LLB108 Law, Governance and Sustainability
To view more information for this unit, select Unit Outline from the list below. Please note the teaching period for which the Unit Outline is relevant.
| Unit code: | LLB108 |
|---|---|
| Prerequisite(s): | LLB101 (LLB101 can be studied concurrently with LLB108) |
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Timetable | Details in HiQ, if available |
| Availabilities |
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| CSP student contribution | $2,124 |
| Pre-2021 CSP student contribution | $1,663 The pre-2021 commonwealth supported place (CSP) contribution amount only applies to students enrolled in a course prior to 2021. To learn more, visit our Understanding your fees page. |
| Domestic tuition unit fee | $3,204 |
| International unit fee | $4,368 |
Unit Outline: Semester 2 2025, Gardens Point, Internal
| Unit code: | LLB108 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Pre-requisite: | LLB101 (LLB101 can be studied concurrently with LLB108) |
| Coordinator: | Monica Taylor | m242.taylor@qut.edu.au |
Overview
In this core unit, you will develop an understanding of sustainability as a fundamental principle of law and governance. You will apply legal problem solving and critical thinking skills that you are developing in other first year units to contemporary problems of domestic and global sustainability. A key focus of this unit is learning about public international law as a global system of rules to address transnational sustainability issues. This unit also prompts students to critically reflect on the role of the law and the legal profession in driving sustainability outcomes.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:
- Identify the role of law in local and global governance and regulation, including the limitations of law (CLOs 1.1, 1.5)
- Apply problem-solving skills to resolve sustainability issues using law, governance, regulation and policy (CLOs 1.4, 2.1, 2.2, 5.1)
- Critically analyse and reflect on sustainability principles, the role of law and the legal profession in achieving sustainable futures (CLOs 1.4, 1.5, 5.2)
- Write clearly and concisely to communicate legal concepts, critical analysis and reflection (CLOs 4.1)
Content
The content in this core unit is specifically designed to assist you to understand your role as a lawyer within diverse governance structures. Specific content includes:
- Introduction to sustainability, different sustainability discourses and sustainability case studies
- Types of governance, governance theories and principles of good governance
- Legal systems around the world
- Introduction to Public International Law, its subjects, and the role of international law in Australia
- Dispute resolution
Learning Approaches
This unit employs an active, blended and collaborative approach to learning.
It involves alternation between weekly lectures and online, self-led learning practice with live tutorials and podcasts, where you will learn from experts and your peers. The online component of the unit will require you to work through a set of weekly snapshots of unit material and formative learning activities.
At key, strategic points throughout the unit, you have the option of engaging in on campus, live lectures that facilitate discussion. In these lectures, you will be introduced to threshold concepts, unit content and assessment requirements. Tutorials will be based on collaborative discussions centred around legal problem solving for sustainability case studies, where you will be supported and engaged to develop core skills.
Your engagement and participation will include:
- Engagement with lectures or online content materials
- Weekly independent preparation for tutorials, including reading prescribed materials and reflecting on learning activities
- Active engagement in weekly collaborative tutorials, with attendance either in person or online.
- Discussions on Canvas
- Collaboration with peers in tutorials to share and enhance your understanding of your own, and other people’s perspectives
- Optional consultation with staff
Feedback on Learning and Assessment
Students are provided with feedback to assist their learning through the semester. Feedback in this unit is provided as follows:
- By participating in weekly interactive tutorials with your tutor and peers, and online discussion boards.
- Feedback on assessment via the completed Criteria Referenced Assessment rubric
- General written feedback will be provided on all assessment items.
- The option of private consultation with a member of the teaching team during assigned consultation hours.
Assessment
Overview
The assessment in this unit consists of a written advice, and an exam.
Students may be required to attend campus or an assessment centre for the purposes of assessment, regardless of the attendance mode for the unit.
Unit Grading Scheme
7- point scale
Assessment Tasks
Assessment: Legal Advice
Acting as a lawyer, you will prepare a written advice for the partner of a hypothetical law firm based on a complex fact scenario. You will identify a key legal, governance, or regulatory issue relating to sustainability, drawing on relevant scholarship and law or regulation. Your advice should apply these insights to the client’s specific context.
