Course Coordinator:Kelley Burton (kburton3@usc.edu.au) School:School of Law and Society
UniSC Sunshine CoastUniSC Moreton Bay |
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 usc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
This course introduces you to the fundamental concepts of criminal law including the principles of onus and standard of proof; physical and fault elements; and strict and absolute liability. You will examine a range of criminal offences including fatal offences, non-fatal offences, sexual offences, property-related and financial offences, drug offences, traffic offences and public order offences. You will consider the role and availability of numerous defences and excuses, including provocation, self-defence, diminished responsibility, intoxication, accident and mistake of fact.
Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
Blended learning | |||
Learning materials – Asynchronous online learning materials - 1.5 hours in weeks 1-13. | 1.5hrs | Week 1 | 13 times |
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Synchronous on campus tutorial - 2 hours in weeks 1-13. | 2hrs | Week 1 | 13 times |
Concept of Crime
Role of the Criminal Law
Sources of Criminal Law
Classification of Offences
Principles Underpinning Criminalisation
Overview of the Queensland Criminal Justice System
Fatal Offences
Non-Fatal Offences
Sexual Offences
Property Offences
Drug Offences
Public Order Offences
Traffic Offences
Attempts
Criminal Responsibility for Participation in Offences
Provocation
Self-Defence
Insanity
Diminished Responsibility
Intoxication
Mistake of Fact
Accident
Act Independent of Will
Honest Claim of Right
[All topics contain mature content]
100 Level (Introductory)
12 units
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 | Demonstrate knowledge and critical understanding of fundamental rules of the criminal law in Queensland |
Knowledgeable Empowered |
2 | Identify legal issues, apply legal reasoning and reach arguable conclusions in response to a broad range of criminal law scenarios | Knowledgeable |
3 | Demonstrate a knowledge of ethical issues that may confront a criminal lawyer and an understanding of appropriate professional responses to those issues | Ethical |
4 | Demonstrates the skills of organisation and time management to complete problems within in a set time. | Empowered |
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
Enrolled in any Law Program or AR013
LAW101
Not applicable
Not applicable
Standard Grading (GRD)
High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
In the tutorials in Weeks 2-6, you will engage in activities that ask you to self-assess and reflect on your learning; and provide peer feedback on tutorial answers.
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 | Activity Participation | Individual | 10% | 2 Hours |
Throughout teaching period (refer to Format) | In Class |
All | 2 | Essay | Individual | 40% | 1500 words |
Week 8 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
All | 3 | Examination - Centrally Scheduled | Individual | 50% | 3 Hours |
Exam Period | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
All - Assessment Task 1:Activity Participation | |
Goal: | The goal of this task is to assess your ability to identify legal and ethical issues in factual problems that may confront a criminal lawyer and your capacity to suggest an appropriate professional response. |
Product: | Activity Participation |
Format: | Oral answers to tutorial questions in class. (Tutorials in weeks 2-6). |
Criteria: |
|
All - Assessment Task 2:Written Piece | |
Goal: | The goal of this written piece is to assess your knowledge and critical understanding of some of the fundamental rules of the criminal law. |
Product: | Essay |
Format: | This is an individual typewritten analytical essay. The maximum word limit is 1500 words. |
Criteria: |
|
All - Assessment Task 3:Invigilated Final Examination | |
Goal: | The goal of this assessment is to test your ability to apply the legal principles and concepts learned this semester to unseen questions. |
Product: | Examination - Centrally Scheduled |
Format: | This assessment task is an online, open-book and invigilated exam. You will be required to attend a live Zoom session throughout the duration of the exam and need access to a working computer, a stable internet connection, and a webcam. You will be given 3 hours to complete the examination. All topics covered in this course are potentially examinable. In preparation for this task, you will receive feedback on your problem-solving skills during tutorials and for assessment task 2. |
Criteria: |
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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.
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.
Please note that you need to have regular access to the resource(s) listed below. Resources may be required or recommended.
Required? | Author | Year | Title | Edition | Publisher |
Required | Kelley Burton, Thomas Crofts and Stella Tarrant | 2020 | Principles of Criminal Law in Queensland and Western Australia | 3rd ed | Thomson Reuters |
Required | Kelley Burton, Thomas Crofts, James Duffy and Meredith Blake | 2023 | LexisNexis Questions and Answers: Criminal Law in Queensland and Western Australia | 3rd ed | LexisNexis |
Nil
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.
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 misconduct
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.
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