Course Coordinator:Leon Harris (lharris@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 unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
This course provides you with an introduction to the procedural rules that govern how civil litigation is conducted in the courts. The course contains an overview of the entire body of rules of civil procedure ranging from commencement of proceedings, to defining issues for trial, to enforcement of judgments. There is particular emphasis upon case management procedures adopted by courts and the various alternative dispute resolution mechanisms that are used to assist people to resolve civil disputes without recourse to a contested hearing and judgment by a court.
| Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
| Blended learning | |||
| Learning materials – Online Learning Materials | 1.5hrs | Week 1 | 13 times |
| Tutorial/Workshop 1 – On campus tutorial | 2hrs | Week 1 | 13 times |
300 Level (Graduate)
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 | Explain the process for the resolution of civil disputes in Queensland through the courts and via alternative dispute resolution means. |
Knowledgeable Empowered Ethical |
| 2 | Analyse a civil procedure problem and apply the relevant rules to suggest an appropriate solution. |
Knowledgeable Ethical |
| 3 | Draft, using the appropriate drafting technique, a range of court documents that are compliant with the relevant law | Empowered |
| 4 | Use written skills to effective communicate and engage with civil procedure concepts | Empowered |
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
LAW102 and enrolled in any Law Program
Not applicable
Not applicable
Not applicable
Not applicable
Standard Grading (GRD)
| High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
Early feedback on progress will be enabled through discussion of students’ responses to hypothetical scenarios during tutorials. These collaborative environments allow students to practice their own role as advocate – not only on behalf of their imagined client, but through the practice of professional skills like mediation and negotiation.
| 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 | 15% | 45 minutes |
Week 4 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
| All | 2 | Written Piece | Individual | 35% | 1800 words |
Week 11 | 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:Short Answer Quiz | ||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | To demonstrate your understanding of key concepts and principles concerning the resolution of civil disputes through means other than litigation. |
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| Product: | Quiz/zes | |||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||||||||
| Format: | This tasks requires you to respond to questions related to prescribed readings in Weeks 1-3 of the course. In doing so, it requires you to reflect on the relationship and tension between civil trial process and alternative dispute resolution practices. This is a written task, which is to be completed via an online short answer quiz. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Applying technologies, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 2:Legal Documents | ||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | To demonstrate your understanding of key concepts of civil procedure and your skills of legal drafting. |
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| Product: | Written Piece | |||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||||||||
| Format: | This is an individual assessment which requires students to address a legal problem by drafting the appropriate legal documents. The documents must be drafted to comply with the law and in an appropriate format. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Problem solving, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 3:Invigilated Final Examination | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | To demonstrate your understanding of the concepts and principles studied throughout this course and your capacity to apply that understanding to a given fact scenario that mirrors the exigencies of legal practice. |
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| Product: | Examination - Centrally Scheduled | ||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||
| 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. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Problem solving |
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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.
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 | BERNARD. CAIRNS | 0 | PRINCIPLES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE IN QUEENSLAND. | 2nd edition | n/a |
You will need to have access to the following legislation: Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 1999 (Qld) Civil Proceedings Act 2011 (Qld) Service and Execution of Process Act 1992 (Cth) Jurisdiction of Courts (Cross-Vesting) Act 1987 (Cth) Jurisdiction of Courts (Cross-Vesting) Act 1987 (Qld)
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.
For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
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.