Assessment: Examination
You will undertake a written examination that will assess your understanding of the unit content, including relevant law, theories, and legal systems, as well as a reflective exercise on your role as a lawyer in a given sustainability context.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.
The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.
You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.
Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.
Resources
There is no prescribed textbook for this unit, weekly readings will be provided via QUT Readings.
Risk Assessment Statement
There are no unusual risks in this unit.
Course Learning Outcomes
This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.LW38 Bachelor of Laws (Honours)
- The essential principles and doctrines of Australian law and the Australian legal system
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination - The role of law in achieving sustainable futures
Relates to: ULO2, Legal Advice, Examination - The application, operation and evolution of law in diverse, changing and global contexts
Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, ULO3, Legal Advice, Examination - Using legal reasoning and critical thinking in applying law to legal problems and providing legal advice
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination - Thinking creatively to resolve disputes and address clients’ needs, taking into account legal and non-legal considerations
Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Legal Advice, Examination - Applying critical perspectives, including theoretical, cultural and social perspectives, to evaluate law and policy
Relates to: ULO2, Legal Advice - Knowing and using academic and legal writing conventions and communicating clearly, concisely and persuasively in written forms
Relates to: ULO4, Legal Advice, Examination - Using effective oral, visual or other professional communication in diverse contexts
Relates to: Legal Advice - Making professional and ethical judgements
Relates to: ULO1, ULO4, Examination - Reflecting on feedback, experience and career development
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination
LW39 Bachelor of Laws (Honours) (Graduate Entry)
- The essential principles and doctrines of Australian law and the Australian legal system
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination - The role of law in achieving sustainable futures
Relates to: ULO2, Legal Advice, Examination - The application, operation and evolution of law in diverse, changing and global contexts
Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, ULO3, Legal Advice, Examination - Using legal reasoning and critical thinking in applying the law to legal problems and providing legal advice
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination - Thinking creatively to resolve disputes and address clients’ needs, taking into account legal and non-legal considerations
Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Legal Advice, Examination - Applying critical perspectives, including theoretical, cultural and social perspectives, to evaluate law and policy
Relates to: ULO2, Legal Advice - Knowing and using academic and legal writing conventions and communicating clearly, concisely and persuasively in written forms
Relates to: ULO4, Legal Advice, Examination - Using effective oral, visual and other professional communication in diverse contexts
Relates to: Legal Advice - Making professional and ethical judgements
Relates to: ULO1, ULO4, Examination - Reflecting on feedback, experience and career development
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination
Unit Outline: Semester 2 2025, Online
| Unit code: | LLB108 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Pre-requisite: | LLB101 (LLB101 can be studied concurrently with LLB108) |
Overview
In this core unit, you will develop an understanding of sustainability as a fundamental principle of law and governance. You will apply legal problem solving and critical thinking skills that you are developing in other first year units to contemporary problems of domestic and global sustainability. A key focus of this unit is learning about public international law as a global system of rules to address transnational sustainability issues. This unit also prompts students to critically reflect on the role of the law and the legal profession in driving sustainability outcomes.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:
- Identify the role of law in local and global governance and regulation, including the limitations of law (CLOs 1.1, 1.5)
- Apply problem-solving skills to resolve sustainability issues using law, governance, regulation and policy (CLOs 1.4, 2.1, 2.2, 5.1)
- Critically analyse and reflect on sustainability principles, the role of law and the legal profession in achieving sustainable futures (CLOs 1.4, 1.5, 5.2)
- Write clearly and concisely to communicate legal concepts, critical analysis and reflection (CLOs 4.1)
Content
The content in this core unit is specifically designed to assist you to understand your role as a lawyer within diverse governance structures. Specific content includes:
- Introduction to sustainability, different sustainability discourses and sustainability case studies
- Types of governance, governance theories and principles of good governance
- Legal systems around the world
- Introduction to Public International Law, its subjects, and the role of international law in Australia
- Dispute resolution
Learning Approaches
This unit employs an active, blended and collaborative approach to learning.
It involves alternation between weekly lectures and online, self-led learning practice with live tutorials and podcasts, where you will learn from experts and your peers. The online component of the unit will require you to work through a set of weekly snapshots of unit material and formative learning activities.
