Year
2024Credit points
10Campus offering
Prerequisites
LAWS104 Foundations of Law and Legal Research AND LAWS105 Contract Law
Teaching organisation
4 hours per week for twelve weeks or equivalent.Unit rationale, description and aim
This level four unit contributes to the development of:
- advanced theoretical and technical knowledge in the field of Administrative Law
- advanced, cognitive, technical and communication skills and the ability to apply these to complex Administrative law problems
- advanced research and writing skills
Learning outcomes
To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.
Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.
Explore the graduate capabilities.
| Learning Outcome Number | Learning Outcome Description | Relevant Graduate Capabilities |
|---|---|---|
| LO1 | Outline the theory and economics considerations relating to consumer protection | GC1, GC2, GC8 |
| LO2 | Describe and critically evaluate the approach taken to consumer protection in Australia | GC1, GC7, GC8 |
| LO3 | Describe and critically evaluate the provisions of the ACL dealing with abuse of a dominant position, unfair business practices, product safety, consumer guarantees, manufacturers' liability | GC8, GC11 |
| LO4 | Describe and critically evaluate the criminal provisions of the ACL and the rights and remedies of consumers | GC7, GC8 |
Content
Topics will include:
- Why the need for consumer protection?
- The limitations of the common law in relation to consumer protection
- Misleading and Deceptive Conduct
- Statutory Unconscionability.
- Unfair Contract Terms
- Consumer guarantees
- Product safety
- Consumer rights and remedies
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
Mode: Lectures, tutorials, electronic consultation, library tasks and presentations or Online lectures and activities.
Duration: 3 hours per week over 12 weeks or equivalent. Students are expected to spend 150 hours in total for this unit.
This level four elective unit allows students to demonstrate knowledge, skills and understanding in a specialist area of law using more advanced research skills.
Our strategy is to encourage students to creatively engage with unit content and to practice advanced research skills.
The unit is designed to be delivered in intensive, weekly or online. We have taken a multimodal learning approach to provide accessibility and flexibility to our students and a student-focused approach that increases depth of learning and engagement through actively utilising Canvas.
Assessment strategy and rationale
The assessment strategy is designed to assess knowledge, skills and understanding in a specialist area of law, and to develop research capacity.
The assessment tasks for this unit are designed to demonstrate achievement of each of the learning outcomes listed.
The number and weighting of the assessments has been approved in accordance with 5.2 of the ACU Assessment Policy.
Overview of assessments
| Brief Description of Kind and Purpose of Assessment Tasks | Weighting | Learning Outcomes | Graduate Capabilities |
|---|---|---|---|
Research essay: Students to demonstrate their ability to research assigned topic and critically evaluate legal systems and laws | 50% | LO1, LO2, LO3 | GC1, GC2, GC7, GC8, GC11 |
Final Assignment: The Final Assignment requires students to answer hypothetical problems and short answer questions that will be based on the material presented in lectures and tutorials. | 50% | LO3, LO4 | GC7, GC8, GC11 |
Representative texts and references
Bruce, Alex, Consumer Protection in Australia (4 Ed, LexisNexis, 2022)
Coorey, Adrian, Australian Consumer Law - The Comprehensive Guide (Jurisprudentia, 2021)
Corones, Stephen, The Australian Consumer Law (5 Ed, Lawbook Co, 2023)
Erbackher, Sharon and Clarke, Philip, Australian Consumer Law: Commentary and Materials (Lawbook Co, 2022)
Lockhart, Colin, The Law of Misleading or Deceptive Conduct (LexisNexis, 2023)
Miller, Russell, Miller's Australian Competition and Consumer Law Annotated (Thomson Reuters, 2024)
Steinwall, Ray, Annotated Competition and Consumer Legislation (LexisNexis, 2024)