78173 Dispute Resolution in Civil Practice

6cp
Requisite(s): (79771 Dispute Resolution AND 78101c Postgraduate Legal Research) OR ((22 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C07122 Graduate Diploma Legal Studies OR 22 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04147 Master of Legal Studies OR 22 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C07074 Graduate Diploma Legal Studies OR 22 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04264 Master of Legal Studies) AND 79771 Dispute Resolution) OR (70107c Principles of Company Law AND 79771 Dispute Resolution AND (94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04236 Juris Doctor OR 142 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04250 Juris Doctor Master of Business Administration) AND 70106c Principles of Public International Law) OR (94 credit points of completed study in spk(s): C04320 Juris Doctor Graduate Certificate Professional Legal Practice AND 70106 Principles of Public International Law)
The lower case 'c' after the subject code indicates that the subject is a corequisite. See definitions for details.
These requisites may not apply to students in certain courses.
There are course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.
Anti-requisite(s): 78172 Dispute Resolution in Civil Practice

Description

Civil disputes come in many different forms, from arguments between neighbours to personal injury and negligence to contractual issues to tenancy problems to appeals from administrative decisions to petitions for equitable relief, to name just a few. To assist the overburdened courts in achieving the overriding purpose of Australian civil justice – the just, quick and cheap resolution of the real issues in dispute – a range of alternative processes have arisen.

This subject focuses on the role of commissions and tribunals in providing access to justice in tandem with the traditional adversarial system of litigation. Conciliation, 'concilio-arb', arbitration and other hybrid processes as well as mediation, particularly in the context of the civil justice system are investigated. The impact of dispute resolution on the formal adversarial system is assessed and the interface of the informal and formal systems is examined. The subject also considers the effect of the formal systems on the less formal dispute resolution processes.

Students study state and federal processes as well as developments internationally. They investigate the theory and practice of civil dispute resolution and learn practical skills to assist in preparing and guiding clients through these processes. Through interactive lectures, videos, discussions and presentations by expert guest lecturers, these developments are studied in the context of changing legal culture and the demand for alternatives that provide effective, accessible, cost efficient and ethical methods for dealing with civil disputes. Students further develop their disciplinary knowledge and communication skills through a research paper and a seminar presentation on a selected topic in civil dispute resolution.

Detailed subject description.