Units

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Sample subject outline - Summer 2 2013

Note: Subject outlines often change before the semester begins. Below is a sample outline.

Rationale

Legal professionals assisting clients who are entering into relationships or experiencing relationship breakdown are involved in helping them plan their future financial and parenting arrangements. Their role, when assisting clients after separation, is to help their clients find the most appropriate forms of dispute resolution and to minimise conflict experienced by family members, particularly where there are children. Family lawyers are most often engaged in matters involving future arrangements for children and financial issues, such as property settlement, spousal maintenance and child support. They also assist clients in applications to seek protection for family violence.

This unit is important if you are considering working anywhere within the family law system or in general practice. It is an elective in the law degree and forms part of the human rights interest group. If wanting to work as a family lawyer you should also complete LWB498 Dispute Resolution and Non-Adversarial Practice as dispute resolution practice is a key role for family lawyers.

Aims

This unit aims to provide you, as a potential family law professional, with an understanding of the family law system, the various options for resolution of disputes and of the relevant legislation and case law and how it is applied in practice.

Objectives

At the completion of this unit you should be able to:
1. Advise clients of the most appropriate dispute resolution options for their cases and refer them to appropriate service providers, including counselling and mediation services, legal aid commissions, government departments and courts; [GC1. GC2, GC3]
2. Identify and describe some of the key social science findings in relation to the impact upon children of separation and divorce; [GC1. GC6]
3. Provide clients with basic legal advice in divorce, parenting, financial and domestic violence matters [GC1. GC2, GC3];
4. Identify and describe the key ethical priorities of family lawyers, including the duty to promote the best interests of children in parenting disputes [GC6]; 4.Appreciate the operation of family law in a wider context including Indigenous, cultural, gender and socio-economic perspectives [GC1. GC2, GC6];
5. Effectively communicate family law advice in plain English [GC3]; and
6. Further develop skills relevant to employment, professional practice and life-long learning, including skills in research, ethical orientation, the ability to work independently and time management [GC4, GC5].


Graduate Capabilities
Your understanding of the unit content and the development of these skills will assist you to acquire the following law graduate capabilities:
1. Discipline Knowledge;
2. Problem Solving, Reasoning and Research;
3. Effective Communication;
4. Life Long Learning;
5. Work Independently and Collaboratively;
6. Professional, Social and Ethical Responsibility;
7. Characteristics of Self-Reliance and Leadership.

Content

The unit will cover the following concepts:

1. What is "a family" and what is "family law"?
2. The family law system - the role of non-adversarial dispute resolution processes in family law and the role of the various courts;
3. Divorce;
4. Parenting arrangements;
5. Social science research to assist in ascertaining what it is in the best interests of children particularly at various developmental levels and the impact of parental separation and conflict upon children;
6. Issues surrounding the family law system including family violence and child protection;
7. The role of the family lawyer in non-adversarial dispute resolution processes;
8. Arrangements surrounding financial issues including:
a. Property settlement;
b. Spousal maintenance; and
c. Financial support for children
9. Family lawyer skills, ethics and values.

Approaches to Teaching and Learning

The teaching and learning strategy used in this unit involves an intensive 4 day sequence of lectorials. The design of the lectorials assumes that you have listened to a series of podcasts for each module, and completed the required readings for each module referred to in the workbook. The podcasts will be available on the blackboard site a number of weeks prior to the lectorials. The lectorial will review and extend the information contained in the podcasts, and work through the activities for each module. This unit supported by a unit Blackboard site. You should check this site each week for any relevant information/ notices from the lecturer.

External Attendance School
There is no external attendance school in this unit.

Assessment

Assessment in this unit is both formative (designed to give you feedback only) and summative (designed to give you feedback and a mark).In the lectorials, discussion of unit concepts will provide you with formative feedback. The assignment will also provide you with formative feedback through the provision of a marked criteria sheet. You can also contact lecturers to clarify unit concepts.

Assessment name: Assignment
Description: This assignment has a strict word count of up to 2000 words and is weighted at 40% (to be completed individually only). This assignment will be either a theoretical question or a problem-based assignment and will be designed to assess your knowledge and understanding of selected unit concepts.
Relates to objectives: 1 - 6
Weight: 40%
Internal or external: Both
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: 18 January 2013

Assessment name: Examination
Description: The exam will contain real world problem-based scenarios. The problems may cover any topic area covered in the unit over the course of the semester. The exam links with objectives 1-6.
Relates to objectives: 1-6
Weight: 60%
Internal or external: Both
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Central Exam Period

Academic Honesty

QUT is committed to maintaining high academic standards to protect the value of its qualifications. To assist you in assuring the academic integrity of your assessment you are encouraged to make use of the support materials and services available to help you consider and check your assessment items. Important information about the university's approach to academic integrity of assessment is on your unit Blackboard site.

A breach of academic integrity is regarded as Student Misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties.

Resource materials

Prescribed Text
A Harland et al, Family Law Principles (Lawbook Co, Sydney: 2011).

Recommended Casebook
P Parkinson, Australian Family Law in Context (Lawbook Co, Sydney: 5th ed REVISED, 2012).

Recommended References
The Workbook will be used in lectorials as a focus for unit content and learning activities. You will be expected to complete the readings and activities set out in the Workbook. There is also a Blackboard site for this unit, and readings will also be provided on the CMD, subject to the limitations of copyright laws.

Relevant legislation

Family Law Act 1975(Cth)
Family Law Rules 2004 (Cth)
Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989 (Cth)
Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 (Cth)
Marriage Act 1961(Cth)
Property Law Act 1974 (Qld)
Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012 (Qld)
Child Protection Act 1999 (Qld)

Reference Texts
N Alexander and J Howieson, Negotiation: Strategy, Style and Skills (LexisNexis Butterworths, Sydney: 2010).
Laurence Boulle, Mediation: Principles, Process, Practice (LexisNexis Butterworths, Sydney: 3rd ed, 2011).
Laurence Boulle, and Nadja Alexandera, Mediation: Skills and Techniques (Lexis Nexis Butterworths, Sydney: 2nd ed, 2012).
Anthony Dickey, Australian Family Law (Thomson Lawbook Co, Sydney: 5th ed, 2007).
Belinda Fehlberg and Juliet Behrens, Australian Family Law: The Contemporary Context (Oxford University Press, Sydney: 2008).
Belinda Fehlberg and Juliet Behrens, Australian Family Law: The Contemporary Context Teaching Materials (Oxford University Press, Sydney: 2009).
Maree Livermore, Family Law Handbook (Lawbook Co, Sydney: 2nd ed, 2010).
Geoff Monahan and Lisa Young, Family Law in Australia (LexisNexis, Butterworths, Sydney: 7th ed, 2009).
Linda Fisher and Mieke Brandon, Mediating with Families (Lawbook Co, Sydney: 3rd ed,
Ury Fisher and William Patton, Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In (Penguin, New York: 3rd ed 2011).


Blackboard site
Online materials for the unit are available on the unit Blackboard site.

Risk assessment statement

There are no out of the ordinary risks associated with this unit.

Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of semester.

Last modified: 27-Sep-2012