Course Outline
BUS503 Principles of Commercial Law
Course Coordinator:Jay Sanderson (jsander4@usc.edu.au) School:School of Law and Society
2020ATMC Semester 3
USC SydneyUSC Melbourne |
Blended learning | Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online. |
Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
What is this course about?
Description
This course aims to provide you with a foundation for the study of commercial legal principles and issues for accountants. Topics are examined from both legal and ethical perspectives. The course includes examination of the origins of our legal system, native title and sources of law in Australia and internationally. Also examined are foundational principles relevant to the law of contract and negligence. Further specific areas of business law are highlighted, including consumer law and the law of business organisations.
How will this course be delivered?
| Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
What level is this course?
500 Level (Advanced)
What is the unit value of this course?
12 units
How does this course contribute to my learning?
| Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... | Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming... | |
| 1 | Research and apply principles of business law and ethics. |
Knowledgeable Ethical |
| 2 | Analyse legal and ethical issues and apply knowledge and reasoning to generate appropriate responses. |
Creative and critical thinker Empowered |
Am I eligible to enrol in this course?
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
Pre-requisites
Enrolled in any PGRD Program
Co-requisites
Not applicable
Anti-requisites
MBA709 or EMB759
Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)
Not applicable
Microcredential Information
Not applicable
How am I going to be assessed?
Grading Scale
Standard Grading (GRD)
| High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
Details of early feedback on progress
An opportunity will be provided to attempt an online practice quiz in week 4. This quiz will examine key legal concepts introduced and needed to scaffold learning of later substantive areas, including contract law, consumer law and negligence. This online quiz will not be assessed but will assist you in gauging your comprehension of the material and assist in preparation for the first assessment item, an online quiz (10%), in week 5.
Assessment tasks
| Delivery mode | Task No. | Assessment Product | Individual or Group | Weighting % | What is the duration / length? | When should I submit? | Where should I submit it? |
| All | 1 | Quiz/zes | Individual | 10% | 30 minutes |
Week 5 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
| All | 2 | Written Piece | Individual or Group | 40% | Up to 2500 words |
Week 8 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
| All | 3 | Examination - Centrally Scheduled | Individual | 50% | 2 hours plus reading time |
Exam Period | Exam Venue |
| All - Assessment Task 1:Online quiz | ||||||||||
| Goal: | To demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key business law and ethical concepts and principles and obtain early feedback. |
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| Product: | Quiz/zes | |||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||
| Format: | Choose the best answer from a pool of answers. Answer in the format indicated by the instructions on Blackboard. It may consist of multiple choice questions or short answer questions or a combination of both. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | ||||||||||
| All - Assessment Task 2:Problem-solving assignment | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | In this task, you will provide advice on legal and ethical issues, rights and remedies arising from a factual scenario. |
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| Product: | Written Piece | ||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||
| Format: | You will advise on legal and ethical issues arising from a given factual scenario, citing legal authorities such as cases and legislation and demonstrating legal research skills. Up to 2500 words completed individually or in small groups. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | |||||||||||||
| All - Assessment Task 3:Final examination | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | To demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key business law concepts and principles as they apply to a variety of business issues. |
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| Product: | Examination - Centrally Scheduled | ||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||
| Format: | This is a 2-hour open book exam, in which you can take your notes and any other materials including texts that you choose. The questions may consist of multiple choice or short answer questions or a combination. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | |||||||||||||
Directed study hours
A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.
What resources do I need to undertake this course?
Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
Prescribed text(s) or course reader
You need regular access to the resource(s) below. Many texts are available as ebooks through the Library at no additional cost.
| Required? | Author | Year | Title | Edition | Publisher |
| Required | Gibson, A | 2018 | Business Law | Pearson: e-text. |
Specific requirements
Not applicable
How are risks managed in this course?
What administrative information is relevant to this course?
Assessment: Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
Assessment: Additional Requirements
Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying: The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4% The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale You have not failed an assessment task in the course due to academic misconductAssessment: Submission penalties
Late submission of assessment tasks may be penalised at the following maximum rate: - 5% (of the assessment task's identified value) per day for the first two days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. - 10% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the third day - 20% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the fourth day and subsequent days up to and including seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. - A result of zero is awarded for an assessment task submitted after seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. Weekdays and weekends are included in the calculation of days late. To request an extension you must contact your course coordinator to negotiate an outcome.Links to relevant University policy and procedures
For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
- Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
- Review of Assessment and Final Grades
- Supplementary Assessment
- Central Examinations
- Deferred Examinations
- Student Conduct
- Students with a Disability
For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
Student Charter
UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.
General Enquiries
- In person:
- UniSC Sunshine Coast - Student Central, Ground Floor, Building C, 90 Sippy Downs Drive, Sippy Downs
- UniSC Moreton Bay - Service Centre, Ground Floor, Foundation Building, Gympie Road, Petrie
- UniSC SouthBank - Student Central, Building A4 (SW1), 52 Merivale Street, South Brisbane
- UniSC Gympie - Student Central, 71 Cartwright Road, Gympie
- UniSC Fraser Coast - Student Central, Student Central, Building A, 161 Old Maryborough Rd, Hervey Bay
- UniSC Caboolture - Student Central, Level 1 Building J, Cnr Manley and Tallon Street, Caboolture
- Tel:+61 7 5430 2890
- Email:studentcentral@usc.edu.au