, if accessed by students, may improve their knowledge and understanding of the material in the course and enrich their learning experience.

Student workload expectations

Activity Hours
Assessments 50.00
Lectures 16.00
Private ¾«¶«´«Ã½app 76.00
Tutorials 23.00

Assessment details

Description Marks out of Wtg (%) Due Date Notes
ASSIGNMENT 1 20 20 19 Jun 2020 (see note 1)
ASSIGNMENT 2 40 40 19 Jun 2020 (see note 2)
ASSIGNMENT 3 40 40 19 Jun 2020 (see note 3)

Notes
  1. participation in course activities
  2. participation in USQ Law Society Mooting Competition (or equivalent as defined by the course examiner)
  3. major moot

Important assessment information

  1. Attendance requirements:
    Online: There are no attendance requirements for this course. However, it is the students' responsibility to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration.

    On-campus: It is the students' responsibility to attend and participate appropriately in all activities (such as lectures, tutorials, laboratories and practical work) scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration.

  2. Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
    To satisfactorily complete an individual assessment item a student must achieve at least 50% of the marks. Depending upon the requirements in Statement 4 below, students may not have to satisfactorily complete each assessment item to receive a passing grade in this course.

  3. Penalties for late submission of required work:
    Students should refer to the Assessment Procedure (point 4.2.4)

  4. Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
    To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must achieve at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course.

  5. Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
    The final grades for students will be assigned on the basis of the aggregate of the weighted marks obtained for each of the assessment items in the course.

  6. Examination information:
    There is no examination in this course.

  7. Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
    Not applicable.

  8. ¾«¶«´«Ã½app Student Policies:
    Students should read the USQ policies: Definitions, Assessment and Student Academic Misconduct to avoid actions which might contravene ¾«¶«´«Ã½app policies and practices. These policies can be found at .

Assessment notes

  1. Referencing in assignments:
    Students studying this course as part of a Bachelor of Laws or Juris Doctor must use the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (AGLC) style. Students who are not enrolled in either of these programs may use either Harvard (AGPS) or the AGLC in their assignments to format details of the information sources they have cited in their work. For AGLC style guide enquiries, consult the AGLC manual from the USQ Library's referencing guide at or contact the Law librarian. The Harvard (AGPS) style to be used is defined by the USQ Library's referencing guide at .

Date printed 19 June 2020