At key, strategic points throughout the unit, you have the option of engaging in on campus, live lectures that facilitate discussion. In these lectures, you will be introduced to threshold concepts, unit content and assessment requirements. Tutorials will be based on collaborative discussions centred around legal problem solving for sustainability case studies, where you will be supported and engaged to develop core skills.
Your engagement and participation will include:
- Engagement with lectures or online content materials
- Weekly independent preparation for tutorials, including reading prescribed materials and reflecting on learning activities
- Active engagement in weekly collaborative tutorials, with attendance either in person or online.
- Discussions on Canvas
- Collaboration with peers in tutorials to share and enhance your understanding of your own, and other people’s perspectives
- Optional consultation with staff
Feedback on Learning and Assessment
Students are provided with feedback to assist their learning through the semester. Feedback in this unit is provided as follows:
- By participating in weekly interactive tutorials with your tutor and peers, and online discussion boards.
- Feedback on assessment via the completed Criteria Referenced Assessment rubric
- General written feedback will be provided on all assessment items.
- The option of private consultation with a member of the teaching team during assigned consultation hours.
Assessment
Overview
The assessment in this unit consists of a written advice, and an exam.
Students may be required to attend campus or an assessment centre for the purposes of assessment, regardless of the attendance mode for the unit.
Unit Grading Scheme
7- point scale
Assessment Tasks
Assessment: Legal Advice
Acting as a lawyer, you will prepare a written advice for the partner of a hypothetical law firm based on a complex fact scenario. You will identify a key legal, governance, or regulatory issue relating to sustainability, drawing on relevant scholarship and law or regulation. Your advice should apply these insights to the client’s specific context.
Assessment: Examination
You will undertake a written examination that will assess your understanding of the unit content, including relevant law, theories, and legal systems, as well as a reflective exercise on your role as a lawyer in a given sustainability context.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.
The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.
You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.
Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.
Resources
There is no prescribed textbook for this unit, weekly readings will be provided via QUT Readings.
Risk Assessment Statement
There are no unusual risks in this unit.
Course Learning Outcomes
This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.LW38 Bachelor of Laws (Honours)
- The essential principles and doctrines of Australian law and the Australian legal system
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination - The role of law in achieving sustainable futures
Relates to: ULO2, Legal Advice, Examination - The application, operation and evolution of law in diverse, changing and global contexts
Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, ULO3, Legal Advice, Examination - Using legal reasoning and critical thinking in applying law to legal problems and providing legal advice
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination - Thinking creatively to resolve disputes and address clients’ needs, taking into account legal and non-legal considerations
Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Legal Advice, Examination - Applying critical perspectives, including theoretical, cultural and social perspectives, to evaluate law and policy
Relates to: ULO2, Legal Advice - Knowing and using academic and legal writing conventions and communicating clearly, concisely and persuasively in written forms
Relates to: ULO4, Legal Advice, Examination - Using effective oral, visual or other professional communication in diverse contexts
Relates to: Legal Advice - Making professional and ethical judgements
Relates to: ULO1, ULO4, Examination - Reflecting on feedback, experience and career development
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination
LW39 Bachelor of Laws (Honours) (Graduate Entry)
- The essential principles and doctrines of Australian law and the Australian legal system
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination - The role of law in achieving sustainable futures
Relates to: ULO2, Legal Advice, Examination - The application, operation and evolution of law in diverse, changing and global contexts
Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, ULO3, Legal Advice, Examination - Using legal reasoning and critical thinking in applying the law to legal problems and providing legal advice
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination - Thinking creatively to resolve disputes and address clients’ needs, taking into account legal and non-legal considerations
Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Legal Advice, Examination - Applying critical perspectives, including theoretical, cultural and social perspectives, to evaluate law and policy
Relates to: ULO2, Legal Advice - Knowing and using academic and legal writing conventions and communicating clearly, concisely and persuasively in written forms
Relates to: ULO4, Legal Advice, Examination - Using effective oral, visual and other professional communication in diverse contexts
Relates to: Legal Advice - Making professional and ethical judgements
Relates to: ULO1, ULO4, Examination - Reflecting on feedback, experience and career development
Relates to: Legal Advice, Examination